Vertere Liponesco : Background
Vertere Liponesco is a 6% sour from Vertere, based in Oku-tama, Tokyo, in Japan. It’s part of their canned and draught line up, though its availability is unknown at the time of writing. Vertere Liponesco is brewed using Pale 2 Row, Wheat Malt, Flaked Oats along with Belma hops. It is then kettle soured using Lactobacillus, and contains other adjuncts in the form of blackcurrant juice, cloves, vanilla, and lactose.
Vertere Liponesco : At A Glance
- Alcohol : 6%
- Style : Sour / Kettle sour
- IBU : 0
- Hops : Belma
- Availability : Limited
- Size : 500 ml cans
- Price : From 900 yen
- On Sale : From October 2021
- Notable Aromas : Vanilla, blackcurrent, sour notes, along with a subtle spiciness.
Vertere Liponesco : Aroma and Taste
Vertere Liponesco poured out a bright ruby current colour with no discernible head on top besides a few random white bubbles around the side of the glass. The aroma was straight away fruity with the blackcurrents coming through first, and then after warming up, some of the vanilla and sour, well, funk I guess would be the best way to describe it. Though hops were used in the making of Vertere Liponesco, I didn’t pick any up, and wasn’t expecting to in a sour beer like Vertere Liponesco. Once the beer had warmed up some more, which didn’t take long, there was a subtle spiciness that came through from the clove that add a nice change to the aroma.
Drinking Vertere Liponesco was a different experience in the past to other sours. The vanilla and lactose made the body smooth, rather than prickly and abrasive – a problem that I’ve had in the past with sours as they play havoc on my intestines. Vertere Liponesco began with a sour, blackcurrent twang to the flavour, with the vanilla darting in and out of the flavour profile.
The sour funk was also present with it being the longest lingering flavour on the palate. As in the nose, once Vertere Liponesco had warmed up, there was a warming spiciness from the clove, that played off nicely against the sour funk.
Vertere Liponesco finished off with a warming spiciness that the sour funk punctuated too. The blackcurrent flavours though didn’t last so long and faded soon after drinkign.
Kettle Sour vs Sour
In short, sour beers can be made in two ways: quick souring using a kettle or the long way using wood.
“Kettle” refers to the brew kettle, meaning the beer is soured in a stainless steel mash tun and fermented in a similar tank. It can take a matter of days to make a drinkable beer.
Barrel aging in wood with a mix of microbes, and, most of all, time is the key to developing those flavours found in sours.
Vertere Liponesco : The Bottom Line
Vertere Liponesco was a surprisingly nice beer, and one that I would drink again. Tart and refreshing, great for the warmer months.
Vertere Liponesco : Where To Buy It
Vertere Liponesco can be bought online at the following places:
