Maledetta - Birra Del Borgo

Beer-A-Lot

Virginia

4.04/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

A - Gorgeous amber ale color, huge head.

S - Sweet honey, lemon, wine.

T - Win in a beer glass. Sweet, lemony, tart, slight dryness on back end.

M - some chewiness, lots of wine-like tannins.

O - Really tasty. Makes sense it tastes like wine since it's from Italia. Well done.

Serving type: on-tap

04-07-2013 02:24:10 | More by Beer-A-Lot

CrazyDavros

Australia

3.53/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Pours dark amber with a small head.
Nose shows funky brett-like notes, sweet malt and some over-ripe apples/peaches.
Flavours focus on rich, sweet malt with very little hops, just a faint herbal and spicy note.
Body feels too thick.
Interesting stuff...

Serving type: on-tap

11-15-2012 01:24:46 | More by CrazyDavros

n2185

North Carolina

4.05/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Pours a slightly hazy orange with two fingers of off-white head that recedes into a thin layer with decent lacing.

S: Sour and sweet citrus up front, reminiscent of lemons. Some light candy sugar and bubblegum aromas follow along with a good amount of must and funk.

T: The funk really dominates in the flavor, giving some musty and barnyard flavors. Sour lemony citrus flavors follow with a lightly bitter but clean finish.

M: Medium-light body with medium carbonation, this beer is light, dry, and refreshingly clean.

O: Described as a "saison IPA," this beer is definitely more saison than IPA. The hop notes were faint, but the sour and funky aspects of the beer were quite good. It was refreshingly tart and funky.

Serving type: on-tap

12-09-2011 02:05:36 | More by n2185

oline73

Maryland

2.2/5  rDev -42.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2

I had this on-tap at Max's. Poured into a sample glass.

Appearance: Pours a clear amber with a slightly weird hue, like it was on the tv and the color was off a bit. There is a layer of smooth off white head and a decent amount of retention.

Smell: Quite buttery/creamy, uh oh. Citrus peel hops and some malt too.

Taste: Some citrus peel bitterness and a mildly sour note. The creaminess from the smell shows up here too. Bitter in the finish.

Mouthfeel: Medium body with tingly carbonation and a dry finish.

Overall: Not sure if this was an off keg or an of beer. The taste and smell didn't work for me. Oh well.

Serving type: on-tap

11-22-2011 05:03:27 | More by oline73

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.7/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Draft at The Farmers Cabinet.

Pours a hazy dark ruby/copper color with dark golden orange edges and a one finger off-white foam head that slowly settles into a lasting ring. Sporadic spots of lace left behind.

Slightly earthy aroma with sweet tropical and citrus hop notes along with some sweet malt.  Hints of ry,  caramel and grassy saison yeast. Not terribly hoppy or piny. More sweet smelling than anything.

Medium bodied with a slight creamy texture and much more of a saison ipa hybrid than the aroma suggests. Much stronger hop presence that is floral and slightly dry/bitter lingering over the sweet malt and saison yeast into a slightly dry finish. Pine needle balanced by tropical fruit and citrus rind as well as grassy, earthy yeast notes and sweet malt. Hints of caramel, rye, toffee and biscuit. Well balanced and more comlex than expected. Pretty quaffable.

Serving type: on-tap

11-07-2011 05:38:08 | More by corby112

johnmichaelsen

Oregon

3.58/5  rDev -7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On tap at Max's today (naturally - who else would have this on tap).

The beer pours a reddish gold color with good head retention and considerable lacing all around. The nose is unusual (I was warned this beer is a bit, ahem, unusual), dry apple, cottage cheese, and cream. Ummm.... yeah....

The flavor profile is a bit more impressive than what I pick up on the nose, though this beer is still plenty unusual. The beer is fairly sweet, and is quite creamy on the palate, with flavor of apple, light ginger snap and a touch of honey. Really don't get a whole lot to indicate that this is a saison IPA (how it's listed on the menu at Max's). Mouthfeel is medium bodied, with a fairly long, soft, creamy finish. Alcohol is pretty much unnoticeable in this beer.

Interesting beer, and I'm glad I was able to try it, but can't really see ordering this again any time soon.

Edit from 11/16/11. Had a better version of this beer at Rustico Ballston (in fact, Casey indicated that he eventually pulled the keg at Max's, as he was concerned about some of the unusual, possibly "off" flavors). I didn't pick up any of the cottage cheese or cream aroma/flavor this time, and the beer tasted much more like an IPA saison. There was a lot more sweet ice tea flavor in the beer, with some nice hoppy bitterness in the finish. I don't think the overall quality necessitates a rating/score change (a score of B still sums this up pretty well), but the Rustico version certainly tasted different from the beer I had at Max's.

Serving type: on-tap

11-05-2011 21:45:55 | More by johnmichaelsen