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The sacred texts*told us*Brettanomyces*had a*‘horse blanket’ or ‘barnyard’ aroma. It is, they said, ‘sweaty’, ‘leathery’, ‘mousy’.

But*none of that worked for us and we couldn’t spot Brett unless we’d been cued to expect it.
We know what the experts are*getting at with the animal comparisons — earthy, musky, funky, right? — but it’s like trying to describe the colour red by saying ‘Purplish, but also orangey.’ Brett is Brett, and nothing else.
We eventually cracked it by drinking a lot of Orval, and*‘Orval-like’ is the most useful descriptor for Brett character we’ve yet discovered.
Any other*suggestions?
Main image from the BBC website.
100 Words: Describing Brettanomyces from Boak & Bailey's Beer Blog - Over-thinking beer, pubs and the meaning of craft since 2007


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