Am i the only one that hates sours?

Wild Ales, geuze, Brett beers. I can't stand them. Everyone else seems to love it. I can't be the only one can I?

I like them but know people that can't stand them. They are definitely different and even if you like like "good beer" it isn't a requirement that you like sour beers because they are just such a different variety.

Aquired taste. I have 4 on tap right now.

They are my favorite style! Drinking an Oude Gueuze right now

I didn't use to like them but have started to enjoy them more lately. One of local breweries had their 1 year anniversary party today and they had a cranberry brett wild ale they'd be aging for a year that they tapped, it was amazing.

thood6, you're quickly getting out numbered. hahaha!!! personal taste is a hell of a thing.

thood6, my palate is very sensitive to sour flavors, so I'm with you!

Maybe I need to give them another shot. Any recommendations? The last couple I tried were Sierra Nevada/Russian River Brux and Cantillon Classic Geuze and I just felt like they tasted like cheap wine.

Although, I don't like IPA's so don't trust my palette.

dieden187 said:

Although, I don't like IPA's so don't trust my palette.

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Ok so that had to be more crazy than my statement right?

I'll usually pick a sour over an IPA, but partly because I can get an IPA anywhere. Sours are a pretty rare find here.

Also because most breweries idea of an IPA is just throw in a crap-load of bittering hops with no attempt to balance anything.

I'm not huge on most sours. I enjoy Brett beers, but they aren't really sour. I did enjoy BFM on tap at the local craft beer bar, though.

i love some sours, and hate others. Don't give up on the style yet. I was also the same way with IPAs until I found a few that I liked. Now I love them.

I like sours. I hate sours with metallic taste ( my sensitivity). Its a 50/50 shot. Like Jester King RU-55 is fricken awesome.

Then again Belgium high abv dark beers are overpowering metallic for me.

Never had a Jester King brew I didn't like! I love funky, tart beers. I hate vinegary sours.

I like sours and my wife doesn't. It really does boil down to a taste thing. Personally I would recommend La Folie from New Belgium's lips of faith series. The duchesse is also a decent sour though not my favorite. Elk snout stout was definitely strong on the Brett character and I probably wouldn't want a 22 of it but I enjoyed trying 6 oz at beer club. I am crazy lucky that the new brewery 20 min away has 3-4 sours on tap at any one time. Sadly no growler fills of them though. I could burn through a growler of La Folie if the mood struck me.

kaconga said:

I could burn through a growler of La Folie if the mood struck me.

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Hell yeah!

thood6 said:

Maybe I need to give them another shot. Any recommendations? The last couple I tried were Sierra Nevada/Russian River Brux and Cantillon Classic Geuze and I just felt like they tasted like cheap wine.

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What don't you like? The sour, the funk or both?

To ease into it I would go with a Berliner Weisse with a syrup. Woodruff is traditional but raspberry, grape fruit and white peach syrups are also delicious.

You could also give Belle Vue and Lindemans Kriek a try. They are back sweetened to tone down some of the funky flavors going on. They are not traditional representations of that style, but should give you a more pleasant experience if you are having problems palating traditional ones.

I am developing a like for sours. One buddy hates them, the other says he could get into them also. I have found there are sours that I like and sours that I hate, so give more of them a shot.

I like some sours, hate others.... I am more of a fan of the "tart" aspect, less of the fan of the "funk" flavors. I hate them when they get a lot more of the "barnyard" flavors - just tastes like spoiled beer at that point (to me).
Jolly Pumpkin - La Rojo,
New Glarus - Serendipity, Cherry Stout, Enigman
Rodenbach
Petrus - aged pale ale

Those would be some of the ones I really like.

PJoyce85 said:

What don't you like? The sour, the funk or both?

To ease into it I would go with a Berliner Weisse with a syrup. Woodruff is traditional but raspberry, grape fruit and white peach syrups are also delicious.

You could also give Belle Vue and Lindemans Kriek a try. They are back sweetened to tone down some of the funky flavors going on. They are not traditional representations of that style, but should give you a more pleasant experience if you are having problems palating traditional ones.

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Im not really sure. I like tart hefs and Berliner Weiss but haven't been happy beyond those. I'll try to find the lips of faith and see.

Braufessor said:

I like some sours, hate others.... I am more of a fan of the "tart" aspect, less of the fan of the "funk" flavors. I hate them when they get a lot more of the "barnyard" flavors - just tastes like spoiled beer at that point (to me).
Jolly Pumpkin - La Rojo,
New Glarus - Serendipity, Cherry Stout, Enigman
Rodenbach
Petrus - aged pale ale

Those would be some of the ones I really like.

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I have a couple Jolly Pumpkins in my cellar at home, I'll crack one open soon to see if I can develop a taste for them

I'm not a big fan of sours either, but I do enjoy a nice tart sour every once in a while. If you are looking for an entry level sour, I think Bell's Oarsman is a good starting point. A lot don't like it, but I find it a nice refreshing beer. Also, it, because of its tartness, and Boulevard's Saison Brett has fueled my growing love of Brett beers.

+1 on New Belgium's La Folie. It's a favorite at our house. Keep in mind that sours are meant to be sipped like wine, not swigged, and it can take a little while for your palate to adjust to the tartness.

I like sours, but GF does not. I think that most who like sours are male.

Have not brewed a sour myself but it is on my to-brew list.

I really liked Sabatuer myself. but don't try to force yourself to like them. try some example every now and again to see if you're developing a taste for them. it just may not be in your personal taste.

Hate is a pretty strong word but I would say I do not like them to the point I will not drink them.

Individual tastes are just that individual. I do not enjoy nor drink hoppy beers either. That does not mean the folks who enjoy them are wrong nor the folks who enjoy sours are wrong.......Just misguided....Kidding

thood6 said:

Maybe I need to give them another shot. Any recommendations? The last couple I tried were Sierra Nevada/Russian River Brux and Cantillon Classic Geuze and I just felt like they tasted like cheap wine.

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I would highly recommend keeping an open mind and giving sours multiple shots. My very first experience, I was less than impressed, but over the years I've grown to truly appreciate a good sour... a lot! I'm with a previous poster in that I don't quite understand the infatuation with IPA, particularly since we've all been drinking them for over a decade now.

ANother good one on the "tart" side is Goose Island Madam Rose.

Some of the Jolly Pumpkin's I do not like - more "funky" - but La Roja is one that is more tart.

I've heard they're an acquired taste, but I was in love and hooked after my first.

I recently have started to like them but it took me a LOT of sampling to find the ones I liked. I drank those until I had acquired the taste and palate to enjoy them and now drink any of them.

I would recommend Monk's Cafe as a non-fruit "gateway sour" I have seen it in brown champagne style bottles and 6ers.

Another few that many people I have suggested this to liked was Kastel Rouge or Timmermans Framboise/Kriek.

If you can't find any of those then look for anything from Leifmans.

Brulosopher said:

I would highly recommend keeping an open mind and giving sours multiple shots. My very first experience, I was less than impressed, but over the years I've grown to truly appreciate a good sour... a lot!

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+1...... Introduced to them by a friend at Great Taste of the Midwest..... probably dumped out 5 of the first 10 I tried.... choked down 4 more... and then there was New Glarus Cherry Stout - and that was absolutely great.

I'm not sure that "aquired taste" is the right term. For me I hated the first few sour beers I tried and they were all pretty highly rated beers. Hell, I dumped a Cantillion Grand Cru. Then several months later I picked up another and loved it. My friends have had similar experiences.

It seems like you just need to try one at the right time.

The same also seems to go for heavily smoked beers.

The La Roja I have was bottled around Christmas of 2011. Is the age of the bottle going to detract from my experience?

thood6 said:

The La Roja I have was bottled around Christmas of 2011. Is the age of the bottle going to detract from my experience?

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Can't even begin to describe my jealousy! Try it and find out. Some beers develop more complexity and depth with age, some get more sour, some do both. But please report back so those of us without a good bottle shop in town can live vicariously through you! Here's hoping you find it to be a great beer!

It shouldn't unless it got mistreated in transport it at the store.

The last bottle I had was labeled with a brew date and a best after date. I believe the dates were six months apart... so I guess JP was recommending at least six more months of bottle aging.

TANSTAAFB said:

Can't even begin to describe my jealousy! Try it and find out. Some beers develop more complexity and depth with age, some get more sour, some do both. But please report back so those of us without a good bottle shop in town can live vicariously through you! Here's hoping you find it to be a great beer!

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exactly what he and/or she said. I'd rub that La Roja on my gums & dip my chin in it.

thood6 said:

Maybe I need to give them another shot. Any recommendations? The last couple I tried were Sierra Nevada/Russian River Brux and Cantillon Classic Geuze and I just felt like they tasted like cheap wine.

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The SN/RR collab is generally regarded as a massive dissapointment, but it you didn't like Cantillon you don't like sour beer. Nothing wrong with that, more for me. If you have a few bottles sitting around you need to get rid of, just let me know. Maybe those Jolly Pumpkin beers you won't like?

All I've heard about since I started drinking (and attempting brewing) sours is JP. Damn I wish we could get those here in CT.

dannypo said:

Hell, I dumped a Cantillion Grand Cru.

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