Entries tagged with “Fruit” from Malt & Barley Chronicles

Oh my goodness. This is one special beer -- take whatever you know about apple cider and toss it in the trash bin. Honestly, it's akin to a drinkable apple pie filling. I've even had dreams about trying this beverage as the base for a vanilla (or dulce de leche) ice cream float.

Characteristics: Gold-straw cloudy color; light-to-medium carbonation; thin body; consistent mix of apple and cinnamon and nutmeg with the spices lingering in the finish.

Minor Gripes: it's a little thin, even watery at times (though that could also be the tap from which I was served). And at 3.1% ABV, this Apple Wit could stand a little more alcohol to add some heft.

Bottom Line: The wheat/wit base provides some depth that's missing from the standard apple ciders (Strongbow, Magners/Bulmers, Woodpecker, Woodchuck). If you like the idea of a lambic, hate Lindemann's, and are burdened with wheat/gluten allergies, then this is an excellent choice.

Rating: 6.75 / 10

Another of Brooklyn's seasonal offerings, this beverage (even more so than Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin) has restored my faith in pumpkin beers.  Post Road carries its excellent, savory blend of pumpkin, nutmeg, and cinnamon flavors consistently from the first (perhaps too cold) sip to the last (approaching room temperature) without being overpowering or getting syrupy. With prime pumpkin season now over, I won't be sampling any more varieties until next fall (anything still in the stores will be suspect at best).

Characteristics: Rich copper color (tending toward brown), light-to-medium carbonation with a small head, medium body, smooth mix of savory pumpkin, cinnamon, and nutmeg that crests just as you finish each sip. 

Minor Gripes: The season of availability is just a little too short... I was only able to score one six-pack before my local store ran out.

Bottom Line: This beer manages to replicate the experience of eating a great pumpkin pie filling without being filling.  That's quite a feat, and it will keep me coming back to this brew for seasons to come.

Rating: 7.5 / 10

"Hanami" is a Japanese word that is used to describe the viewing of the cherry blossoms in the early spring -- something that borders on an obsession here in Washington.  Despite my overall respect for Smuttynose, I was skeptical when I first tried this beer.  I've had mixed experiences with the kriekbiers, and Sam Adams converted their Cherry Wheat into a dreadfully sweet (even syrupy) mess of a beer.  And on first sample, this came across as a pale, wan beer that had very little going for it -- I was prepared to pass on it entirely.  I went back to the well a few weeks later, however, and was pleasantly surprised. 

Characteristics: Rich amber color, average carbonation, moderate head, light-to-medium body, starts almost like a plain yellow lager but then a tart, sharp cherry flavor slides in and takes over through the finish.

Minor Gripes: This is truly a beer inspired by Europe -- you have to bring it back close to room temperature before the tart cherry emerges.  But if it warms up too much (and the carbonation dissipates), it can be like drinking straight cherry juice.

Bottom Line: A creative, flavorful, refreshing beer that may be just a little too tempermental for its own good.  I'm curious if there are any Japanese equivalents -- that would make for a nice contrast the next time I'm out for sushi.

Rating: 6.25 / 10

After the Oktoberfests, my favorite beverage of the autumn is a hearty pumpkin ale.  Unfortunately, not everyone knows how to brew with fruit... the first pumpkin I tried this year was so bad that I didn't even review it.  Buffalo Bill's, however, does know something about fruit, as shown by their brilliant Orange Blossom Cream Ale.

Characteristics: Rich amber-brown color, medium body, medium-to-high carbonation, tangy amber start that mellows through the pumpkin and slight cinnamon flavor to a nutmegy finish.

Minor Gripes: Unfortunately for the average American beer drinker, the flavors really don't burst until this beer warms up a lot... definitely skip the frosted glass.  Also, the nutmeg sometimes resolves to a bitter aftertaste -- the pumpkin doesn't hold through the finish.

Bottom Line: Among the better pumpkin beers I've sampled, and perhaps the only where one can enjoy more than one in a sitting.

Rating: 6 / 10

"America's Original Blueberry Ale" is luckily a purist (of sorts).  Instead of going sugary and blue-tinged, this ale goes for the tangy side and a residual reddish color.  The result is interesting, if not entirely successful.

Characteristics: Amber color, lightly carbonated, light to medium body, tastes like a red ale but with a blueberry tangy tart kick toward the finish.

Minor Gripes: The amber and blueberry don't always match up, sometimes leading to a strange aftertaste that runs toward alcohol instead of blueberry.

Bottom Line: Not the fruity beer I feared, but not necessarily one I'd hoped for either.

Rating: 5 / 10

Technorati: Blueberry, Bar Harbor, Maine, Ale