Place to Imagine Vol. 4 – Blueberry Pie
Place to Imagine Vol. 4 – Blueberry Pie is being evaluated as a Wild Specialty Ale (2021 BJCP Guidelines Category 28C) with the consideration of this featuring an unknown base style of “sour ale with blueberry.”
Normally, I write about aroma first in a review because it’s the first thing I evaluate. However, with this beer it is impossible to not take notice of the gorgeous color: a bright red that is darkened by some undertones of blue, resulting in something inside the violet spectrum. The head is white but tinged with pink and sadly is completely absent within seconds, which is an expectation for this style. This is a very attractive beer that whets the appetite.
The aroma meets the high bar that was set from the visual appearance. This beer smells like freshly baked blueberry cobbler: ripe blueberries within a brown sugar-laden crust. It’s so reminiscent of a dessert, like cobbler or pie, that it seemingly has more in common with the aroma of a lovely-smelling scented candle than a beer.
The flavor is fruit-forward with light acidity. While the sour aspect of this beer is subtle, it seems to be an appropriate match for the profile of blueberries, which are sweet with just a tinge of sourness depending on how ripe they are. More acidity would add some complexity to this beer and would be a welcome addition but the level it is right now is quite good. The lighter nature of the beer allows for greater expression of the fruit profile and certainly aids in drinkability. This beer succeeds where many like it fail: there is a wonderful balance between sweetness and sourness without any single element being over the top. A great choice for those who like sweeter, fruit-forward wines or cocktails and a good choice for beer drinkers that want a fruit-forward sour beer without having to worry about losing any enamel.