Melville's Raspberry Beer - Innis & Gunn

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

275ml bottle. Made with Scottish Glen Ample raspberries, which after a cursory investigation, look exactly the same as raspberries grown on this side of the pond.

This beer pours a clear, medium salmon amber hue, with two fingers of foamy, somewhat bubbly pale pink head, which leaves a low ebbing wash of lace around the glass as it slowly sinks away.

It smells of mixed berry fruit - raspberry, blackberry, strawberry - a bit of cooked plum, bready, kind of doughy malt, a mild acetic tartness, and earthy, mildly leafy hops. The taste is more fruit salad berry flavour - rather muddled, with the raspberry not really dominating as one might expect, but at the same rate, allowing for more balance. A fairly sturdy pale malt underlies it all, the sourness from the nose mostly wafted off, and the soft drying earthiness plodding ahead.

The carbonation is pretty sedate, the body a sticky medium weight, and generally smooth, fruit roll-up style. It finishes well off-dry, the fruity sweetness abetted by the lingering flat pale malt, a touch of plain mustard, and little else to the contrary.

Not a bad fruit beer, and pretty hefty for a lager, but it seems lacking an extra edginess, perhaps this is a legacy of my Belgian fruit lambic indulgences. Not something I could see myself putting back in more than the one conveniently wee bottle I've procured, I'm afraid.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2013 02:20:29 | More by biboergosum

TerryW

Ontario (Canada)

3.06/5  rDev -9.2%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

Thin-bodies and uninteresting. About as close to water as you'll find in a beer bottle.

Clear scarlett red brew under a short pink head. Looks like a soda. Everything about this beer is on the light side of things. Very subtle raspberry nose and taste. Finishes vaguely like a very light beer.

Essentially a beer cooler. Probably okay in the blazing heat if you're looking for something really easy going. You should be able to pound back a half dozen of these without any problem. But then, why would you want to?

Not offensive, just boring.

Revisited after a hot day and downed one of these nice and cold. Upgraded to decent enough patio beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-16-2013 00:53:11 | More by TerryW

wordemupg

Alberta (Canada)

3.33/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25

275ml bottle poured into pint glass 13/5/13

A clear pinkish orange with a short lived finger of light pink foam that leaves a few polka dots for lace

S smells of sweet raspberries with a hint of ketchup, not sure If I'm just losing it but I get a hint of ketchup levels of vinegar

T sweet jammy raspberry without the ketchup, very straight forward but decent

M light bodied, a few bubbles with a fruity raspberry aftertaste

O not a whole lot of traditional beer notes in this one but it would work for a Summer swiller

I preferred the strawberry but this one went down easy enough, I don't think I'd bother buying a second bottle but I could see my wife grabbing a 6 pack

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2013 17:41:12 | More by wordemupg

jazzyjeff13

United Kingdom (England)

3.1/5  rDev -8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A 275ml clear glass bottle with a BB of May 2012. The label states that this is a blend of cold-pressed Scottish raspberry juice with beer, and that it should be served over ice.

Poured into a Guinness pint glass (without ice). A clear reddish-pink colour with good carbonation. Forms a small, frothy head of white foam that disappears rapidly. Aroma of sweet raspberries with a hint of acidity, and an undertone of light, oaky beer (or perhaps it's skunked, but the smell is odd).

Tastes primarily of sweet raspberry juice with a light beer flavour in the background. Strong fruit notes and a hint of light malt. Faint undertones of stewed hops and oakiness/skunk. Slightly tart. Mouthfeel is crisp and prickly, which suits the style. Aftertaste of sweet fruit/oak.

Well, it's OK but no masterpiece. This is the second of these I've tried and there are many better fruit beers out there. Too sweet, one-dimensional, and I don't like the 'oaky' character in the background. If a fruit beer is what you're looking for then pick up something Belgian, as it's virtually guaranteed to be an improvement on this.

Serving type: bottle

06-19-2011 21:25:27 | More by jazzyjeff13