brew dog blog

Mikkeller, the awesome, nomadic “brewery” from Denmark which is actually one guy who goes from brewery to brewery in Europe and the USA brewing collaborative beers or sneaking in his own, is “available” in New York again.  I’ve managed to purchase some bottles in the past year or so since I discovered them, but most of the time, they are absent.  The new crop includes old favorites and some new ones, including a few of the single varietal hop series beers, and two of the wild beers – U.S. Alive and It’s Alright.  Mikkeller’s first available beer with “wild” yeast was “It’s Alive,” which I haven’t been able to get my hands on, but It’s Alright is described by the brewer as It’s Alive’s little brother.

Fermented with both regular top-fermenting Ale Yeast and Brett Yeast provides an opportunity to control the beer’s flavors, and It’s Alright is a successful, if not perfect attempt at an Infected Session beer, along the lines of Jolly Pumpkin’s low ABV selections.  It’s Alright pours a beautiful clear straw color and is crackly as soon as it hits the glass.  Their is a great, fruity, wild aroma immediately from the yeast that dominates the experience in a great way.  Like most beers dosed with Brettanomyces, which is capable of eating more of the remaining sugars in beer than normal brewer’s yeast (a property known as being ‘highly attenuative’), It’s Alright is very dry, and the body suffers a bit for this reason.  Just a touch more, or a bit of malt or caramel sweetness would really make this beer excellent.  This is more of a light Saison than a pale ale, but in any event, it’s an excellent, highly drinkable beer that I would drink a ton of if I were a millionaire.  Alas, as they say, It’s Alright.