Dos Costas Oeste - Grapefruit Wood Aged - Cigar City Brewing

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.83/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Lateral tasting from bottles from Lueken Liquours. Grapefruit, a little sweet and subtle spicy. The real show was the greatest gusher in thousands of beer bttles opened.Lighter colour than the cedar

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 14:58:25 | More by northyorksammy

womencantsail

California

3.68/5  rDev -3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks for sharing this one, too, Jake.

Probably the best of the three bottled variations, despite spewing beer everywhere. Cloudy orange in color with a white head. Good grapefruit aroma, plenty of wood, grass, and yeast. A little bit of biscuit malt in there, too. The flavor has a nice dryness to it. Biscuit malts, yeast, and plenty of wood and grapefruit. Not quite as peppery as the other versions. Just a bit of grass and bitterness on the finish.

Serving type: bottle

08-04-2012 21:20:31 | More by womencantsail

UCLABrewN84

California

3.98/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to DrAwkward82 for sharing this one at jmgrub's birthday tasting.

Pours a murky honey orange with a foamy off-white head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, citrus zest, grapefruit, spices, and yeast. Taste is much the same with a citrus-forward flavor on the finish. There is a mild amount of spice bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that has some interesting aromas and flavors.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2013 02:18:09 | More by UCLABrewN84

Mora2000

Texas

4/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to Dixonian for sharing this bottle.

The beer pours a light orange-yellow color with a white head. The aroma is heavy on the tropical fruit, with a lot of grapefruit and a hint of orange. There is also some biscuit malt in the aroma. The flavor has some strong grapefruit notes, with some orange citrus, Belgian yeast, white pepper and biscuit malt thrown in. The alcohol is well hidden. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2012 01:18:41 | More by Mora2000

metter98

New York

4.03/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: The beer is very hazy golden yellow-orange in color. It poured with a two finger high white head
S: There are light to moderately strong aromas of grapefruit and other tropical fruits.
T: Like the smell, the taste has some flavors of grapefruit and wood. The grapefruit doesn’t taste like that you would expect from West Coast hops, but for some strange reason reminds me more of a fruity flavor I had at the dentist as a kid when getting a fluoride treatment.
M: It feels light-bodied on the palate and has a moderate to high amount of carbonation.
O: This is a very nice saison and the grapefruit wood aging adds interesting aromas and flavors.

Serving type: bottle

06-30-2012 18:38:42 | More by metter98

MasterSki

Illinois

3.93/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to donttazemebro for this extra. After cleaning up the giant mess this made when it erupted all over Edward's floor I managed to get a bit into my wine glass.

A - As I said, it's an explosive gusher. Big white foam settles to a thin cap, thicker collar, and stray splotches of lace. Hazy apricot body.

S - Slightly lactic, with plenty of the advertised ginger and citrus peel. There's a touch of vanilla sweetness, but the yeast profiles more as American than 'farmhouse', as there's not much spicy of phenolic character. Adjuncts rule the day here.

T - The taste is also dominated by ginger, tangy grapefruit citrus, and oaky vanilla, and there's some sweet stone fruit malts to support all the added ingredients. Thankfully, whatever caused the violent eruption of beer doesn't contribute any off-putting infected flavors. Fairly refreshing.

M - Dry, medium body, with refreshing zesty carbonation, and a juicy texture mid-palate. Alcohol is very well-hidden.

D - Easy to drink beer - I wish a third of it hadn't ended up on the floor as it was a nice beer for a hot summer day. Never would have guessed this was 9% either.

Serving type: bottle

06-26-2012 17:16:53 | More by MasterSki

mdfb79

New York

3.58/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

From 06/08/12 notes. Had at Churchkey in DC. Sampled next to the grapefruit version.

a - Pours a hazy yellow color with a few white bubbles and low carbonationi evident.

s - Smells of wood, spices, wheat, grapefruit, bread, light citrus and fruit. Light citrus and grapefruit but no where near as good or as strong as the lemon version.

t - Tastes of grapefruits, citrus hops, cedar, wood, fruity malts, spices, coriander. Again, not as strong as the lemon.

m - Medium body and low carbonation. Doesn't feel like 9% ABV.

o - Overall a nice saison, though I preferred the lemon version. I felt the lemon version was stronger and showcased the lemon more than this did for the grapefruit, and I also tend to prefer lemon. Worth cehcking out and cool to do side by side, but I'd go with the lemon.

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2012 19:01:59 | More by mdfb79

jlindros

Massachusetts

4.22/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle from EBF.

Clear golden color with a hint of a haze and straw, nice fizzy head, touch of a rosy-orange hue.

Nose has a a bit of tropical fruit, maybe grapefruit but hard to really tell, with a light saw dust like wood, and again the same basic saison aromas as the lemon wood.

Taste is a bit creamy as well, more of the light saison farmhouse malt flavors and yeast, bit bready malt saison flavors, even less of the spices as the lemon wood, but there is a definite light tropical fruit flavor that starts to develop into a grapefruit guava like flavor, and that comes with a light funky yeasty flavor that the farmhouse is starting to get big. This one also brings a light wooden shelf like sawdust flavor. A hint of booze on the finish, and fairly dry.

Mouth is med bodied, good carb.

Overall pretty good, a bit better than the lemon wood as the wood and fruit come a bit more forward, as well as the farmhouse funky yeast I think.

Serving type: bottle

02-07-2012 18:23:29 | More by jlindros

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.48/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

750ml purchased at Cigar City.

This beer is a bit of a gusher but nowhere near as bad as some of the reviews here indicate. Pours a dark golden orange color with tangerine edges and a one finger frothy white head that quickly settles into a thin ring. Spotty lacing left behind.

Heavily spiced aroma with a stronger citrus presence and less barrel character than the cedar version. Lots of pepper, ginger, coriander and clove followed by orange peel, grapefruit and pineapple. Subtle earthy wood presence but it's really overpowered by the spice a citrus.

Medium bodied with tight carbonation and a prominent zesty spice presence up front that lingers over the sweet citrus, bready yeast, pale malt and earthy wood notes into a dry finish. Lots of ginger, white pepper and coriander countered by orange peel, grapefruit and mango before the wood spirals come on strong in the finish. Very dry and earthy at the end of the palate with damp wood and toothpick flavor overtaking the citrus sweetness. Pretty good with some nice grapefruit character but not as well balanced as the other treatments with the heavy spice and wood notes overpowering the other flavors.

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2012 08:51:47 | More by corby112

thagr81us

South Carolina

4.25/5  rDev +11%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Big thanks goes out to beermeX2 for sharing this one during a recent tasting! Gusher!!! Served from bottle into a Mikkeller taster flute. Poured a hazy golden yellow-orange with a half finger pure white head that subsided to a minimal amount quickly. Maintained decent lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, banana, wood, grapefruit, and citrus. The flavor was of sweet malt, grapefruit, wood, fruit, and citrus. It had a light feel on the palate with medium-high carbonation. Overall this was a pretty good brew. The flavor on this one was fairly well balanced and really made it easy to drink. The grapefruit aspect in this one was definitely the dominate factor going on. A really well put together brew that I would love to have more of in the future.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2012 03:39:11 | More by thagr81us

kylehay2004

Florida

3.98/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: another gusher. The lemon spiral version also gushed for me. Thin head on a murky orange/golden body.

S: orange and grapefruit citrus, more tart than sweet with hint of corriander and lemon and some belgian yeast.

T: fairly syrupy quality to the citrus with lemon, grapefruit and orange. Nice balance between tartness and sweetness. Nice Belgian presence with yeast and herbs rounding out the finish. Very similar finish to the cedar and lemon versions.

M: medium body and moderate to high carbonation. not a very dry finish, definitely more moist than expected for the style.

Overall: I now have had all three of this series. For strong saisons these are very drinkable and very flavorful with excellent Belgian character.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2012 05:40:20 | More by kylehay2004

nickfl

Florida

4.58/5  rDev +19.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

A - This one gushes out of the bottle on opening, even worse than the lemon wood one did. After losing about 1/3 of the bottle, it pours a hazy, golden color with one finger of white foam on top. The head settles at a moderate pace butq leaves little lace,

S - A spicy aroma of wheat, black pepper, turpentine, mango, and lemongrass.

T - Bready malt up front with a sweet and sour note that whets the palate. A distinct lime note in the middle with lemongrass and pepper. Finishes with funky tartness, pepper, mango, and key lime pie.

M - Medium thick body, high carbonation, and a balanced finish.

D - Quite complex, and difficult to pin down. I can say for sure that is has a very differ character than the lemon wood aged version, which I had as part of the same tasting. What is unexpected is that it has a distinctly lime character rather than grapefruit, whereas the lemon wood version had identifiable lemon notes. Of the two, I slightly prefer this one, and while both were very impressive, this has and oddly satisfying balance of flavors that makes me wish that half the bottle hadn't jumped out onto the floor as soon as we popped the cap.

Serving type: bottle

11-08-2012 05:42:56 | More by nickfl

FosterJM

California

4.25/5  rDev +11%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

1357th Review on BA
Bottle to CCB Snifter
750 ml

I bought this in Tampa in March and have been waiting to try them. StarRaptor was that reason.

****BE WARNED THIS BOTTLE GUSHED LIKE A BANSHEE****

App- Glowing yellow in the glass with a more pronounced head to it. A little bit clearer than the Lemonwood. More cling.

Smell- A lot of the same citrus notes come forward from the use of the same ingredients. A bit more bitter from the grapefruit.

Taste- Really its the same as the lemonwood, just really kicked up in the bitter department because of the aciditic note of the grapefruit. A bit more damp than the other was more alive.

Mouth- A lighter medium body with a medium prickly carbonation. Residual grapefruit and denser citrus flavors with a little bit of earthy to it.

Drink- Probably the second best of the three. It was more alive and bright then the other two.

Serving type: bottle

06-17-2012 01:00:36 | More by FosterJM

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

3.8/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

On Tap at Hulmeville Inn for a Cigar City/Funky Buddah event.

A big golden look to it with some burnt orange and copper mixing in creating a nice looking mixture. Mostly orange up to the light with a foamy skim of off white cream colored stuff on top. Minimal sticking. Smell is part saison part grapefruit rind bomb and some deep sweet malts. Wood is minimal, grapefruit is high, yet the saison yeast keeps this from smelling like straight juice. Orange and ginger in the nose with warming with pale malt backing. Pretty inviting. Nice burst of grapefruit flavor up front with some orange peel and corriander. The ginger plays a part in killing the beer for me but the bready saison yeast keeps this in check and within style. Not overly malty but not as light as an original Belgian counterparts. The body could use some work. I like the flavor and think this is worthy, but in no way would I attempt to bang a bottle of this to the dome.

Serving type: on-tap

06-12-2012 04:35:28 | More by onix1agr

dbrauneis

New Jersey

4.03/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a hazy golden orange in color (with almost a glow to it) with some light to moderate amounts of visible carbonation near the surface of the beer. The beer has a two finger tall dense off-white head that reduces to a thick film covering the entire surface of the beer with a thicker ring at the edges of the glass. Significant amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Strong aromas of funky barnyard and cheese that I associate with a good saison. Moderate notes of citrus and citrus rind that are underneath the funkiness. Additionally there are some notes of wood from the aging.

T: Very pleasant strong funky flavor with some light amounts of sourness. The yeast contributes some spicy notes and the presence of wood can be noted.

M: Slightly fuller than medium bodied with heavy amounts of carbonation. Extremely dry.

O: Very well balanced and a beer that I really enjoyed... I enjoyed sipping on this one for quite a while and it has just enough of the funkiness to really hit my palate.

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2012 11:38:27 | More by dbrauneis

lordofthewiens

Maine

3.89/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.75

Like others have reported, this beer was a gusher. I've never had one to this extent, losing close to half the bottle. I'm just glad I opened it next to the sink.

In a snifter the beer was a hazy orange color. There was a huge white head, but with little staying power.

A spicy aroma, some citrus. Sweet.

A lot more in the taste. Grapefruit, orange, and tangerine. Coriander and pepper. Sweet biscuit.

A little too sweet and spicy for me.

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2013 19:24:52 | More by lordofthewiens

ngeunit1

California

4.43/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - Pours a hazy golden-orange with a finger of frothy white head. The head fades down at a normal pace leaving behind some lacing.

S - Aroma is a mix of sweet grainy and bready malts with some grapefruit, orange peel, ginger, coriander, Belgian yeast, honey, and some light other spices.

T - Starts off with a mix of sweet grainy and bready malts with grapefruit, orange peel, coriander, and a touch of honey. Through the middle, some ginger, Belgian yeast, other spices, and light floral hops. The finish is a mix of sweet grainy and bready malts, grapefruit, ginger, coriander, Belgian yeast, and some other spices.

M - Medium-plus bodied with moderate carbonation. Feels smooth with a dry, sweet, and estery finish.

D - Very drinkable. The grapefruit wood adds some nice complexity to a good base big Saison. Good overall balance.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2012 04:54:22 | More by ngeunit1

maximum12

Minnesota

4.25/5  rDev +11%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Schlepped back from Atlanta after a business trip, where I was delighted to find a bottle of Cigar City, among others. Cleared the luggage at 48 lbs, up 15 lbs. from when I left. Good deal. 750ML bomber split with my wife.

Pop the top, BAM! We have a bleeder! Beer splashes on my hands, all over the wood counter, & my wife is forced to use a blanket as a turniquet to stop the gushing. Dammit. Minus .4 points. Several ounces lost to out-of-control carbonation. After all that, the pour is just like the other version of Dos Costas Oeste, golden yellow with a curtain of haze...with almost no head. WTF? Aroma is huge on orange, citrus, grapefruit, & fruitiness in general.

Dos Costas Oeste, Grapefruit Wood Aged is worth the drama. Crazy fruit spills out of the glass into my yawning maw: grapefruit, lemon, orange, all cut by an umbrella of sweetness that keeps them all in check. Wood (grapefruit wood, I suppose). Zesty spiciness rains down & lights up the aftertaste. The combination is exquisite. The overcarbation that coated my home is...gone. Again, WTF? Again, dammit, somebody is drinking this fast.

This an excellent beer that I'm knocking to very good because of the rocky start.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2012 02:24:53 | More by maximum12

ehammond1

California

2.6/5  rDev -32.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Bottle (2012)

Thanks for sending me this one, DSho!

A gusher. I lost almost half of the bottle upon opening.

Hazy, cloudy dark orange with a large, persistent, thick and creamy head. Very high carbonation makes this one tough to pour, eventually leaving thick ribbons and chunks of lacing down the glass.

Sweet and complicated aroma, though nothing here is particularly pleasant. Lots of herbaceous notes, honey, artificial vanilla sweetness, and black pepper don't combine particularly well here.

The flavor is similar to the aroma, with unfortunate amounts of artificial vanilla, honey, medicinal notes, and harsh booze.

Medium bodied with high carbonation.

I didn't care for this one.

Serving type: bottle

10-14-2012 05:24:59 | More by ehammond1

cjgator3

Florida

4.23/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

750ml bottle

A- Poured into a Cigar City tulip glass. Pours a golden yellow/orangish color.

S- The aroma is sweet malt, citrus, orange peel, spices, some woody notes from the grapefruit wood and finally some yeast.

T- The taste has a little bit of tartness and sweetness up front with some citrus and spices as well. 

M- The mouthfeel is light bodied with a high amount of carbonation.

O- Overall, I really enjoyed this one. Great beer!

Serving type: bottle

02-25-2012 05:36:51 | More by cjgator3

rudzud

Massachusetts

2.28/5  rDev -40.5%
look: 1 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 1 | overall: 2

Shared this with JLindros and BPK59...pains me to review this and the other 2 Dos Costas as they clearly had an issue with them either in storage before being traded to me, or in the bottling line. Poured into a standard tulip.

A - Yeah, to hell with this beer. I'd barely touched the bottle opener to the cap when this thing launched a 4 foot geyser of beer ala coke and mentos. I lost 80% of the beer, wearing 40% of it and getting to see JLindros dodge the other 40%. What little was left did pour a hazy golden hue with a thin white blanket for a head.

S - Funk, grapefruit rind. Ehhh

T - Taste is funk, alot of it. Theres minimal grapefruit quality with a very weird, lingering aftertaste that I cant figure out.

M - Flat and ethanol.

O - Lost 80% of the beer, hooray. Seriously, to hell with this one. It appears this beer is erupting for EVERYONE, I'm baffled as to why people give this a good number when they lose atleast half their beer. Just insane.

Serving type: bottle

08-17-2012 02:33:53 | More by rudzud

jsanford

Georgia

3.98/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle

Pours a hazy orange with a thin white head that settles to a slight ring. Big aromas of orange peel, grapefruit, and Belgian yeast. Reminds me of a citrus-bomb Duvel. Taste is similarly citrusy, with lots of orange, wood, and spicy coriander. Crisp, slick mouthfeel with a medium body and good carbonation. Very smooth. Overall my favorite of the Dos Costas variants!

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2012 21:52:15 | More by jsanford

inlimbo77

Delaware

3.88/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

750ml bottle. Winter/Spring 2012. Poured into Philly Beer Scene chalice.

A: Huge hiss. It's a gusher. Pours out a hazy, cloudy, deep orange color. Initially about a finger of white head. Some alcohol feet. Not leaving a lot of lacing initially, but the second pour did.

S: Not getting a ton of Saison like smells. Some faint barnyard. Getting the coriander and orange peel. Smells like a fruit wit.

T: Up front I get that coriander spice note. Also, ginger. Like a wit without the Belgian yeast note. Then it blends into more fruitiness. I get the orange rind. Maybe some tartness, from the rind or grapefruit wood. Towards the back it's a crispness and dry finish like a Saison.

M: Medium bodied. It's a good mouthfeel.

Serving type: bottle

07-10-2012 18:22:48 | More by inlimbo77

PorterLambic

Florida

4.35/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Arrives in a snifter with a bright golden orange color with a small, off-white head. Retention is short with just a thin ring after a minute or so.
Smell is the weakest area of this brew. If you search you pick up some malty sweetness and some citrus notes with very little else coming to the party.
Taste is where it is at. Malt, citrus, hints of coriander and ginger, a nice sweetness with no appreciable hop presence. Alcohol is noticeable but not overpowering.
Smooth, smooth, smooth with a light effervescence to prevent it from becoming cloying on the palate. Full-bodied with some warming which I found nice on 73 degree Florida December day. It stood up well to a spicy shawarma.
Per the Tasting Room staff, this version is aged on grapefruit wood with coriander, ginger and orange peel. Now to try the others. The other three versions are aged on cedar, lemon wood and orange wood.

Serving type: on-tap

12-16-2011 16:58:21 | More by PorterLambic

nlmartin

Ohio

2.5/5  rDev -34.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

This beer was served in a wide mouthed goblet.

Ap- The body of the beer is a clear orange coloration. The head was white and resolved far too quickly.

S- A musty yeasty sweet orange citrus and pith aroma, gentle pepperyness and a hint of vanilla.

T- The flavors of the beer are on the sweet side to begin things. Sweet orange and citrus zest, peppery corriander, and musty yeast. The beer finishes on the dry side but seems far too sweet to begin.

M- The body is light and the carbonation is lazy and frankly needs to be kicked up about 4 notches.

O- Not a bad stab at a saison. The beers abit too sweet and the carbonation needs to be steeped up a little.

Serving type: bottle

03-03-2012 15:12:43 | More by nlmartin