9.23.2011

US Sour Beer Guide: Sour, Brett, and Funk Beers of the US



Belgian is the king of Sour beers.... at least that's what I thought before doing some research on Breweries in the US that are diving into the barrel of funky, sour, and brett beers!  Yes Belgian is king when it comes to sheer volume, consistency, quality, and taste.  But sour beer is definitely picking up steam in the US.  

I for one would love to be able to go to the liquor store and find a whole section of Sour or Brett beers made in the USA.   Supply definitely isn't keeping up with demand.  Case in point, last week I was at the Lost Abbey in San Marcos, California.   I was extremely stoked in anticipation to try some of their sour offerings.  I walked up to their taps and bottles and to my dismay couldn't find a single sour beer available.  Yes their other offering are amazing, both from The Lost Abbey and the Pizza Port.  But with almost 1500 Barrels full of sour beer across the street in their warehouse, clearly the supply is not able to keep up with the demand.   The US market mainly is in "experimentation mode" with their sour beer production.   Only a few breweries in the US are consistently putting out sour beer with most of the beers produced being "one offs" never to be seen again and drank by a select few.  Right now Belgian is an extremely mature market while the US is in it's infancy.  It'll be interesting to see the US sour beer market mature! 


If you haven't tried any of these wild beers, I highly recommend it as they can be some of the most unique, refreshing, tart, complex, amazing beverages you will ever try in your life. Think tart apples, grapes, wine, tart cherries, and refreshing fruit


Allagash Brewing Co. The Grumpy Troll Restaurant and Brewery


Confluence Ginger Tart
Gargamel Cherry Brew
Interlude Peach
Larry Raspberry
Vagabond Sunshine
Victor Francenstein
Avance Goose Island Beer Company
Coolship Cerise
Coolship Red Juliet
Coolship Resurgam Sofie
Indigenuts Amara
Mattina Rossa Athena
Vrienden Blackberry Dominique
Kinison Bourbon Barrel Aged Lolita
Little Big Beer Bourbon Barrel Aged Sour Raspberry Matilda
My Other Brother Daryl Cherry Dominique

Dominique
The Alchemist Pub & Brewery Grapefruit Sofie

Lolita
Bacchus Madame Rose
Celia Framboise Mae
Mis-information Pepe Claussenii
Petit Mutant Pepe Nero
Whonky Pomegranate Juliet
Wild Child Sour Grapes

Sour Shimmy
Alpine Beer Company Wilder
Chez Monmee
Ichabod Ale 2009 Great Lakes Brewing Company
Ned

The Dalai Lambic Wild Ale
Arbor Brewing Company

Half Acre Beer Company
Brasserie Greff Kriek
Demetrius Barrel Aged Rainbow Rye
Flamboyant Wild Red Ale Pear Goss
Penumbra
Sodibo Barrel Aged Blond Ale (Sour Series) Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Special Reserve 2005
Velvet Hammer Cassis de Hill
Framboozled (Sour Series) Berliner Weiss

Du Armand
Avery  Flemish Red (Fred)

Framboise De Hill
Avery De Vogelbekdieren (The Platypus) Funkin
Dihos Dactylion Kriek De Hill
Dries Ellies Lambic De Hill - Unblended
15 Mondo
Brabant Oud Bruin
Dépuceleuse
Quinquepartite Ithaca Beer Company
Sui Generis
Eremita Brute
Immitis LeBleu
Meretrix Frute #1
Opus Altar Boy Frute #2

Geektoberfest
Ballast Point Brewing Company

Jackie O's Pub & Brewery
BC Hout
Beachwood Blend (Hout Series) Berliner Weiss
Gueuze (Hout Series) Brown Recluse

Cab Cherry Man
Bear Republic Brewing Co. Chunga's Old Bruin

Cuvee De Jackie
Cuvee De Bubba Dynamo Hum
Old Scoutter's Call of the Wild Funky South Paw
Prickly Pear Grizz Proto Blonde
Sotoyome Amber Pygmy Twilight
Sour Crazy Ivan Quincedence

The Grand Wazoo
Bell's Brewery Vulcan Faunus

When Life Gives You Lemons 
Wild One
Oarsman Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales


Boulevard Brewing Co. Bam Bière

Bam Noire
Saison-Brett Bam With Jasmine

Bamagranite
Bootlegger's Brewery Bambic

Baudelaire Ale Absurd
76 Barrel Aged Sour With Cherries Baudelaire IO
Blackberry Mother Pucker Belipago
Bluebonic Funk Biere De Goord
Fresh Lambic Bière De Mars
Kentucky Wild Bière De Mars - Grand Reserve
Knott Sour Lambic Calabaza Blanca
Lambic #1 Calabaza Blanca With Hibiscus Flowers
Lambic #1 with Kombucha Cultures Collababeire Special holiday Ale
Lambic #2 E.S.Bam
Lambic #3 Fuego Del Otono, Autumn Fire
Lambic #4 La Parcela
Lambic #5 La Roja
My Cherry Amour La Roja - Grand Reserve
Olallieberry Lambic Lambicus Dexterius
Olallieberry/ Acia Lambic Luciérnaga, The Firefly
Pink Funkasaurus Luciérnaga, The Firefly - Grand Reserve

Madrugada Obscura, Dark Dawn Stout
Brewery Ommegang Maracaibo Especial

Noel De Calabaza
Biere de Mars Oro De Calabaza
Ommegeddon Perseguidor
Rouge Project Greenleaf Heavy Nettle
Zuur Project Greenleaf Hummocky Lick Sumac Sensation

Raspimical
Brooklyn Brewery Roja De Kriek

Weizen Bam
Wild 1 Weizen Bam With Hibiscus Flowers
Brett Ops

Leelanau 
The Bruery

Golden Ale
Cuvee Jeune Whaleback White
Hottenroth Berliner Weiss Ptoskey Pale Ale
White Zin
100% Brett Autumn Maple Lift Bridge
BeRazzled
Blue Palms 3rd Anniversary Sour Raspberry Lambic
Bottleworks XII
Carmen With Cranberries Lost Abbey, The / Port Brewing Co.
Carmen With Raisins
Collaboration Series: ISO:FT  10 Commandments
Collaboration Series: Marron Acidifie Amazing Grace Ale
Gueze Style Ale with Blueberries Anti Ox
Kriek Cable Car
Oude Tart Carnevale
Oode Tart with Sour Cherries Cuvee de Tomme
Sour in the Rye Double Cherry Red Poppy
The Wanderer Double Cuvee De Tomme
Vitis Series: Pinotlambicus Double Raspberry Framboise De Amorosa

Duck Duck Gooze
Bullfrog Brewery Duck Duck Guava

Framboise de Amorosa
Beekeeper Isabelle Proximus
El Rojo Diablo Le Woody Brune
Frambozen Red Poppy Ale
Liquid Sunshine Reserva Just Another Barrel #2
Magic beans Saints Red Barn
BeeSting Gone Wild Russ
Busted Lawn Mower Kegs Gone Wild Sinners Blend 2010
Citra-Delic Wheat Gone Wild Soured Avant Garde
El Diable Deluxe Veritas 008
Hop Harvest 2009 Gone Wild Veritas 009
Inspiration Wild
SamO Blend #667 (aka The Neighbor of The Beast McKenzie Brew House
The Jaspers
Tim and Kathy's Strawberry Fields Black Et Bronzage
Water of Life Kegs Gone Wild Version Irma Extra
Wits End Gone Wild Tristessa


Cambridge Brewing Company Midnight Sun Brewing


Benevolence Pride
Berliner Kendall Open Container
Cerise Cassee American Sour Ale Whatever
Consternation
Creaky Bus New Belgium Brewing Inc.
Double Happiness
Honey Badger Lambic La Folie Wood Aged Beer
Kriek Du Cambridge 2009 Le Terroir
Nom De PlumPisser Mauvais Transatlantique Krie
Reckoning Black Folie
Resolution #9 Felix
Rose De Cambrinus Eric's Ale

Erics Ale Bourbon barrel Aged
Captain Lawrence Brewing Co Fall Wild Ale

Imperial Berliner Style Weisse
Barrel Select Batch 1 Vrienden
Cuvee de Castleton Love (Apple Whiskey Barrel Aged)
Flaming Fury Love (Blackberry Whiskey Barrel Aged)
Little Linda’s Liquid Love (Foeder #3)
Rosso e Marone Love (Peach Whiskey barrel Aged)
Funky Sour Cherry #2 Oscar
Gueze  Shadow of the Foudre
Saturday's Sour Blend 2011 Tart Lychee
Xtreme Blend 2011 Trip III

Trip VII
Cascade Brewing @ Raccoon Lodge Twisted Spoke 15th Anniversary


Apricot Ale New Glarus Brewing Co.
Blackberry Ale
Cuvee du Jongleur R & D Golden Ale
Kriek Ale Raspberry Tart
Nightfall Blackberry Unplugged - Berliner Weiss
Sang Royal Unplugged - Imperial Saison
The Vine Unplugged - Old English Porter
Vlad the Imp Aler R & D Bourbon Barrel Kreik
2011 Kriek Blend With Bourbon R & D Gueze
80 Shilling Sour Scottish Ale Unplugged Cranbic Ale
Apple Pie
Bahri Date Bain New Holland Brewing Co.
Barrel 323
Bourbon Belgium Quad Blue Sunday
Beck Berry Moxie Sour Ale
Blauw Van Der Jon Berry
Bourbonic Plague Odell Brewing Company
Cherry Gold Yeller
Funk II Saboteur
Gold Yeller Flagship in Oak
Noyeaux Friek
Sang Noir Hiveranno
Sang Rouge DeConstruction Golden Ale
Sang Royal Shenanigans
Spring Gose Sour Olde Ale
Straight Bourbonic The Revolution
Summer Gose Weiss Versa
Winter Gose
Bourbon Double Red W/Bourbicide Pizza Port / Port Brewing Company
Figaro
Flanders Red Le Woody Brune
Honey Ginger Lime Mo' Betta Bretta
Honey Ginger Rye Pizza Port Synergy
Lipsmacker Gose Synergy
Port Reserve
Pre-Bourbonic Russian River Brewing Company
Sweetartz
Vintage Red Beatification

Compunction
Cigar City Consecration
Grandma's Funky Sour Berry Deification
Guava Grove -Wild Depuration
Jolly Guava Deviation - Bottleworks 9th Anniversary
Vuja De Framboise For A Cure
Vuja De - Red Wine Barrel Aged Sanctification

Sour Pumkin
Cisco Brewers Inc. Supplication

Symposium Sour Brown Ale
Cherry Wood Temptation
Dark Woods Toronado 20th Anniversary Ale
Feral Barrel
Full and By Rye Saint Somewhere
Lady of the Woods
Monomoy Kriek Lectio Divina
Pechish Woods Lectio Du Chene
White Woods Pays Du Fleurs
Winter Woods Pays Du Soleil


Craftsman Brewing Co Santa Fe Brewing Company


El Prieto Sour black Ale Wild Ale #1
Extreme Braggot Wild Ale #2
Flanders Red Wild Ale #3
Honesty Ale Wild Ale #4
Sour Grapes Wild Ale #5
Summers End Sour Wild Ale #6 Bordeaux Barrel Series

Wild Ale #7 (Surf Mountain Sour)
Crooked Stave Artisan Beer Project

Sixpoint
Good Glory
Pure Guava Petite Sour Sour Diesel
Wild Wild Brett "Rouge"

Ska Brewing Co.
Dark Horse Brewing Company

Ska Sour
Lambeak Wants Peachy
Richard in Mouth W/ Kumquat Stillwater Artisanal Ales
Whiskey Richard Lambeak
Lambeak Wants Raspberry Red 33

Chardonnay Barrel-Ages Stateside Saison
Deschutes

Surly
The Dissident
Green Monster Pentagram
Solace Rose Five
Sour Cherry Porter

Telegraph Brewing Company
Dogfish Head Craft Brewery Gypsy Ale

Obscura Amber
Festina Pêche Obscura Arborea
Fungus Tea'Mungus Obscura Volpine
Midas Touchstone Petit Obscura
Goser The Gosarian Reserve Wheat Ale


Drake's Brewing Co. Trinity Brewing


Brett Butler Old Growth
Brett Soul Glow Sour Ale TPS Report
Brettamber Buddha Nova
Imperial Stout with Brett The Flavor
Bi-Pod
Chardi's Trippel Tröegs Brewing Company
Dark Diggler
FrankenBerry Splinter Blue
It's Fity Splinter Gold
Simian Sour Splinter Red
Tropic Thunder
Dark Duck Two Brothers Brewing Co.
Volte-Face
Wyld Stallyns 10

Askew
Dry Dock Brewing Co. Moaten

Public Domaine + 10
Apricot Lambic

Upland Brewing Company
Flat Earth Brewing

Blackberry Lambic
Extra Medium Blueberry Lambic
Rode Haring Cherry Lambic

Kiwi Lambic
Flossmoor Station Restaurant & Brewery Strawberry Lambic

Dantalion Dark Wild Ale
Candor Peach Lambic
Cranky Nate Persimmon Lambic
Decadence Raspberry Lambic
Kyra Festiv-Ale Sour Blend
Roselare Saison Valley Brewing Company
Rosie Pom

Calambic
Freetail Brewing Company Chelie Wonka

Decadence Grand Cru 2009
Ananke Dysfunktion Ale Part Deux
Ate Fat Freddy's Freaky Kriek
Bandito Olallieberry Sour
Bareliner Weisse Stockton Sour (Phil's Mild Wild)
Figgy Wood'n
Fortuna Roja White Birch Brewing
Self ReGarde
Solera (All Batch Numbers) Commemoration Ale
Solera Fin Barrel Aged Brewers Reserve American Wild Ale
Woodicus Elysium

Indomitus 
Funkwerks Morning Breaks

Night Falls
Wild Apricot Rye Four
Chardonnay Barrel Blonde Berliner Weiss
Bastille Haystack Havoc
Belgian Resistance Night Falls
Casper Wild AKA
Cherry Saison Wild Ale
Cochon
FC Collusion 2011 Weyerbacher
French Resistance
Hibiscus Resistance Riserva
Key Lime Rye Rapture
Maoir King
Saison Victory
White

Wild Devil
Grand Teton Brewing Co. Helios


Who's Brett??


***This list isn't complete and most of these beers you will never ever be able to get but it gives you an idea of what breweries are gettin their funk on!  If I'm missing a brewery that you love that makes Funky shit please let me know and I'll add it to the list. Eventually I'll have links and all sorts of good stuff on this page.

***Gotta give credit to Where The Wild Beers Are for starting me down this quest.  To create this post and compile this list, I originally looked at their list, and then realized I wanted to update and expand the US section which is what I have here.  Three years ago I attended this event in Minneapolis and it's created an acid beer obsession for me.   It's a great event that is held in October in Minneapolis.  If you get cold hanging outside at this event, just wrap yourself in a horses blanket and try not to shiver like a wet dog.   Cheers!

9.11.2011

Trip to San Diego...family time and West Coast beercation!


Just got back from an awesome, refreshing, weeks vacation visiting my brother and his family in North Park, San Diego.   Besides going to the beach, surfing, crashing a hotel pool downtown, more beach, San Diego Zoo, short trip to PB, and the strongest Margarita I've ever had at Ponce's, I also made time to check out The Lost Abbey/Pizza Port!  I know, you probably think that I should've checked out Stone and I probably should've.   But, I wanted to check out the barrels at The Lost Abbey!

I was hoping to taste a bunch of their sour beer and do a little reconnaissance on their Barrel Room!  This brewery has barrels stacked everywhere!  Although they have 1800 barrels filled to the brim and oozing with sour beer, there wasn't any sour beer to be had on this day.  Oh well.   I didn't realize that The Lost Abbey was only 5 years old.  Similar to my hometown hero Surly who is about 5 1/2.  There sour beer release's are much like any small brewery with exeptional beer.  When they bottle it, it goes fast and sits in peoples cellars or is drunk right away.   The Lost Abbey stores 1000-1200 barrels of sour beer across the parking lot in a warehouse...oh man I was pushing for someone to walk me through there, but it just wasn't happening.    Overall, this is an awesome brewery and i can't wait to eventually get my hands on some of their sours!



As soon as I convince my wife of it, I'm definitely going to be putting a huge wine barrel in our basement and aging sour beers in there.   It's gonna be quite the project, a huge risk (55 gallons of beer risk), but should be extremely educational.   As my first batch of Flanders Red is souring nicely on oak cubes, and my second batch is on it's way as well, the next logical step is to buy a huge wine barrel right?  I think so!  If you are even in the San Diego I highly recommend checking out The Lost Abbey!
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