La Choulette Framboise

Phenomenal fruit beer. First, the raspberry flavour is so natural, so real - not like the cloyish extract many American brewers use. And the base is a blond biere de garde, and the firmness of malt flavour really backs up the fruit. This might be my all-time number one dessert beer.

Yes, this cork nearly did kill me!!! One little push with the thumb sent it EXPLODING out. Amber, with a touch of ruby, color with a diminishing fluffy pink head. Joss nails it with raspberry yogurt aroma. Quite like raspberry soda to start, then a nice light malt spine. Acidity just enough to wipe out the sweetness. Borders on being to sweet and soda like, but the finish is so nice, that it helps you forget you are drinking a "fruity brew". If the finish was not there, this would be another "berry weiss" type brew. This would be an ideal picnic brew.

Pink, cotton candy malt froth atop a murky, cloudy, pink lemonade colored funky brew. Strong carbonation, full bodied. This has a touch of barnyard, a heft of tartness that battles the rasberry sweetness mightily. Excellent and drinkable rendition of what I normally would perceive to be a rasberry like lambic such as Lindemans, but much better.

A fruit Bière de Garde opening this bottle was like smelling fresh raspberries and this beer was cloying as some fruit beers tend to be. Page 271 of Michael Jackson’s Great Beer Guide and only 343 of his 500 Classic Brews to go.

Pours a deep red, with a moderate light reddish head, pleasant raspberry aroma, with notes of oak. flavor is that of sweet raspberries, but far more subtle and elegant than most other beers i have had, also noted subtle hints of chocolate after the initial raspberry flavor melts away. Very enjoyable.