Upland Kiwi

Upland Kiwi

(Previously labeled Kiwi Lambic). There aren’t many kiwis growing in Indiana and they aren’t typically added to beer, but when we started making sour ales, our forward-thinking brewers wanted to do something different. They hand peel the fruit and add it whole to the base sour ale that had been fermenting for more than eight months in white oak barrels. The result is a fruited ale that is hazy and golden/straw in appearance upon pouring, with zesty amounts of carbonation. Fresh kiwi and tropical aromas combine with floral and wine-like notes, with rich kiwi flavors following in the taste, accompanied by refreshing tartness and a dry and tangy finish.
3.6
255 reviews
Bloomington, United States

Community reviews

3.5 March 27, 2016. Bottle, bortled April 24, 2015, shared by linusb, thanks! Hazy yellow with à small fizzy and very quickly dissipating white head. Aroma is fruity and acetic with green apples, lemon, kiwi, grape skins, light funk, some oak notes Taste is fruity, sour, citric and acetic. Finish is dry, sour, fruity with lemon, notes of vinegar, apple skins, kiwi, oak. Light to medium bodied, average carbonation. Not as sour and acetic as expected, still quite sour though with a light burnlng sensation in the throat and stomache...
4.2 Pours hazy dark orange with no head. Aroma; funky, kiwi, some vinegar, accid, green apples, citrus and a touch of grapefruit. Flavours; Kiwi, green apples, accid, citrus, apricot, oak and peach. Very sour and tasty but not something for weak stomachs.
4.0 A: Deep yellow with a orange hint. White head fizz away directly while pouring. N: Oak, pear, acetic acid, citrus T: Kiwi, apricot, cedar, peach O: It’s quite tart but very nice flavours to it! I really like this!
4.2 Bottle thanks to mrebeks for sharing. Aroma is huge vinegar with some funky yogurt and light kiwi. Way more kiwi in the taste. Awesome mix of huge vinegar, sour lemon, kiwi, and oak. Delicious stuff.
3.5 750, capped. Thanks, J! So cool. Seems like it was not that long ago that this one was a whale among whales. Honestly not sure how coveted it is now, since I am not following that kind of thing quite as breathlessly as I used to. Pours a cloudy medium amber with a loose off-white fizzy head that fades quickly. Big intense tart nose, not overly vinegary, but nearly that singular in its sharpness. Fruit sugar, fruit acidity, and intense inoculation character are almost overwhelming, and certainly tilted a bit toward the bitey. Hard to pick out the fruit character from the other acidic sharpness here. Long bitey finish.
3.6 Bottle courtesy of StFun, thanks Josh! Pours a vibrant golden color, thin off-white head that fades to wispy lace. Aromas of tart fruit...green apples, kiwi, grapefruit. Notes of oak and light grains follow, but this nose packs a punch! Almost stings the nostrils! Ha! Taste is on the high-end of the tart spectrum. Loads of acidic notes explode on my palate. Haven’t had a pucker this dominant in a while! Oak, hints of vanilla and spice follow along with kiwi notes...green apples..white grapes and light barnyard funk. A solid and fun beer for sure, but I couldn’t drink too much of this.
3.7 From old tasting notes. 750 ml bottle from one of the original batches. Pours a slightly hazy golden orange color and topped by a small head of off white foam that fades quickly and leaves very little lace on the glass. The aroma shows notes of sour citrus, hints of kiwi, barnyard funk, and some lactic and acetic sourness. The flavor follows with more acetic sourness, funk, and tart kiwi and citrus fruit. Medium bodied with balanced carbonation that leads to a funky kiwi finish. Solid fruited sour, but it seems from recent ratings from more recent bottles that this isn’t what it used to be.
3.8 Bottle from the Brewery Slightly hazy straw color with a decent white head. Tart acidic citric and lactic with hints of earth and what I perceive as a hint of lime. Solid puckering, I’m not sure if I would pick out kiwi in this blind, but I enjoyed this nonetheless.
3.7 750ml bottle - pours a glowing gold , tart kiwi aroma . Very sour with an acidic finish . Good but intense .
2.5 Rather cloudy golden colour, white head. Sour aroma, vinegar, funky restrained brett. Very sour flavour, vinegar, umami notes. Rough. Sour finish, acetic acid, light kiwi. Think this would make a nice salad dressing, it has some dept and flavours going. Not really bad per se, but just too undrinkable sour. I was unable to finish a single glass, and one might say I’m quite used to sour flavours. (from 75cl bottle @ Let’s drink all of Rich’s American beers Tasting. Thanks for sharing, omgrich!)
1.9 15/VIII/15 - 75cl bottle @ We’re drinking all of Rich’s American beers tasting - BB: n/a (2015-1066) Thanks to omgrich for sharing the bottle! Pretty cloudy yellow beer, no head. Aroma: bit fruity, sour, US brett, meaty, like a pork roast with rosemary or something. Weirdest stuff in a long time. MF: lots of carbon, medium to light body. Taste: very sour, acidic, very aggressive, spicy and very herbal, rosemary or thyme or something, very weird. Aftertaste: maybe some kiwi, but that might be the power of suggestion. Very sour, acidic, pretty bad...
2.8 At Rich’s Massive Cellar Emptying Tasting. Upland kiwi lambic cloudy light gold with umami, yoghurt, light smoke aroma. Odd to most here. Light body. Very very acidic, vinaigre. Dump bucket
3.9 Really good smelling kiwi and peachy aroma. Poured with nice carbonation to bring out kiwi. Refreshing and kinda funky.
2.9 Bottle (2010) at the DC Expanded Sour Tasting. Murky yellow with off-white head. Aromas of tart citrus, stone fruit. Tastes of funk, light kiwi, stone fruit. Medium-light body with a dry finish.
3.6 draft sampler at Fest of Ales. poured a clear yellow, no head no lacing just a pure funk, acidic fruity nose. it smelled like it was going to be overly sour and it was almost true. yes is was sour and yes it was funky and delicious. nice fruity flavor of the kiwi and i want to say maybe some apple in there. but you dont really want this warm changes the whole complexion. tart bitter acidic fruity flavors with little brett. solid offering from upland.
3.4 Sample, brown bottle, 750 ml, batch 02-09, bottled on 6-12-13, at Stephen Morris’, savoured on December 12 2014; eye: peach, hazy, no head, no lacing; nose: sourness, acidity, residual sugar, fruity; mouth: sourness, acidity, residual sugar, fruity, kiwi, sour finale with presence of acidity, medium body, average carbonation, slick texture; overall: fine FRANÇAIS Échantillon, bouteille brune, 750 ml, lot 02-09, embouteillée le 6-12-13, chez Stephen Morris, savourée le 12 décembre 2014; œil : pêche, trouble, pas de mousse, pas de dentelle; nez : aigreur, acidité, sucre résiduel, fruité; bouche : aigreur, acidité, sucre résiduel, fruité, kiwi, finale aigre avec présence d’acidité, corps moyen, carbonatation moyenne, texture coulante; en résumé : bien
3.7 Smells great. But also smells like it’s going to be sour as fuck. And well it is. Super sour. Kiwi, Grammy smith apples. I was told this is the sourest beer ever, not sure I would go that far, the upland raspberry is more sour and acidic. But it’s up there.
3.8 Shared with the crew @ Brickstore. Been waiting to try something from this series for a while. Wow was this sour as hell. One of the most sour beers I have had in a long time. Nose showed some major musty funk with delicate fruit component. Taste is where the pow comes in. Super acidic, with light kiwi, lemon. LIvely carbonation causes the sour to ride a long time after each pull.
3.9 Bottle shared with the crew. Holy smokes this is some acidic throat burning sort of liquid. It is intense but I like it. Big on the tart scale, fruit comes in to try to balance it out and works well, kiwi is a nice fruit to use here. After the throat burn you are still left with more kiwi flavors. It is able to last throughout.
3.5 Bottle. Cloudy golden yellow pour, with a thin head. Very sour, mild kiwi, lemon, acidic, a bit fruity, and white vinegar. Very sour, difficult to drink.
4.6 Barnyard and cedar oaky funk in aroma. Kiwi banana aroma as well. The unique fruit balance made this very drinkable. Tartness with the kiwi and the kiwi balanced well. Dry lively carbonation.
2.4 Cloudy golden yellow pour. Aroma of kiwi, orange juice, and vinegar. Taste is just way overly sour. I have no clue how people enjoy this battery acid.
3.6 Golden-yellow in colour with a quickly dissipating white head, no lacing. Aroma is tart and sour, some must and yeast, berry sweetness. Flavour is lightly acidic, lightly sour, wheat, some citrus, tropical fruits, pretty juicy. Tart mouthfeel, medium/light body, mild carbonation. Finishes with some sour lemon citrus, tart. Pretty drinkable, not overly kiwi-ish though. It is good, refreshing and definitely interesting.
3.5 At bottleshare in Seattle. Slight haze, not an exploding bottle, which caused note at my table (I wasn’t aware of the reputation). Big nail polish remover aroma. Rising huge tartness. Acidic, burning finish. Tart, creamy body before acetone. Interesting, to say the least.
3.4 2013 bottle, shared by Matt. Thanks! Pours murky pale (others clear). Minimal head. Aroma full on nail polish remover. Tart apple cider, no idea what kiwi smells like in a beer, so maybe that’s it. Taste is hella sour. Like enamel destroying tart. Sweet-tart, slick oily texture. Surprisingly not crazy carbonated.
3.6 Bottle shared by Eddy. Pours hazy golden color with white head. Sour, vinegar, kiwi, wood aromas. Holy crap this is sour as hell. Tastes good, but can only handle a few ounces at a time. Medium body with average carbonation.
2.7 Thanks shrubber85 for this. Pours a muddy dull golden with sediment and no head. Aromas are sharp vinegar, funk, lemon, and kiwi. Tastes like out smells. White wine, vinegar, under ripe kiwis, lemon, funk. Nice fizzy palate. Really sour and refreshing. Very nice. Re-rate: as it warmed.. The sour lactic acid took over everything. Insane sour. Like drinking vinegar. Had to pour it out.
3.6 7 Feb 2015, bottle. light yellow and a tad dirty. nose is tart, funky, some kiwi hints (but likely from persuasion). thin body and moderately fizzy. wow. so tart! very dry and sets my teeth on edge. i don’t think i’d say kiwi if i didn’t know. it’s certainly a tart fruit but not citrus. like a very tart kiwi that isn’t sweet at all. some balsamic vinaigrette or apple cider vinegar. vinegar is more prominent the more you drink. not as much a fan as i drink more. (and i only had 4 oz)
2.7 Pours a very faint yellow gold with a moderate white top. Aroma is intense kiwi tartness and vinegar. Taste is off the charts pucker power, intense is a weak word, enamel melting "zest". Sour yes, enjoyable, debatable.
2.1 Bottle opened up at the 2014 Ottawa End of Year Gathering. Pale straw with no head. Good lord this was vile...paint thinner, vinegar, mouth puckering acidity as it strips the enamel off your teeth, some kiwi skins and juice through the rest of the noise. Actually tasted much better then it smelt, although a few ounces was more then enough. This is the perfect example of how everyone has different tastes...around the table some people poured this out and some people it was good - very good.