Reviewed: Pure Project Euphorik with Double Cherries
Official description: Euphorik with Cherries is our take on the American Wild Ale conditioned on organic Washington cherries and designed to activate, engage and delight the senses. Aged in formerly Pinot Noir French Oak from Napa Valley, this unique beer will take you on a journey of complexity in which you can smell and taste all the subtle ingredients that have come together over the years to form a flavor that we can only call… “Euphorik”.
Pure Project Brewing – Pure Project Euphorik Feral Ale with Double Cherries – 375mL served in Rastal Harmony glass – 7% ABV
Background
Euphorik is a series rather than a specific beer. The gorgeous original artwork, which reminds me of Helen Frankenthaler, is the same on different beers from this series. You’ll have to look at the reverse of the label to see what beer you’re drinking.
Review
I’m sampling Euphorik with Double Cherries from a punted, brown glass 375mL bottle with a cork and oversized cap reminiscent of Cantillon lambics. Into my glass, this version of Euphorik is opaque, inky purple in color with no real head formation to speak of. Within seconds of pouring, all semblance of foam has fizzled out to just a paltry ring of purple bubbles along the edge of the glass.
Bringing up the glass, Euphorik brings out some band-aid-like phenols that match the best Belgian krieks. Underneath this volatile top note are more desirable base notes of black cherry, blackberry cobbler, Cabernet grapes, and spicy Syrah grapes.
Taste-wise, Euphorik is peppery and tannic like a good Syrah with intense vinous character piling on the more time you spend with it. It’s dripping with ripe blueberry and blackberry with midrange acidity. The mouthfeel is lively with fine bubbles and soft carbonation. That modulated acidity allows Euphorik to hold its own against the classic Krieks from Cantillon, Drie Fonteinen, and De Cam. All of these standard examples of the style tend to push acidity levels to the maximum. Euphorik is more poised than these with elegance unmatched in the world of sour ales. It’s more drinkable, better balanced, far more vinous, and never one-note obsessing over cherry skins.
Perceived Specs for Pure Project Euphorik Feral Ale with Double Cherries
Conclusion
Euphorik with Double Cherries is the most impressive iteration of this series that I’ve tried thus far. Somehow it builds on the science of what makes a great Belgian kriek and fixes some issues that plague them such as painful acidity, overboard phenols, and lack of diversity in flavor.
VERDICT: 99 pts (SUPERLATIVE)
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