Appalachian Framboise

Brewed by Appalachian Brewing Company (PA)
Style: Fruit Beer
Harrisburg, Pennsylvania USA

Serve in Flute

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Glass at the Harrisburg brewery. A new beer discovered – this is what makes beer travel fun. It’s about 80% opaque, with a purplish dark red colored body and a small white film of a head. First impression of the nose is sour, smoky cherry skins, then some stewed or lightly burnt raspberries, with some lactic yeast esters as well. Flavors of cherry skin, lightly smoked raspberries, and dark, ripe plums. Not really sweet at all, but not true lambic sourness – more of a tartness, prickly on the tongue, with a bit of a hefty sour bite on the back. This seems to sit right about where I like the more fruit-forward sour ales, not overly sweet, with a good, pure representation of the true fruit, the only sweetness from the true fruit sugars, and with a natural tartness as well. If I had to compare it to New Glarus Raspberry Tart, I’d say this is less sweet, less sugary, but thinner and more pasty on the tongue. Compared to Selin’s Grove Phoenix Kriek, it has less pure fruit character and slightly more tartness, it’s less rich and full, has more of a lactic presence, and is more pasty and chalky as well. After a full glass, and more at home from a growler, the dryness in the finish was more apparent, and I found myself really enjoying this light but still prickly and tart framboise.