Solidly average. Avery has had a few beers reviewed by me so far, and all of them have come in between 3.0 and 2.0. That is my average range, so the A in Avery might stand for average. Technically, all three of the beers have finished above 2.5, so saying that the brewery is average is a little disingenuous. Since I know that they can produce a decent beer, it's time to see if they can swing for the fences with a particularly delicious style: the Belgian white.
First sip demonstrates that I've set my bar a little too high. Initially, when I saw that this was a Belgian white ale, I got in my headspace that this was going to be similar to, but improved from, Blue Moon's famous version of the beer. Admittedly, hoping that this relative upstart would be able to match the beer I gave a 4.25 might have been setting this up for failure. I think the problem I'm having is too much coriander. It seems to be overwhelming both the yeast and the orange, and it's mixing with the yeast in a way that is not beneficial to either.
Tip-in is moderate carbonation burn with the yeast, orange, and coriander all vying for top position (none of them is winning). The middle cascades into a grainy sea where the fruits and yeast are simply highlighted tips on waves of grain. The finish is a bittersweet wash where the coriander lapse up over the orange and the yeast tries to beat it down as the trail off becomes a musty box of abandoned coriander seeds.
Bottom Line: Not the best example of the style, but the middle of the pull has grace.
2.5/5
