Shorts Bananas n Blow Crème Ale

Brewed by Shorts Brewing Co.
Style: Fruit Beer
Bellaire, Michigan USA

Growler from GodOfThunder, thanks so much Jay! Bananas, floral aroma. Pours a cloudy golden amber. The flavor starts with bananas with hints of a mild cocoa a little hoppy in the background. This was a pleasure to drink! Very interesting, fresh bananas and bitter chocolate. Awesome!

Growler, courtesy GodOfThunder. A cloudy, dark orange-amber colored pour yields a spongy, off-white layer of foam. Runny sheeting shows on the glass, with minimal, random spots left behind to dry. As the beer warms, notes of a freshly made batch of banana pudding dusted in cocoa powder emerge. Estery in its fruit profile, there is some marshmallow sweetness, along with hints of tapioca and oatmeal creaminess. I fully expect a letdown on flavor, but it never comes. That same feel of fresh bananas pureed into tapioca pudding come to mind. The dry cocoa powder is both distinct and perfectly matched. Less sweet than the nose, the flavor profile shows a hint of bitterness from the cocoa on the finish. A creamy, smooth mouthfeel is more substantial than one would expect from such a low ABV beer, yet still entirely sessionable. This is a delicious, criminally underrated beer that I would guzzle by the truckload if it were readily available. Awesome brew.

Growler, courtesy of TasteTester on BA. Not a pretty looking beer. Pours a cloudy brown, like a banana that has been sitting out for a couple weeks, with a foamy white head. The smell changes, one second you get a whiff of the bananas, the next is cocoa. The bananas are the first thing you taste, followed by the bitter cocoa in the finish. The cocoa taste reminds me of bittersweet cocoa powder, and seems very dry. The flavors really come alive as this warms up. Surprisingly light on mouthfeel. I was expecting a thick, creamy, milkshake of a beer filled with artificial banana and chocolate flavors, instead I got a light, refreshing and fresh tasting beer with just the right amount of banana and cocoa, and not tasting artificial at all. Very good job by Shorts. Neat beer.

What a treat. This beer pours a golden cloudy yellow-orange. Aroma is banana puree and carob on the back of the nose. Flavor is a really nice banana without the syrupy sweetness of a banana. White pepper in the middle of the tongue, and then finishes incredibly dry for a beer with fruit in it. Those hoping for chocolate might be disappointed, but this is a solid, unique offering from Shorts.

Sampled from growler, courtesy GodofThunder. Cloudy orange-brown color, thin sparse white head. Very odd aroma - chalk, bruised banana flesh, slight alkaline hint of cocoa, the banana comes out stronger after it warms a bit. Mild taste, it starts with the banana and finishes on the cocoa. Odd finish marked by some cocoa bitterness. interesting.

<i>Draft at brewpub:</i> Murky yellow pour with a creamy, thick white head. The nose is hard to decipher at first, but a little time and temperature increase reveals a nice, mellow layer of banana and vanilla. The body is watery at first, but beefing up on the back of the tongue. Notes of mushy banana, vanilla tannins and fresh bready makeup the body. The bananas are fresher and riper than the esthery variety I find in yeast induced beers. I thought the body became a bit slick on the tongue, although that could have been the thoughts of 220 lbs. of mushy bananas in the back of my mind. Like most of Short’s beers, this is a new concept for me and probably the first time I have tasted actual bananas in beer. While it does work to a certain extent, I wouldn’t want to drink too much of this or drink it too often. Oddly enough, neither myself or my friend could detect any cocoa from start to finish.

Growler, courtesy GodOfThunder. My first beer of the night and a serious kick in the head. Hazy golden amber pour with a thin white head. Very complex and delicious banana, dark chocolate and cocoa powder aroma. I wasnt sure how good the taste could be having been let down by some great aroma beers recently, but found this to be quite delicious. The cocoa really stands out in the taste and is quite and the banana is not so sweet and dominant. A very interesting beer and the best banana beer I have had.

Growler courtesy of Rogueone. Pours orange/amber with a 1/2 inch white head quickly dissipating. Aroma is bananas and yeast, with the faintest amount of chocolate. Flavor is heavy with banana and a surprising peppery flavor. A fair amount of yeast, but not as much as a traditional Belgian (good thing, in my book). Much drier finish than expected (also a good thing). Some slight chocolate presence when cold, but nowhere to be found when it warms a bit. Decent beer. Way better than I expected.