Guava Grove Saison - Cigar City Brewing

vw73182

Indiana

4.23/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Cloudy orange in appearance with 3 fingers of head that disappears quickly.

Smells of that barn yard funk tartness from the second you pop the cap. Lots of citrus and tartness in the nose.

Taste is very tart and sour on the front end that smooth out and is somewhat creamy on the backend. I really felt like this beer was missing that peppery taste that is usually present in similar beers.

Overall this was very refreshing and I enjoyed it.

Serving type: bottle

02-18-2012 06:35:31 | More by vw73182

jayfro70

Virginia

3.08/5  rDev -23.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

750ml bomber poured into tulip glass. No date on bottle. Beer was very difficult to pour. I tried to pour very slowly and it took probably 3-4 minutes before I could get a 1/2 filled tulip glass..

A: The color is slightly orange. Opaque. A ton of head. Very difficult to pour enough to actually get a taste.

S: Smells quite sour. with a boozy undertone.

T: I wasn't expecting it to be this sour. I'm not really getting any guava. A little disappointing.

M: Exceptionally fizzy. Almost champagny with the amount of carbonation.

After hearing a lot of hype about Cigar City Brewing Company, I was looking forward to this one, but was not entirely excited about the results.

Serving type: bottle - 750ml

Serving type: bottle

02-18-2012 02:11:48 | More by jayfro70

TCHopCraver

Michigan

4.18/5  rDev +4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Review is written from notes taken on 7-10-11.

Guava Grove emerges from the bottle with a huge tan head atop a golden-amber brew. Beautiful, thin, spindly carbonation bubbles streak up my snifter. The head retains like crazy and the lacing is frothy and sticky.

Holy sour wildness! The smell really highlights the Belgian yeast... I swear that it is a wild strain. All sorts of citrus aromas also reside in the bouquet, heavy on the lime and lemon. Also, I smell lots of guava, Granny Smith apple, sweet tarts, and Pinot Grigio. It really is a mouthwatering scent.

The taste is very pleasantly fruity and dry. There are a lot of citric acid notes that compete for my palate's attention against the sweet, full guava. The acidic nature wins out, but the full guava gives it a good shot. This is a really, really tart beer. I like how the Belgian yeast plays off of the guava. An ever-so-slight vinegar tastes drops the score just a bit.

The mouthfeel is refreshingly dry with quite the tart nip. A fleeting moment of a coating, cloying feel hits my palate before being overcome by the acidic tartness. A sizzling sourness bombards all points on my palate.

I'm really not sure why this isn't called a wild ale. The sour punch from the combination of the yeast and guava is quite nice, but definitely does not taste much like other Saisons I have had. Also, there is just a slight vinegar presence in the taste. Overall, quite enjoyable.

Serving type: bottle

02-17-2012 22:57:39 | More by TCHopCraver

Hopdaemon39

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a bomber into an oversized wine glass. Poured a hazy golden/copper color with a very decent sized head (1.5 finger), good retention and a little bit of lacing.

Smell is very strong; I liked it. Very strong scent of wild yeast, a little bit of malt, and a sweet smelling fruit (which I assume is guava).

Taste is excellent; well balanced and innovative. Certainly tart, and sharply so, but not to a sickening point. Has that wild yeast taste (aside from the tartness) and a little sweet towards the end with what I again assume is guava.

Mouthfeel is also excellent- medium bodied and well carbonated. The reason I didn't give it a 5 is that to me it could be a little more carbonated (I love carbonation and what makes wild ales is their wild carbonation). This is a great beer however and I would recommend getting it if available.

Serving type: bottle

02-16-2012 00:27:55 | More by Hopdaemon39

syrupjoe

Minnesota

4.75/5  rDev +18.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

750ml into snifter. Bottle date: May 22 11. Enjoying at home after a great steak dinner.

Pours an opaque light amber color with two finger bone colored head that dissipates slowly.

Nose: Lemon, barn funk, slight sweet candied fruit, metal, mango, peppercorn.

Taste: Guava juice on the very front, crisp pepper bite, classic Belgian yeast funk.

Highly carbonated, crisp, dry, bitter finish with lingering notes of pepper and guava. Very enjoyable, they nailed this one. Plenty of fruitiness with a very dry finish. Would definitely drink again!

Serving type: bottle

02-12-2012 04:14:55 | More by syrupjoe

Crazyale

Virginia

4.13/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bomber poured into tulip glass. No date on bottle. Beer exploded upon opening, causing me to lose a small amount.

A: The color is like a peach soda, a wonderful rich orange. Opaque. Massive four-finger soapy head that ran down the sides of the glass, well retained.

S: Quite strong tropical fruit/palm smell at first, followed by a light alcohol presence. Bananas and hops coming through as well.

T: The taste is far more subtle than I expected based on the smell. Not as sweet as I expected. Instead, there is a bitter hopiness up front, along with some sour fruit taste. You'd never know this was 8% abv, it's incredibly smooth (and dangerous). The guava is very subtle. In fact, I couldn't taste it at all until it warmed up a bit.

M: Quite dry with vigorous carbonation and a robust mouthfeel.

I'm not terribly familiar with this style, but I liked the beer a lot. My only regret is that I did not get to pair it with food, as this would be unbelievable with a tropical fish dish such as mango mahi mahi.

Serving type: bottle

02-02-2012 03:42:43 | More by Crazyale

rudzud

Massachusetts

4.13/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

*2010 vintage* Reviewed from notes. A thanks to JLindros for sharing this bottle with me as we did a side by side comparison of this with Guava Groove. Poured into a Portsmouth tulip.

A - Pours a slightly hazy copper amber with a big, creamy fluffy two figner head that leaves some super thick side lacing. Very good retetion.

S - Smell is nice and funky fresh. Good barnyard aromas and some fruits (guava, pear, apple) along with some nice sweetness.

T - Nice and sour and funky. This isnt a wild? This really became nice and wild with the age on it. Good and tart with a good guava presense with some light malty sweetness and hops. Tastes like there is brett in here but clearly something has happened in this bottle, but in a good way. Infection perhaps?

M - Mouthfeel is very, very carbonated due to this aging and or infection. Alot more than expected with the bubles really exploding in the mouth.

O - Overall this is an interesting beer with nice guava but cant help but wondered if this has soured. Still delicious but clearly not what the initial beer was.

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2012 22:06:19 | More by rudzud

TechTriumph

Virginia

4.08/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

From notes on 12/11/11:
Bottled: October 2011; Poured in a Sam Adams Perfect Pint glass.

A - Crazy, unstoppable, overflowing, off-white fluffy head, even after a slow pour, that comes to a thin layer after about 10 minutes; Cloudy, dark orange/brown caramel colored appearance; Some, but not much lacing; Visible, violent carbonation shooting up the center of the glass

S - Slight fruits in the nose consisting of pears and apples and not guava; Nice spicy, yeasty, fresh baked bread smell as well

T - Hints of guava in this very pleasant taste; Mixture of sweetness and tartness with spicy and yeasty flavors; Just a touch of lemon, pears, cloves, and banana

M - Tons of carbonation that massages the tongue; Light mouthfeel; Fairly clean finish that leaves the mouth and tongue feeling a little dry

O - This beer has a very nice mouthfeel, taste, and drinkability. I enjoyed the plentiful carbonation, which made this beer unbelievably light for the amount of alcohol it possesses. I have to admit though, the unstoppable foaming head from the pour is a bit cumbersome for sure. Beyond this, I have no other complaints and would love to try this refreshing beer again. It's rare to see any Cigar City beers around my area, but I'll be sure to buy more of this brew and other offerings if I see them again in the future.

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2012 00:18:23 | More by TechTriumph

Swim424

Florida

3.68/5  rDev -8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

poured fron a bomber into palm glass. different bottle than pictured. now have both bottles in our collection. my roommate had the other one last year. didnt realize it was a belgium yeast. not always a big fan of belgium yeast.

A-really nice. sort of gold orange. decent carbonation. nice fluffy head.

S-definitly smell the guava and yeast. smells fruity sweet.

T-not bad. very fruity. can taste the yeast a bit but not bad. fairly tart and sweet. nice mix

MF-medium to light. very good. nice carbonation compliments it well

very good for the style. i really like this.

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2012 21:50:11 | More by Swim424

Bobheed

Texas

4.43/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

A: Nice burnt orange color, very hazy, as it should be. Giant eggshell head that dissipated very quickly

S: Definitely lots of fruit right upfront. Lots of green apple and tropical fruits. The guava is very noticeable.

T: A nice tangy fruitiness. Very tangy actually, so much so, that I start to feel it in my jowls. Lots of what I got on the nose, but I think the guava is much more present in the taste.

M: Tons of carbonation, and is almost painfully tart. Love it, exactly what a saison should feel like.

Overall this was excellent. I acquired this one in a trade and now am kinda bummed I didn't get more. Best saison I've tried thus far

Serving type: bottle

01-22-2012 03:02:29 | More by Bobheed

julian

Washington

4.1/5  rDev +2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Don't know how this could look any better. Beautiful mandarin orange in color. Hazy and cloudy just the way I like my saisons. Lots and lots of tiny bubblies escaping from the bottom of my Fantome glass. Initial pour yields a thick billowing (not creamy) off white almond colored head. Eventually this is reduced to a fairly noticeable ring around the edges that lasts.

S: Nose is earthy and sweet. Slight citrus and lemon zest noticeable. Not really familiar with guava but I'm assuming the sweet fruitiness is from this fruit.

T&M: Highly carbonated. Crisp, clean, super dry. Alcohol unnoticeable. Very nice and thirst quenching after a long night of crushing plastic in the climbing gym! Taste is initially fruity with a slight herbal spice. Some noticeable earthy undertones mixed with a light peppery bitterness.

O: Overall, this is an excellent Saison. Personally I like a little more tartness in my Saisons, and less earthiness, but the fruity, peppery quality was great. I couldn't really tell if there was guava in this or not, and not sure how much was actually used for secondary fermentation. Still there is a fruity quality that I am not familiar with that I will probably attribute to the guava. Nicely done. I would drink this again. Alcohol is unnoticeable and goes down too easily.

Serving type: bottle

01-20-2012 06:51:54 | More by julian

doughanson78

Washington

4.03/5  rDev +0.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle poured into a tulip. Thanks to 67couple for this.

A: Beautiful orange with a bit of pink tint, guessing from the guava. Very hazy. Huge four finger head that is super fluffy. It sticks around forever and leaves a good lacing.

S: Sort of light nose. Definitely guavas. Also some pineapple, sour apples, and lemon. Very citrusy. A touch of coriander spice and the farmhouse funk.

T: Guavas upfront. Slightly tart slightly sweet. A lot of other citrus in the middle and a bit of an acidic bite. Finishes a touch sour with a bit of funk.

M: Light bodied and very crisp. Very high carbonation. Slightly dry.

O: A tasty beer. Very drinkable. Not sure if I've had a guava or not but this is a nice tropical drink.

Serving type: bottle

01-14-2012 23:10:19 | More by doughanson78

olympuszymurgus

Minnesota

4.1/5  rDev +2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Holy hell, it comes out with a massive rocky head, filling the snifter fast. Smell is tropical, banana and cane sugar, citric acid, a little sweat, some malt.

Flavor is harsh, bitingly sour, pineapple, more banana, intense citric and lactic acid. A residual sweetness, caramel and toffee sits in the back while fruity solvents play the main stage. A sensible bitterness back up the brew, I'm not sure if thats hops or the bitter, grapefruit rind flavor that brett makes sometimes.

Carbonation is too high, but other than that the sourness lingers too long, not as clean and crisp as many other good wild ales.

I would love to now more about this thing. Saison it is not, wild ale? what bugs or yeast did they use? this is a strange one, but I like it.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2012 00:28:36 | More by olympuszymurgus

Holland

Pennsylvania

4.25/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

750 ml bottle with the old gold cap from Cigar City.

A: poured a golden color with a darker than expected, tan head. The carbonation is huge, and it continues to sit on half of the surface for the whole glass.

S: smell has guava of course, sweet pale malt, earthiness, and some bitter scent.

T: taste is fruity and earthy, with sweetness and crisp carbonation to balance everything out. The aftertaste sticks with you, but isn't fantastic.

M: heavy carbonation and medium body.

O: there are bad fruit infused beers, but this is not one. It's subtle, and it adds to the complexity rather than overtakes the beer. Nice!

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2012 00:30:53 | More by Holland

harrymel

Washington

4.18/5  rDev +4%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

No bottle date. Said to be older, sour version.

pours a nice hazy apricot ale with three finger of white foam. This falls and when I breath in, I get guava, guava, banana, and some sweet alcohol (like an amaretto). Nice nose. Really nice nose.

Bitch be tart, nice. Some lemon, guava, hints of hay and yeast. I really like this beer and feel ill equipped to give the flavor justice. The beer was initially a little hi in carb, but fell to appropriate.

Delicious beer. I heard they took the sour/funk from this. Too bad.

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2012 11:06:04 | More by harrymel

tdm168

North Carolina

3.05/5  rDev -24.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to jtd1969 for bringing this back from Florida.

Pours a hazy yellow-orange with a mountain of thick, foamy head that has amazing retention. The nose is sweet and fruity with faint notes of yeast. The guava really comes through in the nose. The flavor is wheaty and straw-like up front followed by a sweet fruitiness and finishes with a mild tartness. The mouthfeel is crisp and a little heavily carbonated with an extremely dry finish. There's also a little warmth from the alcohol.

I liked this because it was different. The guava was a nice change of pace from all the typical fruits usually put in beer. Overall, though the flavor was one-dimensional and it drinks like juice and finishes like a dry wine. I wouldn't go out of my way for this one.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2012 16:01:14 | More by tdm168

DrewZ926

New York

4.43/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

50th review!

A- pours a slightly hazy copper orange rind body with two inches of head that fades to a collar

S- when colder, tons of brett, must and hay. Tropical and citrus fruits, more belgian esters and malty sweetness as it warms.

T- much more tart than I had expected, when colder, the sour notes are much more pronounced. A drop acetic even. Subtle funk and musty notes followed by citrus and belgian malty sweetness. A vegetal hint on the finish. Very complex and very pleasant tasting.

M- highly carbonated and very refreshing, alchocol is present but actually melds well with the acidity

O- definitely seek this one out. One of the best CC offerings I've had, up there with Zhukov. Very complex and unique for an American saison.

Serving type: bottle

01-04-2012 02:20:26 | More by DrewZ926

kawilliams81

Illinois

4.35/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Served in a D'achouffe tulip.

A- pours a dark copper with huge white head. Lots of lacing clings ton the glass.

S- Belgium yeast is there along with tropical fruits.

T- sweet malts, lots of tropical/citrus fruits, some spice and a little clove.

M- medium body and carbonation. Slight creaminess and easy to drink.

O- very good saison. Great blend of a traditional saison flavors with all of the tropical fruits that accompany this beer.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2011 21:47:34 | More by kawilliams81

ocelot2500

Arizona

4.5/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a hazy orange with golden highlights and a thick white, rocky head that leaves little bits of lacing.

Smells of bright fruit notes with citrus and tropical fruits.

Tastes of tart fruits notes up front that lead to some malty sweetness ending with a touch of hops ans spice. Fruits lead off with pineapple, guava, grapefruit, and tangerine. Malts come in with a bit of bread and grainy sweetness. Yeast spice comes in with pepper and clove. Ends with some grassy hops that counters the fruity sweetness and adds to the spices.

Mouthfeel is medium-full with a smooth amount of carbonation.

Overall, this is very good and can stand up with plenty of other saisons.

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2011 00:26:19 | More by ocelot2500

VncentLIFE

North Carolina

4.7/5  rDev +16.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks heatwave33!

Pour is cloudy. Dark for a saison. It looks like a cloudy Oktoberfest. Orange and not translucent.

Smell is loaded with Brett. The accenting flavors are citric, with hints of belgian saison yeast..

Taste is much the same, almost lambic or gueuze-like. Apple skin tannins are rampant. Nice notes of Belgian yeast. Slightly dry. One hell of a saison shared with winbassett and peetoteeto (fullsteam brewery)

Serving type: bottle

12-31-2011 00:05:36 | More by VncentLIFE

beerwolf77

Wisconsin

4.45/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle from the initial "sour" batch. Thanks to fogdog for sending this my way.

Gusher alert! Cloudy amber orange hue. Three fingers of white head. The nose is super fruity. Dusty wood, clove banana, guava, oranges, brett, mild lactic sourness. The flavors are just as dynamic as the nose. Sweet fruit, grape big league chew, lactic sour, banana, guava. Light bubbly body. This was awesome. Wish they would make this sour again.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2011 21:49:23 | More by beerwolf77

pigc

Nebraska

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

A - Pours a light orange color with three finger head.

S - Orange, guava, banana, clove, spice.

T - Starts out with a slight spicy banana flavor followed by a hint of clove, passion fruit and Belgian yeast.

M - Light to medium with lots of carbonation.

O - Interesting beer from CCB. Glad I got a chance to try this unusual beer. Give this a shot if you get a chance.

Serving type: bottle

12-27-2011 01:28:21 | More by pigc

ThePorterSorter

New York

4.08/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thanks for bringing this one back merc

Appearance:
Huge pillowey white head with thick lacing and a rich looking hazy, amber body. This isn't a light saison like i'm used to, it's almost a light brown in color.

Smell:
Tart and sour with a big banana and guava fruitiness! The banana is so potent it reminds me more of an artificial, nail-polish banana flavor instead. This beer's aroma is truly unique and intense.

Taste:
Tart and bubbly beer bursting with fruitiness...oh wait that's the mouthfeel....so it's a fruity tasting saison-ish beer with a tartness that could rival a relatively weak sour. What really carries through, and is a huge distraction, is the nail-polish banana... it becomes so potent I can't think about the rest of the beer's taste. Maybe it because half of every sip is full of foam.

Mouthfeel:
So this section is actually more like stomach feel...supremely gaseous writhing from the beer's sourness. An astounding belch relieves me and allows me to continue drinking. I've never had a beer wreak this much havoc on my GI, it's unreal. However, in summation (minus tangent), the beer's a tart, carbonated belgian-style brew with generous fruitiness and a light-medium body.

Overall:
The beer was fairly hard to acquire and had a relatively steep price tag for a saison. It was a fruity and unique saison, but it had a terrible carbonation overload effect on my stomach that detracted from my overall enjoyment. Therefore I'm on the bubble with my recommendation, but you'll probably love it if you love champagne.

Serving type: bottle

12-24-2011 05:17:14 | More by ThePorterSorter

warnerry

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev +5.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Pours clear copper with three fingers of off-white head. Head has good retention but only leaves scant lacing.

S - Very tart aroma, but also quite a bit of fruit. Can't say I eat much guava, but I'm assuming that is the main fruit aroma I am picking up. Also a bit of apple and banana. Slight amounts of earthy funk.

T - Tart on the tongue, but very nice. After the tartness fades, quite a bit of fruit comes through, similar to the smell. I don't get much of a saison taste, though there is some nice yeast presence on the finish. Regardless, it is pretty tasty.

M - Relatively light mouthfeel with with an earthy dry finish.

O - I tried reading through the forums, as I remember some discussion of whether this was intentionally sour. I bought this last summer, but don't see a bottle date, so no idea what batch it is. I wouldn't call this a saison, but whatever it is, I really enjoyed it.Hope the tartness isn't absent in current batches.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2011 04:10:56 | More by warnerry

jeffmart22

Pennsylvania

4.45/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Pours a beautiful golden orange color with a two finger head that is nearly white in color. The head is frothy but thins out as it dissipates. Very light lacing on the glass and a nice amount of carbonation streams up from the bottom of the glass. This beer is very hazy, you can barely see through the beer.

A - The first thing I get is a banana and clove aroma coming from the yeast. Then there is a slightly sweet fruity aroma coming out. I know it's the guava but it almost has a slight pineapple aroma as well. I also get a slight bubble gum like aroma. Really nice and intresting smelling beer.

T- Very nice semi-sweet almost juice like flavor to start. Very easy to drink. Hard to believe this is an 8% ABV beer, you can't taste any alcohol. The finish is slightly sour or tart. Very nice! As this beer warms it becomes more sour and tart than sweet.

M - This has a very delicate and thin mouthfeel and finishes a little dry in the mouth.

O - Another great beer from Cigar City. Very easy to drink, you would have no problem finishing a 750ml bottle on your own. Get it if you can.

Serving type: bottle

12-13-2011 22:55:31 | More by jeffmart22