Moskvas Classic(al) (москвас классический)
Moskovskaya Pivovarennaya Kompaniya

Moskvas Classic(al) (москвас классический)Moskvas Classic(al) (москвас классический)
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From:
Moskovskaya Pivovarennaya Kompaniya
 
Russia
Style:
Kvass
ABV:
1.2%
Score:
77
Avg:
3.04 | pDev: 19.74%
Reviews:
16
Ratings:
16
Status:
Active
Rated:
Feb 24, 2012
Added:
Jul 30, 2010
Wants:
  4
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Photo of Smakawhat
Reviewed by Smakawhat from Maryland

3.58/5  rDev +17.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Poured from the can into a nonic pint glass. Much thanks to Woodychandler. My first Kvass.

A very dark brown off brown light and creamy slightly looking head. Makes only about a finger off the pour, and sits on dark walnut brown body, some red hues. Manages to keep a collar throughout drinking.

Nose is a dried sugary molasses, and prunes. Raisins. Sugary and sticky sense.

Very sweet tasting. Unexpected, raisiny sugar molasses bent. A good light body but also a sense of thick flat cola feel with a hint of syrup.

Overall, this is kind of fun. Boy I would like to pound these back on a hot day in the summer.
Feb 24, 2012
Photo of rudzud
Reviewed by rudzud from Massachusetts

3.22/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
A thanks to woodychandler for this trade, my first trade on BA.

A - Poured into my Duvel tulip a dark impermiable ruddy garnet hue with a fizzy half a finger mocha head that faded super fast to leave nothing behind.

S - Smell is of sweet dark fruits (raisins, prunes), rye or pumpernickel bread, molasses. Super...interesting.

T - More of the nose, LOTS of sweet raisins and molasses. This is like nothing I've ever tasted before. Cola sweetness, definately get the "flat Dr. Pepper" that another reviewer pointed out. Crazy flavours here.

M - Thick and super syrupy, which is rather unexpected considering how weak in ABV this style is. Super, super sweet.

O - Overall, I have no idea what to make of this beer. Its so bizarre. Its not really bad, but this isnt somethign I'd want to drink all day. Seems sweeter that a can of soda. Rot your teeth out sweet. Intense.
Dec 07, 2011
Photo of sommersb
Reviewed by sommersb from Tennessee

3.07/5  rDev +1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Tasted On: 11-11-2011
Freshness: Not indicated
Packaging: 1.6L plastic bottle
Glassware: Shaker pint
Purchased: Single from Aleksey's Market, Nashville

Pours a murky dark brown, cola-looking color, with a thin tan head that didn't last any time at all. Aromas are of sweet malts, raisin, plums and molasses.

Taste is very similar to the smells, with rich, sweet malts paired with brown sugar, molasses and ripened dark fruits. Not as much bread flavor as I've had in other kvas examples.

Not much in the way of carbonation in this one made for a somewhat flat mouthfeel, with a thin body.

Overall a decent Kvass.
Nov 13, 2011
Photo of TheManiacalOne
Reviewed by TheManiacalOne from Rhode Island

3.17/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Acquired via trade from woodychandler so a big “Thank You” goes out to him. Poured from a 500ml can into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a medium brown color, with a thin off-white head that fades quickly and leaves a thin lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains honey, brown sugar, raisins, wheat and caramelized malts.

T: The taste starts out very sweet with flavors of honey, dark fruit and brown sugar. Then there is some breadiness from flavors of wheat, rye and a hearty but not too heavy malt character. The after-taste is also quite sweet as you would expect.

M: Smooth but syrupy, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is slightly sticky.

D: Tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, extremely mild kick, good representation of style, it’s very different from any other kind of beer but on-target for the style which makes it a good low-ABV choice you’re looking for the sweetness that the style provides.
Oct 23, 2011
Photo of brokensail
Reviewed by brokensail from California

2.83/5  rDev -6.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
A: This pours a dark brown/cola color with minimal off-white head.

S: Lots of prune aromas with a sort of yeasty smell. Quite a bit of bread, mostly rye, with some caramel, sugar, and cola. Very strange...

T: The flavor has a light sourness to it. The rye and toasted bread flavors are there, as are the sweeter prune, plum, sugar, and cola flavors.

M: Medium in body with low carbonation.

O: Not my favorite thing, but decent.
Oct 07, 2011
Photo of JayQue
Reviewed by JayQue from Virginia

3.1/5  rDev +2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
My third and last Kvass from WoodyChandler. I am getting used to what to expect now and this one was ok. Still wish for more head, lacing and carbonation but it is what it is.

Pours a dark muddy brown color with plenty of light getting through at the sides and bottom of the glass. No lacing to speak of. A small tan head that fades fast.

Aroma is malts, raisins and flat Dr. Pepper. Taste is about the same. Not too sweet, maltiness not overpowering. Fairly refreshing. Mouthfeel is rich, no unpleasant aftertastes. Wish there waas a bit of carbonation here.
All in all, not bad.
Sep 03, 2011
Photo of msubulldog25
Reviewed by msubulldog25 from Oregon

3.42/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
A 0,5L can, a vibrant orange (labeled Москвас Классический) and sent by KAN Komrade, woodychandler. In honor of him and his recent Philly-area Kvass shopping spree, poured to a 'Standard Tap/Kenzinger' pint.

A: Very dark, a 'cola' sort of brown. Starts with a soda pop fizziness, with a tan-ginger head that disappears in seconds. Low marks for retention. Held to light, it's a milky garnet with a few wriggling bubble streams.

S: Curious and increasingly interesting aroma of candied dates, raisins and figs; plenty bready with a tangier fruit the more it warms. Molasses and malted milk ball; after some initial distrust, this really started to grow on me.

T: Unlike anything I've ever tasted... Starts with cola sweetness, the kind of caramel-laden syrupiness after it's lain dormant for a while. Cocoa and sticky caramel, figs & dates, then a dry dusting of spice. Then, not so much 'sour' as sweeter vinegar, a dank and over-ripened fruit, I guess. Flavor of prunes, with cherry and lemon-lime hints, holds a long time; one of the more curious flavors I've been introduced to of late.

M: Mild carbonation, 'stale soda' again comes to mind. Oddly, It's rather refreshing: light bodied with a thinness and sweetness that somehow works.

O: I was truly surprised to find this gone so quickly. The murky fruit and latent tartness grew on me, and the ample breadiness covered well. An easy drinker that I enjoyed quite a bit. Thanks to Woody, I have a couple more versions to compare... but I kinda like where this might be going.
Apr 12, 2011
Photo of tone77
Reviewed by tone77 from Pennsylvania

3.3/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Thanks to woodychandler for introducing me to the world of Kvass. Poured from a can, I was unable to decifer the Russian script to determine ounces. Has a black color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of sweet molasses, dark bread.. Taste is of sweet molasses, bready, dark fruits and considerably sweet. Feels medium/light bodied in the mouth and overall not bad, but not something I would want on a regular basis.
Apr 09, 2011
Photo of NeroFiddled
Reviewed by NeroFiddled from Pennsylvania

3.83/5  rDev +26%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Moskvas Klassicheskiy pours an almost black body beneath an orange-tinted head. When held to the light, dark russet brown and ruby highlights can be seen along the base of the glass and just below the surface. It looks like a porter. The head, however, drops readily as expected. Surprisingly, it does leave a nice collar of tan along the surface; and with each sip it leaves some sharp splashes and small spots of lacing.

The aroma interestingly displays a light touch of roastiness and cocoa along with the normally expected graininess, dark caramel, molasses and dark-skinned fruit.

In the mouth it's medium-light in body, but there's also a bit of a dextrinous edge to it that makes it seem almost "medium" at first. The low-level carbonation gives a light tingle to the tongue.

The flavor is more about the dark malt than many examples, and the fruitiness is kept restrained. It's cereal-like (think Ovaltine or malted milk), gently caramelish (golden caramel), slightly cocoaish, and bready with a slightly roasty almost-burnt edge of crust. A subtle rye note is present as well. The fruitiness is there, enveloped in the malt, and it begins to appear across the middle, displaying notes of cherry, raisin, and red grapes. The fruitiness never really comes into it's own, however, as the maltiness returns at the swallow and lingers in the lightly sticky finish.

Overall, this is a very well made kvas that offers a great, dark maltiness. It's superbly balanced with the malt appearing upfront, the fruit making a secondary appearance, and then smoothly transitioning back into malt. Additionally, it finishes quite smooth, whereas many examples become sticky sweet and astringent. Quite nice!
Mar 29, 2011
Photo of woodychandler
Reviewed by woodychandler from Pennsylvania

1.62/5  rDev -46.7%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 1 | feel: 2 | overall: 1.5
A two-fer: Kvass in a KAN to further both The KANKWest (TM) and the Kvass Kick! Kan you dig it, Kamarad? I'm headed to the Kit Kat Klub after this.

The Crack went off without a hitch and the Glug created a foamy finger off deep-tan/light-brown head with lousy retention. Hey, I took a shower yesterday! There's no need to run off and hide like that. Color was a deep-brown with garnet highlights. If this were a woman, I'd be swooning. Nose was a bit more sour than the others that I have had to date, fermented, but not in a good way. It had a raisin/date/prune odor, but accompanied by an odd sourness. Oof. Mouthfeel was thin with an immediate taste of medicine on the tongue. This tasted like old time cough syrup, the brown shit that you had to hold your nose to swallow. Man, I was not digging this one! Finish left me thinking that I might need to open a beer. I CANteplated a drain pour, but the ethics department of The KanKwest (TM) strictly forbids such things. Working through it, I got a lot of off flavors - the garlicky sourness noted by others, the taste of dried fruit that was not quite right, tobacco. Ugh. This was like what I imagine the bar drink that consists of the bartender pouring the mat in the well into your glass at the end of a long shift, but filtered through an ashtray would taste like. This would be for the most hardcore of KvassKwesters and even then …

Today is Sa, 23 Febrewary 2019 & this is the beginning of a major return to The KvassKwest (tm), picking up where another user picked a fight as to whether Kvass was worthy of inclusion & thusly killed my interest. Time has told the tale & as it turns out, I was correct! Kvass is legit! My local, in-person trader, @tone77 is coming by tomorrow & I want to have a bunch ready for him to take away. Today's is its Bottle format.

From the Bottle: "москвас классический".

I unscrewed the top on this 1.6L plastic Bottle (!), only to be reminded of why Kvass remains challenging to the Western palate. The smell that emanated from within was beyond earthy. It smelled of fermented death! Now, before you go running for the hills, let me explain that such is the truly intended flavor. Just as I have long advocated "Pennsylvania for Pennsylvanians", Kvass is best left to the Russians. This iteration explains their shock when I request it at various stores. It is an acquired taste & one which I am trying to better inculcate people to drinking. It was relatively still on my pour, producing zero head. Color was Very Dark Brown to Black/Opaque (SRM = > 34, < 44) with cola highlights. Nose was about as close to prune juice as I have smelled in a LONG time! My maternal grandfather swore by it & still passed of colon CANcer. I generally love dried fruits, but prunes have a … do I want to say "stench"? No, because that is too strong of a word, but it smelled of mouldering, decaying, fruity vegetable matter. This was probably as lose to the real deal as I am going to get, but I really did not have an appreciation for the style on my initial go-'round. My numbers will remain as historical data, but they should stylistically be MUCH higher. The baseline taste was prunes, but add to that mix: (rye) bread, raisins, baker's chocolate & a general sourness. Sour like proofing sourdough bread. It was nowhere near as unpleasant as my untrained palate perceived it initially, but I can understand my greenness towards it. Finish was semi-sweet, more towards umami. Quite a taste sensation!
Mar 28, 2011
Photo of crossovert
Reviewed by crossovert from Illinois

1.69/5  rDev -44.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 1 | overall: 1.5
500ml can.

It pours a dark cola brown with a nice tan head that actually sticks, unlike the other kvass i had, it quickly recedes however and leaves no lacing.

Smell is of rye and raisin, there is a hint of almost pickle to it.

The flavor is watery and not very good. Tehre is a hint of rye bread, some rotten honey, and a touch of raisin.

I don't really see what the appeal is here, a very watery Kvass.
Jan 26, 2011
Photo of Patrick999
Reviewed by Patrick999 from Florida

3.46/5  rDev +13.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5
I thought I'd notched my one and only Kvass over a year ago, but here I am with another. Poured into a Squatters IPA goblet. Looks dark. This could almost pass for a porter. Has a finely bubbled foam that replenishes itself when agitated. I'd have to say appearance is pretty damned good.

Aroma is much better than the other kvass I had. That one smelled like rotting garbage. This one smells like sweet raisins, licorice and molasses. It actually smells somewhat appealing.

It tastes a bit like a grainy birch beer with a pronounced raisin and carob. On the sweet side. I'd say it could be a little less sweet, but hardly bad.

Feel is soda-esque.

Not undrinkable to me. I could actually drink this.
Dec 29, 2010
Photo of TMoney2591
Reviewed by TMoney2591 from Illinois

2.86/5  rDev -5.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Served in a glass mug.

The Kvass Kick has merged with brewing day today. This one pours a dark auburn-cola topped by about a finger or so of dark-ish ecru foam. The nose comprises pretzels, sweat, pumpernickel, and toasted rye bread. The taste holds notes of cola, root beer, dry rye bread, fennel, and garlic. The body is a definite medium, with a light fizzy carbonation and a light syrupy feel. Overall, I feel this whole kvass thing will kill me. That said, this one was a decent example of the style as I'm beginning to understand it, but it had a strange salty-sour quality (the sweat in the smell, the garlic in the taste) that really detracted from the whole experience.
Nov 14, 2010
Photo of Vdubb86
Reviewed by Vdubb86 from Illinois

2.84/5  rDev -6.6%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
Served in a mug

Thanks to TMoney2591 for going kvass hunting

This beer looks a cola brown with a fast fading appearance that is rather nice. The smell is of sweaty ball sack. This is sour and root like. The taste is oddly sweet with a pumpernickel spice flavor. This is a little too syrupy for my liking. I need to cut it with ice. It is drinkable when doctored with ice, but honestly it's not the worst kvass I've tasted.
Nov 14, 2010
Photo of flagmantho
Reviewed by flagmantho from Washington

3.01/5  rDev -1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3
Poured from 500mL can into a pint glass. I just had my first Kvass yesterday, so it should be fun to compare a second.

Appearance: rich brown-black hue which lets no light through at all. Head poured three thick fingers of pillowy tan foam, though it appears to be dissipating quickly. Head was still much nicer than the last kvass I had.

Smell: wow; rich, sweet, raisiny aroma. A little rye spiciness is there but basically it's like huffing on a freshly opened box of Sun-Maids. Not my favorite in the world, but as kvass goes, pretty standard.

Taste: thankfully a lot drier than the aroma. Still sweet and raisiny, but there is a tiny bit more fruit complexity here (plums, maybe, and cherries). Still, it's kind of a mess that doesn't really float my boat.

Mouthfeel: quite light and with quite low carbonation; it's still got a bit of a better mouthfeel than the other kvass I've had. Not great, but not purely awful.

Drinkability: a bit too sweet to just start slamming, this is still an interesting and refreshing beer. I bet it really punches the ticket on a hot day.
Aug 05, 2010
Photo of Mora2000
Reviewed by Mora2000 from Texas

3.68/5  rDev +21.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Thanks to krillionaire for sending me this 16 ounce can. This is my first kvass and was better than expected.

The beer pours a hazy red-brown color with a tan head. The aroma is bready malt with some honey. The flavor is heavy on the honey with some raisins and toffee notes. The beer is fairly sweet overall. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation
Jul 30, 2010
Moskvas Classic(al) (москвас классический) from Moskovskaya Pivovarennaya Kompaniya
Beer rating: 77 out of 100 with 16 ratings