As part of their brand refresh in early 2022, Black Arts also gave one of their past limited releases a new name, and a more regular spot in their lineup. The beer formerly known as Raspberry and Cherry Bière de Coupage is now the rather more straightforward Berry Sour, even if the liquid itself is far from straightforward in genesis: a blend of their barrel-aged Golden Wild and young, dry-hopped saison, aged on said berries.
Once in your glass, the appearance is far closer to the type on the new look labels than the soft pink background. Indeed, the vibrancy and lack of lasting head on the lurid lolly pink-red beer takes me back to the corner newsagent across the road from my old secondary school in the East Midlands, and the bottles of MD 20/20 they'd sell to an underage school pupil after the final bell had gone on a Friday arvo, a warm-up for the 99p for four cans of Aldi's Saracen Lager we'd then drain through a hose we stashed on the town's rectory roof.
Anyway, I digress – and I do believe my tastes have evolved – so back to the Berry Sour...
As you might expect of such a creation, there's a lively acidity, yet also a creaminess, some funk and lacto rising from the glass, a forebear for the sharp, tangy impact akin to not-quite-ripe red berries on the palate. Bracing.
James Smith
