Lips Of Faith - Sahti
It claims to be a sahti, so I am going to treat it as such. It's my first of the style, but I don't think this is necessarily a quintessential interpretation, but I'm intrigued. Appearance- A very nice copper, light amber color. Pours with a couple of inches of nice, rich head. Settles down into a cap. Laces very nicely. Good looker. Smell- I get the hops, some grapefruit, a nice citrus. Not getting a lot of spice. More like an APA, with some biscuit and the hop character. Taste- And, things get interesting. The hop character is there. But then the spiciness comes through. Herbal, definitely. I certainly get the juniper. It's a little sweet. Lingering maltiness. Some lemongrass. The sweet and spiciness and hops are all sort of muddled. More alcohol taste than expected. Mouthfeel- So rich it is a hindrance. Honestly, it slows down the enjoyability. Just so damned thick. Drinkability- The stangeness, and muddled characteristics. along with the thick body, conspire against this one. I'd be interested to try another example of this style, to see what direction this beer was trying to go. It's a little strange, and certainly not my cup of ti.