Persimmon Lambic - Upland Brewing Company

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

3.95/5  rDev -6.8%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750 ml bottle opened by the guys at the Upland table at the GLBF. We waited for these three for about half an hour. About a 2 oz pour in our tasters.

A - First pour from the bottle, it comes out clear and pale yellow. No head at all on this one. I know low retention is expected for an acid-filled lambic, but no head at all?

S - Immediate, unmistakable gueuze lambic aroma bursts out with strong lactic acid. A hint of that barf aroma in there pokes out around some sweet fruity hints that linger in the background.

T - Light fruity sweet notes linger behind the sour, lactic acid flavor. Fairly one-dimensional but tasty regardless.

M - Light-bodied with a mild sweetness on the back end that's overshadowed by a highly carbonated, sour finish.

D - Good drinkability, it would be best shared with a few people but it's a nice beer regardless.

Serving type: bottle

09-27-2010 11:45:28 | More by BeerFMAndy

HopHead84

California

3.9/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

8/13/2010

Bottle shared by DeaconBluez, thanks Chip! Pours light straw colored with a frothy white head.

The aroma has a strong persimmon presence with light lactic notes and some candied sweetness. Notes of buttery oak are evident, accompanied by light Bretty wet leather notes and a little wood.

The flavor is butter oak and slightly spicy, with a lactic persimmon character and a light moderate sourness. The finish is dry and fruity, with lingering tannins and oak. A very drinkable and surprisingly enjoyable sour beer.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2010 00:52:07 | More by HopHead84

largadeer

California

3.98/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle provided by DeaconBluez. Thanks, Chip. I like persimmons and I like lambic, so this was interesting to try.

This one gushed a bit as we opened it, though we managed to salvage the majority of the bottle. The beer rests in the glass a pale blond color with moderate haze and no head or lacing, though there's plenty of carbonation.

Nice fruitiness to the nose, the persimmon stands out, and it's backed by lactic and acetic sourness that, combined with the fruit, is almost like sour hard candy. Beneath that there's a bit of aspirin, mild funk and wood.

Tart and fruity on the tongue, persimmon shines through nicely. It's highly carbonated, excessively so, which thins the body a bit and blurs the flavors slightly. I get an herbal, almost medicinal or aspirin-like flavor mid-palate. Refreshing stuff, very quaffable, we finished the bottle in about 10 minutes and I could have gone for another pour. It's only mildly sour, though quite dry, especially in the finish which does display a bit of oak and tannin. It's a nice thirst-quenching beer, not particularly outstanding in any way but very good.

Serving type: bottle

08-17-2010 03:36:51 | More by largadeer

mothman

Saskatchewan (Canada)

4.33/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I think heliospann shared this one. Thanks Scott!

Batch 77-08 Bottled 2-25-10

Poured into a tulip.

Pours a white head. Color is a hazy straw yellow.

Aroma: Lemons, grassy hops, oranges, persimmon citrus, funk, light sourness, and oak.

Taste: Fresh fruit, but a decent amount of funk as well. Herbal/floral flavors with the persimmon. Manderine oragnes and citrus flavors.

Mouthfeel: Funk and tart. Light bodied with a low to medium amount of carbonation. Ends pretty clean with a touch of fruit.

Overall, this is a very solid soour. Good fruit and funk balance. I could drink a lot of this on a hot summer day. Very happy with this one.

Serving type: bottle

08-10-2010 21:43:56 | More by mothman

Lukafer

Indiana

4.55/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Review from notes.

This beer was a gusher! Luckily we knew ahead of time that it may be, so we opened it over a bowl, saving all of the precious that spewed out.

Pours a golden yellow, a LOT of carb with a white head, a lot of lacing that stayed around a while. Smelt a lot of funk, and citrus. Tastes slight funk, slight citrus and sour at the front, followed by a sour and heavy citrus finish. Very clean finish as well, I can definitely taste the persimmon on this one. Very drinkable, very refreshing. There is a lot of carb, feels great, right where it should be. I really wish I had another of these.

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2010 07:20:33 | More by Lukafer

womencantsail

California

4.18/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thank you to Mark for sharing this bottle at Sour Fest. A new sour beer is always welcomed by me.

A: The pour is a light yellow with some hints of orange and maybe even pink. The head is big, sturdy, and white and there is a lot of carbonation.

S: The fruit character is there, but somewhat light. A bit of spice, lemon and lemon zest, what I would assume is persimmon, and a slightly earthy funk.

T: The nose was a bit subdued, but there is a nice flavor to this beer. Quite a bit of different fruit character, with the persimmons, lemons, green apples, and some tropical fruit notes (pineapple, mango, maybe even some papaya).

M: The body is fairly light, which was nice for the very hot day. But, this is just far too carbonated for its own good.

D: This was a really easy beer to drink, as a lambic should be. I liked the flavors a lot, but you need to let the carbonation die down for quite some time before you can get the full enjoyment.

Serving type: bottle

07-22-2010 19:18:33 | More by womencantsail

MasterSki

Illinois

4.43/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to emerge077 for schlepping these Upland beers all the way back from Indiana. Served in my Kuhnhenn tulip. This is the 2/25/10 batch, with 77-08 also written on the label.

A - Slight gusher warning - don't leave this unattended. Pours with two fingers of eggshell foam that has decent retention and dissipates to an incomplete cap and collar, leaving behind minimal lace. The body is a hazed pale stray yellow, with some obvious bubbles and sediment drifting around. Color is quite unique and I like seeing bits of fruit/yeast in this style of beer.

S - Sweet Bretty funk, spicy persimmon notes, lemon zest, and a touch of band-aid. Well-integrated and, again, quite unique.

T - I'm not sure which persimmon variant was used in this beer but I'm guessing it was ripe American ones (diospyros virginiana). This is extremely fruity, with ripe persimmons mixing with tropical notes from the Brett. Sour and tart flavors are present, but attenuated - it'll be interesting to see how this develops over time.

M - Finishes quite dry, but I'm not sure if that's from the oak or the tannic quality of persimmons. Light-medium body that is refreshing. Good spritzy mimosa-like carbonation that helps offset high sweetness.

D - Extremely drinkable, and never gets overly sweet or acetic. Too bad it was so rare - please make again Upland!

Serving type: bottle

07-11-2010 16:16:00 | More by MasterSki

emerge077

Illinois

4.33/5  rDev +2.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Thanks Alex for sharing your bottle! Glad I could help.

Into a champagne flute the Persimmon poured with lots of active carbonation. There was a good pop from the cork, and a significantly charged head of foam. It faded to a skim after a few minutes, and left flecks of lace on the glass. Visible streams of bubbles, with some suspended bits of sediment that may have been fruit. The color was a bright pastel yellow orange.

Bright and fresh citrus aroma, uniquely fruity, which must be the persimmons in there. Tastes almost mimosa-like, citrusy again with a good level of tartness that puckers somewhat. 5/10 on the sour scale. Light bodied and soft on the palate, drying quickly leaving traces of oak and Brett in the aftertaste. Spritzy and fruit forward, almost juicy. Very quenching and easy to drink. If it weren't so scarce, a bottle would go down fast, even several at a time.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2010 03:16:21 | More by emerge077

alleykatking

Indiana

4.5/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured from 750ml bottle. Thanks go out to Lukafer for opening this one. Luke you are way to kind. A side note...this bottle gushed only lost a few ounces though.

A- Poured a hazy apricot color. There seems to be a lot of floaties in the beer itself which I don't mind. Two finger white head that shows good retention. Lacing sticks to the sides of the glass in a very streaking manner.

S- Nice big citrus aroma which I figure is the persimmons. Light sour vinegar aroma. As it warmed up I could smell a light oaky tone to it. It was short and sweet but very well made in the nose and bursting with aroma.

T- This has a nice light tartnes with sourlike qualities in the front of the beer. Persimmons with light tangerine and peach notes. A very light oak flavor comes through in the middle. The sourness comes in a lot more in the ending. Vinegar like notes with a ton citrus in the very end.

M- Medium light mouthfeel. Carbonation is very high in this one but almost perfect for the style. Citrus sour tones left on the palate with even more citrus sour flavor in the aftertaste. Light drying on the palate. Flavors were blended well and seemed to burst in certain parts.

D- This beer was very good to say the least. I think it will only get better with age. The sourness isn't very in your face yet but give it some time and it will be. I wish I had a bottle of this to keep onto.

Serving type: bottle

06-18-2010 05:07:49 | More by alleykatking

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

4.45/5  rDev +5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Brad for sharing this at his tasting on Saturday!

Persimmon Lambic appears a very light straw yellow hue with a substantial head and copious amounts of caked on lacing. Wonderful aromas of sour funk, tart fruits, and lemon zest make this a very inviting beer. The taste is delicious and well balanced, with more tart citrus and lemon zest. The mouthfeel is nice and funky, but a tad overcarbonated. This is a tasty beer I really enjoyed and would love to have again.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2010 15:11:55 | More by Huhzubendah

drabmuh

Maryland

4.65/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Review 700 - not that anyone cares.

A great beer shared by the generous Brad at a recent tasting. Upland lambics are a permanent ISO for me, this one I was not even aware of.

Beer poured into a snifter. It is yellow and hazy and seriously irresponsibly carbonated. Bottle exploded with the cord was released. Lacing is completely coating the glass and carbonation is moderate and steady. The head has some sediment, brown flecks that stick to the lacing. There are some floaters in the glass as well.

Aroma is amazingly citrus. Those are the persimmons coming through I suppose. There is only a hint of sulfur and other sourness in the nose. It smells really really good.

Taste is slightly sweet with a lot of citrus / fruit flavors. It is a serious fruit lambic. Some of the classic flavors that come along with a blended lambic are not present to my detection, slight oxidization products, some more lactic or a hint of acetic, mild sulfur, all down played or overshadowed by the strong citric quality.

This is a great fruit lambic for sure. I was hoping for a little more funk on the back end but overall it turned out to be a great beer. I would recommend it, trade for it, drink it again in a heartbeat.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2010 19:17:09 | More by drabmuh

beachbum1975

Ohio

4.43/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Per BN website: "background courtesy of Head Brewer, Caleb Staton:" "...The persimmons were provided by Aaron Persinger, a local singer/songwriter who is currently the drummer for Rev. Peyton's Big Damn Band. (The Rev himself is a certified Persimmon lover I've been told, can't wait to get him a bottle). Being a classic Indiana fruit, we couldn't resist, maybe one day we'll find enough local mulberries and bring another (as far as we know) first-ever fruit lambic-style to the lineup."

Vanessa (the bartender) served this chilled bottle with newtony, my buddy Dave and I at Upland brewing. I reserved this bottle in advance and asked her to pour/present it for us on the spot (no, it's not ordinarily available to buy/drink on the premises, sorry). We had this immediately after finishing up the Upland Kiwi Lambic in our freshly rinsed and dried wine glasses...

This one poured an entirely different color than the Kiwi - despite the fact the only difference is the fruit addition after aging (same lambic base beer with all their lambics, aged in the same massive oak tank resting right behind their bars big window). This one poured cloudy with apricot in color with yellow highlights. The head white bright white with compact bubbles and active carbonation streaming to the top.

The nose was quite unique and enjoyable. Though it was chilled before serving, I still got a moderate amount of pineapple-like qualties mixed with peach, light oak traces and mango. There was an almost pepper or lightly spicy quality to it, as well. Don't forget the main scent which was sourness and light funk. All together, it was a delicious smelling concoction.

The flavor wasn't as puckering as I was led to believe on the nose. The mix of peach, apricot, oak and tartness was done very well. There was a nice sweetness in the middle of the swallow that was very nice. I definitely got more persimmon in the flavor then I did Kiwi in the Kiwi Lambic. Both were very enjoyable in their own right.

The mouthfeel was light and crisp with high carbonation. Very dry and enjoyable.

I really liked this beer and hope they make it again!

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2010 22:26:21 | More by beachbum1975

bmanning

Virginia

4.22/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Shared by Thorpe429 at a recent tasting - thanks Mike!
A: After exploding out the cork and gushing, it pours a hazy goldish orange with thin white head.

S: I can smell the persimmon first off, which is like unripe peaches, pineapple, and grape. There is not a lot of sourness or funk in the nose - it's pretty mild really. There is a little bit of orange, wood and vanilla coming through as well.

T: Thorpe429 explains the taste a lot better than I would. It's very mild for a lambic, but that's not bad, just different. I kind of like the slightly tart quality to this beer, as the persimmon really shines through better than if it were really sour. The persimmon flavor tastes like a milder apricot with orange zest.

M: Although it was a gusher, the carbonation is a bit on the thin side (maybe because it was a gusher?). It coated the palate nicely however.

D: Overall I like this beer, and the tart rather than sour flavor does it well. I have high hopes for my only bottle. Although it is good now, I hope it will get better with a year of age and perhaps the flavors will further develop.

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2010 17:16:30 | More by bmanning

Thorpe429

Illinois

4.35/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This one is a gusher! In a strange way as well. Took the cage off with my thumb over the bottle, and no movement. Take my thumb off to set the cage on the table and grab my glass...BOOM! The cork slowly started and then popped before I could get back, but luckily we grabbed the bottle and only lost a few ounces. After this fiasco, shared with bmanning, Azurelimits, Amyliz4, and hhanson.

A: Pours a very pale, hazy apricot with a light and fizzy bone-white head. Head sticks around for a while in a tall, thin Weyerbacher tulip.

S: Nice citrus-y tartness comes through along with faint hints of earth. Tangerine, unripe peach, oak, and some lactic sourness come through as well. Hard to say if there's persimmon floating around in here, as I've never had one so don't know what to look for.

T: Along the same lines as the nose, but with a bit more tartness coming through. I'd definitely say that this reminded me a lot of some of the nicer berliner weissbiers that I've had, in that the taste on this one might be better described as tart rather than sour, although I could definitely see some more sourness developing with age. Other than this, tangerine, unripe white peaches, a bit of apricot, hints of oak, and some wheat and citrus zest.

M: Fairly thin with some very nice carbonation. Not quite as sour as I would have thought, but overall a very nice experience.

D: Highly drinkable. I presume this is low in alcohol, and provides great taste characteristics and pretty good complexity for a beer of this size. Nice interplay of flavors and I'm looking forward to seeing how this develops over time.

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2010 14:35:31 | More by Thorpe429