Enlightenment Brut (Bière De Champagne) - Enlightenment Ales

Enlightenment Brut (BiÃ¨re De Champagne)

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BA SCORE
91
exceptional
-
26 Ratings

rAvg: 4.21
pDev: 12.11%
Reviews: 4
Hads: 22

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Enlightenment Ales

Massachusetts, United States

Style | ABV
Bière de Champagne / Bière Brut | 11.00% ABV

Availability: Year-round. bottle (4).

Notes:
No notes at this time.

View: Beers (5) | Events (0)

Reviews

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Reviews by hreb:

hreb

Washington

4.15/5 rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

My second attempt at a beer from Enlightenment Ales is their No1 beer, Bière Brut, batch 4. Cold 750mL bottle served -- per instructions -- in a (large) flute. Beer pours slightly cloudy straw yellow with lots of bubbles rising towards a thick white head. Looks like it could *be* a rather dark (yellow) champagne, if the head is allowed to fall. Aroma is slightly yeasty.

My first sip is intensely carbonated with tiny bubbles. Would be carbonated to a fault in any other style, but perfect here. Flavor is really delicate and I find it hard to describe. Grainy, but not malty? Dry, but not hoppy. I say dry, and it is definitely Brut but not Extra Brut (or Natural). Allowing the beer to settle in the mouth brings out the Belgian flavors. This one brings out flavors from Leffe Blonde, or even Westvleteren Blonde. Of course, where those beers are around 6%, this boasts 11% ABV -- but you'd never guess it from the lack of alcohol harshness/burn, residual sugar, heavy mouthfeel, or heavy hop load typical of high gravity ales. Which is not to say it's not more heady than Belgian Pale Ales. I figured the use of "multiple yeast strains" was a gimmick (why not just use the one that works?), but based on the result I can't doubt anything the brewer's done here.

It's been a long time since I tried Infinium, but I think this is way better. The execution here is excellent and drinking this is a real treat, if not a beer for everyday.

Serving type: bottle

01-14-2013 04:11:49 | More by hreb

More User Reviews:

rab53

Massachusetts

4.25/5 rDev +1%

04-28-2013 01:18:35 | More by rab53

AlexFields

Tennessee

4.36/5 rDev +3.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours a slightly cloudy light yellow orange, nice fine head, off white with orange tint.

The nose is subtle and really different from anything I've had. Smells of light fruit, grapes, orange sherbet, some interesting vanilla or something I can't quite place. Yeah orange sherbet. Very nice.

Oh wow. Yeah big vanilla cream, orange fruit again, graham cracker, much sweeter than I expected, this is like delicate fruity ice cream with hints of alcohol or dryness...delicious. Unique.

Mouthfeel is very soft and creamy, lots of carb but it's very fine and not like fizzy/bubbly. Feels wonderful, very drinkable.

This is fantastic. My first biere de champagne but I have several others lined up and now I'm very excited to try them!

8.7/10

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2013 02:29:00 | More by AlexFields

aorloski

Massachusetts

4.5/5 rDev +6.9%

04-07-2013 16:22:27 | More by aorloski

jderosia603

New Hampshire

4.25/5 rDev +1%

04-06-2013 05:23:19 | More by jderosia603

Mullen2525

Massachusetts

2.75/5 rDev -34.7%

03-18-2013 23:38:05 | More by Mullen2525

alienlifeforcecube

Massachusetts

4.5/5 rDev +6.9%

03-16-2013 06:02:24 | More by alienlifeforcecube

CADMixes

Massachusetts

4.25/5 rDev +1%

03-12-2013 00:33:27 | More by CADMixes

Dope

Massachusetts

4.28/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

Very fresh bottle, couple weeks old.

A: Pours a hazy golden-amberish color. Enormous fluffy and fizzy tan head. Head fades away surprisingly slowly despite its initially fizzy nature. It quickly becomes huge blobs of fluffiness instead. Big island of foam remains, tons of fluffy lacing from top to bottom of the glass. Top notch.

S: Very saison-ish. Light, crisp fruits, mainly citrus. Lemons and oranges I suppose. Grassy. Light breadiness. When swirled I get some graham cracker crust along with the lemons, kinda lemon meringue-ish. Smells similar to a 5-7% saison, not an 11% monster; zero alcohol. Refreshing.

T: Again, very saison-ish. Grassy, citrusy and even a little melon up front. Lots of graham cracker crust up front and in the middle, turning a little more biscuity into the finish. Finish has again, a little citrus and grass and it turns just a bit dry. Get kind of a crackery, saltine-like aftertaste. Absolutely zero alcohol despite extremely fresh bottle.

M: High carbonation (duh) gives it an airier feel and softens the flavors, making this seem like a 7% saison at MOST. Amazing.

O: This is one hell of a biere de champagne. If you've never had one, they are definitely very saison-ish but with champagne yeast characteristics instead of belgian yeast characteristics (very little in the way of earthiness, black pepper, etc). I hope I described that correct, just giving my impression. Amazing job of hiding the alcohol in this one, this has to be the easiest drinking 11% beer I've ever had. Flavors are well rounded, body isn't overly heavy and there is zero alcohol sting. Seriously good, easily the best of the style that I've ever had.

Serving type: bottle

02-23-2013 04:48:38 | More by Dope

ThePorterSorter

New York

3.75/5 rDev -10.9%

02-23-2013 04:00:50 | More by ThePorterSorter

lucas1801

Massachusetts

4.75/5 rDev +12.8%

01-27-2013 00:17:38 | More by lucas1801

Rempo

Indiana

5/5 rDev +18.8%

01-25-2013 01:08:25 | More by Rempo

celticfutblclub

Massachusetts

4.75/5 rDev +12.8%

01-16-2013 15:01:41 | More by celticfutblclub

MasterCraft

Massachusetts

4.5/5 rDev +6.9%

01-12-2013 02:38:13 | More by MasterCraft

MA08

Massachusetts

4.75/5 rDev +12.8%

01-09-2013 15:02:40 | More by MA08

captainsmith1775

4.53/5 rDev +7.6%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

I can't believe there isn't a review for this remarkable beer yet. Oh well, here goes.

The pour is lively, with a steady stream of fine bubbles rising to the rim of the glass sustaining the fluffy cap of foam atop the soft, golden body.

Hints of sweet, hard candies, mild fruit (banana) and a hint of white pepper in the aroma. Flavor has that hint of sweetness and a mouth-coating quality that is hard to place, almost oily. Some bitterness is in the form of fine carbonation and mild hops help to balance things out nicely.

What an amazing specimen we have here. If there was any doubt that the United States was the best place in the world to drink beer, this fine example of our product should surely help displace it.

Serving type: bottle

01-01-2013 16:12:14 | More by captainsmith1775