Brewdog: Wild Beer Co: Rosa Canina (England: Saison: 5.4% ABV)
Visual: Cloudy apricot to brown. Medium apricot touched thin head.
Nose: Elderberry. Menthol. Sweet green grapes. Chives. Rose bushes. Dried mint leaves. Vanilla. Rye bread. Dry wood. black pepper.
Body: Dried apricot. Dried mint. Vanilla yogurt. Dry wood. Brown bread. Sherbety froth feel at times. Muesli. pepper. Floral.
Finish: Oatmeal or maybe muesli. Dried fruit. Light lemon sherbet. Turmeric.
Conclusion: I love Brewdog beers. I love Wild beer Co beers. Wild Beer Co do awesome saisons. this is a saison. so…
Actually, this one is more interesting than awesome. Sorry guys. However it s very interesting. Everything is unusual here, even the aroma feels thick, almost muesli like, and rose touched. How does that even work? There is a huge mix of flavours that you would not expect in a beer, yet delivered in a way where it all feels integrated.
It uses a whole ton of grounding notes, so you end up with what feels like a very earthy rustic saison, thick with that muesli and oatmeal imagery going on inside, but it uses that alongside very floral notes and mix of dried fruit and vanilla sweetness. It is like it wants to make sure it is well earthed for all the odd tricks it is going to pull.
It calls to a mix of saison, and also to those pre hops traditional ales. The ones where they had to use other ingredients to provide the bitterness. Odd, as saisons are often very hop dominated – anyway they mix to create a lightly sour, earthy and interesting beer, but not one with any handle for ease of access and enjoyment.
So all that way a very long way around to basically repeat what I said in the opening. More interesting than awesome. Still it is very interesting and very complex. but not one I think I will return to.
Background: Collabfest 2014! The second beer! This one is brewed between my local, Brewdog Bristol, and the ever awesome Wild Beer Co. It is a saison brewed with rosehip, rose petals and rosemary. As ever at these fests I was taking my time, reading a bit of Iain M Bank’s “Against A Dark Background” and drinking some water. Pacing myself basically. The Wild Beer guys turned up later on, and did a bit of a chat, which is always awesome. Thanks guys. Sorry to have to use the photo on an only middling review when you have so many awesome beers.
