BEER REVIEW: 389

BREWER: Vault City, Lothian, Scotland

STYLE: Sour

ABV: 8%

VESSEL: 440ml tin

DATE OF POST: 21st March 2025

 

JYMI SAY’S…

Kir – the cocktail…

Originated in the east of France in the early 1900s. Originally named Cassis Blanc it consists of Crème de Cassis liqueur (blackcurrant liqueur) and white wine, hence the original name I suppose! This cocktail was adored and subsequently popularised by the then major of Dijon, Felix Kir, hence the renaming to Kir I suppose!

 

Kir Royale – the cocktail…

Shortly after the Kir was created the Kir Royale came along, replacing the white wine with Champagne, for those occasions demanding more grandeur and flair.

 

Blackcurrant Kir Royale – the beer…

Created in the south of Scotland in the 20’s (don’t be smart now, the decade we are currently in) by Vault City Brewing…

And I have to say, it is UTTERLY FANTASTIC!!!

BKR starts off as you might well expect with all the blackcurrants coming at you like some sort of crazed Ribena army. In the mid-sip, with blackcurrant ever present the undertone of the flavour moves to one of white wine, just sensational. Once this brews aftertaste bowls along, even though you’re already more than satisfied, the best is yet to come… The flavour of champagne now joins the blackcurrant with the texture drying out at the end, much like a Brut would do.

I cannot tell you how good this beer is and though I’m all up for supporting independent bottle shops, the fact that I picked this monster up in my local supermarket for less than a fiver really cannot be ignored.

AWESOME.

Jymi’s Rating: 90%

 

SAMMY SAY’S…

From the first pour to the final sip, Blackcurrant Kir Royale is a full-on spectacle—like standing beneath a sky ablaze with fireworks, each burst bigger and bolder than the last.

Vault City’s royal theme on the packaging makes sense, but much like an underwhelming warm-up act before the main event, it doesn’t quite set the right tone. But no matter—the real show starts when you pour.

In the glass, you are greeted with a liquid that’s lush, deep mauve—thick, rich, and almost hypnotic. It oozes from the glass like liquid velvet, the kind of beer you just know is going to bring the fireworks.  And the nose – Boom! A blackcurrant explosion. It’s vibrant, juicy, and impossibly nostalgic, like cracking open a bottle of childhood joy. Banging, indeed.

It’s in the drinking, though, where the grand finale begins. A blackcurrant sour masterpiece—sharp, tangy, and electrifying, yet perfectly balanced. Every sip is a firework bursting on your palate, carried by a gloriously thick mouthfeel that makes the whole experience sing.

Blackcurrant Kir Royale doesn’t just deliver—it dazzles. A full sensory display of blackcurrant brilliance, mouth-coating richness, and sour heaven. If beers were fireworks, this would be the showstopper of an ending, leaving you standing there in awe, wishing it would never have to come to a close.

Sammy’s Rating: 93%

 

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 91.5%

MOB review next weekend: WARSTEINER GERMAN PILSENER by WARSTEINER BRAUEREI

Sammy & Jymi – Musing on Booze weekly since 2017

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