Oliphant Groot Gruit Ale

What the heck is an Oliphant? It's a lot of things, but here we're just concerned with the brewery in Somerset, Wisconsin, and that still remains a mystery.

Here's how Groot looks in 2019. (A better pic
than the 2015, which you can still see below.)

What, now, we wonder is a Groot? The world at large met him in the 13th issue of Tales to Astonish published by Atlas Comics in 1960, written by Stan Lee and illustrated by the King, Jack Kirby, years before the duo thought up The Fantastic Four, The Incredible Hulk, The Mighty Thor, Iron Man, The Avengers, et al.  He was a wooden alien who menaced the Earth, as the aliens often did in those pre-E.T. days. I'm going to let someone else describe the story to you in this blog here. 

The world at large quickly forgot about Groot, the Monster from Planet X, if they ever knew of him at all. I discovered him
when I first got into Marvel monster comics in my late teens, through the 1970's reprints. Found them in the bins stickered for 25 cents each at Shinder's in Minneapolis (years before I worked there).  How I did love them. I've even managed to find some original editions, but not many. They're hard to find, and a number like TTA 13 has surely sky-rocketed in price since Marvel Studios released the block-buster hit film "Guardians of the Galaxy", based on the comic book created by Brian Michael Bendis, which resurrected Groot, in a way, and paired him with another Marvel character I loved since I was in my teens, Rocket Raccoon.

This new version of Groot would no longer bellow at humans to BEHOLD! him and FEAR! him and DARE! them to defy him, and prattle on about his invincibility. He merely said his name, and stated his identity. That was enough to make him the sweetheart of the silver screen in 2014. He sacrificed himself for his friends and some damned planet, then regenerated himself to the Jackson Five in a scene too cutie-pie for me. But, Lord, the people loved it.

And some of those people were the folks at Oliphant. It's only natural to name a "GRUIT" after Groot. Now, what's a Gruit? A beer not spiced with hops, that's what. And why should I ever want to drink that? Well, Oliphant brewed one, so I did. Here's what it looked like:

I...am...gruit.

and here's what I wrote about it:

Oliphant Groot Gruit-style Ale. Oliphant Brewing, Somerset, Wisconsin. 6% ABV.

As a card-carrying hophead, this is a style of beer that I really shouldn't like. 

It's clear and caramel-colored, with a lasting, cream-toned head. 

Herbal aromatics, a little floral, mostly sweet, but restrained. Caramel malt lends some notes here, too. 

On the palate, it's more sweet malty goodness. No hops to be had, some kind of herbs are keeping it balanced. Not entirely sure which ones(s). One thing I know for sure is that's smooth and tasty.


Currently shared information: groot
means strong. means nature-boy is coming at you hard. hard as mr. socko. 

gruit ale w/ rainbow peppercorns, cloves, juniper berries, & something i'm forgetting. 5.7% abv

(caraway seeds)

and now you know the truth, I bought the last two because they were on sale. So what, you'd do the same.

I still really miss the hops, though. Just part of who I am. 

So, it's good, but I don't love it. Also, here's this:

and then there's also this: 

13th Century Grut Bier

"13th Century Grut Bier, brewed according to recipes dating back to before the German Purity law in 1516, Historic Signature Series, Forgotten styles brewed according to their historic recipes by Dr. Fritz Briem, of the Doemens Institure, Brewed by Dr. Fritz Briem, Munich, Germany.

"Before the German Purity Law "Reinheitsgehot" of 1516 it was common practice to use any kind of different spices, herbs, fruits and other plants to provide balance to beer. Hops was not yet well known at this time.
Grut beer has roots in many cultures and each culture has it's own "special ingredients."Egyptians, NAtive Americans, Arabian Tribes, Gaulles, Germanic Tribes, and the Vikings.
This interpretation of a traditional grut bier is spiced with lobber (bay leaves), Ingwer (ginger), Kummel (caraway), Anis (anise), Rosemarin (rosemary), & Enzian (Gentian)." 4.6% ABV.

Enough of the long-winded explanations. Let's crack it open!

Cloude, pale yellow appearance. Head starts, then quits forever. Not particularly appetizing. Visually, that is.

Sniffing it: Beautiful, floral, spicy and arousing. Ginger is loudest in this, but the others play their part. Anise and rosemary…very pretty. Wonderful mix.

Now, let's drink it!
Wow! Very sharp on the palate, big spicy lemon citric bite! The promise of the nose is spoiled by the flavor. Harsh, sour, and bitter. Light medium body. Faint finish, the sour and trails off, leaving spice. Effervescent mouthfeel, nice carbonation, but the lack of body and absent malt profile leave me wanting.
In the end, it's all lemon, and I'm finishing it, but I'm not really liking it