One of the more interesting wild ales I've had recently is Brewery Vivant's (out of Grand Rapids, MI) Escoffier. They're brand new to the market and I'm not sure if this beer is a year-round, or if Chicago got a bunch as part of the initial roll-out. I would definitely pick up a 4-pack (16oz. cans; not inexpensive at $16, at least to me, it being an unknown) now while they're still around, just in case. The commercial description seems pretty spot-on to me:
This beer displays our Farmhand yeast and a wild yeast from New Belgium's brewery called Brettanomyces. Expect a brew that is somewhat dry and malt forward with the "horse blanket" funkiness synonymous with brett. This beer will only get better with time, and cellar well for years to come.

A friend of mine who loves lambics and guezes didn't really enjoy this one -- it's definitely more funk than tartness/sourness, though there's some fruity flavors at the finish. The release was pretty wide -- Whole Foods, Binny's and better liquor stores should have them in stock. They have a few other beers right now though the only one I've tried was their Belgian IPA, Triomphe. Not sour at all and, quite frankly, not very good. It tasted very muddy and flat (flavor-wise, not carbonation).

Great new brewery. I've been drinking this stuff on tap in Benton Harbor at the Ideal Place, a swell bar down the street from the Livery, a swell brewery. The Vivant gastro-pub in Grand Rapids is supposed to be phenomenal, too. Sure looks good: http://www.breweryvivant.com/index.php/ ... /the-menu/ Founder's deli and the restaurant at New Holland are very solid, but this seems like a much more ambitious dining effort.

The Western Michigan beer scene is very mature and exceptional in its diversity and quality these days, plus the brew pubs are bringing a freshness to the restaurant scenes in places like GR and that just wasn't there before.

If you are in GR or anywhere close, I'd highly recommend a stop at Vivant. Only had a few things off the food menu (escargot and sweetbreads), but they were pretty phenomenal....this was our 5th brewery of the day though. The pub is in an old church and they have huge wooden tables. Feels like you are in Harry Potter of Game of Thrones.

Finally got to try a cuvee de jacobins rouge. SOUR! Very clean, very crisp, and very sour. This one might work well with some funky Thai food. It was a lemony, citrusy sour, not musty, very clean. Not sure I could handle a bottle by itself. With some snacks or food, yes.

New Belgium's 2013 La Folie is floating around stores now. It's a great beer for people into Rondenbach style sours. Maybe even a little more tart. I bought a couple a will hold on to one to see if it mellows a little.

There are some interesting notes and comments about sour beers at the end of Mark Garrison's More Sour to You, over at Slate.com:

Chefs are helping drive that kind of growth. With high-end restaurants now expected to put as much thought into their beer selections as their wine list, stocking sour beers is a way to stand out and open doors to new and interesting pairings. “I make sour beers for a living, but I don’t go home and slam four pints,” says Andy Parker, whose Avery Brewing Company business card bears the title “barrel herder.” “I break open a really good sour beer when I have friends over for dinner. They’re very good for food pairings.”

=R=

During my weekend visit to Wisconsin for a wedding, I did my habitual pickup of New Glarus. This is the first time I saw their Wild Sour Ale, and regret only buying a four-pack, especially given how fast they tend to turn over their offerings and the limited likelihood of me finding it on my September trip to the Badger state. I am quite fond of most of the NG fruit beers, my favorite being the apple ale, with Raspberry Tart and Serendipity also to my liking. I picked up a 1 pint, 9 oz bottle of Strawberry Rhubarb, thinking it would go well with our Beatles-themed potluck at Millennium Park tomorrow, but am now leaning toward keeping it at home and bringing wine.

Smassey wrote:During my weekend visit to Wisconsin for a wedding, I did my habitual pickup of New Glarus. This is the first time I saw their Wild Sour Ale, and regret only buying a four-pack, especially given how fast they tend to turn over their offerings and the limited likelihood of me finding it on my September trip to the Badger state. I am quite fond of most of the NG fruit beers, my favorite being the apple ale, with Raspberry Tart and Serendipity also to my liking. I picked up a 1 pint, 9 oz bottle of Strawberry Rhubarb, thinking it would go well with our Beatles-themed potluck at Millennium Park tomorrow, but am now leaning toward keeping it at home and bringing wine.

I'm heading up north in a week or so. I'll make sure to grab some of these - esp. the Wild Sour, but they all sound interesting, hopefully not too sweet. I always make a stop at thte Woodman's not too far over the border. They have a pretty big selection of NG products, and I kinda dig the Spotted Cow. They have something called "naked" something or other that might be up my alley as well, but I'm definitely gonna try those you've mentioned if I can find em. Thanks for posting this.

Sours are hit or miss for me. I hate Rodenbach (even though its supposed to be one of the best in the world) and I am not a fan of a lot of the Jolly Pumpkin beers (they are well known for sours).

The New Glarus Wild Sour is one of the best I've had. It reminded me of their 2010 Enigma Sour Brown (as opposed to the 2012 Enigma, which I didn't like at all). Nicely balanced and enough body to offset some of the sourness, this is one of my favorite New Glarus limited release beers. They also have a Berliner Weisse, which is also sour (as opposed to a traditional Weiss).

I first had this style at Parkside 23 in Brookfield, Wisconsin. It was a very limited Lakefront Release called Checkpoint Charlie and they paired it with some special cherry syrup that was specially made by Milwaukee's Bittercube for this beer. I loved the interplay between the sour yeastiness of the Berliner Weiss and the sweet cherry syrup.

I like the New Glarus version on its own but just for comparison's sake I used some homemade cherry bounce (made with Door County Cherries) and it was delicious as well, just a tad boozier than had I used syrup.

If you like the Wild Sour, definitely check out the Berliner Weisse

Rodenbach is incredibly inconsistent in the US. My first taste of one was very sour and crisp, and I fell in love with the style based on that. In the past 20 drinks - small bottles, big bottles, on tap, regular, grand cru - I swear at least 8 were flat, not very sour and dead. If I'd started with one of those clunkers, I might not have ever tried another sour. I like most Jolly Pumpkin stuff, but New Glarus (whose Spotted Cow I see as fine but overrated in the same way as Bell's Oberon) really kills it with the sours. The basic Belgian Red made with local Montmorency (sour) cherries is always a sweet n' sour treat. http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/new-glarus ... -red/7688/

i've never had a bad bottle of Rodenbach grand cru but i'll have to look for some of those New Glarus sours if and when I ever make it up to WI.

seebee wrote:I'm heading up north in a week or so. I'll make sure to grab some of these - esp. the Wild Sour, but they all sound interesting, hopefully not too sweet. I always make a stop at thte Woodman's not too far over the border. They have a pretty big selection of NG products, and I kinda dig the Spotted Cow. They have something called "naked" something or other that might be up my alley as well, but I'm definitely gonna try those you've mentioned if I can find em. Thanks for posting this.

eatwisconsin wrote:Sours are hit or miss for me. I hate Rodenbach (even though its supposed to be one of the best in the world) and I am not a fan of a lot of the Jolly Pumpkin beers (they are well known for sours).

The New Glarus Wild Sour is one of the best I've had. It reminded me of their 2010 Enigma Sour Brown (as opposed to the 2012 Enigma, which I didn't like at all). Nicely balanced and enough body to offset some of the sourness, this is one of my favorite New Glarus limited release beers. They also have a Berliner Weisse, which is also sour (as opposed to a traditional Weiss).
If you like the Wild Sour, definitely check out the Berliner Weisse

Thank you both for the tips. A few people recently, and on LTH, have mentioned Woodman's as a good source for craft beers, so I'll have to be more attentive to this. Usually I stop at smaller spots, and Mars Cheese Castle always has a good selection of New Glarus. My husband and I have joked that, in our mid-forties, we are too old to have three weddings in one summer, yet that's our journey in 2013, and they are all in Wisconsin. In June, we picked up the Berliner Weiss, Spotted Cow, Edel Pils, Black Top, and Naked, plus Hinterland Maple Bock. Eatwisconsin described the profile of the Berliner much better than I could, and I agree with every word. The Naked was my least favorite, yet not their fault, as it matched the promise of "simple unadorned flavor"; I guess I just prefer complex and adorned.

The apple ale was a gift last fall, and seemed to be a very limited release. It was recommended to me to mix it with bourbon (he knew I'm originally from Kentucky), and while I see why it was a good match, I preferred each beverage on its own. The same guy brought me Central Waters' Bourbon Barrel Peruvian Stout, which I believe he waited in line and begged for, and his efforts were greatly appreciated. If you ever see this, grab it!

Pretty much any Central Waters Specialty beer (Peruvian Stout, Bourbon Barrel Barleywine, Bourbon Barrel Scotch Ale, Illumination IPA) are outstanding. Not a fan of their standard line up (they are good, just not exceptional) but the Brewers Reserve is some of the best beer coming out of Wisconsin.

I stopped in at Woodman's Kenosha earlier today and thought their selection of sours was just ok. Yes, they had the New Glarus large-format Raspberry Tart and Strawberry Rhubarb (I bought one of each and have yet to try either) but were out of the Wild Sour. As for their other sour offerings, they pale in comparison to my local Binny's.

As for Rodenbach, they release annual vintages, the Grand Cru and an ale. I find that with all of them, when they're on, they're on but they can sometimes be overly sweet or even have a metallic aftertaste. In my experience, the annual vintages tend to vary the most, which kind of makes sense to me.

=R=

ronnie_suburban wrote:I stopped in at Woodman's Kenosha earlier today and thought their selection of sours was just ok. Yes, they had the New Glarus large-format Raspberry Tart and Strawberry Rhubarb (I bought one of each and have yet to try either) but were out of the Wild Sour. As for their other sour offerings, they pale in comparison to my local Binny's.

As for Rodenbach, they release annual vintages, the Grand Cru and an ale. I find that with all of them, when they're on, they're on but they can sometimes be overly sweet or even have a metallic aftertaste. In my experience, the annual vintages tend to vary the most, which kind of makes sense to me.

=R=

I get the feeling that you may find the New Glarus to be way over the top on the sweetness, and a candy fruit flavor. They have quite a fan base, and high ratings, but I personally find them to be repulsive. I'm told they use lots of real fruit in each batch but to me they each taste strongly of a fake candy fruit flavor.

ronnie_suburban wrote:I stopped in at Woodman's Kenosha earlier today and thought their selection of sours was just ok. Yes, they had the New Glarus large-format Raspberry Tart and Strawberry Rhubarb (I bought one of each and have yet to try either) but were out of the Wild Sour. As for their other sour offerings, they pale in comparison to my local Binny's.

=R=

Yes, Woodman's only has a FEW sours, really. I wouldn't even call it 'ok' compared to a Binny's, but they do always have a Goudenband, a Petrus, and a Douchesse for me. I go to Woodman's for New Glarus. And, as laikom wrote, some of those New Glarus big bottle fruit flavored beers are REALLY sweet. I tried one once about 5 years ago, and was repulsed. No idea which one I tried, but now I'm interested in the strawberry rhubarb one, hoping it will have some real tartness to it.

laikom wrote:

ronnie_suburban wrote:I stopped in at Woodman's Kenosha earlier today and thought their selection of sours was just ok. Yes, they had the New Glarus large-format Raspberry Tart and Strawberry Rhubarb (I bought one of each and have yet to try either) but were out of the Wild Sour. As for their other sour offerings, they pale in comparison to my local Binny's.

As for Rodenbach, they release annual vintages, the Grand Cru and an ale. I find that with all of them, when they're on, they're on but they can sometimes be overly sweet or even have a metallic aftertaste. In my experience, the annual vintages tend to vary the most, which kind of makes sense to me.

=R=

I get the feeling that you may find the New Glarus to be way over the top on the sweetness, and a candy fruit flavor. They have quite a fan base, and high ratings, but I personally find them to be repulsive. I'm told they use lots of real fruit in each batch but to me they each taste strongly of a fake candy fruit flavor.

Tried the New Glarus Strawberry Rhubarb today and am sorry to report I agree with Laikom on this matter. I generally like sweet (and malty, or caramelly, if those are words) beer, and this was way over the top and unbalanced. I was hoping the tartness of the rhubarb would soften the sweetness of the strawberry and it didn't happen. It was made palatable when paired with an herbed watermelon ice. The beer reminded me of the strawberry soap my mom sent me at summer camp almost 40 years ago, long before liquid soap was popular, to encourage me to shower more! Oh well, it was still fun to try.

I haven't even tried the strawberry rhubarb one, but if it's worse than the others I definitely won't be giving it a taste. I have tried the apple, cherry and raspberry and would not categorize them as sours. They may be wild beers as the base (i'm not sure) but they just taste like fruit soda pop to me with an artificial quality which you nailed as scented liquid soap. beeradvocate and ratebeer both categorize them as fruit beers, not wilds.

laikom wrote:I haven't even tried the strawberry rhubarb one, but if it's worse than the others I definitely won't be giving it a taste. I have tried the apple, cherry and raspberry and would not categorize them as sours. They may be wild beers as the base (i'm not sure) but they just taste like fruit soda pop to me with an artificial quality which you nailed as scented liquid soap. beeradvocate and ratebeer both categorize them as fruit beers, not wilds.

Yes, I was aware I was getting off topic and at some point probably should have split off to a New Glarus thread. Thanks for getting us back on track. I'm leaving Wisconsin and returning to Belgium for my sours!

Smassey wrote:

laikom wrote:I haven't even tried the strawberry rhubarb one, but if it's worse than the others I definitely won't be giving it a taste. I have tried the apple, cherry and raspberry and would not categorize them as sours. They may be wild beers as the base (i'm not sure) but they just taste like fruit soda pop to me with an artificial quality which you nailed as scented liquid soap. beeradvocate and ratebeer both categorize them as fruit beers, not wilds.

Yes, I was aware I was getting off topic and at some point probably should have split off to a New Glarus thread. Thanks for getting us back on track. I'm leaving Wisconsin and returning to Belgium for my sours!

The fruit beers that New Glarus releases in 750mL bottles are not sours, but they do produce great sours in very limited quantities. As mentioned above, their Thumbprint series has been killing it (Wild Sour, Enigma, Berliner Weisse). They also release R&D beers about once a year and almost all of those have been sours. At their latest release this past weekend, Dan Carey spoke to the crowd about the history, process/present, and future of New Glarus sour brewing. These R&D beers have been very small batch (only a few barrels), but they are expanding their old brewery to brew sours in much larger quantities. So I wouldn't turn my back on Wisconsin just yet.

Trying my first Lolita right now. The words "barnyard funk" finally make sense. Not sure if I like it, but I'm on my third glass. Got it for 16 bux from Costco, not sure I'd pay that much for it. I might have seen it for 6.99 at the Costco in Grafton, Wi. Maybe at that price I'd re-invest.

seebee wrote:Trying my first Lolita right now. The words "barnyard funk" finally make sense. Not sure if I like it, but I'm on my third glass. Got it for 16 bux from Costco, not sure I'd pay that much for it. I might have seen it for 6.99 at the Costco in Grafton, Wi. Maybe at that price I'd re-invest.

If you've seen it for 6.99 then please invest in all of it and I'll take as many as you don't want off of your hands. That's a steal of a deal (and most likely a pricing error).

ziggy wrote:

seebee wrote:Trying my first Lolita right now. The words "barnyard funk" finally make sense. Not sure if I like it, but I'm on my third glass. Got it for 16 bux from Costco, not sure I'd pay that much for it. I might have seen it for 6.99 at the Costco in Grafton, Wi. Maybe at that price I'd re-invest.

If you've seen it for 6.99 then please invest in all of it and I'll take as many as you don't want off of your hands. That's a steal of a deal (and most likely a pricing error).

I'm not 100% sure if it was Lolita, I just remember they had two GI's, and I thought to myself, "damn, if that IS the sour one, and I like it, I'm buying all of them on my way back." I bought the Lolita at a Costco in Chicagoland, and I had it in the car already, I just couldn't remember the name. It might have been Matilda and Sophie, but, I'll check if I can on the way back from my trip.

After the fourth glass, (small pours,) it kinda grew on me. It's definitely a beer to share with someone who enjoys the funk. Everyone who tried it with me this time made some pretty funny faces.

Really enjoyed Surly Pentagram…red wine elements really come through.

As noted here, the Lolita is $15.99 at the lincoln park location. The IMO better sour, Jolly Pumpkin - Oro de Calabaza, at $8.99 ($10.99+at any other store) is the better deal at costco.

Enjoying something called "Bruxe Domesticated Wild Ale."

Kind of a heavy brew with an alcohol forward nose, and a medium hop finish. Definite lemony sour. I thought the mildly lingering hoppy finish would not be to my liking, but after a few bites of some red curry, the hop finish subsided, and I kinda liked this. By itself, probably not, but with food, definitely. The bottle states "a dry and complex Belgian style ale refermented in the bottle with brettanomyces bruxellensis. Made by a Russian River and Sierra Nevada Collaboration.

You might dig this if you like Oro De Calabaza. It was a little less sour, and maybe a little more hoppy.

Lol, I am an absolute lightweight when it comes to beer descriptions after I've read somma the reviews on Beeradvocate:
"On the nose, the beer has a grassy barnyard funk. It is not an overpowering funk, but is gentle and complex. Hay, soft cherry, prickly horse blanket, and fruit leather tickle over the nostrils. On the tongue, the beer tastes initially lightly tart with acidity and a funky sweetness. This dries into the finish with a touch of salinity and grassy bitters."

I really dig sour beers and I especially love them as fall starts to creep in -- I think it's my way of trying to draw summer out longer one sip at a time.

I've really been crushing hard on the Wild Sour Series from Destihl Brewery from downstate Normal, IL. We've put two barrels of their Flanders Red on at Roots in the past and we currently have one barrel of the Counter ClockWeisse from them on tap as we speak. The Counter ClockWeisse is just a perfect pairing with all the humidity we've been having. Destihl also does a Black Berliner Weisse that I had at Links TapRoom a few months back that was also great.

Off Color's always tasty Troublesome is a gose blended with a wheat beer which is a nice intro to sours as well. Off Color also makes Fierce which is now back and shipping to accounts this week (I believe) which is a berliner weisee that they dub "Troublesome's meaner cousin". We carry Troublesome in bottles and have had barrels of Fierce in the past at Roots and are ordering again this week as well.

And what I've been preaching as a "great training wheels sour" is Bell's Oarsman. Although Bell's has had some production issues with Oarsman recently due to they've had some yeast strain issues at the brewery so Oarsman hasn't been shipping to Chicago in the past month or so.

New Holland's sour program is pretty damn great, too. Blue Sunday (rightfully) gets a lot of the buzz as their standout sour but I also really like the dryness and sourness of its Incorrigible - a wheat ale that’s soured and aged in Bordeaux wine oak barrels that's really lemon rind-y, vinegar-y, and barnyard-y. Incorrigible was a favorite on tap at Roots as well.

Anderson Valley has a massive hit on their "The Kimmie, The Yink, and The Holy Gose" from its Highway 128 Session Series. It's all over bars in Chicago right now (although I like this gose a LOT more out of a can than on draft). Also AV scrapped their next session beer in line to make another/different gose instead that should be out soon due to the huge popularity of its first gose.

EDIT: Boulevard out of Missouri just came out with a Hibiscus Gose. I haven't been able to get my hands on it yet, but a friend of mine whose taste buds are similar to mine said "Imagine if Revolution's Rosa was a great sour. That's Boulevard's Hibiscus Gose." So yeah, I'm excited to try this one.

I really liked Oarsman, but I haven't been to able find it in quite awhile.

Tried a new one and loved it. Increase Wheat by Milwaukee Brewing. Nicely sour, but crisp, not cloying. No hoppy finish, just a quick pucker and clean. Loved it. Loved it.

Increase Wheat

Beer Advocate says this

2015 Le Terroir is in stores right now, dry-hopped sour and IMO the best of both worlds with a great sour kick and tons of hop aromas. It's one of my favorites.