New Glarus R&D Gueuze

New Glarus Brewing Company located in, you guessed it, New Glarus, Wisconsin has long been a favorite of mine. They brew a wide variety of beers along with a rotating Unplugged series and this new "R&D" series of small batch beers that are only available for purchase at the brewery itself. I do highly recommend a trip (or multiple trips) to New Glarus to check out and tour their fairly new hilltop brewery. It's a beautiful place and since New Glarus is only distributed in Wisconsin, it's the only way you'll get their beers anyway :-)

I am sharing my thoughts on the R&D Gueuze. It's long sold out at the brewery - however I am hoping that they will brew and release it again sometime!

Thanks to my buddy Kevin for grabbing this for me while he was at the brewery! Pours into my glass a beautiful golden peach with a fast moving bubbly head that quickly subsides. Great clarity with lots of active carbonation. Aromas start out with a good deal of funk coupled with fruit tones. Cherry and vinous notes. Floral accents meld into a mellow woodiness as well. Mild vinegar works in. Nice!

First sip brings tart fruit upfront with notes of cherry and apple. Malt dances underneath with woody oak tones and a touch of vinegar. Good balance between sour, acidity and sweetness. Dry white wine moves in as it flows down. Lingering funk on the finish that leaves you coming back for more!

Mouthfeel is light and smooth with lots of fast moving carbonation...kinda champagne-esque. Pretty easy to drink as it is not overly sour or acidic. Cheers to New Glarus for taking the chance on brewing a Gueuze!! Glad to have the opportunity to try it and hope to see something like this from them again soon.

This beer gains a rank of Great from me. Very happy to have tried it.

Check out more from New Glarus Brewing Company by surfing over to http://www.newglarusbrewing.com/

More notes on this brew:

1,900 bottles released (only available at brewery gift shop)
Brewed March 24, 2009
Bottled August 6, 2010

Brewed in the tradition of the Lambics of Belgium but using a blend of Ale Yeast, Brettanomyces, Lactobacillus, Pediococcus, and Acetobacter. These microorganisms came from our culture collection as well as many collected by Dan around the wilds of Wisconsin! Fermented and aged in Oak. This beer spent the summer of 2009 aging outdoors in used oak barrels, then bottle fermented.