Founders Cerise - Founders Brewing Company

Reaper16

Alabama

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz. bottle - dated 05/15/12 - served into a tulip glass

Pours a multifaceted shade of red: like dark red velvet cake towards the top of the body, and almost like a bloody mary towards the bottom and sides. Not opaque, but it has enough (hazy?) darkness to obscure your fingers on the other side of the glass. 1.25 fingers of pale pink head; small bubbles and solid bands of lacing. The best part of this beer's appearance is when you swirl it in the glass - the velvet red of the beer's body splashes into the pink foam to make something beautiful.

There's not much to the nose of this beer, surprisingly. There's some faint cherry notes and some faint spice notes. It's kinda like someone opened up a New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red...from way across the room and you can barely smell it. It's not all fruit, though: the dominant aromas are malty, bready ones. Darker bread.

The very first flavor that comes across is some sort of generic beer flavor. Almost lager-like in its clean, sweet, bready malt flavor. Then the fruit comes in: cherry flavor that sits somewhere in between cherry pie and Ludens Wild Cherry Throat Drops. It's not exactly tart, but the cherry essence goes a bit beyond just sweetness. There's a very small amount of pie spice here; not nearly as much as in Wisconsin Belgian Red. I keep making that comparison because that New Glarus beer is the big gun in the non-Kriek cherry ale category. Does Cerise taste as good as that beer? No. But it's good in its own right.

Overall, this is a easy-drinking and somewhat refreshing cherry beer. I wish it were cheaper, as it is a nice summer heat beer, actually; I'd buy it more often.

Serving type: bottle

06-10-2012 05:19:44 | More by Reaper16

andysc83

South Carolina

4/5  rDev +9.6%

05-24-2013 20:15:53 | More by andysc83

WKole81

Illinois

3/5  rDev -17.8%

05-24-2013 03:03:18 | More by WKole81

JohnnieNepal

Michigan

4/5  rDev +9.6%

05-23-2013 02:21:48 | More by JohnnieNepal

fgilbert2

Michigan

4.25/5  rDev +16.4%

05-22-2013 04:11:45 | More by fgilbert2

MLKincer

Ohio

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-22-2013 02:44:21 | More by MLKincer

PorterLambic

Florida

2.7/5  rDev -26%
look: 4 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 2.5

Poured aggressively into a standard pint glass produces a dark reddish brown and cloudy liquid with a well sustained, faintly pink, creamy looking head that subsides very slowly while leaving some very nice lacing.
Smell is faint with notes of malt, cherry cough syrup and floral, maybe gardenia.
Taste is a weird mix of the floral and cherry syrup with the malt very faint, not a main participant.
Medium bodied at best with a tingly effervescence, much like a lambic which is my best guess as to what they were aiming for. I like lambics, but I'm glad I only have two of these to drink. The overly artificial flavor/nose is depressing. Being from Michigan myself and aware of the heritage of cherry growing in the state, I really wanted to like this a lot but I can't honestly say I do. Finally a Founders beer I don't want more of.

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2013 02:17:30 | More by PorterLambic

ackeeper

Illinois

4/5  rDev +9.6%

05-21-2013 01:52:36 | More by ackeeper

nyrblue2

New York

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-20-2013 23:57:59 | More by nyrblue2

InspectorBob

New Jersey

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-20-2013 14:26:31 | More by InspectorBob

NJB145

Michigan

4.75/5  rDev +30.1%

05-19-2013 01:17:48 | More by NJB145

allisonastra

Michigan

4/5  rDev +9.6%

05-16-2013 15:25:47 | More by allisonastra

vrbulldog22

Ohio

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

05-13-2013 18:23:35 | More by vrbulldog22

jkball01

Kentucky

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-13-2013 16:34:11 | More by jkball01

Arsenal0328

Indiana

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

05-12-2013 21:42:35 | More by Arsenal0328

macrosmatic

Florida

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

05-12-2013 17:15:20 | More by macrosmatic

hey5hitgoose

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

05-11-2013 00:57:39 | More by hey5hitgoose

Slay40

Michigan

4.5/5  rDev +23.3%

05-10-2013 21:18:36 | More by Slay40

marshmeli

New York

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-10-2013 20:48:12 | More by marshmeli

twenty5

Pennsylvania

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-10-2013 19:36:35 | More by twenty5

stevec32

New York

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-10-2013 00:13:51 | More by stevec32

beernads

Florida

3.25/5  rDev -11%

05-09-2013 05:42:14 | More by beernads

deadliest

Texas

4.25/5  rDev +16.4%

05-07-2013 23:41:11 | More by deadliest

Jason1337

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%

05-05-2013 13:32:04 | More by Jason1337

Seakyden

Massachusetts

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-02-2013 15:36:06 | More by Seakyden