Great Divide Wild Raspberry Ale

Brewed by Great Divide Brewing Company
Style: Fruit Beer
Denver, Colorado USA

12 oz. bottle, April ’08 bottling. Pours a basic brown beer color, foam has just a tinge of pink. Raspberries predominate in the smell, and not to its disadvantage; comes across like real raspberry instead of flavoring. Berries still up front in the taste, but there is an undeniable backbone of malt. Vienna roast, perhaps, of light crystal. At least they tried for a base beer that doesn’t get overwhelmed by fruitiness, and it pretty near succeeds. Bubbles are a little much for my taste, tend to build up gas that for others might deliver more fruit flavor, for me it gets in the way. Still, a good beer in a style with so many bad examples.

GUSHER! After a very slow and carefull pour, I had a nice frothy off-white foam all over my glass, bottle, and desk. Despite the huge foam, the body was surprisingly fair in the carbonation. Aroma of farmhouse and light fruit. Flavor is definitely raspberry. Enjoyable, even if it might be infected.

I’ve never been a fan of the raspberry, or really any fruit beer, but in all honesty this isn’t bad at all. Reddish, copper color, and pours with a huge head. I had to wait for it to settle down. Lots of carbonation and lots of lacing. Aroma is pretty straight forward for what it is with malts and raspberries. Spitzy raspberry flavor, malty with a pretty nice creamy buttery mouthfeel on the back end rounding it out. Not overkill on the sweetness either. Hmmm... not going to be a regular or anything but if offered I’d have no problem having it again.

Poured a dark amber color with a minimal tan head. The aroma was, you guessed it, of raspberries and some malt. Flavor was a little overwhelming for me. The berry flavor seemed to just stick with you for a while. Not a good beer in my opinion.

A nice looking bronze color ale but with very little head. The aroma is mostly berries with a slight bit of malt. On first taste you get hit hard with the berries that never fully fades. At the very end it gets a bit dry just like if you had a raspberry. If they were going for a raspberry beer then they hit it close to on the nose. Just wasn’t for me. For style it hit on everything but the palate.

Nice dark amber color with a reddish tinge. Nice sweet malty nose with a definite flourish of raspberries. The raspberry flavor is evident in mid palate and finish. The great thing is it is not overly sweet and actually has a nice light bitterness on the finish. Definitely a good fruit beer.

Different. Pours a beautifull raspberry amber color with a pinkish foam head that sticks around. Nose is very evident of raspberry yet a little sour. The raspberry is strong in the flavor but a bit watery. This beer is beautiful but needs a bit of work on the body. Have another? maybe onemore.

pours a maroon with a small pinkish head.
smell is definitely raspberry, sour, malt, touch floral.
taste is raspberry, subtle malt, and somewhat bitter. overall not that bad for a fruit beer.