Riserva - Weyerbacher Brewing Co.

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +13.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Review from BeerAdvocate magazine Vol. II Issue VII:

2008 bottle

Think oak barrels, Brettanomyces, red raspberry purée and over a year of aging.

Solid lacing, more than anticipated from a high-alcohol
Brett beer. Withered rose-red color with a shade of burgundy, good clarity as the sediment was left in the bottle. Mellow horse blanket, musty, minty and tart berry aroma. Very smooth and crisp from an active carbonation. Semi-slick mouthfeel. Fusel and a mild solvent alcoholic character lets us know right away that it has strength, with warmth and a peppery and tropical fruit mix. Phenols drop a blanket of herbal and minty flavors, maltiness is extremely dry with a light cracker-like flavor. Raspberry flavor is impressive, tart but balanced. Another breath of fusel alcohol in the semi-clean and lingering tart finish.

Fresh but not green at all, perfect to drink now, and we're sure several months, if not a year or so, would make things interesting. Weyerbacher is right on target with Riserva. Please, keep on experimenting, guys!

Serving type: bottle

09-13-2010 20:39:21 | More by BeerAdvocate

mikereaser

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -5.5%

05-23-2013 14:49:22 | More by mikereaser

atone315

Wisconsin

4.75/5  rDev +19.6%

05-20-2013 12:28:51 | More by atone315

InspectorBob

New Jersey

4/5  rDev +0.8%

05-20-2013 12:23:48 | More by InspectorBob

campfirebrew

New York

4.25/5  rDev +7.1%

05-20-2013 02:29:19 | More by campfirebrew

Invictus

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +13.4%

05-19-2013 19:31:19 | More by Invictus

tdm168

North Carolina

4.19/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

A - dark amber with a thin lacing of off white head

S - tart raspberries, lactic

T - tart, lactic, sweet raspberries, oak, woody

M - medium bodied, warm, well carbonated

This is a fantastic Wild Ale. It has tremendous balance, deep flavor, and great balance. The oak-aging is superb as are the raspberries. The lactic, tartness is intense but almost perfect. This is definitely a beer that is worth trying.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 23:54:13 | More by tdm168

beechner224

Florida

4.7/5  rDev +18.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.75

Poured into large pint glass since I was drinking it by myself. The appearance was a nice red with a thin layer of foam. Lots of carbonation, which I like with sours. The smell was great, lots of raspberries and vinegar. Thought the taste was great. Just what I wanted with this sour. The raspberries are upfront, then the sour, vinegar, funk comes through nicely. Mouthfeel was very nice, with the tons of carbonation and dry with lip smacking tartness.

Overall, thought the beer was great and would definitely get again. But next time, I might share with a friend, it is a strong beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 19:52:32 | More by beechner224

HopBrain

New Jersey

4.5/5  rDev +13.4%

05-18-2013 16:25:26 | More by HopBrain

weltywm

Pennsylvania

4.81/5  rDev +21.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Poured into 4 snifters and split with some friends.

Appearance: Dark ruby red with a thin 1/2 finger of foam. Lots of carbonation.

Smell: Raspberries, vinegar, and funk.

Taste: Wow, this is good. The raspberries are obvious and big, complemented well by strawberry, vinegar, and lots of funk. As I kept drinking, I also picked up on really dry, red wine flavors.

Mouthfeel: Very carbonated and medium bodied. The finish is long, dry, and mouth-puckering. Delicious.

Overall: A very, very fine beer. Weyebacher has done it again. All of the flavors are complex and complement each other very well. Despite the steep price, I would definitely buy again.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2013 13:36:47 | More by weltywm

blindpiggie

Colorado

4.25/5  rDev +7.1%

05-18-2013 07:21:11 | More by blindpiggie

Vonerichs

Illinois

3.98/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

The body is a bright red color and clear. It has active carbonation the creates a tall but whispy head.

It has a great fruity smell of raspberries and strawberry with a funk.

The raspberries dominate the flavor with a high level of tart and acidity, giving it an vinegar aftertaste on the palate. My eyes were on the verge of watering.

The mouthfeel is crisp and light. Aside from the vinegar it's amazingly drinkable for 11%.

I felt the sourness was a little too overboard and detracted from what is otherwise a really good beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2013 00:52:10 | More by Vonerichs

roostor07

Minnesota

3.5/5  rDev -11.8%

05-16-2013 14:18:35 | More by roostor07

Juuroumaru

Florida

4.53/5  rDev +14.1%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

A- Cloudy red with a small white head.
S- smells of raspberry along with slight souring.
T- Acidic raspberry up front that mellows into a slight sourness on the tongue.
M- a pleasantly thin feel with good carbonation bubbles
O- the reddish pink hue gives it a very inviting appeal. Definately a beer worth aging can only get better with time.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2013 01:00:23 | More by Juuroumaru

PeteRiz

Connecticut

4/5  rDev +0.8%

05-16-2013 00:26:08 | More by PeteRiz

phooky

New York

4.25/5  rDev +7.1%

05-16-2013 00:01:18 | More by phooky

Camel242000

North Carolina

3.75/5  rDev -5.5%

05-14-2013 01:46:57 | More by Camel242000

Kadonny

Pennsylvania

4.4/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a corked and caged 750 bottle into a tulip glass. 2012 version.

A: A nice rose red color with a two finger off white head. No glass lacing to speak of.

S: Loads of tart fruit with mostly raspberry smells. I get some funk on the nose too with some woody tones.

T: Nice tart flavor. The raspberries really dominate the flavor fruit wise but get coupled with a hefty funk flavor of wet hay and barnyard flavors. I didn't know this has brett in it, but obviously it does. Sourness is not overwhelming and it gets mixes with some slight sweetness, but make no bones about it this beer is a sour. Tartness lasts through the finish and it remains very dry. Alcohol is slightly noticeable, but no where near the 11.4 listed. Amazing beer, a tremendous wild ale.

M: Medium, tart, dry with very little alcohol noticed. Nice carbonation.

O: A tremendous beer, the fruit and funk mix nicely to make a very enjoyable experience. Not quite a top notch sour, but pretty damn close.

I loved this beer, I'm going to go out and try to buy some more bottles. I'd love to see how the brett progresses a year from now. Buy this if you see it.

Serving type: bottle

05-13-2013 12:55:14 | More by Kadonny

Bonko_the_sane

North Carolina

4.5/5  rDev +13.4%

05-13-2013 06:33:19 | More by Bonko_the_sane

cclark67789

Pennsylvania

5/5  rDev +25.9%

05-12-2013 19:46:45 | More by cclark67789

BilbosNuts

California

3.9/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks to mjw52 for hooking me up with this one in a trade eons ago.

Poured from a 750mL bottle (2011 batch) into a tulip.

A: Pours a murky garnet color that is closer to brown. A thin, white head sits on top and stays there throughout. There are small bubble streams of carbonation giving it a not-so-still appearance.

S: The raspberries have held up superbly. There is a tartness that stings the senses. A significant boozy aspect comes through at the end.

T: Nearly identical to the aroma with tart raspberries and an ample boozy finish. The "funkiness" is more noticeable in the taste than the aroma, giving the beer that lovely wild ale characteristic.

M: Medium to light bodied, a slight alcoholic burning finish, but overall pretty easy to drink. Moderate carbonation tingles the palate and allows the tartness to have a lingering effect.

O: While this beer may not be in the upper echelon of wild ales, it is quite tasty and incredibly easy to drink for such a high ABV. Count this one as another offering from Weyerbacher that has impressed me.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2013 02:13:32 | More by BilbosNuts

jl28r1

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +7.1%

05-10-2013 00:34:21 | More by jl28r1

flyingPharmacist

New York

3/5  rDev -24.4%

05-09-2013 02:51:47 | More by flyingPharmacist

GennyCreamAle

New York

3.25/5  rDev -18.1%

05-09-2013 02:49:13 | More by GennyCreamAle

joefuzz

New York

4.4/5  rDev +10.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

2012 vintage Pours deep pink with a small bone white head. Smells like chambord raspberry liquor with a slight bit of funk. Taste is dominated by fresh tasting raspberry with a slight tartness, not super sour with a little bit of the barrel..reminds me a lot of blushing monk. Carbonation is on the higher side with light body. I have no idea why I passed on this bottle so many times..so glad I pulled the trigger and bought one.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2013 01:56:15 | More by joefuzz