Evil Twin Femme Fatale Brett - Evil Twin Brewing

northyorksammy

Ontario (Canada)

3.93/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle from Premiere recent trip. Lots of brett balanced with the hoppy IPA.Subdued pine, orange, lemon,tropical fruit, pineapple, mango. Very good drinkability. Above average smooth mouthfeel. Light yellow with a beige tinge. Mild hop aroma. Mild funky taste.

Serving type: bottle

03-17-2013 02:10:19 | More by northyorksammy

UCLABrewN84

California

3.63/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to wethorseblanket for sharing this one at drewone's tasting.

Pours a murky light orange with a foamy bone colored head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace slowly drip into the remaining beer on the drink down. Smell is of malt, grain, yeast, and a strong Brett aroma. Taste is much the same with a pretty intense Brett finish that lingers on the palate after each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a really crisp and prickly mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good beer but it smells better than it tastes in my opinion.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2012 23:55:48 | More by UCLABrewN84

BEERchitect

Kentucky

4.15/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Holding true to the American notion that IPAs should be a showcase for hop character, with varieties that put forth citrusy overtones, Evil Twin's brettanomyces fermented version does all this surprisingly well.

Like grapefruit juice, the beer pours strikingly similar. Hazy gold in color, the beer forms a medium-weight, creamy, eggshell white head. Crowded islands of lace adorn the glass as the beer falls. It's a very charming IPA appearance.

Aromas are spot-on white grapefruit juice, pulp, and pith. Accompanied by a dash of orange tangy orange juice, the beer takes a seriously citrusy step forward. Musty fruit, leather, and sandalwood give a glimpse into the wild yeast contributions, the beer remains relatively yeast-neutral.

All the brightness of sunny summer mornings that are met with fresh squeezed orange juice is met with the first sip of Femme Fatale. But with a thin substrate of malt, the beer has a creamy starch taste that allows the citrusy hop notes to wallow inside. Light on sweetness, and mild honey-like character rather reinforces the "juicy" character of fruit from American hops. Mild tropical hop notes of pineapple rise as the beer warms and more sweetness emerges. With all this, the earthiness of vine-ripened fruit allows a thin veil of must, perfumy woods, and lime peel bitterness to assist hop flavor in finish. It's a disciplined IPA that boastfully showcases its hop flavor.

Medium bodied to start, but the beer gives lighter impressions as the creamy carbonation digresses and the resinous hop dryness takes hold. But that creamy-dry hop texture on the middle palate is powdery and saturating at the same time. With low astringency and clean bitterness, the beer finishes decidedly dry, warming, and very crisp. The mouthfeel of an IPA doesn't get much better than this.

If citrus is what you want, then citrus is what this beer delivers. Even as the brettanmyces contributes background notes of earth, the hop character found in this beer won't be denied. All of the juicy and vibrant taste translates to the cleanest and most crisp bitterness imaginable. Dry as a bone, this is one masterfully crafted beer from nose to finish.

Serving type: bottle

09-14-2012 03:20:02 | More by BEERchitect

zeff80

Missouri

3.93/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A - Poured out a clear, golden color with a one-finger, white head of bubbly foam. It left thin trails of lace on the glass.

S - It smelled floral and slightly funky.

T - Good funky bite from the Brett. Spicy and citrusy with some sweet caramel as a backbone.

M - It was crisp, sharp and smooth. A little lighter than I expected from an IPA, but it had a clean finish.

O - This is a very tasty Brett IPA. Another good one from Evil Twin.

Serving type: bottle

10-04-2012 23:06:35 | More by zeff80

metter98

New York

4.03/5  rDev +1.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

A: The beer is crystal clear yellow in color and has some hints of amber hues and no visible carbonation. It poured with a half finger high white head that died down and left a large patch of bubbles on the surface. As you get near the bottom of the bottle, the beer becomes very cloudy due to the yeast.
S: There are light to moderate aromas of sourness in the nose along with some hints of tropical fruits from the hops.
T: The hops stand out prominently in the taste of this beer and contribute flavors of tropical fruits—mangoes seem to stand out in particular. There is a light amount of bitterness and sourness.
M: It feels medium-bodied on the palate and has a moderate amount of carbonation. No crispness is detectable.
O: This IPA is very well balanced with the underlying malts because it exhibits lots of interesting hop flavors without lots of bitterness.

Serving type: bottle

10-21-2012 12:10:15 | More by metter98

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.56/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

650ml bottle. Note to brewer (or at least their marketing department: 'ones' does not equal 'once'. Just sayin'.

This beer pours a very hazy medium golden yellow hue, with two fingers of puffy, chunky off-white head, which leaves a rather consistent array of randomly pocked painted lace around the glass as it slowly abates.

It smells of bitter herbal, citrusy hops, ever so mild barnyard funk - really, really understated for what one maybe was expecting - some pale grainy malt, a slight peppery spice, and earthy herbal notes. The taste is mildly musty funk (sensing a trend here), grainy pale malt, soft citrus and pine notes more reminiscent of a newbie central coast IPA, a hovering angst-ridden yeast, and earthy, indeterminate drying notes.

The carbonation is quite active, and frothy in a fairly generous sense, the body medium light in weight, and smooth enough once the bubbles dial is back a bit. It finishes mostly off-dry, the yeast, fruit, and pale malt all vying for space, and providing a pretty agreeable balance of flavour.

Overall, this works as a pretty enjoyable Belgian-style IPA, a bit yeasty here, a bit fruity there, and a bit hoppy everywhere, but nowhere does it get to the promised funk. A good thing, truth be told from my little peanut gallery, but hardly worth all of the heady marketing. Like the titular character - it's disappointingly lacking once you get too close.

Serving type: bottle

03-24-2013 08:17:06 | More by biboergosum

smcolw

Massachusetts

3.58/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Modest head but it leaves excessive blanketing lace with a thicker ring of lace after each sip. Yellow straw color with a bit of a chill haze.

Very attractive and fresh grapefruit hop smell. Prickly.

Plenty of bitter hop presence, but there is a malt base in the background. A bit thin with a neutral level of carbonation. Long, long aftertaste. Overall, this is pretty straightforward--a bitter, neutral IPA.

Serving type: bottle

10-20-2012 01:29:10 | More by smcolw

Billolick

New York

4.16/5  rDev +5.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

Bomber w/o freshness info

$10.99 at DeCicco's in Ardsley, NY

Pours heavily yeast clouded dull tangarine, under a medium khaki head, that leaves plenty of thicker sheeting and bands of lacing.

Grapefruit, tangarines and orange in the nose, with just a hint of the forest floor.

More orange notes on the palate, very dry with near puckering grapefruit notes and hop resins. Brett chacteristics fairly muted. Just picking up some earthyness and perhaps some dusty cellar.

Carbonation on point

Nicely crafted, super citrusy IPA, brett on the quite subtle side. Roll it all together and its a tasty, citric IPA with a soft and smooth mouthfeel. Highly enjoyable and well worth giving a try.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2013 22:47:21 | More by Billolick

thagr81us

South Carolina

3.78/5  rDev -4.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served from bottle into a Mikkeller Teku (proper!). Poured golden yellow with a one finger white head that subsided to a minimal amount slowly. Maintained phenomenal lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, bubblegum, citrus, citrus hop, floral, and funk. The flavor was of sweet malt, citrus, citrus hop, earth, earth hop, orange zest, bubblegum, and funk. It had a light feel on the palate with medium carbonation. Overall this was a fairly good brew. There was something on this one that I really liked and a few other things that I did not. Upon first inspection of the aroma I was really intrigued by the note of bubblegum that I picked up on as it was quite refreshing and inviting. I was hoping that it would carry over into the flavor, but it was only a minor player in the game. There was a big earthy and funky character going on that dominated most of the brew and disrupted the balance of the overall brew. It was fairly easy to drink my glass without hesitation and I would likely suggest this to others as well.

Serving type: bottle

09-14-2012 11:57:42 | More by thagr81us

bluejacket74

Ohio

4/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 ounce bottle. The beer pours a bright gold color with about an inch white head. Head retention and lacing are both good. Aroma is nice, the brew smells mostly like citrusy hops (grapefruit, pineapple), along with some brett, floral hops and bready malt. Taste is mostly like the aroma, but I think the brett comes out stronger in the taste. There's some citrusy and floral hop flavors noticeable, and bready malt is in there too. Mouthfeel/body is medium, it's slick with moderate carbonation. I liked this brew, I might have to pick up another bottle in the future. $8.99 a bottle.

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2012 00:09:18 | More by bluejacket74

tdm168

North Carolina

3.51/5  rDev -11.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to jtd1969 for sharing this one with me

A - dark orangish gold with a thin, white head that has good retention

S - incredibly musty, some apples and citrus

T - piney, herbal, pineapple, alcohol, bitter finish

M - medium bodied, well carbonated

I am a bit disappointed with this beer. The Nelson Sauvin hops clash tremendously with the Brett. The yeast and malt fight for attention and clash with the intense herbal hop character. This was a hard one to enjoy for that reason. I'll avoid this one in the future.

Serving type: bottle

04-03-2013 00:55:42 | More by tdm168

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

4.13/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On Tap at Memphis Taproom in a tulip glass during their IPA DAY.

Femme Fatale in the tulip looks bright yellow with some straw coloring in there as well. a slight haze to the liquid with bubbles forming a very thin head up above that clang to the glass some. A very attractive looking beer with life. The smell was a bit muted to say the least. Not pimped out with a lot of citrus hops this was a floral scent mixed with a small spike of brett funk that complimented nicely. A bit of grain pops up but none too much and a touch of perfume. Taste is quite nice. I try not to think of this as a souped up IPA but more like a hoppy regular ale with brett. Some funk with some lemon, small pine, floral quality with lemon grass. The body is below medium the carb is tame and the aftertaste is big but not lingering with some brett in the finish. All in all, a good beer with low alcohol that I would drink more of in a hurry.

Serving type: on-tap

09-08-2012 21:13:20 | More by onix1agr

dbrauneis

New Jersey

4.05/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

A: Pours a clear medium yellow in color with light to moderate amounts of visible carbonation. The beer has a half finger tall bright white head that quickly reduces to an extremely thin film covering the majority of the surface of the beer and a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Light to moderate amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Wonderful moderate to strong aromas of tropical hops (mango and pineapple) with lighter notes of brett funkiness and grapefruit/citrus hops. Very inviting.

T: Moderate to strong flavors of tropical hops (mango and pineapple). Very light amounts of brett funkiness/sourness, much less than in the smell. Well balanced as there is very little bitterness.

M: Slightly heavier than light bodied with light to moderate amounts of carbonation. Slightly thin.

O: Very easy to drink with the lighter body and lower ABV - drinks like it is sessionable but just a touch too strong to really be a session beer. Very enjoyable with wonderful tropical hop flavors and aromas and just enough brett. Definitely one I would recommend and have again.

Serving type: bottle

10-20-2012 20:12:32 | More by dbrauneis

ngeunit1

California

4.23/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A - Hazy golden-yellow with a big finger of frothy white head. The head fades down at a very slow pace.

S - Funky and lightly tart Brett, grapefruit, citrus, and light pine hops, some sweet caramel and lightly grainy malts, lemon zest.

T - Funky and tart brett, tart green fruits, lemon peel, grapefruit, orange, citrus, and light pine hops, some bitterness, sweet caramel and lightly grainy malts, some farmhouse flavors.

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

D - Nice Brett beer. The hops make for a good balance with the Brett character.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2013 06:36:33 | More by ngeunit1

oline73

Maryland

4.4/5  rDev +11.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

I had this on-tap at Max's during Baltimore Beer Week. Served in a sample glass.

Appearance: The beer pours a clear golden amber color with a half finger of fluffy white head. The head covers the glass as you drink the beer.

Smell: Citrus hops up front, they seem to be super fresh. There is a light, slightly sweet malt note behind the hops along with a hint of brett.

Taste: This reminds me a lot of a west coast IPA. Light and mildly sweet malt show up but the star is the aggressive citrus peel hop flavor. I'm getting a touch of brett in the background that's quite refreshing. The finish is full of west coast IPA hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel: The body is medium with tingly carbonation. The carbonation could use a small boost. The finish is dry.

Overall: I thought this was a fantastic IPA and the brett just took it over the top. I thought it was very interesting and fun. I would definitely have more of this one in the future.

Serving type: on-tap

11-09-2012 03:17:28 | More by oline73

Florida9

Illinois

3.95/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Cloudy pastel yellow in color. Served in a tulip with a fairly large, bubbly off white head. Aroma is inviting: pineapple, mango, and some yeasty esters. Unfortunately the taste doesn't back up the smell. Very light pale malts, dry, almost cider like with very little of the tropical fruit that was in the nose. Lighter body. Dry, and characteristically Bretty. A nice beer, but would have appreciated a bit more sweetness and more of the Brett fruitiness to come through on the flavor like it did in the nose.

Serving type: on-tap

01-26-2013 21:47:16 | More by Florida9

popery

California

4.58/5  rDev +15.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Absolutely delicious. The beer pours hazy and yellow gold. The color is quite pale for an IPA. The head is foamy and white. The aroma is pretty wonderful. Loads of bright citric hops and a good deal of funky yeast character. It's all tangerine rinds and farmhouse. Some honeysuckle in there, as well. Taste starts sweet with more bright, fresh citrus but quickly dries out and gives a little bitter bite. If the beer were sweeter, I'm not sure that there would be enough bitterness for me, but as is, it's just incredibly refreshing. Sort of a funky twang in the finish. Feel is light and airy with some hop oiliness. This is very much a brett IPA. It's big on fresh, bright citrus, brett funk and dry very light malt. Great for a hot day. It's just wonderfully put together and makes me want to buy more of those pricey Evil Twin bottles.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2012 05:07:33 | More by popery

portia99

Massachusetts

4.21/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

500ml bottle poured into a Dogfish Head signature glass.

A - Pours a well hazed pale orange tinted straw color with a thick cap of dense white foam showing excellent staying power. Frothy webs of lacing are left on the glass when the head eventually fades.

S - Ahhhh, brett! Super funky aroma. Tons of earthy, barnyard funk up front that overpowers just about everything. Sweet fruity aromas of oranges, lemons, apricots. Spicy too - cloves and phenols/bandaids! Brett really did some great things here - this smells outstanding!

T - Quite bitter up front, mostly in a medicinal/aspirin sort of way. Very phenolic (flavors of what I imagine bandaids to taste like!)...also cloves, cool herbal flavors with wintergreen taking the lead...not really much funk - brett gives a lot of medicine and phenols - interesting and good, but a bit more barnyard here would have worked well.

M - Thinnish body with a fine carbonation of reasonably high intensity. A medicinal bitterness takes a firm hold here and dominates things a bit too much, in my opinion. Tons and tons of brett character in the earthy, herbal, phenolic sense - not so much on the funky, horsey, barnyardy way.

O - Really had no expectations for this coming into it...other than hoping it would be good given the $15 price tag. Aroma coming from this beer is outstanding...one of the best smelling brett beers I've encountered. Flavors are good, but are heavy on the phenols and missing some of the best brett derived funkiness. Overall, I think this really is a very good brett beer that could have been outstanding. Reminds me a bit of Midnight Sun's 3767 (my all time favorite brett beer), but falling a bit short on balance and complexity of flavor. If this was an $8-9 bottle of beer I'd buy this much more often...at $15 it is a bit of a tough value proposition.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2013 00:48:43 | More by portia99

jrenihan

Ontario (Canada)

4.18/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Beer is a very cloudy golden-yellow colour with a large white head. Good retention and lacing.

Wow, smell is great. Tonnes of tropical fruit. Mango, pineapple, peach. Actually smells a bit like mango lemonade! A bit of bretty funkiness is hidden underneath, not obviously apparent at first- comes out a bit more with a swirling.

The brett is much more prominent in the taste, though I don't find it as nice as the nose. Funky, a bit sour. Still a large dose of tropical fruit, mango and pineapple, among others. Moderate bitterness. Pretty darn complex. Interesting beer for sure.

Medium bodied, fairly strong carbonation level, but not irritatingly so. Dries the mouth a bit.

Overall, quite good indeed. A very interesting beer.

Serving type: bottle

10-14-2012 17:53:27 | More by jrenihan

DrinkSlurm

Connecticut

3.56/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Poured from growler into glass. Not much head at all...golden clear color. Not much aroma at all. Some sweet malts with a dose of hop and ever so slight funk; but mostly crisp water like aroma...pretty bland. Taste is very very mild crisp pale malt and ever so slight hop. A bit overly sweet and "clean" with no body or tru flavor. Its actually vordering a kolch for me...
I really wished this had way more brett characteristic and just more flavor in general.
I love Evil Twin, but this didnt hit the mark for me.

Serving type: growler

02-03-2013 20:12:40 | More by DrinkSlurm

dogfishandi

New York

4.25/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

22oz bottle at fridge temp poured into a snifter. No freshness info.

Pours out a hazy light golden, straw yellow/ orange color. A small 1/4 inch layer of white head. Decent head retention, only spotty lacing.

Lots of phenolic aromas, very floral, lemon zest citrus, resiny, spicy hops, grassy, fresh dirt.

Very nice tasting beer. I'm loving the combination, the Brett and hops mingle so nicely. Lemon zest citrus, floral and earthy, fresh dirt, ripe tropical fruits, a bit of pine, spicey yeast phenols play off a resinous bitter finish. Great drinkability and a great ABV, finished the bomber way too quick.

A great light mouthfeel, carbonation is just right, not a very high amount like most Brett beers tend to be, more on the level of an IPA. Maybe the most sessionable, drinkable Brett beer I've had to date.

A great beer, different than the one other beer I've had of this style. Most people say this was super funky, but I actually didn't think the Brett was super noticeable at first. Almost comes off as a Belgian IPA with all the spicey, yeasty phenols. I'd drink this again.

Serving type: bottle

03-01-2013 20:25:55 | More by dogfishandi

mltobin

Connecticut

3.95/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Served on-tap at Mikkeller Bar.

Appearance is a cloudy gold color with a thin white head. Its` nose mango, crackers, funk, pepper and hay. The taste of Femme Fatale is cake, brett, hops and grass. It is an interesting mix of flavors, but works well. Mouthfeel is medium bodied, a well carbonated brew. It finishes rather dry. This is a tasty beer and for those who enjoy some funk, pick it up ! It is cool to see it on the shelves in the U.S. now, when I tried it in Copenhagen during a brief stay, did not know if I would see this beer again.

Serving type: on-tap

10-21-2012 02:12:32 | More by mltobin

Dreadnaught33

District of Columbia

4.38/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This is a super refreshing beer, especially now in early fall sitting at the sunlight bar at pizzaria paradiso in DuPont circle in DC.

The beer has a color I would expect to see more in a Belgian blonde or a saison, rather than a IPA but nice hazy look and head/lacing. The smell certainly has the fruity colors of Brett but also some nice pungent grassy hop aromas too, and it works. I think I wish it had a bit more hop edge in the smell overall, but nice.

The taste is really refreshing, nice big citrus notes and tropical notes too that are a great mix of the hops and the Brett, it really works in this case instead of being a conflict. Semi sweet and juicy in the feel, it strikes a great balance in flavor that just drinks really easy, a great beer on tap, could see how the flavors could be muted out of the bottle though. Some almost herbal notes in here also like a super slight flutter of lavender. Nice stuff!

Serving type: on-tap

09-19-2012 21:38:01 | More by Dreadnaught33

larryi86

Delaware

4.13/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz bottle poured into a snifter

A- A bright, hazy, golden color with two finger white head.

S- Bright citrus, a little funk from the brett, touch of floral hops, great balance between hops and brett.

T- More funk from the brett than in the nose, touch citrus hops, floral hops, very brett forward.

M- Smooth, crisp, medium body.

O- A nice combination of hops and brett. I will probably pick this up again.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2012 01:38:40 | More by larryi86

deadonhisfeet

Kentucky

3.98/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a bottle into a New Belgium snifter. The beer is a hazy light orange-yellow with practically no head whatsoever. The nose is really nice. I get notes of ripe tropical fruits like sweet oranges, peaches, and pineapples. I could occasionally detect the brett, but could never convince myself that I was getting it every time. Usually, it was after the beer had sat undisturbed for several moments. Swirling just brought forward hoppy notes and buried the brett. Brett or no brett, this is a nice-smelling IPA.

The beer has a medium body and a firm, slick mouthfeel. The flavor is one of the most unique I have come across. It has the typical flavors one associates with IPAs, and it also has a mild, tart acidity. On the front of the palate, there is a bready, biscuity sweetness that is quickly joined by a smack of hops in the form of lemon, grapefruit, and orange flavors. The hop flavors intensify across the palate, and become mildly vinegary on the back of the tongue. The resulting finish is dry, yet acidic, refreshing, and lasting. The beer is quite drinkable with all that citrusy hop flavor and relatively low ABV.

After I had tasted this beer a few times I found myself wishing there was someone else drinking it with me that I could talk to about it. I highly recommend this beer (as a palate-educating experience if not as a pleasant beverage). It's not the most enjoyable IPA out there, I wouldn't want to drink it regularly (the only reason I'm not giving it higher marks), and I'm sure many people will not like it, but it does suggest that a lot more can be done with the style. There are interesting combinations of flavor and character here that I have not encountered before.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2012 22:57:10 | More by deadonhisfeet