Beer Review: Cable Car Kriek (Test Batch Bottle)

Reviewing a bottle of the test batch for Cable Car Kriek from The Lost Abbey out of San Marcos, California. Major thanks to Paul and Jonathan for sharing this rare treat with me!

Score: 100

The only thing I know about the bottling date of this beer is that it predates the 2011 release of Cable Car Kriek. My buddy got a Cable Car Kriek label sticker, which he put on the otherwise unmarked bottle. Served in a Cantillon stemmed balloon glass and enjoyed on 11/16/13. Review is from iPhone notes.

Appearance: Pours a finger-plus of white frothy head. Color is a murky red-orange color with a bit of yellow-orange fade towards the edges of the body when held up to light. Excellent lacing and retention. 5/5

Smell: Cherry, then dank cinnamon, funk, wood, dank spice, fig, raisin, wood and lemon. Hint of tobacco and vanilla. Lots of unexpected cinnamon present in the nose, which is ridiculously complex and perfectly balanced between all the elements present. Just enough funk is present to give it an added dimension of complexity without detracting at all from the appeal of the other aromatics. 5/5

Taste: Tart cherry hits first, then cinnamon, spice, vanilla and wood. Musty funk on the midpalate, oddly reminisce of that Cantillon house character with a little bit of age. Vanilla and cherrywood finish, light lemon backbone. Dark cherry notes and a little bit of cocoa-like flavor come through too as the beer warms up. The cherry flavor persists throughout, and lingers nicely in the finish. I love how well the vanilla flavor plays with sour characters without being medicinal or coming across as being out of place. All the flavors here are so perfectly integrated. There is so much going on, and it all works. The cinnamon character is a nice unique twist, though it is less prominent on the palate than it was in the nose. 5/5

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, spot on carbonation (rare for a Lost Abbey beer). Great mix of sweet and sour, with a dry finish. 5/5

Overall: One of the best beers I have ever had the pleasure to consume. It is complex, robust in flavor, tart, balanced and insanely drinkable. There is a reason this is one of the most sought after beers out there. I would not say it is worth the $600-800 it commands on the secondary market, but I enjoyed it more than M, which costs much more to acquire. My only quip here is that someone stole the bottle from Paul later in the evening. Seek this one out with confidence.

Cost: $50 for a 750 ml bottle (good luck finding it that for that price nowadays).