Samuel Adams Cranberry Lambic Review

Brewery: Boston Brewing Co. | Beer: Samuel Adams Cranberry Lambic
Style: Fruit Beer| ABV: 5.9% | IBUs: Unknown
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into tulip glass

Here we have a controversial beer, perhaps the most controversial yet on PintLog. Lambic-heads (such as yours truly) are a pretty fickle bunch, and God help anyone foolish enough to use the much vaunted Lambic title on something that doesn't truly deserve it. Unfortunately for Boston Brewing Company, that's just what they did with their Cranberry Lambic. Beer geeks have been crying foul ever since.

Now, I won't get into all the geeky details (check this article for said geeky details), but suffice it to say that this beer is simply not a Lambic. I usually just go ahead and list a beer with the style the brewer had in mind, but here I just can't bring myself to do it, so we're going with the catch-all Fruit Beer style instead. All that said, PintLog gives every beer a fair shot, so we'll review this with a neutral disposition, ignoring anything to do with style.

It's all rather moot anyway, as Cranberry Lambic is no longer available. It used to star prominently in the Sam Adams winter mixed pack, but was replaced in 2010 by Chocolate Bock. That ended quite a long run, as it was actually first brewed way back in 1990, back when you could get away with fudging styles a little more.

As with most of the special Sam Adams brews, Jim and the boys in Boston were not afraid of a deep ingredient bill. The backbone was built of Two-Row Harrington, Metcalfe, and Copeland Pale malts, along with a helping of wheat. As for hops, Hallertau Mittelfrueh Noble hops did the deed. The yeast, perhaps the single most important component of a Lambic and the crux of the argument against this beer, used was W-68 Weissbier ale yeast. Special ingredients included New England cranberries and maple syrup.

Here's how they describe the finished product:

Tart and sweet, with complex fruit, maple, and vanilla notes. [...] The flavor [is] rich in fruitiness and reminiscent of cranberries, bananas, cloves, and nutmeg. The yeast fermentation also creates a slight sourness on the sides of the palate, reminiscent of the original lambic style. That sourness, along with the astringency of the cranberries, is combined with a subtle cereal note from the malted wheat. It reminds its drinker that, as fruity a beer as this is, it’s still a beer.

Let's give it a shot, shall we?

Appearance: A deep and hazy reddish-brown body capped by a finger of rose-tinged, creamy head that features good retention and lacing.

Aroma: Sweet, musty, and sour with lots of cranberry and raspberry juice.

Taste: Sweet fruit juice up from with some nice acidic and sour flavors that turn things tart in the finish. Those juicy fruit flavors certainly have some cranberry notes, but are just as much, if not more, berry-like. Underneath, a wheat-like malt backbone keeps everything grounded. The aftertaste is juicy and grainy, but just a little too brief.

Mouthfeel: A slightly fuller than medium and slightly syrupy body with mild carbonation. It finishes crisp and a little dry.

Drinkability: A little slower than average, mostly due to the mouthfeel.

Verdict: Sam Adams' Cranberry Lambic may not be a real Lambic, but it's still an enjoyable beer - just think of it as a wheat beer with a fruit twist. It's interesting enough and really worked well as part of the Winter mixed pack (once you got past the label).

Grade: B

Note: While this review is being published in 2011, the tasting notes contained within were taken when the beer was fresh in 2009.

New Belgium Old Cherry Review

Brewery: New Belgium Brewing | Beer: Old Cherry
Style: Fruit Beer | ABV: 6.5% | IBUs: ~15
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into globe glass

Old Cherry was originally brewed back in 1995 as one of New Belgium's original beers. It ended up being discontinued in 1998, but demand for another cherry-themed beer was strong enough that a new, lighter beer named Two Cherry was introduced as a fall seasonal. Eventually, that beer too was retired.

However, New Belgium brought back the original Old Cherry for an appearance in "Folly Packs" a few years back. While it has once again fallen into hiatus status, I figured it was about time to get around to posting the notes I took back in early 2009.

Old Cherry is essentially an Amber Ale brewed with the juice of dark Montmorency cherries from Washington state. It has a more potent malt backbone than the Two Cherry version, but is not wildly different. New Belgium describe the finished product as having "a rich cherry aroma and a delicate balance of cherry tartness and barley malt sweetness."

It may be gone (for now), but Old Cherry is not forgotten. Here are my notes.

Appearance: A hazy orange-red body with a finger and a half of off-white head that leaves chunky lacing.

Aroma: Nicely malty with tart berry and other fruit notes. There's no distinct cherry to speak of.

Taste: Tart and slightly sour with subtle cherry notes in the aftertaste. You really have to look for the cherry flavor here. A lot maltier than I was expecting, but more dry than sweet. Overall, much like a lighter version of their Frambozen.

Mouthfeel: Medium-bodied and somewhat chewy at times. Low carbonation and a dry finish.

Drinkability: Just about average; you can put down a few easily, but probably won't be chugging it all night.

Verdict: A nice enough malt-forward fruit beer. Certainly a much better attempt at a cherry themed beer than Sam Adam's Cherry Wheat, but nothing earth-shaking. If you like New Belgium's Frambozen, you should enjoy this as well.

Grade: B-

Note: While this review is being posted in 2010, the tasting notes contained within were taken when the beer was fresh in early 2009.

Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat Review

Brewery: Boston Brewing Co. | Beer: Samuel Adams Cherry Wheat
Style: Fruit Beer | ABV: 5.4% | IBUs: 23
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into Weizen glass

First brewed as a summer seasonal back in 1995, Cherry Wheat was popular enough to warrant year-round availability as part of the Samuel Adams Brewmaster's Collection. It's proved to be so popular that it's one of the best selling Sam Adams beers out there—it's certainly my wife's favorite.

Cherry Wheat's body is built from 2-Row Pale and Munich malts alongside malted wheat. Bitterness is provided by one of Sam Adams' favorite hop varieties, the Tettnang Tettnanger. Other ingredients include a "touch" of honey and two additions of Michigan cherries—one during the mash and one during finishing. Here's how the finished product is pitched:

The sweet fruitiness of the cherries is balanced against the crisp, cereal note from the malted wheat and the subtle citrus flavor from the Noble hops. The end result is a sweet, refreshing beer that is light on the palate but long on complexity.

It's about time I got around to this one—let's get to it, shall we?

Appearance: A slightly hazy, golden-amber colored body with a massive and sticky off-white head. Great lacing.

Aroma: An overabundance of candy-like cherry. Some definite wheaty beer underneath, but the balance is out of whack.

Taste: The cherry flavor is certainly in the spotlight here and almost reminds me of cherry cough syrup. Underneath, there's a firmly subservient and very average wheat body. Sweet, but not too cloying. Lingering aftertaste of cherries.

Mouthfeel: A medium-light body with sharp carbonation.

Drinkability: If you're not put off by the strong cherry flavor, rather good drinkability.

Verdict: As wrong as it seems, there is something pleasant about the cherry flavor. However, it still seems much better suited to the candy world than the beer world. This is a very strange beer, and I find it hard to rate. All I can really say is that while I certainly don't love it, I don't absolutely hate it either. I suppose that makes it average.

Grade: C

Dogfish Head Fort Review

Brewery: Dogfish Head Brewery | Beer: Fort
Style: Fruit Beer | ABV: 18.0% | IBUs: 49
Serving Method: 750ml bottle poured into tulip glass

Dogfish Head is known for experimental high-alcohol beers, and Fort is a terrific example of their special brand of madness. Brewed to a strength of 18 percent alcohol, it would have been the strongest beer on the planet just a few years ago. Though there are a handful of stronger brews out there, Fort is the strongest fruit beer on the planet according to Dogfish.

Fort is raspberry-focused and brewed with a "ridiculous amount" of pureed raspberries. That's not just marketing gibberish—the brewers add about 20 pounds of raspberries per barrel during fermentation. Fruit beers are typically lighter fare, but this is anything but. The name is an appropriate reference to the beer's staying power, as it can age for quite a while.

While I bought one bottle to age, this one is fated to be drunk fresh—so let's pop it open and try to make it to the bottom, shall we?

Appearance: To be honest, I was really expecting this to be a deep shade of red. In fact, it's a hazy, deep reddish-pumpkin body with a decent off-white head that recedes rapidly and leaves only minimal lacing (with this level of alcohol, retention and lacing is virtually out of the question).

Aroma: Sweet, berry-like, boozy, and at times almost vinegary. Complex and unique—what on earth is this going to taste like?

Taste: Wow! Intense as hell! There is no question whatsoever that the alcohol content here is almost off the charts, it's in the forefront from the beginning to the end and almost spicy in its intensity. Once the booze-shock subsides, you find a lot of complexity underneath. There's lots of fruit, including berries, banana and pineapple. As for malt, the backbone is relatively light and basically stays the hell out of the way. The aftertaste is very boozy with some hints of berry.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, slick, and nicely velvety. There's enough carbonation here to make it more drinkable than a liqueur. Lots of boozy burn for the tongue, the cheeks, and the throat. Dry as hell.

Drinkability: This one is going to take some time... I'd much prefer a regular 12 oz. bottle over this monster.

Verdict: This is a thoroughly unique beer - and because of this, it's hard to rate. Style is pretty much out the window here, so there's nothing much as far as guidelines go. Looks like we're in uncharted territory here folks... This big bastard of a beer tends to blur the lines between an ultra-strong beer and a weaker liqueur. It's mad as hell, but I like it. The only thing I can offer as far as a comparison goes is an Imperial Imperial Framboise. I can't wait to see how this ages.

Grade: B+

Note: While this review is being published in December, the tasting notes contained within were taken when the beer was fresh this past April.

Abita Strawberry Harvest Lager Review

Brewery: Abita Brewing Co. | Beer: Strawberry Harvest Lager
Style: Fruit Beer | ABV: 4.2% | IBUs: 13
Serving Method: 12 oz. bottle poured into Pilsener glass

I love to try local beer, and luckily for me the state of Texas is (despite what one might guess) rather fertile ground for great craft beer. But what about the surrounding states? Is there good beer flowing in the states around Texas as well?

To answer that, I set out to pick up a beer from New Orleans-area based Abita. Years ago, a friend and I worked our way through a mixed Abita twelve-pack. From what I remember we were pretty impressed, but that was before I really knew anything about beer, so I figured it was well past time to try some more Abita.

Now, usually when I pick up my first beer from a brewery, I like to pick either their flagship beer or their take on one of my favorite styles. This time, however, I decided to switch things up a bit. Despite a very full stable of beers available here in Houston, it was the Strawberry Harvest Lager that first caught my eye. Read into that what you may...

Strawberry Harvest Lager is a Fruit Beer based on what Abita calls a wheat lager base. Here's how they describe the beer on its label:

Ripe, red Louisiana strawberries are harvested at the peak of the season in the early morning chill. The scent of the juicy red Ponchatoula berries fills the air as they're picked and pressed for Abita Strawberry Harvest Lager. The end result us a light, crisp lager with just a hint of strawberry sweetness.

It sounds a little storybook to me, but it's what actually ended up in the bottle that really matters.

Appearance: A pale golden, slightly hazy body with a sudsy finger of near-white head that recedes rapidly and leaves little lacing.

Aroma: Quite simply, strawberry shortcake. Much closer to real strawberries than strawberry candy. The malt base is firmly in the pale malt range and seems a little sweet (though that may be the strawberries mixing in). I have to say, this is intriguing and alluring.

Taste: Still lots of fresh strawberries, though more muted than in the nose. The Lager comes through much clearer here than in the nose, but unfortunately it's a little grainy and average. The two flavors just don't mesh that well, I can't help but think that these strawberry flavors could have found a better housemate than a boring Lager. The aftertaste is pretty short, and tastes of strawberries and grain.

Mouthfeel: Medium-light bodied with good carbonation. The finish dries up a bit.

Drinkability: Decent, providing you like strawberries.

Verdict: In all honesty, I have to say I like this. It reminds of me of Sam Adams Cherry Wheat in a way: it's a fruit dominated beer that just seems a little wrong, but you can't help but like it. This is miles ahead of Cherry Wheat, but still not a great beer. Worth a try if you're a strawberry fan, but rather forgettable.

Grade: B-