Care for some whipped cream in your strawberry beer?
Beer, in my humble opinion, should taste like malt & hops; at least primarily. All other flavors should be secondary to the malt and hops and yeast, especially from ingredients that are not those three.
My favorite beers have only those three ingredients. (plus water, but water shouldn’t add flavor) There are some rare cases where I find extra ingredients a nice addition. But, those flavors should be subtle… very subtle. I want to have to think to myself, “this beer has a nice caramel like sweetness to it”, or “what is that spice I taste in this Winter Warmer?”
I recently had a blueberry beer from Ellicottville Brewery and it was quite good. You were definitely able to taste the blueberries, probably more than I would normally have liked. However, you would be surprised at how well the blueberry flavor complements the malt and hops. They seem to be made for each other. But this is rare that I enjoyed a beer with such strong non-beer ingredients.
Pumpkin beer is another of the few that I don’t mind the flavors to be a bit stronger. Pumpkin and some spice seem to compliment sweet malt and bitter hops well.
Outside of those two examples, I just like it subtle. If you are looking to expand the varieties of beer you drink, even if you are feeling adventurous, I would suggest staying away from those fruity beers. I recommend starting with an ESB (Extra Special Bitter); which despite the name, is not very bitter, and save the whipped cream for the shortcake.
