Bellwoods Lambda

[JeffPorter]

Don't have lots of time to write, but wanted to get this in here. I was never a big fan of Bring Out Your Dead, and frankly, I always felt a little ripped off paying 12 bucks for a barrel aged imperial stout, where I could barely taste the barrel - it was a very nice beer, I thought, but hardly twice as good as Hellwoods.

I'm also a bigger Imperial Stout fan, than quad/BDSA fan, so I was a little skeptical about buying multiple bottles of this.

This may be their best beer they've made, and I'm hoping they enter this one in some big competitions - though style-wise it might be a tough sell.

Aroma is tart cherries, bretty funk, and soft sweet fruits along with some winy oak. Taste matches up with the aroma beautifully...lots of port flavours, distant chocolates...

(edit...sorry, called away....)

The malts, brett and barrel flavours are all so perfect the only word I can think of to describe it is "seamless". It's as though there's a grain or fruit grown with all of these flavours and that was the only thing Bellwoods used to ferment the thing.

The conditioning is also pretty flawless. Lovely body and texture. Light and airy even when it flattens a little.

When it warms, more chocolate and a little coffee even.

None of the harshness that you often get with newly bottles quads... Seems like it's already been in the bottle for two yeats. it's great to drink now, but I can only imagine what this will be like in a year or two.

There's a coffee roast done by Ideal in Toronto called "The Red Sea". It's one of my favourites - complex medium roast with real winey flavours and this reminds me a little of that.

When the bottle's done, you're left wondering where it went - a 750ml bottle of this would be dangerous.

Unfortunately for our wallets it's worth probably more than the 12 dollars a bottle. Get some and age some.

Maybe I'm being over the top, but it's uttlerly delightful.

[liamt07]

None of the harshness that you often get with newly bottles quads...

Not sure what you mean by this. I think any of the major quads worth buying is often good (great, in fact) to go right from the get go.

Altogether I thought this was overly sweet. Moderate complexity, but they've done better. I'd put this behind Donkey Venom, Bring Out Your Dead, 3 Minutes to Midnight, last year's Motley Cru, No Sleep Til Brooklyn and Farmageddon for anything they've put in barrels.

[Belgian]

Seems like it's already been in the bottle for two yeats

I love that - you actually made me look up some great poems of Yeats. OK I'm for a few bottles...

[TheSevenDuffs]

Had my first bottle last night...

There's a fair bit of the brett presence in the nose, but very little in the palate. Fairly sweet overall, but also fairly complex. There's nice burnt sugar, toffee, raisin and dark fruit notes with that subtle hint of brett in the finish and just enough alcohol presence to balance out the sweetness.

Hopefully the brett continues to work its magic. If it does, this will be a completely different beer (for the better, I think) in 6 month and even more so in a year.

[El Pinguino]

Good to hear the positive vibes here, I had a couple of bottles picked up for me, so looking forward to enjoying upon my return to Canada-land!

[northyorksammy]

Hopefully the brett continues to work its magic. If it does, this will be a completely different beer (for the better, I think) in 6 month and even more so in a year.

I agree, but risky beyond 6 months, no?

[atomeyes]

Hopefully the brett continues to work its magic. If it does, this will be a completely different beer (for the better, I think) in 6 month and even more so in a year.

I agree, but risky beyond 6 months, no?

you worried about molotov cocktails exploding in the cellar?

[El Pinguino]

I'm not wise to the aging characteristics of brettanomyces...anyone want to enlighten me?

[grub]

I'm not wise to the aging characteristics of brettanomyces...anyone want to enlighten me?

Bugs (not just brett) will chew through sugars/starches that regular yeast won't, and they're typically fairly slow moving, so if you're not careful you can end up with over-carbonation issues. As a brewer, it can be tough to balance "i want some carbonation when it's fresh" with "i know the carbonation _may_ increase by up to X% over time". We've certainly seen pro breweries err in both directions in the past (russian river, lost abbey).

when in doubt, belgian bottles will hold a whole lot more pressure...

[El Pinguino]

Thanks grub!
Totally makes sense, and I'm not a homebrewer.

So my guess then is since this isn't bottled extra-securely (such as with cage and cork) it isn't really intended for lengthy storage?

[Belgian]

So my guess then is since this isn't bottled extra-securely (such as with cage and cork) it isn't really intended for lengthy storage?

... and does a very cold fridge not 'arrest' the microbial activity? At least that's what they told me at Bellwoods, they said when the Lambda first hits the fridge don't ever expect it to develop.

[grub]

So my guess then is since this isn't bottled extra-securely (such as with cage and cork) it isn't really intended for lengthy storage?

caps still hold up to a good deal of pressure - anytime I've had a bottle explode, the cap was still firmly attached to the top of the bottle when i found that piece. On the contrary, I've had bottles where a cage wasn't quite tight enough and slipped all/partly off. Your biggest concern is usually bottle type. regular longnecks and bombers don't hold much pressure. german 500's are usually in the middle. belgian 750/375 are usually akin to champagne bottles and can hold a lot of pressure.

... and does a very cold fridge not 'arrest' the microbial activity? At least that's what they told me at Bellwoods, they said when the Lambda first hits the fridge don't ever expect it to develop.

it'll definitely slow them down, but it won't kill them, and sometimes they're still very slowly chewing along. the other benefit of a cold fridge is that pressure will drop. so if you've got a bottle/batch that you fear is overcarbonated, your best bet is definitely to kep it in the fridge.

All that said, this is definitely not the sort of thing where you should go "oh god, must store all my buggy beers in the fridge lest they explode!". On the contrary, you'd defeat the purpose of aging them if you're just going to store them in the fridge, and you'll miss out on the lovely changes that can happen to them over time. Just something to be aware of. There's many other factors involved (abv, acidity, bugs present, actual sugars left), so it's certainly not brett == overcarbonation.

[Wheatsheaf]

Your biggest concern is usually bottle type. regular longnecks and bombers don't hold much pressure. german 500's are usually in the middle. belgian 750/375 are usually akin to champagne bottles and can hold a lot of pressure.

Bellwoods' bottles certainly don't seem that sturdy. I'd be interested to know how they rate pressure-wise with other bottles. I get the convenience going to a single bottle size, but I wish Bellwoods would tailor their releases to different sizes. 500ml, which I associate with British and German-style beers, seems an odd choice for a brewery brewing predominantly US and Belgian-inspired beers.

... and does a very cold fridge not 'arrest' the microbial activity? At least that's what they told me at Bellwoods, they said when the Lambda first hits the fridge don't ever expect it to develop.

it'll definitely slow them down, but it won't kill them, and sometimes they're still very slowly chewing along.

No different than putting bread dough in the fridge to rise. It's a slower process, but it's still happening.

Keep in mind, too, that Lambda already has a year of fermentation behind it. I think it's fair to assume that the brett has completed the bulk of its work already. The high abv should also make it more tired. How about the Brettal Head, though? I bought a few bottles and only later noticed the Drink Fresh! Do Not Age! Keep Refridgerated! warnings--all of which I'm inclined to ignore. Any thoughts?

[grub]

How about the Brettal Head, though? I bought a few bottles and only later noticed the Drink Fresh! Do Not Age! Keep Refridgerated! warnings--all of which I'm inclined to ignore. Any thoughts?

the warnings are likely more to do with it being a hoppy american pale ale than due to the brett content - APAs/IPAs are not suited for aging and best fresh. Probably just trying to keep folks from going with brett == ageable.

[Wheatsheaf]

the warnings are likely more to do with it being a hoppy american pale ale than due to the brett content - APAs/IPAs are not suited for aging and best fresh. Probably just trying to keep folks from going with brett == ageable.

That's my guess, too. Curious to see how it develops, though, as my thoughts inevitably go to beers like Orval, and especially XX Bitter which I've heard aged very nicely when it was still fermented with Rodenbach yeast.