Old Ale Project – The Wild Beer Co.’s M.O. (Modus Operandi) (#14)

11.2oz bottle decanted into a snifter.  7% ABV.  Served a little cold, but allowed to warm. 

Appearance:  Deeply stained brown body with no foam cap and few bubbles.  Slightly murky when held up to the light (3/5).

Aroma:  Boozy alcohol, freshly cut wood, marshmallows, and grape Kool-Aid.  No smell trumps the others.  Everything is fairly balanced and restrained (3.5/5).

Taste:  Sweet and sour, but nothing lingers.  Artificial grape flavoring, and maybe some prunes and raisins.  Every component is very dialed back.  The wild yeast has added an interesting character to the beer, but has it also chewed up all the other flavors?  There really isn’t anything else to talk about (2.75/5).

Mouthfeel:  Thin body and low carbonation (2/5).

Overall:  I understand that Wild Beer is not trying to make a traditional Old Ale with this, so I will not judge it as such.  But there’s not really much in here.  It’s a decent flavor… but that’s pretty much all it is.  A single flavor.  It tastes like lightly carbonated grape Kool-Aid.  There isn’t anything for malt or hops.  So where’s the beer flavor in this beer?  I certainly appreciate unconventional techniques and ingredients, but I think the wild yeast has ripped this beer apart.  What might make it a little more interesting, if I may make a suggestion, would be to pay a little homage to Greene King’s Olde Suffolk English Ale and blend back some of this beer in its fresh form into the final product.  That should give it a little more depth, and could potentially build back up the thin body.  As it is, I am uninspired (2.5/5).

-Matt