POUGHKEEPSIE, NEW YORK
Running an experimental nanobrewery out of a backyard garage in Poughkeepsie, OBSCURE OSCILLATION specializes in crafting slightly offbeat Belgian style ales and other varied small batch one-offs. A certified New York State farmhouse brewery brought to life by long-time local childhood friends, Pier Di Camillo (of Uruguayan persuasion) and Visham Chinkan (from Guyanese auspices), Obscure Oscillation has handcrafted at least 34 different beer recipes since opening in 2018.
Inside the glorified garage there are twelve black wood seats at the bark top bar and a few conical fermenters towards the rear. A big TV centers the bar where three tap handles serve today’s current fare. There are bottles for sale as well.
Lovers of music and culture, ‘metafictional monks’ Chinkan and Di Camillo set out to be homebrewers during their college years. Though they both maintain day-time jobs, there’s no denying their passion for brewing. The duo’s locally resourced ingredients add an earthen barley-hop rusticity and husked grain rawness to the uniquely handcrafted elixirs.
In their late teens, Chinkan and Di Camillo acquired a palette for Belgian ales of all styles and couldn’t find anything that could satisfy their souls. During this time, there were no hazy IPA’s or NEIPAs, which they now enjoy drinking. Brewing since age 18, they had much success at local homebrewers competitions, but the idea of starting a brewery was just a dream. A decade went by with no thoughts of operating a brewery. During those 10 years, a lot of research was conducted consuming many beverages. Fast forward to 2017, the lifelong friends revisited the idea of opening up a brewery focusing on Belgian style ales. By 2018, Obscure Oscillation was getting established, receiving farm brewery licenses in April.
Some of Chinkan’s favorite Belgian ales include St. Bernardus Apt. 12, La Trappe Quadrupel, Bierbrouwerij De Koningshoeven and anything from Cantillon, 3 Fonteinen and Fantome. As for Di Camillo, Victory Storm King Stout, Scaldis Noel, Dogfish Head World Wide Stout and Oude Kriek- Hanssens Artisanaal hit the spot.
During September ’22, my wife and I took a trip to Obscure Oscillation for a tasty noon time slurp.
Zestful dry-hopped Belgian IPA, Meridian Rumble, coalesced candi-sugared orange caking and lemony gooseberry tartness with oaken vanilla tannins, leaving earthen fungi yeast and pulpy sawdust licks on the backend.
Salty strawberry tartness faded to orange-dried lemon souring and candied pineapple tartness for Enwhy Belgian Blonde with Strawberry, a fruitier variant with tamped down Perle hop herbage and mineral-grained pilsner malting buttressing its piquant strawberry rhubarb finish.
A frisky hopped-up Citra saison, Weeping Strings placed lemon-oiled white peach tartness alongside sweet orange peel tanginess as gingery coriander and grains of paradise seeding plus herbal star anise sweetness stayed laidback.
Dry Belgian Golden Strong Ale, Seventh Aurum, unleashed leathery oaken cherry tannins all over vinous green grape esters, raw honeyed cider tartness and citric-spiced hop phenols above delicate peat-smoked pilsner malts.
Slightly unconventional black IPA, Dark Rye Of The Moon, placed treacly Blackstrap molasses-sapped rye malts inside charcoaled dark chocolate bittering, gaining musky soy-bound dried fruiting, dank earthen weediness and dark-roast hop char while maintaining a creamily foamed resilience.