Beer Review: Cuir

Reviewing the Cuir from The Bruery. I reviewed the 100% barred aged version of this at the end of last year.
Score: 79

2011 vintage bottle with bottle number 16598. Served in a wine glass and enjoyed on 03/31/12 with my good friends Adam Kaplan and Bryan Hernandez in the elegant W Hotel in River North.

Appearance: Pours a deep and hazy amber color that fades from a deep mahogany at the top to a reddish amber color at the bottom. Two fingers of creamy tan head at pour settles to a decently thick later. Amazing lacing, superior retention. 4.5/5

Smell: Barnyard funkiness and caramel. There's a sweet grape flavor that Hernandez described as "Sherry-like." I am not a wine connoisseur, but he is, so I'll take his word for it. There is barley malt, dried apricot and a light blackberry fruitiness as well. I detect a hint of rose petal, but no one else seems to agree. There is a light alcohol heat in the nose, and it grows as the beer approaches room temperature. For all the complex nuance to the nose, though, you really have to fight through the funkiness in the aroma to detect it. 3.5/5

Taste: Sweet caramel and funky malt throughout. The alcohol is decently hidden at first. The funk seems to subside a little as the beer layers, but as it warms it gets less balanced and more boozy. Bitter barley and banana yeast on the midpalate. Some dried fruit and apricot in addition to modest berry notes. The fortified wine/grape from the nose is in the flavor too. Bitter barley finish and linger with a warming effect on the palate. The funkiness is really detracting. 3/5

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, medium carbonation. There is too much carbonation for how acidic and malty this beer is. Acidic finish. 2.5/5

Overall: Complex, but marred by a funkiness that overshadows the better qualities of this beer. It gets less balanced as it warms, and is too carbonated for how acidic and malty Cuir is. I do not like to throw the infected label around very often, but I did not see any other reviews that described the funkiness experienced with this beer. Maybe we just got a bad bottle. I have had the 100% Cuir before and it, in addition to tasting divine, tasted quite dissimilar to this (with a much heavier mouthfeel). I could not finish my glass once this beer hit room temperature.

Recommendation: This beer gets re-released every year, with a slightly different blend of base beers, with a new title. The 2012 version is called Fruet. I'd recommend waiting for a bottle of that, which will be easier to get, instead of seeking this one out.

Pairings: A nutty white cheese like gruyere.

Cost: $20 for a 750 ml bottle.