I have to admit it: even when I posted that I didn’t know what to expect from Jolly Pumpkin Ale, I sort of already knew.  When I saw that they put out a Flanders Red style sour, I knew that’s what I’d end up drinking…despite my self-deception.  I think one of the most interesting aspects of Jolly Pumpkin’s beer is their incorporation of local wild yeast and the use of barrels for souring.  From what I understand, they don’t pitch wild yeast in their beers at all.  That is to say, they don’t buy cultured wild yeast from a company to put into their beer.  That’s a fun and interesting approach that is, in part, responsible for the fact they have a cult following.  At any rate, I had to try the La Roja.

The Pour: You can see for yourself (above) how lovely the pour and head really were.  Of course, I picked a glass that was particularly conducive to maintaining head and was evocative of a lambic glass.  The head was well retained and had a nice, creamy, off-white hue. I’d call the body, which had a nice touch of haze,  a copper-orange.  I’d also like to note that there was some nice lacing on the brew.

The Nose: Sour all the way.  I personally feel that I got a sour bubbly gummy quality in the brew.  Powdery yeast strains were another aspect.  Hints of metallic iron and an almost rubber quality made themselves known, as well as smoky tobacco and hints of a vinegar sour.

The Taste: Perhaps this is where the brew began to spin a bit out of control.  I can certainly say that this is a unique beer, there’s no questioning that…but is it good?  The beer was truly sour and had hints of vinegar.  The finish gave a strange tobacco smoke with an almost cigarette butt quality.  Sounds odd, right?  In it’s sourness, it had a bit of rubber and was effervescent.  For what it was, the beer wasn’t actually bad.  It dried out nicely, was intense and unrelenting.  However, the sourness was more of a burning acidity than a playful sharpness.  It was acidic in a way that most Flanders tend not to be.  The smoky barrel char was also evident and could have been a bit more restrained.

Overall, the beer was okay.  I wouldn’t purchase it again for $11.99.  I’d be interested to taste it on tap because of how different the qualities can be.  To me, the beer seemed a touch disparate in its qualities.  It seemed to just fall short from coming together–it was just a bit off target. I’m interested in tasting the Perseguidor 5 that Nate picked up for me.

Mike’s Rating:

Overall Satisfaction:  

Among Other American Sours:  

Spread the Word: