Chicagoist's Beer of the Week: Solemn Oath's Oubliette
By Jason Baldacci in Food on Jan 3, 2014 8:30PM
The view from the tasting room at Solemn Oath Brewery in Naperville. Photo Credit: Jason Baldacci
Oubliette is a Belgo-American Pale Ale from Solemn Oath Brewery. It pours a delectable golden blonde color in the glass and we picked up some floral, grassy hops on the nose along with a hint of fruity Belgian yeast. On the palate, it drinks crisp yet complex with malts reminiscent of biscuits and crackers shining through initially but quickly giving way to a more citrus-laced hop profile than we caught on the nose. We got a big note of Naval orange and a hint of guava first, with a pleasant, grapefruity tanginess on the backend. The finish is relatively clean, but some of that Belgian yeast does linger for a minute or so after the rocky carbonation of the beer dissipates. At 6 percent alcohol content, Oubliette is a delicious blend of Belgian and American brewing techniques and perfectly appropriate in any weather.
Since their two year anniversary is still a few months away, we suppose you could still consider Solemn Oath an up-and-coming Chicago area brewery. If we were new on the scene though, we'd hardly guess it by tasting their ever changing lineup of (mostly) Belgian-Inspired beers. Almost everything we've tasted from them has been unique, yet solidly dialed in and balanced and drinks like the work of a much older brewery. Up until recently, their beer has only been available on draft, but they just rolled out their first bottle releases a few weeks ago. Unfortunately, Oubliette isn't one of those releases, but we'll be keeping our eyes peeled in the future for anything that Solemn Oath puts on store shelves. We expect some big things from these guys in 2014, and so should you.
Oubliette is only available on draft, so be sure to check beermenus.com to see who's pouring it near you this weekend.