The new year is here, and that calls for a toast — a “Salut" to a bright future and a cheers to a brilliant past year in craft beer!

What better way to drink in the new year than with some of the best 2021 had to offer? Today’s 4-pack is like a Spotify Wrapped list for beer, with some of the most popular Barrel-Aged Sours we featured in 2021!

From a world-class Kriek to a sumptuous Saison with hibiscus and dragonfruit, this vibrant tribute to the Wilds and Sours of yesteryear has a little something for everyone!

Let’s take a closer look at some of last year’s greatest hits:

Perennial Artisan Ales x Tripping Animals - Gramática Campesina - 4.2% ABV - 1x375ml bottle

Perennial teamed up with Tripping Animals to craft this stunner of a blend. They started with a Saison with hibiscus, two different yeast strains, and hops aged over 10 years! Then they let it nap for 11 months in wine barrels.

The second beer in the blend is a two-year-old Blonde Ale, crafted with a special wild yeast blend sourced from Perennial brewer Keith's grandmother's farm.

Each brew would be incredible on its own, but folded together with an added layer of dragonfruit? The results are sensational! Each taste is a dance of citrusy tartness, fresh-tilled earth, and tropical sweetness. Let this one age for a bit, and the pucker will mellow into deeper, fruit-forward complexity.

Cellador Ales - Monterey Purple - 6% ABV - 1x16oz can

Each purple pour perfumes the air with swirls of tangy fruit and vivid bouquets of fresh picked flowers. Bright botanicals swim through jam on the taste — lush plum, crisp grape, and tart black cherry.

That’s because the Cellador brewers aged this Wild Ale on local, second-use cherries, grape skins, and plums, for a tickling fruity tartness with subtle hints of Lambrusco, black cherry, and plum.

Just before canning, the brewers added butterfly pea flower for an even more dynamic, earthy flavor and bold color.

Logsdon Farmhouse Ales - Eagle Kriek - 7% ABV - 1x375ml bottle

To create Eagle Kriek, the oak-aging experts at Logsdon brewed a Belgian Style Sour Quad and aged it in bourbon barrels to accentuate notes of dried date and fig. Then, they crafted a Flanders-style Sour Red and aged it in French Oak, adding a flurry of woody vanilla to its folds of bold berry and plum flavors.  

Finally, they combined the two beers with a bright and crisp Golden Farmhouse Ale, introducing notes of lemon zest and hints of farmhouse funk. As if that wasn’t enough, they let the finished blend referment on a pile of local cherries! 

Allow a sip to sit on your tongue, and its deeply intricate nuances will unfold across the palate — dried fig and caramel swirl into vanilla and cherry as the brew slowly reveals itself.

Alesong Brewing and Blending - Valley Preserves (2021) - 7.3% ABV - 1x500ml bottle

Deeply jammy with dark fruit complexity, every sip of Valley Preserves is a taste of Oregon’s lush Willamette Valley. Sweet boysenberries and robust blueberries erupt onto the palate, with cherries bringing a lightly floral background dripping with stone fruit juiciness. A refreshing, lip-puckering tartness pops up on the finish with whispers of woody funk. 

It all started well over a year ago when the Alesong brewers infused their Golden Sour Ale with two varieties of Oregon-grown cherries. They simultaneously added local blueberries and boysenberries to French and American oak barrel-aged Sours and Saisons. Once everything was just right, they poured it all together into the ultimate blend of juicy berry bliss!

Whether your cellar’s lacking some luscious Sours or you just want to kick off the new year with a tart and tangy bang, should old acquaintance be forgot? Here’s the cup of kindness you’ve been waiting for!

Tavour strictly supports independent beer. Cellador Ales is certified independent by the Brewers Association