I was recently at my beer retailer trying to choose some new beers to try. I spotted a six-pack of Lakefront Brewery Organic E.S.B. Excellent! ESB is one of my favorite styles, and we’ve written about other organic beers, including during a recent Session. In the cart it goes!

A few days later, I pulled a bottle out and poured myself a glass. I sat down at my computer to do some work. I took a healthy quaff…

That’s not an ESB.

What the heck? It turns out that five of the six bottles in the basket were actually Lakefront’s Cherry Lager.

Well, we’re generally not ones for fruit beers around here, but it’s been hot and I’m in the mood for something different.

It pours a nice lager color with red highlights. I barely get any cherry aroma at all but it definitely comes out in the flavor. Unlike some other fruit beers I’ve had recently, this one isn’t out of balance.

Not bad at all. A refreshing choice for the hot summer months.

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This edition of the Session is sponsored by Beer, Beats & Bites. The topic:

Fruit beer.

I generally share Ron’s opinion of fruit beers. That is, I usually don’t care for them. That’s not to say I’ve never had a fruit beer I considered “good”; I have. But most of those I’ve tried—admittedly, not many—just haven’t done it for me. And even the ones I have liked I didn’t like them enough to make them a regular selection.

Then, of course, is the ubiquitous image of a lemon wedge stuck into a watery Mexican lager. Or the marketing gimmick of an orange slice in one of Coors’ Blue Moon line. (Okay, the latter isn’t that bad, but is definitely not something I would seek out.) There’s a lot of baggage where fruit and beer are concerned.

Of course, I’m not one to pass up a challenge, especially when it comes to beer. So, with a mantra of “fruit beer” running through my head, I traveled over to my favorite retailer to see what I could find. Since Maryland law allows—and The Spirit Shop encourages—purchasing singles, I was able to pick up a mixed six-pack.

• Dogfish Head Raison D’Être
• Pyramid Apricot Weizen
• Pete’s Wicked Strawberry Blonde
• Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat Ale
• Lancaster Brewing Strawberry Wheat
• Blue Point Brewing Blueberry Ale

I didn’t pick up, but I should mention, Wells Banana Bread Beer, and Dogfish Head’s Festina Peche. I didn’t get the former because I didn’t want to risk buying a 500ml bottle for something I wasn’t sure I would like. The latter because I already had a Dogfish Head and the “malted beverage” bit made me nervous.

Here are some brief tasting notes for the ones I’ve had so far. (No, I didn’t have all these in one sitting. I mean, I could have. I didn’t drive and it usually takes more than six to knock me on my ass, but I wouldn’t have appreciated the flavor as much of the ones I had last.

Pyramid Apricot Weizen

Thie gold-medalist of fruit beers, this adventurous unfiltered wheat beer offers a pleasing aroma and flavor of fresh apricots while delivering the smooth and refreshing character for which our wheat beers are recognized.

It says “Refreshingly Unfiltered Malt Beverage with Natural Flavor” on the label. That makes me nervous. Alcopops like Mike’s Hard Lemonade and Smirnoff Ice are also “malt beverages”. I sure don’t want anything like that.

Well, here goes nothing: It’s a hazy orangish color with a robust white head. The only aroma I get is apricots. However, the fruit isn’t as dominant in the taste. Oh, there’s plenty there, but it’s somewhat subtle and I can detect a bit of the wheat beer in the background. Not bad, but not something I’ll be buying regularly.

Pete’s Wicked Strawberry Blonde

…is truly a unique beer experience. Reward yourself with our golden lager made of the finest pale and wheat malts and Cluster Hops, with a kiss of natural strawberry flavor.

Well, we already know that Ron doesn’t like it. I think I may have had it before, but that’s in the dim-and-distant past and I can’t remember what I thought of it then. However, I’m married to a strawberry blonde, and she is occasionally wicked. So I guess I’d better try it.

Straw-colored, with a good size head consisting of small bubbles. When I stick my nose in the glass the first thing that comes to mind is strawberry Pop-Tarts®. When I drink it, I get a little of the strawberry, and some mild bitterness in the finish, and then…it’s gone. Not a lot of flavor. I don’t see further purchases in my future.

Sea Dog Raspberry Wheat Ale

…is a dry, crisp refreshing ale with the added essence of raspberries.

Okay, raspberry is my favorite fruit. I have high hopes. Pale straw in color with a white head, which doesn’t have much staying power. First impression of the aroma is that it’s like a raspberry-scented candle. My wife notes that it smells just like raspberries that have been put through a sieve. The taste seems pretty good in the beginning, but I don’t care for the finish at all.

Intermission: Not doing so well, am I? Hope springs eternal.

Lancaster Brewing Strawberry Wheat

Just in time for summer, this American wheat lager style beer with the subtle suggestion of real, fresh strawberries, is the perfect pint of true refreshment. Light and crisp, our Strawberry Wheat is a "must try" for fruit and beer lovers alike.

Oh, really? It’s a light amber color, with a fizzy head that drops pretty quickly. I get strawberry in the aroma, and perhaps a bit of clove. Medium body. I get a little bit of the strawberry and some bit of the carbonation. It’s almost like the beer isn’t there. And the carbonation reminds me of soda. Frankly, it seems more like a flavored tonic water than a beer. Fairly refreshing, but I’m not getting a lot of flavor from it.

Blue Point Brewing Blueberry Ale

A delicious golden ale brewed with real blueberries and natural flavors added.

Medium amber with a cream-colored head with some staying power. Blueberry aroma definitely present, but not overpowering. Very interesting taste. I can very distinctively taste the blueberry on one part of my tongue, and the beer on another. Kinda weird. The taste is otherwise light. Pretty refreshing. Not a ringing endorsement, I know.

Dogfish Head Raison D’Être

A deep, mahogany ale brewed with beet sugar, green raisins, and Belgian-style yeast. As complex as a fine, red wine. Voted “American Beer of the Year” in January 2000 by Malt Advocate Magazine

This is, by far, the strongest of all the beers I’m trying for this Session. (8% ABV) It’s a deep amber with reddish tones. The cream-colored is fairly thick. The aroma is roasty with a bit of a winey feel. A lot more of the roasted flavor; very robust. Reminds me a little bit of a dubbel. Unlike the other five I’ve tried, this is not a lawnmower beer. This is something you savor on a crisp autumn day.

Conclusion: One thing is very clear: I don’t really like fruit beers. I suppose in the right circumstance and with the right accompaniment any of them would be good, but as something to drink just to drink…none of them grabbed me. Of the six, I preferred the Raison D’Être the most, but it was also significantly different than the rest of them. Even so, it’s not something I’d make a habit of.

Updated: Read the Session #6 Round-up

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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.

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