We're back with another fruited sour from Thailand's Samata Brewing!

Samata has really been rocking the local Thai craft beer scene with their inventive sours that have continued to prove themselves to not only be big hits, but also be able to deliver creative localised curations of Asian ingredients that come together in their various fruited sours.

As a matter of quick introduction, Samata was started by Superchote 'Chote' Chantanasuksilpa, who studied in the US at the San Francisco Academy of Art, and had spent some of his earlier life in design (he even helped produced some of local martial arts star actor, Tony Jaa's cinematic action features). By 2018, Chote had sought to try his hand at craft brewing as a new medium for his designs. Nevertheless, those familiar with the Thai beer scene will know that besides the country's two biggies, there's been lots of regulatory hurdles that obstruct craft brewing in the country - most aspiring craft brewers will simply have to settle for brewing in locations from Cambodia, and all the way to Australia, and have their beers shipped back to be enjoyed. However, what's been particularly interesting is that a small provision does allow for the production of alcohols that do not include the use of hops - such a license would allow the likes of ciders, meads, and... fruited sours! 

And thus today, fruited sours have become the calling card of Samata Brewing, which you'll find stocked across Thailand's numerous craft beer bars. On occasion you still might find the IPA's that Samata started out with, however, these days those have become a much rarer sight.

Today, we're incredibly fortunate to try Samata's latest Galaxy Milk Fruited Sour! This was made with a combination of lychee, passionfruit, coconut and blue lemonade - wow!

"Get ready to embark on an adventure with our cosmos series. This tropical fruited sour will launch you to a galactic journey with the allure of exotic passion fruit, sweet subtleness of lychee, the creamy richness of coconut while providing refreshing zing of blue lemonade. resemblance to the milky way galaxy, please enjoy it while embracing the beauty of a clear night sky." says Samata.

Let's go!

Beer Review: Samata Galaxy Milk Fruited Sour, 4% ABV

Tasting Notes

Colour: Dark Teal / Jade / Blue-Green; Really Hazy

Aroma: Incredibly fresh and juicy lychees and passionfruit, with some muskiness as well of mangosteens and pineapples. It’s really aromatic and evocative, with deep tropical aromas. There’s also more on tinned lychee syrup and passionfruit pulp and rind. Super tropical! It almost feels like a tropical cocktail made with fruits from a Southeast Asian fruit market.

Taste: Beautiful richness, it’s got a fuller body, with a deep milkiness yet it’s not heavy or cloying. It’s incredibly rounded and cohesive, blended in with a mix of the same tropical fruits of lychees, mangosteens, tinned peaches and passionfruit, tinned fruit cocktail syrup as well. It has a really nice contrasting gentle but fresh and zesty tartness of pineapples. It’s also almost alittle fizzy. It has a sort of blue coral bubble tea quality to it as well. 

Finish: Here alittle more coconut juice begins to emerge, along with a base of some black tea. That blue coral bubble tea and lemon tea zestiness continues into the finish. It’s a clean finish, with some lingering aromatic perfume.

My Thoughts

This was ridiculously tasty! Before I knew it I had finished the entire glass! It's got a great milky richness to it without being heavy, with a terrific balance of tropical fruitiness and a counterweight of acidity and citrusy tartness that holds up against it. On the nose, it has this amazing aroma of something of a tropical punch cocktail of fruits gathered from a Southeast Asian wet market - it's so completely evocative and photo-realistic! On the palate, it's incredibly smooth, energetic and spritely, almost a little fizzy, and really drinkable, with more complexity emerging into the finish, bringing up more of that coconut juice and iced lemon tea. What was particularly impressive as well, was that on the palate it's so rounded and perfectly cohesive, all the flavours were so well curated and composed that they've all fitted in to one another so well - such a great balance and integration of the various flavours.

This honestly raises the game for fruited sours the world over - it's not just a perfectly curated cuvee of local flavours, but a fruited sour that stands on its own with absolute balance, richness, aroma and drinkability. If you're a craft beer lover in Thailand, you absolutely must try this!