Beer – #938 – Wild and Woolly – Coeur de Cerise

Wild & Woolly Coeur de Cerise – it’s a saison not a sour 🙂 But I do have a sour beer from this brewer in the fridge, stand by and read on. Friday and it’s rather wet and wild out there, and my local stocked up on these, and so I pretty much blew the next two weeks beer money on them. But it seemed a good idea. The beer comes wrapped in a brown bag, and a bit of string, ah the good times….

The name comes from the fact

750ml bottle of a beer, which is 4.5% ABV, having 20 IBU’s about it, and that would be about 135 calories a serve size, this would be 2.7 standard drinks in NZ.

Brewed by Wild & Woolly this is in the style that is a Saison and that happened in the Windy city of Wellington, New Zealand

Coeur de Cerise is a sour cherry and lavender Saison brewed as a collaboration between W&W and Oamaru‘s Craftwork.

Wooly yes.

The lavender came from W&W brewer Llew’s garden in Wellington, while Lee-Ann from Craftwork provided the cherries.

The name comes from the fact that a relatively small quantity of cherries (5kg in 200L of beer) were used, but the beer was left on them for several weeks, thus giving them little cherry colour or fruit flavour, but definite marzipan-y notes that come from the cherry pits.

Bottled versions are bottle conditioned with Brettanomyces Clausenii.

So, What could possibly go wrong?

Lively hiss on opening, and the aroma is unusual, something subtle, lets pretend it’s the lavender.

Lovely pour with a crisp white head that looks nice to look at. Very pale yellow in colour, aroma is more towards a sour, but it’s subtle.

For that’s fruity and rather pleasant, a bitterness that washes over and then a finish that contains a hit of unusual flavours, cherry and that lavender. Awesome.

This doesnt have the mustiness that a Saison might have, but it has, in spades, tastes that are remarkable. Cherries are noticeable at the back, with an undertone of lavender. Pour is hazy cloudy yellow with a stark white head.

This plays really nice over the tongue, with little hits of bitter sourness and then pops of the fruit.

I know I can bang on about things, but this is a really decent Saison beer with lovely bitterness, and subtle fruits and tastes in an easy drinking very enjoyable combination. I’d hug it if I was allowed.

The pdubyah-o-meter rates this as 9 of its things from the thing. I thought that this was so close to being a 10, but it’s really just shading under the 9, I thought it might have had more mustiness about it that I’d expected from a saison, but I have to say it looks brilliant and drinks even brillianter.

The double dip review

Where did I get it? The local Liquorland had them.
Am I enjoying it? Yes, immensely, it is both familiar and different.
Would I have another? Yes
Would I share with a friend on a porch and set the world to rights? Yes, this is cleverly done beer, wrapped in a brown bag that suffices for the label, inside a plain green bottle, talking point bonus there, and then the beer, the beer is wonderful, I’d be tempted to eep it for myself to be honest.

Music for this: ” The Coronas ” with ” Trust the Wire” on Spotify

The Coronas are an Irish rock band that originated in Dublin. They release their music through their own independent record label, 3ú Records

SAISON

Fruity esters dominate the aroma. Clarity is good with a large foamy head on top. The addition of several spices and herbs create a complex fruity or citrusy flavor. Light to medium bodied with very high carbonation. Alcohol level is medium to high.