Beer Review: Boysen The Woods

Reviewing Boysen The Woods from Central Waters Brewing Company out of Amherst, Wisconsin. This beer is an intentionally soured version of their La Riviere Coule Belgian pale ale with boysenberries added, aged in a red wine barrel.

Score: 50

Tap pour from a 2014 vintage keg served in a snifter glass and enjoyed on 06/01/14 at the Local Option. Review is from iPhone notes.

Appearance: Pours a murky and opaque reddish-purple/grape color with a thin layer of head that quickly settles to a ring around the glass. 3.5/5

Smell: Boysenberries, vanilla/oak, cherry jam, brown sugar, and graham cracker. Really lovely nose. 4.5/5

Taste: Tart boysenberries, oaky vanilla and pie crust, followed three seconds later by a bold, lasting and unpleasant buttered popcorn finish. Tastes like a boysenberry flanders red with a side of Orville Redenbacher being jammed down your throat against your will. This diacetyl bomb of a finish is unfortunate because the upfront flavor is quite nice. This would probably be a good beer paired with a sip of seltzer water to neutralize the palate after every sip. 1.75/5

Mouthfeel: Light-plus bodied, appropriate carbonation. Big tartness with a little sweetness. 3.5/5

Overall: A nice and tart flavor upfront was quickly and utterly marred by a pungent diacetyl/buttered popcorn finish.

Cost: $9 for a 10 oz pour.