Yuzu Fierce - Off Color Brewing

    Yuzu Fierce is a variant of Off Color Brewing's (Chicago, Illinois) kettle-soured Berliner Weisse, Fierce, that is brewed with Yuzu fruit. Yuzu is a small citrus fruit that originated in China and is commonly cultivated in Korea and Japan. While the fruit resembles a mix between a lemon and a grapefruit, it has its own unique flavor that is bright, tangy, and floral.

    Yuzu Fierce pours a straw-like pale gold color. A minimal head forms upon pouring, and quickly recedes into almost nothing - just a few bubbles in a ring where beer meets glass.

    The Berliner Weisse smells of almost candy-like, sweet citrus . A mild sourness mingles with the earthy scent of wheat in the beer. Overall the beer's aroma is very crisp and clean.

    Yuzu Fierce has a relatively thin mouthfeel, and a medium level of carbonation. The beer is quite light and crisp, and has a very light alcohol content of 3.8% ABV.

I can only imagine how many fruits it took to get
enough juice for this brew - that thing is ALL seeds.

    Unsurprisingly for a kettle-soured beer, Yuzu Fierce has a slight tangy, sour flavor. This tartness goes nicely with the citrus, candy, and floral flavors from the yuzu and really shows off the unique flavor of the fruit. The beer's sourness is very light - not like that of a Sour Ale, but more like the tartness of lemonade. The beer's flavor is rounded out by clean wheat and grain flavor at the end. A small bit of tartness remains in the mouth after swallowing the beer.

    Yuzu Fierce is an extremely refreshing mix of crisp, clean flavors and a very sessionable lightness of body and alcohol. If you've never tried yuzu before, I highly recommend seeking the fruit out. Personally, I have found that I really enjoy the flavor of yuzu quite a bit. Off Color Brewing has done a great job in capturing yuzu's flavor and showing it off by presenting it alongside their Berliner Weisse, Fierce.

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Radiolaria - Off Color/Jester King

    Radiolaria is an American Wild Ale which was brewed as a collaboration by Off Color Brewing in Chicago, Illinois and Jester King Brewery which is located in Austin, Texas. While the beer was brewed in Chicago, Jester King provided Off Color with a sample of wild yeast collected from Texas. Off Color combined this yeast with their own mix of wild yeast from Chicago and pitched it into wort based on their Apex Predator Saison for a truly unique, one-time-only brew.

    Radiolaria pours a hazy, straw color with a short, white head of foam which doesn't hang around long. The bubbles fade quickly and don't leave much lacing at all.

    The Wild Ale's aroma is surprisingly subtle. There a definite tartness to the scent, as well as scents of fruit and spices. A slight, hay-like scent gives the brew and interesting, earthy aroma alongside light, sweet malt scents. I really expected the ale's scent to knock me over with huge yeast aromas, but I'm pleasantly surprised by the beer's complex subtlety.

All the yeast are invited to this party!

    Radiolaria is light bodied with a light to medium level of carbonation. The body and carbonation levels complement each other quite nicely. There is a mild tartness to the ale, and a light, 4.5% ABV alcohol content.

    Similarly to the ale's aroma, Radiolaria's flavor is surprisingly mild. Funky, spicy, and fruity yeast notes dominate the flavor, though even these flavors are much weaker than I had expected. I'm especially surprised by how little sourness is present in the ale's flavor. Lightly sweet malt flavors are balanced with mild hop bitterness. The beer is very clean tasting overall, but also very mildly flavored.

    I find that I was somewhat disappointed in Radiolaria. Admittedly, this disappointment is likely due to my uninformed expectations of what this beer would taste like. I went into this tasting expecting a Sour Ale and instead found that Radiolaria is a mild, yet interesting Wild Ale. I think the concept of combining wild yeasts from multiple areas of the country is ingenious, but I wish the yeast flavors (all the flavors actually) would have been a bit more pronounced. Radiolaria is by no means a bad Wild Ale, it just didn't live up to my expectations. This was a one-time brew as far as I know, but if you find one somewhere feel free to leave your own comments!

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Apex Predator - Off Color Brewing

    Apex Predator is a Saison (AKA Farmhouse Ale) brewed by Off Color Brewing in Chicago, Illinois. In the past few months of living in the Logan Square neighborhood of Chicago, I've become quite proud to call Off Color a local brewery. To me, Off Color seems to be just two guys who love making beer, and make it however the heck they feel like at the time. What results is usually a dang fine brew!

    Off Color's Saison is a hazy, pale orange with a thick, off-white head of foam. Much of this foam slides down the glass as the cup empties, though it leaves a nice bit of lacing on the sides of the glass.

    The Saison smells of the spicy Belgian yeast used in brewing it. Additionally, there is a slight bit of a bubblegum scent to the ale, a result of the brewing processes and yeast. Hops lend a slight grassy scent to the ale, as well as some interesting juicy, tropical fruit scents.

    Apex Predator is light to medium bodied, but is enhanced by the high level of carbonation. This carbonation is likely the reason that so many scents were perceptible, since the bubbles were propelling them out of the beer. An alcohol content of 6.5% ABV keeps things at what I would call an average level of booziness for a craft ale.

Don't trust his stories, especially when he's drinking. He's always lion.

    The Saison tastes very much like it smells with the exception that those juicy tropical flavors are much less pronounced, though definitely still there. The main event here is definitely the Belgian yeast. White pepper, cloves, and yes, even bubblegum flavors are all present, and somehow work quite well together. Even with all the different flavors, the beer still manages to be thirst quenching, which definitely a plus in a Saison.

    Many wise people have stated that history repeats itself. It's been a common theme throughout time that once a civilization reaches its Apex it quickly declines into nothingness. Take the lion. Top of his game, king of the jungle. Before long he's too lazy to get up and hunt and makes the women do his work for him. Next thing you know, he develops a drinking habit. Lazy, half-drunk, and slow in the afternoon sun, the lion sits just waiting for the younger, stronger generation to take his place. Just remember, it takes a lot of work to reach your apex, but if you relax and let your guard down, even at the top, you could soon find yourself at the bottom once more, or, you know, in a zoo.

    Apex Predator is a great take on the Saison. Time and time again, Off Color seems to take a classic beer style, put a slight spin on it, and make it great. I can't wait to try more!

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Scurry - Off Color Brewing

    Scurry is an Altbier brewed with molasses and honey. The beer is brewed by Off Color Brewing in Chicago, Illinois. Off Color is another of the breweries that I have discovered is located in my neighborhood. I was first attracted to the beer by the sketch-like label, then saw that it was made a few blocks from my home. Needless to say, I had to pick it up.

    Scurry pours a dark molasses color that shows its true ruby tint when held up against light. The beer is much more clear than the dark color would lead you to believe. There is next to no head on the beer, but the a layer of bubbles ring the top of the liquid and leaves a bit of lacing.

    The Altbier smells mainly of roasted malts with a small bit of hoppy bitterness.

    Scurry is just under medium bodied with a nice dry, crispness to it. A mild carbonation level keeps things light without seeming like a cola. The beer has an alcohol content of 5.3% ABV.

This is a Honey bee-r hive.

    Off Color's beer tastes of lightly roasted malts with a bit of oats flavor as well. The honey and molasses comes through in a surprisingly dry way. There is little sweetness to the beer, even with it being brewed using such sweet ingredients. Earthy hops add just a slight bitterness to the beer, making the overall flavor almost savory.

    The label leads me to believe that the brewers at Off Color are all mice. Also, that this beer required raiding special bee-r's hives in order pull off its honey character. It makes sense then that the name, Scurry, is due to a unsuccessful attempt at raiding the hive, and a flight from bee-rs. Of course my imagination goes back to cartoons in which bees would fly in formation and make shapes like a bow and arrow while flying after the mouse. The mouse would run and dive into a pond, breathing through a reed to escape. The bees would either be fooled by this, or would dive down into the reed causing the mouse to run out of the water.

    Scurry has a very interesting flavor that is unlike other beers I've had. That said, I've only ever had one other Altbier. I really like that Off Color is making whatever types of beer they want, and seemingly aren't limited to popular contemporary styles. I look forward to trying more of their beers!

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