12 oz single from Hop City, Atlanta, GA, USA.
Word on the street is that this is essentially the same beer as this; http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/864/46125
but the beer has been “tweaked” a little in terms of the recipe, and (obviously) it has been re-branded as part of Red Brick’s image overhaul.
The pour gives a nice, mahogany body with some light chill haze. The head is tan and light and bubbly. Retention and lace are below average.
WOW! The nose and tastes are ENORMOUS bubble-gum and fruity banana. “Strong” is NOT the word, it’s an astonishingly powerful, sweet assault. There are some underlying almond notes, but these almonds a sugar coated! We then get a massive array of esters that follow through in the middle and the back end. Pineapple, pears and other tropical fruits are there too. Some alcohol that warms in the chest on the way down. A little slick in the mouth.
The finish is amazingly short considering the early assault, and the beer does not linger in the aftertaste as one may have though after the initial blast. Something to age? This needs to settle down a bit.
There isn’t much subtle about this beer, and I suppose that’s OK, but this beer will not please anyone who does not like a very sweet, fruity, Belgian style beer. I DO like this kind of beer, but to be honest this thing is really MUCH too over the top even for my, sweet-loving palate.
The beer is not really like a BSDA at all, and I would favor the description of a fruity Dubbel, either way this is a pretty crazy beer. MUCH aggression in terms of the fruit, I bet lots of people will hat this. I don’t, but it’s really a borderline beer in all kinds of ways.