De Proef Flemish Primitive Ale #1 "Pig Nun"

Today marked the arrival of quite a few new beers in the state of Kansas:
De Proef Primitive Ale #1 "Pig Nun" (Belgium)
De Proef Primitive Ale #2 "Spoon Whacker" (Belgium)
De Proef Primitive Ale #5 "Demon Fish" (Belgium)
De Proef KO Blonde (Belgium)
Jenlain Ambree (France)
Jenlain Blonde (France)
Jenlain Grand Cru (France)
Serafjin Donkel (Belgium)
Serafjin Blonde (Belgium)
Serafjin Grand Cru (Belgium)
Serafjin Celtic Angel (Belgium)
De Ranke XX Bitter (Belgium)

In any case, the three new primitive ales made their way home with me today, and one has found its way into my glass. I figured that ascending numerical order was the way to go so "Pig Nun" it is.

The synthetic cork pops easily, with a satisfying hiss. Beer pours a slightly hazy golden yellow, with a pure white head. This leaves a lot of lacing on the glass. Quite a pretty beer, but as far as looks go, not particularly unique or outstanding. However, the scent that accompanies the pour is...

WOW! Completely unexpected. The first notes from the nose are similar, but do not quite lineup with, the scent of a standard spontaneously fermented ale. However there is a bit more hop, a bit more fruit, and less sourness. Something is afoot here. Something buttery lurks in these parts, with almost a touch of...corn? I can't imagine this is an adjunct oriented beer... The taste shall tell.

Taste is just bizarre. At first, my reaction is of pleasure, than confusion, then a touch of pain, and then resounding sense of satisfaction. Butter, funk, corn (but not in a bad way) slightly sweet malt, hops, and a host of fruits come out. Yet each is subtle. This beer is not aggressive. The 9% is not apparent at all. I can hardly tell that this has any alcohol at all, other than the pleasant warming sensation it provides in my rather chilly room. The finish is so complex that it seems difficult to pick out any flavor as the leader. Despite many sweet tendencies in the flavor, the finish ends dry, with almost touch of chardonnay butteriness. AMAZING!

Mouthfeel is seemingly perfect. The carbonation levels seem spot on, and there is a smooth character to the beer. The tail on this one seems to last several minutes, so even after the departure of the final sip, the flavor sticks in the mouth well after the bottle is empty.

This one cracks into the top five all time. Overall score: 9.9/10. Not perfect, but damn near it. I want to buy a bottle of this for everyone.

As much as I promised to keep this beer oriented, I have to say my life has been absolutely incredible of late. I finally have my tied down my educational loose ends, and have a plan in place to finish everything up. It feels good to be back on track. Adieu and farewell!