Rating 97
Style Sour Beer
Produced In Pennington, N.J.
United States
ABV 6.5%
Availability Year Round
Reviewed By
Reviewed 2020-12-17

The Referend Bier Blendery Berliner Messe Review

A pale golden color, oaky fruit aromas, and mouthwatering acidity only begin to describe this beer-wine hybrid. Agnus Dei, which the Referend calls a “spontaneously fermented Berliner Messe pale wheat ale,” has a lot to say. It’s 100 percent spontaneously fermented in the state of New Jersey, but even before that, it’s spontaneously acidified in a process called “elevage,” borrowed from the wine world. That’s certainly not the only time the two worlds overlap: After initial fermentation in neutral oak, the beer was re-fermented in open stainless steel with New York Vidal Blanc grape juice pressed from a late-2018 harvest. The liquid then moved to barrels (Pineau des Charentes puncheons, to be precise), where it sat for another 18 months. Bottling included dosage of New Jersey wildflower honey.

97
POINTS
The Referend Bier Blendery Berliner Messe
A pale golden color, oaky fruit aromas, and mouthwatering acidity only begin to describe this beer-wine hybrid. Agnus Dei, which the Referend calls a “spontaneously fermented Berliner Messe pale wheat ale,” has a lot to say. It’s 100 percent spontaneously fermented in the state of New Jersey, but even before that, it’s spontaneously acidified in a process called “elevage,” borrowed from the wine world. That’s certainly not the only time the two worlds overlap: After initial fermentation in neutral oak, the beer was re-fermented in open stainless steel with New York Vidal Blanc grape juice pressed from a late-2018 harvest. The liquid then moved to barrels (Pineau des Charentes puncheons, to be precise), where it sat for another 18 months. Bottling included dosage of New Jersey wildflower honey.

Reviewed On: 12-17-2020
97
POINTS
The Referend Bier Blendery Berliner Messe
A pale golden color, oaky fruit aromas, and mouthwatering acidity only begin to describe this beer-wine hybrid. Agnus Dei, which the Referend calls a “spontaneously fermented Berliner Messe pale wheat ale,” has a lot to say. It’s 100 percent spontaneously fermented in the state of New Jersey, but even before that, it’s spontaneously acidified in a process called “elevage,” borrowed from the wine world. That’s certainly not the only time the two worlds overlap: After initial fermentation in neutral oak, the beer was re-fermented in open stainless steel with New York Vidal Blanc grape juice pressed from a late-2018 harvest. The liquid then moved to barrels (Pineau des Charentes puncheons, to be precise), where it sat for another 18 months. Bottling included dosage of New Jersey wildflower honey.

Reviewed On: 12-17-2020