Crooked Stave is a brewery from Denver that has been generating a ton of buzz in their short existence. However, this buzz, coupled with the fact that they aren't what I would consider to be a "large" brewery, led me to believe that I had a better chance of having a worse summer than Amanda Bynes than finding Crooked Stave beers anywhere near the shelves in San Diego. Luckily, I was wrong. A local bottleshop sent out a just arrived tweet a few weeks ago and when I clicked on the link, I was shocked to see three Crooked Stave beers. Cha ching! Let's see what all the hype is about, starting with their summer Witbier brewed with blood oranges- St. Bretta.
St. Bretta pours an incredibly hazed golden color with a half finger of off white head. If I hadn't known this beer was brewed with brett from the name, the appearance would have given it away. As would the smell- an incredible blend of citrus rind and brett. Tangerine and blood orange battle for supremacy with some lemon rind, barnyard funk, salt, oak and hay. I've never had a wit smell anything close to this before, but I like it. I like it a lot.
The taste opens with a big hit of brett, with bready malt and citrus lingering behind. Blood orange, underripe green grape and bread crust all make an appearance in here as well. The finish brings a lingering oak note along with a nice bretty funk. If you like brett and all that it can bring to a beer, I have a feeling you are going to want to try this beer. It's a completely new take on the Witbier style and I love it. I'm so glad Crooked Stave showed up here and I can't wait to (hopefully) see them on the shelves here on a regular basis.
Final Grade: A
Top 250 Beers Tasted: 129
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