Shorts Imperial Soft Parade

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

Bright red pour, and a frothy white. Mostly a blackberry and blueberry aroma, with some papery acerbic character and a whiff of leafiness, and a dry rye woodiness. Minerals on the fruits, and some grass. Its somewhat raw earthiness is good and endearing.

Dry and soft on fruit flavor. Generally, the heavy vinous sweetness of the dark sweetness blends with the subtle rocky and basic tannin bitterness to make for a bland, merlot-like impression. Still, the textures imparted by the yeasts, and possibly the seedy qualities of the fruits, are kindly dry and detailed in earthiness and darkness, enough to make this a very pleasant experience. Main flavors are blueberries, and strawberries, and a grassy, honey-like sweetness that’s quite heavily influenced by earth and still, minerals.

Medium, calm texture; soft carbonation, and a reserved alcohol presence that only shows in a soft basic flavor in the finish; never any heat, but the tannins and the alcohol make for a somewhat boring, basic dry red wine ending; certainly a pleasant sensation, but just a bit simple.

750mL bottle. Pours a slightly hazy, bright, bold ruby color; light pinkish head with mixed-bubbled lacing. Pleasant, mixed fruit and strawberry bubble gum in the aroma; I really enjoyed the nose on this: solid, lightly sweet, genuine fruit aroma; quite unique. Medium-to-full mouthfeel: solid carbonation; lots of blackberries and strawberries at the front; seeds, stems, and light tannins; solid mixed berry presence with nicely reserved sweetness; overall, though, I’m not totally taken by the fruit character, and it does (I’ll credit Stine here) have a strong, pervasive mineral character that, while balancing out the mouthfeel, doesn’t ultimately add much; drinkable, solid fruit presence, but unremarkable. Just, solid. Medium finish: toasty malts, pitty blackberries / raspberries, and some lingering mineral bitterness; ends balanced overall.

Cloudy red brown colour with a lasting, slightly pink head. Aroma first delivers raspberries, then some strawberry and a little malt and yeast in the background. (Too) sweet fruity flavour with a little tartness and a touch of drying tannin improving the finish.

Bottle @ Kolding Shorts Tasting, 18.09.08.
Pours a great, ruby red with a small, creamy, off-white head. Aroma has clear, great notes of berries. Especially blueberries and raspberries. Pleasant dry mouthfeel, low carbonation. Flavour is very nice, good fruitiness. No trace of the alcohol. Light fruity tartness. Incredibly elegant beer.

Bottle. [Drikkeriget Grand Shorts Imperial Series tasting, thanks to Jeppe for another great session] Average beige almost reddish creamy head that mostly lasted. Good display of lacework. Muddy amber color. Aroma of Mixed and complex notes of sour berries with mild notes of strawberry and blackberries. Also picked up notes of vinegar and citrus with some underlying malty base. Medium to full bodied with a soft carbonation. Moderated acidic flavor with good counter sweetness. Quite well balanced between the acidic and sweet notes. Sour fruity somewhat lingering finish. Unique but not as unique as some of the other beers in the Imperial Series.

Pours a deep caramel-brown body with a weak head. The nose is a bit cloying, with cherrys and vanilla- and i see it as an early summerevening with humming bees in a oppressive warmth. The taste is a bit like a kriek or a framboise without the freshness and sourness but still with some bitterness with a sharp vinegar-like finish. The palate is dry and so are your tounge afterwards.

Bottle shared by eclectic at BCTC. Thanks Kevin! Nose is an abundance of fruit--strawberry, raspberry, cherry, blueberry. Flavors is also very fruity with a bit of alcohol thrown in though it blends pretty well.

Very deep coppery pour which releases a very fruity nose. Flavor was sweet, sticky summer fruits...strawberry, raspberry and cherry. OK and drinkable, but a touch cloying for my taste.