Cigar City Vuja De

Brewer : Cigar City (Tampa)
Style : Sour Ale
ABV : 10%

Well, I had the grand chance to escape the clutter and confusion of South Florida for  the  weekend, so what better way to escape then to travel up to Daytona where my  "other" family resides. It's actually Kim's family, but I consider them family. I always count on two things happening when I travel up that way. 1. Consuming alcohol and food in gross amounts and 2. making a beer haul from Knightly Spirits in Orlando. 

I was especially excited about this trip because before leaving I got word that they received a shipment of Vuja De, Cigar City's collaboration beer with Saint Somewhere. I didn't make it up to the Jupiter Craft Beer fest this year and I heard that Cigar City was pouring this beer, among other delicious brews which I will have to sniff out in the coming months, so I was pretty jazzed about getting this one.

This being a sour beer I was more then excited, but also a little hesitant drinking the whole bomber by myself, which I knew I was gonna have to do. No one in the Daytona extended family seems to like the sours, as of yet, but I'm working on it. The pour was dark and brownish. Slightly hazy and cloudy with a thick bubbly head. It had a good amount of lacing left around the rim of the glass, spotty and a tad bit oily. The aroma was quite pungent and strong to say the  least. I was expecting a good amount of that sour funk that I'm use to from sours, which I got, but it almost seemed a little acidic as well. I could tell this would be no daunting task. The flavor was a tad boozy with hints of cherries, lemon zest with an acidic kick to it. 

I was a little wrecked at this point in the night, but I decided to man up and finish the whole bomber. Probably not a great decision because I woke up with a headache the next morning (first time in a long time). Did I enjoy the beer? 

Yes and no. The sour experience was great, but I should have waited to open it for two reasons.
1. To let it mellow out a bit. It delivers quite a punch
2. I didn't have anyone to share the bottle with, hence the headache the next morning. 

Oh well, you live and learn, but this was a great beer and I'm glad I snagged two bottles of it.

Grade A

Song of the Day: John 5 -- Welcome To The Jungle