Jolly Pumpkin La Roja
La Roja, an artisan amber ale brewed in the Flanders tradition. Deep amber with earthy caramel, spice and sour fruit notes developed through natural barrel aging. Unfiltered, unpasteurized and blended from barrels ranging in age between two and ten months. Truly an ale of distinction.
3.8
1337 reviews
Dexter, United States
Community reviews
Disig bärnstensfärgad öl med ett kraftfullt smutsvitt skum. Doft och smak är bärig, fruktig, inslag av trä och brett. Torr munkänsla.
23-09-17 // bottle shared at Zwanze Day 2017 @ Mon Petit Café Stuttgart. Thanks for sharing! Some red fruits with Wood, mild vinegar, medium acidic and malty sweetness.
Moderate sourness aroma. Red/brown in color with good health taste is moderately sour. Notes of plum, raisin, tart cherry.
Bottle at Mon Petit Cafe, Stuttgart. That's some proper flanders, very drinkable, strong red fruits and wood notes, little vinegar.
Pours red with a tan creamy head. Smells sour, funky, bretty. A bit vinegary up front, balsamic notes, nice, a sharp texture. Lots of flavour but nothing seems forced. Aftertaste keeps building, not bad.
On tap at St. Augustine's during 54 taps Beerthirst event. Pours a hazy copper with a white hear. Aroma is some barrel and fruity notes. Same taste with nail polisher notes. Not bad.
Sampled at 2017 Dayton Alefest- sour pumpkin on the immediate taste. I appreciate the effort but not for me.
---Rated via Beer Buddy
750 ml bottle poured into a tulip. Blend 13, bottled 6/29/2012. Consumed on 8/20/2017. Clear dark amber with beige head. Aromas of dark fruit, oak, light vinegar. Tastes of tart dark fruit, oak, light tart acidic notes, light vinegar. Medium-light body with a dry finish. Aged very well with just over 5 years on it.
On tap at HopCat (Grand Rapids, MI). Aromas of cherry, red grape, lemon. Clear ruby with a somewhat lasting white head. Dry, tart, sour, fruity. Medium bodied.
On tap at JR’s and then in a crowler. How about that, an old standby like roja in a crowler, my times have changed, its a sign of the times. Darker than expected. Smell is certainly of things to come. Taste is quite tart yet never in yer face. Not disappointed. Good overall tart beer experience. Perhaps not as smooth as a Flemish but certainly approaching that civilized behavior. Fun loven fer sure, good all round. Not over the top and never in yer face. Yes, a fun easy exanple of wht an old country tart should be like, nice job JP. I think I had this before, Whet-evvah. Surprized I didn’t rate this before, maybe it was erased in the ABInBev transition.
On tap at Monk’s Cafe in Philadelphia, PA. Deep copper color. Small creamy beige head. Sour malt nose has earthy, caramel notes. Bold sour, yeasty notes. Hints of wood and barnyard funk. Acidic, sour apple on the palate. Finishes tart and dry.
Poured from bottle at Good Beer in New York.
Appearance: Red to brown color. Pretty cloudy. Off-white head that dissipates quickly.
Aroma: Cherries and barnyard funk with some lacto character. No apparent hop or malt aroma.
Flavor: Cherry and barnyard funk. Mild tartness and a little roast ones coming through from the malts. Long finish with a surprising amount of bitterness.
Mouthfeel: Medium carbonation and body.
Overall: While not the best Kriek I've had, it's a good introductory beer to the style for those who want to venture into some of the most complex Belgian beers in the world.
Tap at one eyed Betty’s. Pours ruby murky orange, minimal white head. Aroma is sour cherry vinegar, acidity, lots of sweet cherry, caramel. Flavor is bitter cherry, tart cherry, acidity, caramel, sour. Surprisingly bitter.
Various bottles and on draft a few times. This is one of my favorite styles and La Roja has always been a solid go-to in the USA; I am happy to finally rate it. It definitely looks the part with the rusty red/brown color and low/medium carbonation. Oaky/fruity aroma. Lots of black currant, apple, oak/vanilla, toffee, light balsalmico vinegar, and some acidic qualities. Umtimtely pretty good, but also quite straightforward and "simple" for the style. It doesn’t have the complexity or is as intense as a e.g., Rodenbach, Duchess, RR, etc.
All that said it is very good and as a huge plus it is easy drinking (!), and I have and will drink it again!
Velvet brett funk, caramel, medium citrusy sourness, chocolate, smooth, a little hop to finish.
Keg in BrewDog, Newcastle. Pours ruby with a cream head. Sour red fruits aroma with balsamic vinegar. The taste is tart and fruity with dry cherry, wood and balsamic. Decent.
Keg at Brewdog as Jolly Pumpkin La Roja, 7.2%. Hazy brick browny orange, translucent, almost opaque, foamy beige head is minimal. Aroma is vibrant toffee apple, some vanilla, some acetic notes and also fudge. Pretty sweet and intense on the nose. Body is light and frothy with tingly carbonation. Taste has more toffee and malt vinegar, light vanilla, dates, lightly acidic in the finish. Pretty good. Maybe doesn’t have the complexity of the best in class but it’s also not overly acidic like some attempts. Improved over time.
Fresh red fruit aroma, with some nice yeast spice. A mouthful of juicy malt, with a good bitter / sour finish
Like this. The crushing sourness of many JP beers is thankfully well balanced in this beer by a nice soft sweetness, some yeasty funk, a hint of port and cheese (no, really). Looks like it tastes, soft and fruity. Nice.
Keg at brewdog Edinburgh. Pours deep orange amber, nose is balsamic funk, brett, wood, fruity, taste is dry, chewy, wood, lingering funk.
Bottle from Beer Store. Smells of malt, oak, sour fruits. Flavor is sour then earthy finishing fruity and malty ending more sour. Nice balance and ABV is hidden nicely.
Cloudy amber color. Smells oaky with various spice and citrus undertones. Taste the wood and sour- really fresh. The finish is tart. Really nice sour!
Aroma is good sour funk on the nose but it comes across as a bit too clean. Has a nice big head and penny copper body. Again, seems a little it too refined for a wild ale. Flavour is good sourness, but too thin, too simple. Kind of weak on the mouth. this is like the wild ale that went to prep school and has neatly combed hair, wears a schoolboy’s outfit, and doesn’t cut loose. WIld ales should be mess to a certain extent and this just don’t got that full field funk feeling.
Tap@Himmeriget, Copenhagen (12/12/2016) - fuzzy orange amber coloured pour with white head. Sour fruity aroma and taste with notes of berries, some caramel notes, malty, tangy fruit, tart fruity finish.
From tap at Himmeriget. Hazy orange colour with an off-white head. Aroma and flavour of tartness, acidic, berries, caramel and funk.
Tap a flight member at Jolly Pumpkin a Detroit. Had this many times before rating. Always wonderful choice- funk, sour, caramel, Solid in that order. Big smile until glass was empty.
On tap at Hughies. Pours a cloudy copper with medium beige head that lasts. The aroma is sour fruit, oak, funk. Thin body, tart cherry, oak, leather, funky, very nice.
Aroma is cherries/berries, big funk/Brett and a hint of earthiness. The flavor is berries/fruit, mild sweetness, slight earthiness and big funk/Brett tartness in the finish.
Aroma is tart, woody, tannins, funk, sour. Appearance is red brown, light tan head, clear. Taste is wood, tart, tannins, solid Flanders. Mouthfeel is light body, light crisp carbonation, woody tannins aftertaste. Overall, pretty pretty good.
The aroma is malt, caramel, clove and a little earthy yeast. Pours a brown/amber with a creamy light brown head mostly lasting. The taste is sour-medium. The body is medium, the texture creamy and the carbonation fizzy, the finish astringent. Overall the buzz outweighs the taste.