Alaskan Brewing out of Juneau, Alaska makes some good beers and they are pretty common down here in Montana. This beer is from their Pilot Series, which are limited edition specialty beers. This one is a fruit beer which I don't recall having seen from Alaskan before. Let's have a taste, shall we!
Alaskan Brewing - Raspberry Wheat Ale
Stats
- Brewery: Alaskan Brewing Company - Juneau, Alaska
- Alcohol Content: 6.5% by volume
- IBUs: 20
- Company Description: Alaskan Raspberry Wheat is an American-style Wheat ale with the lively addition of red raspberries during fermentation. This limited-edition batch of Alaskan Raspberry Wheat Ale is made from glacier fed water, the finest two-row barley, wheat and specialty malts, premium quality European and Pacific Northwest hop varieties, and more than 3000 lbs of real raspberries.
The Bottle
This beer came in a 22 oz dark brown bottle with a single main body label covering about 60% of the bottle. The label had some neat artwork, with a bear in a raspberry patch. The brewery website had an interesting description of the label: Berry picking in Alaska can be a busy past time. With nearly 50 types of wild berry species across the state fruiting throughout the spring, summer and fall, berries have long been a staple in the Alaskan diet. This is also true of the diet of Alaskan black bears. These omnivores load up on rich raspberries and other berries in the late summer before hibernating for the long winters of Alaska. There was also a drink by date on the label (9/2/18 for those who are wondering). This beer is seasonal and limited so I estimate this was about a one year expiration date.
The Beer
- Appearance: A ruby red color is very noticeable with this beer, plus it had a nice thick, bubbly hear of pinkish foam.
- Aroma: It was a sweet fruity aroma.
- Taste/Mouthfeel: It was carbonated with a slightly tart finish. Notes of raspberries, they didn't seem overwhelming, nor was it a super sweet beer. Light bodied beer.
- Drinkability: A very drinkable beer, slightly tart, slightly sweet, with a moderate abv.
Rating and Final Thoughts
I gave this beer a rating of 3.25 on Untappd. It's overall rating was 3.62 with ove 6100 ratings. It was a decent fruit beer but all fruit beers are subjective to the drinker, more so than other beers in my opinion, due to the tartness and sweetness. Raspberries are not overly sweet by themselves,and would tend to be more tart, which leads this beer to be on the tart side and not the sweet side.
3.25/5
I will be putting this beer in the #beersaturday contest for Week 53. If you like my review, head on over there and give me an upvote to help my chances of winning some SBD! If you are a beer drinker, be sure to check it out and enter. One of the best contests on Steemit.