Firestone Walker: Wild Beer Co: Violet Underground (England: Sour Ale: 5.5% ABV)
Visual: Hazy yellow to blond. Small off white bubbled head.
Nose: Tart raspberry and tayberries. Cider. Tart apples. Light horse blankets. Vanilla. Dried apricots.
Body: Sour grapes. Tayberry and tart raspberries. Acidic. Light apples. White wine.
Finish: Light oak. Sour grapes. Apples and cider. Raspberries. White wine. Chalk. Strawberry touch.
Conclusion: Ok, maybe my expectations were too high, but I expected more from a Firestone walker and Wild Beer collaboration. Not that this is bad, but over £10 a bottle I kind of expected a lot more.
It is hard to put my finger on what lets it down. Everything they have listed as an ingredient has an influence, the wine and oak notes, the Wild Beer Co traditional cider character trademark stylings, the berries from Firestone’s end. It is all there. It just doesn’t seem to add up to all that much. Just berry cider in oak. Not more that its parts is what I am saying. Sometimes the ingredients just don’t gel that way.
I’m wondering if what is throwing it off is something in the fizzy feel. Despite not being overly carbonated it feels fizzy texture wise, even in the finish. Beyond that it is even slightly chalky at that. The flavours are ok, I have decided, but the feel doesn’t really match which makes it hard to deliver the elements it should. Maybe a few years aging will sooth things out and integrate it better, but, again, at the cost it is, I’m not going to pay that much just to experiment with that.
So, an average sour that seems worse than that due to a mix of high expectations and cost. Not worth it at that price point.
Background: The Rainbow Project year 2! This year pairing a USA brewery with a UK one and giving them a rainbow color to base the beer on. Wild Beer Co always seem to get the hard colours, with violet this year. I love Wild Beer co, and Firestone Walker so anticipation was high for this one, though it was a tad expensive to grab, and from what I can tell there were more expensive places than where I bought it. Which was Independent Spirit, yes I know no one is surprised by that anymore. Drunk while listening to a bit of B.Dolan. – I’m not much of a hip hop fan but his stuff is great. Anyway this beer is a mix of Somerset Wild, a new Golden and Sunrise Raspberry Ale, fruit, candied violet petals and French oak aging.
