Just Bruit Gruit from Fighting Pike Homebrewery

I'm drinking the first beer out of a 6 pack from Edward Mathis' Fighting Pike Homebrewery. It is a Gruit that weighs in at 1.068 OG and an ABV of 6.4%.

The beer pours a tootsie roll brown with garnet highlights when held up to light. There is a light tan/mocha color head that settles down after a few minutes to a thin layer.

The aroma of this beer reminds me of a Chai tea that has a nice cardamom presence. Basically, Chai tea the way I make it. That aroma leads you into a mild spruciness or that smell you get when you are trying to twist a branch until it snaps offin a swamp somewhere in the U.P.

The flavor fallows the nose. There is a dark fruit flavor that perfectly offset by the spiciness of this beer. I can't help but think there might be some special B malt in this beer given the garnet highlights and that familiar flavor of dried plum. The spiciness is perfect in this beer. It is there from start to finish but it isn't too overwhelming.

I could drink a few of these in a row and that is not something I would have ever imagined myself saying about a gruit. I like the style but most of the Gruits I have tasted exhausted my palate soon after.

Nice job on this one Edward.
Czar's Blog