7

Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 7

2014 vintage into a taster showing dark amber with sparse white foam.

The nose shows lightly intense tart, earthy, and mossy notes.

The palate is moderately carbonated and medium bodied. Lightly tart with light flavors of peach and harmonious malt.

7.9

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7.5

Barrel aged ‘bière de mars’ (an originally 14th-century but now forgotten seasonal beer style from northern France, also called ‘bière de printemps’) by Hill Farmstead, one of their ‘ancestral’ beers, because Norma is the first name of the brewer’s maternal grandmother apparently. Medium thick, moussy, pale greyish white, stable head on a misty ruddy-bronze-tinged deep amber coloured robe (amber being the correct colour for bière de mars indeed). Aroma of pickled peaches, balsamico, redcurrant, sherry vinegar, old oxidized sparkling wine, old oak wood, oloroso sherry, passionfruit. Tart fruity onset, a bit lemony and slightly puckering at first, softening down further on, with notes of redcurrant, cranberry, medlar and passionfruit, over a vague touch of balsamic vinegar. Fizzy carbonation, supple body consisting of a hazelnutty and hard-caramelly malt character dried by lactic sourness, which retains its lively fruitiness throughout; woody tannins accentuate the drying effect even more, with these passionfruit, balsamic and sour red berry flavours lingering. Quite layered and elegant, with a strong retronasal effect of old oxidized (oloroso) sherry; they can call this a bière de mars and I am sure that is what it was like before it went into the barrel, but the bacterial microflora applied here has turned it into a sour ale – which, in combination with the nutty, darkish-amber malt character, has more in common with Flemish red (‘oud bruin’) than true French bière de mars. Regardless, this is a sophisticated sour ale by this famous yet somewhat elusive and fascinating craft brewer.

8

Hapu, tanniinine, puuviljane, kuiv, ploomine, happeline. Hea. 3.8.

8.1

Appearance - 7 | Aroma - 8.5 | Flavor - 8.5 | Texture - 7 | Overall - 8.5

Fairly hazy amber with an off white head. Aroma of oak, vinous notes, funk and tart white grapes. Flavour is moderate sweet and sour. Medium bodied with soft carbonation.

8.4

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8.5 | Flavor - 8.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5

Bottle at THT July. Hazy amber gradient with thin white head. Sour, grains, sour grapes, apricots. Rich fruity, firm sour. Medium body and soft carbonation.

8.4

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8.5 | Flavor - 8.5 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5

Bottle shared at THT July. Bit hazy amber with off white head. Red wine, soft caramel malts, red currants, light flowery, soft funk, light lactic. Almost medium sour, almost medium sweet too and light bitter. Solid medium bodied. Tasty.

9

Dry, barrel notes, very nice

8.3

Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 9

Big thanks to Bursprak for bringing the HF-goods :) Pours dark hazy orange with a thin white head. Aromas of vinegar, champagne-like notes, tart red berries, gooseberries, sweet esters, lots of funk, oak, leather. Taste is bretty, funky, tart red berries, dark malts, vinegar, earth, woody musty notes, leather. Not a style that can get me all fired up but pretty darn good anyway!