Poppins the Indestructible Brett Barrel Aged Grisette is a weird concept
made manifest. Grisette is an effervescent, low alcohol, old world
style, but Poppins, a Torontonian ale from Black Lab Brewing is barrel
aged with funky yeast and brewed to 5.5%, basically turning the style on
its head. According to the label, the beer is a collab with Escarpment Laboratories and Gorman Smith Beverage Equipment.
The
beer is a cloudy, fizzy golden frog topped with a thin layer of
off-white suds. To my nose, the beer is primarily characterized by tart
yeast notes, earth, and a wee whisper of cranberry. The flavour is also
yeasty and tart, with some earthiness. For a barrel aged beer, the
woodiness is an understatement, but I suspect it is in part responsible
for the >5% strength.
Based on the quirky
reprogramming of a classic style, I wanted to like this beer a lot, but
in practice, it was just good. Poppins was flavourful, but for a Brett
barrel aged beer, it went nearly as funky or wild as I wanted it to be.
Rating: 7.0 out of 10.
