Top 100 Beers of 2015 (Issue 22)

World Class (100 to 96)

8.
96
by Joseph Formanek
Malefactor
Upland Brewing Co.

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Brewer Q & A

Judge's Second Opinion
from Joseph Formanek

Sour beers are a fascinating lot. Unlike most foods, where sourness is an indicator that something has become spoiled, sour beers achieve the defining characteristics of the style through the souring process.  There was a time not so long ago when the only sour styles available were from Belgium, with their long history of brewing Lambics and Flanders Reds an Oud Bruins. These spontaneously brewed products typically develop wonderful levels of complexity from the microbiology involved in the inoculation and fermentation of these beers. It has historically been difficult to replicate those characteristics in beers brewed outside of Belgium due to the types of bacteria and yeasts in the Brussels environment and their interplay during fermentation. Being trained as a microbiologist, I personally have always found the synergy of ingredients in sour beers fascinating. Now that there is wider understanding of the fermentation process for sours, those beer styles can be brewed outside of Belgium by true artisans that are able to approach the complexity and quality of those traditional Belgian Lambics. Upland Brewing Company’s Malefactor is certainly one of those. This brew, promoted as an “Epic Flanders Style Red Ale,” delivers quite the impact to the senses in all aspects, delivering a memorable and, indeed, epic experience. 

The aroma of this brew is very complex with intense cherry, lactic and acetic notes. There is a wine-like character that could be coming from the barrel-aging or perhaps from the microbiological complexity.  The mouth salivates immediately upon the first whiff after popping the cork. Visually, this moderately carbonated, quite turbid, reddish brown-colored brew has a solid, rocky, cream-colored head. In overall appearance, except for the turbidity, it hits the mark quite well for a Flanders Red. The flavor comes through as a Flanders Red as well, but with impressively intense sour components of cherry and vinous aromatics married with a moderate level of tartness that complements the base beer character well. The middle and finish retains this complexity, along with a browner woody note that adds even more to the mix. This brew finishes up quite dry and spicy, with the moderate sourness cleansing the palate fully, preparing you for the next sip. 

The most impressive aspect of Upland Malefactor is the intense overall fermentation complexity, which is delivered across the board from start to finish. While this might be a treat after being cellared, it is ready to experience and share with friends immediately. This brew will certainly delight any sour beer aficionado. Cheers and enjoy!

Photo Credit: Matt Tanaka

Brewer's Thoughts
from Caleb Staton

Upland Brewing Company in Bloomington, Indiana has a line of experimental sour beers called the Sour Series. Numerous different styles are represented, but the one that scored the highest during 2015 was this “Epic Flanders-Style Red Ale.”

I spoke with Caleb Staton, Upland’s Director of Sour Operations, about Malefactor, and he provided an interesting picture of one of Upland’s finest soured beers.

The beer’s incredible complexity made it hard for me to define in terms of BJCP style guidelines, and Caleb understands the struggle: “The recipe was modeled to be a strong version of a Flanders-style Red Ale. The American spin on the classic style was to create a very strong version of it, and also to age it in previously beer-aged bourbon barrels to add a darker, charred wood character and a polite bourbon character.”

When asked what his favorite ingredients in Malefactor is, Caleb gave me a clever answer. “I would say time and patience are the most ingredients. Malefactor really gets the most complexity from long aging periods in oak barrels. We age the beer for at least 8 months before the flavor profiles we are looking for start to appear. We feel giving the numerous microorganisms involved in the fermentation a healthy amount of time is the most important ingredient in developing a complex and well-layered sour ale of this strength.”

Flaked maize and Belgian candi sugar create the relatively light body of this beer, and there are plans to release more of it in the near future with the planned expansion of Upland’s sour program in April 2016. “Of course, this means a healthy amount of Malefactor will not be ready until 2017 release, but we are looking forward to having the ability to deliver less scarcity for what we do in the future,” Caleb said. Fans of Upland’s sours will certainly be happy to hear that.