It's Alive - White Wine Barrel Aged (Lychee Edition) - Mikkeller ApS

wordemupg

Alberta (Canada)

3.78/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

375ml bottle poured into tulip 20/10//12

A amber liquid with some slight haze, thumbs width of foam has great retention and leaves loads of random lace deep down the glass

S funky and fruity with some oak and faint cider notes, sorta smells like off wine but somehow it smells good, I'm curious of the barrel choice, Sauv Blanc perhaps?

T OK maybe I get the lychees, and yes I do eat lychees every now and then and know how they taste, a little rubber band and yes I often chew rubber bands and know how they taste, not overly funky as the vinous woody notes have no trouble shining through the funk but I can't grasp the rubber notes

M medium-full with decent carbonation and a lingering apple funk on the finish, no issues here

O this one wouldn't be for everyone but I didn't mind it one bit, interesting... well everything really there's a fair bit of random stuff going on, leave it to Mikkeller to create something I couldn't imagine

If I could do it over I'd sit on this one for a few years to bring out the funk, hindsight's 20/20 and considering how expensive this one is I may never see the future. well worth trying but resist the urge and wait it out

Serving type: bottle

10-21-2012 06:04:40 | More by wordemupg

dgilks

Australia

4.21/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Slightly hazy amber orange colour with a big, foamy off-white head. Very good head retention. Good lacing.

Lots of funk. Tons and tons of Brett. Horse blanket, earth, almost some lemon, nice mild pineapple. Really quite good.

Lovely big Brett flavour with tons of earthiness. Mild tartness. The fruit is a little missing though some oak is detectable. Interesting.

Medium body with moderate carbonation. Soft and silky. Very nice.

A delightful funky beer. This has the big Brett punch that I love even if there is no fruit to back it up.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 08:07:51 | More by dgilks

Bandi

New Jersey

4/5  rDev +7%

05-18-2013 16:02:22 | More by Bandi

dbrauneis

New Jersey

4.19/5  rDev +12%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a very murky orangish amber in color with some significant amounts of visible carbonation, a fair amount small particles of visible sediment, and a few hints of ruby red highlights. The beer has a three finger tall dense foamy head that reduces to a finger thick undulating cloud-like surface covering the entire beer with a slightly thicker ring at the edges of the glass. Significant amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Light notes of tropical fruits underneath a moderate to strong aroma of brett funkiness. Lighter notes of barnyard and hay with oak and lychee making an appearance towards the finish. Hints of white wine and tartness are also present.

T: Moderate flavors of brett with a definite earthiness and funkiness to it - lighter notes of barnyard funk. Towards the finish there is a certain tartness from the lychee followed by hints of blue cheese and finally a touch of sweetness of the lychee. There is a very light presence of oak from the barrel aging.

M: Just shy of medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation. Slightly chewy. Moderate amounts of dryness in the finish.

O: I really like this beer, the lychee and white wine barrel aging really add to and improve the base beer here - I did not tire of drinking this beer and it is really refreshing.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 16:01:40 | More by dbrauneis

metter98

New York

3.98/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: The beer is hazy amber orange in color and has a light amount of visible carbonation. It poured with a two finger high beige head that slowly died loan, leaving a large mound on the top of the glass that looks like beer is in the fermenting tank. Lot of lacing is on the sides of the glass.
S: Light to moderate aromas of white wine and sourness are present in the nose.
T: The taste very much follows the smell and has flavors of sourness from the brett and white wine from the barrel aging. Hints of lychee are noticeable in the finish.
M: It feels light-to medium bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation.
O: This beer is really interesting and is quite drinkable because it isn't overly sour and the wine barrel aging isn't overdone.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 15:55:46 | More by metter98

leftstagebrew

North Carolina

4/5  rDev +7%

05-16-2013 14:54:22 | More by leftstagebrew

Bonko_the_sane

North Carolina

4.25/5  rDev +13.6%

05-13-2013 05:59:58 | More by Bonko_the_sane

pixieskid

France

3.75/5  rDev +0.3%

05-04-2013 21:36:13 | More by pixieskid

bsinger45

Colorado

4/5  rDev +7%

04-29-2013 21:15:17 | More by bsinger45

Texasfan549

Texas

3.75/5  rDev +0.3%

04-25-2013 00:28:51 | More by Texasfan549

kjkinsey

Texas

4/5  rDev +7%

04-25-2013 00:28:18 | More by kjkinsey

Kenzie

Utah

4.25/5  rDev +13.6%

04-22-2013 06:56:53 | More by Kenzie

Paonz

Hawaii

3/5  rDev -19.8%

04-17-2013 05:29:20 | More by Paonz

Twig2848

New York

4/5  rDev +7%

04-06-2013 03:44:03 | More by Twig2848

t0rin0

California

3.25/5  rDev -13.1%

03-30-2013 21:59:24 | More by t0rin0

scottiethebody

California

4/5  rDev +7%

03-29-2013 06:50:01 | More by scottiethebody

schnarr84

Alberta (Canada)

3.98/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4

great sour notes on the nose. lots of white wine barrel comes through as well. bunch of funkyness and tartness on the mouthfeel; tons of lemon-ish citrus as would be expected. medium bodied with quite a bit of carbonation. one finger of light head on a gentle pour. didnt catch much of the lychee but it definitely was in there on the after taste. tasted like a pretty well balanced lambic with a twist. whether it was worth the 16$ price tag or not is in question, but it was a mikkeller beer so i had to buy it and try it.

Serving type: bottle

03-22-2013 06:38:24 | More by schnarr84

danieelol

Australia

4/5  rDev +7%

03-20-2013 13:38:02 | More by danieelol

sirtomtom

California

3.1/5  rDev -17.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured fresh from the fridge from a 12.7 fluid ounce bottle in a wine glass. Paid about $15 for the bottle(I was splurging, called the day Mikkeler day, bought their double cherry I reviewed earlier at the same time.)

A: Poured a golden yellow with about a finger of puffy white head. Dissipated slowly

S: Mild vinegar, a touch of malt, and a light floral character. Lychees are very floral scented, a little more should have showed.

T: Very light funk(can't really tell what), a bit of vinegar, malt, and lychee floral. Again a bit more lychee would be nice, and maybe a touch a sweetness, since lychee is just a bit sweet.

M: Light body, a good bit of carbonation

O: A very nice, easy sour from Mikkeler. Following their double cherry lambic, this was very pleasant, not insanely funky. All the flavors end up being very soft and mute, even warmed up. The lychee character only shows when it was rather cold, as it warmed up the sour and funk perk up and overpower the lychee. The lychee should have been the predominant flavor constantly. It certainly could be better and for the price it certainly should be.

Serving type: bottle

03-03-2013 03:18:54 | More by sirtomtom

codynevels

California

3.25/5  rDev -13.1%

03-02-2013 21:20:45 | More by codynevels

wdarcy77

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev +0.3%

02-19-2013 15:45:19 | More by wdarcy77

endovelico

Portugal

3.91/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Staccato. Taken from notes. Bottle.

Appearance: Garnet. Little lacing. Decent head retention. Low perceived effervescence. Slightly muddy.

Smell: Medium high intensity. Barnyard, wood and leather upfront. Caramel, candy, solvent, passion fruit and tangerine at the back.

Taste: Medium high intensity. Barnyard and leather up front. Tangerine, passion fruit and peachy notes at the back.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied. Medium high carbonation. Medium high sourness. Alcohol well hidden. Finishes sweet/sour. Sour cherry candy aftertaste.

Overall: God, i wish i had liked this more. I love the idea but the execution just falls a bit too short. Lacking in complexity and oompth.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2013 23:02:14 | More by endovelico

StonedTrippin

Colorado

3.95/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

the whole is better than the sum of its parts, or whatever. its like the categories this beer is judged on, it doesn't do that well on, but it has intangibles that are outside of this rating scale, mikkeller always seems to do that. this one pours a cloudy flat looking amber tinted medium brown with a minimal khaki head. the nose is a little sour, tannic from the wine, and sweet from the lychees. i already know i am going to like it better than the regular white wine barrel aged version, the fruit seems to add a lot. the flavor starts off yeasty and a little tart and funky, not crazy, but then the sweetness and sourness of the lychee fruit show up, and in a nice oaky cloak they collide with the wine flavors. its a beautiful symphony really, but still something is missing that i cant quite place. id like to see more carbonation in this beer, making the flavors pop a little more, but the medium body is nice. this is also much better when its cold than warmer for some reason. another clever mikkeller brew, maybe inflated a bit on the price, but like all of them, it had to be tried.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2013 21:08:46 | More by StonedTrippin

ngeunit1

California

4.33/5  rDev +15.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Dark copper-orange with a finger of frothy off-white head. Fades fairly slowly.

S - Sweet pale and caramel malts, vanilla, oak, white wine, funky and tart Brett, lychee, lemon zest, citrus hops.

T - Sweet pale and caramel malts, lychee, oak, vanilla, white wine, tart and funky Brett, lemon zest, citrus hops, some mild bitterness, hint of booze and acidity.

M - Medium bodied, moderate carbonation. Smooth with a dry, tart, and funky finish.

D - Great mix of flavors with good tart and funkiness. The barrel adds some nice character with lychee adding some nice tartness.

Serving type: bottle

01-27-2013 09:45:51 | More by ngeunit1

mantissa

California

3.75/5  rDev +0.3%

01-27-2013 05:11:38 | More by mantissa