Dark Horse Raspberry Ale - Dark Horse Brewing Company

CortexBomb

Michigan

3.55/5  rDev +4.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Fairly standard hazy golden with a light dusting of white on top. Clings decently when shifted. Pretty solid nose, a little sugary, but mostly just tart raspberry.

Flavour starts off nice and tart with the raspberry, but quickly transitions back to a fairly standard malty beer, surprising caramel and biscuit notes (not usual for the style), a slightly metallic finish (some of this is also present earlier, but only if I look for it). I like the overall package here, that slight off-taste hurts it a bit though.

Mouthfeel, nice, mainly because of the tartness, a shock to the mouth when you first start drinking it. Drinkability, decent but nothing special. I drink a lot of fruit beers, and raspberry is a popular choice. As it goes, it's not a bad take on the style, and I might have it again if I was really in the mood for the style and nothing else was available, but it doesn't differentiate itself.

The bottom line: not as bad as some would make it out to be, but Dark Horse's raspberry ale falters mainly for being so mediocre. Good marks on the nose and mouth, and the flavour has potential if they can just work that slight off-taste out of it.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2008 23:26:21 | More by CortexBomb

rkf1976

Michigan

3.75/5  rDev +10.3%

05-18-2013 02:16:52 | More by rkf1976

Kubrickx

Illinois

3.75/5  rDev +10.3%

05-12-2013 18:25:00 | More by Kubrickx

ystazi

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev +2.9%

05-11-2013 18:09:36 | More by ystazi

Slay40

Michigan

3.5/5  rDev +2.9%

05-10-2013 21:10:43 | More by Slay40

RichH55

Illinois

4/5  rDev +17.6%

05-08-2013 15:21:20 | More by RichH55

blknikon

Massachusetts

2.5/5  rDev -26.5%

05-07-2013 22:36:11 | More by blknikon

tallfellapgh

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +17.6%

05-02-2013 23:26:07 | More by tallfellapgh

JVoyager

Michigan

4/5  rDev +17.6%

05-02-2013 16:44:20 | More by JVoyager

rolandboy

Michigan

3/5  rDev -11.8%

04-27-2013 17:40:18 | More by rolandboy

sirsteve42

New York

3/5  rDev -11.8%

04-09-2013 03:50:37 | More by sirsteve42

tectactoe

Michigan

3.04/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25

On tap at Pete's Garage, during the Michigan-Syracuse Final Four game of '13. It pours a cloudy copper and amber color with an ever-so-slight, faint pink hue to it. Perhaps I'm imagining this hue because I feel like a raspberry beer should be pink. The soapy white head fizzles quite a bit and reduces to a skin pretty quickly and leaves minimal lacing on the sides.

The aroma is a bit underpowered to say the least. Raspberries haunt the edges, but the middle is made up of merely some light grains and not much else. I guess that puts the raspberry in the forefront, though, which is the silver lining. The raspberries almost smell a bit tart on the nose with a little bit of sweetness to back them up. The tail end has a faint, musky smell to it, most likely from the hops. I wish there was more I could pull from this beer, but there isn't much there at all.

Much like the aroma, the flavor leaves me wanting more. I get some very mildly tart raspberries up front - far from being "sour", as it's almost more of a fractionally astringent tartness that peaks instantly and fades away just as quickly. Unfortunately, the raspberry flavors come off a bit artificial and medicinal, leaving almost a chalky aftertaste. The aroma didn't smell quite so artificial, and it's upsetting to see that the flavor turned out to be that way. Some of the musky hops come out mid-sip along with a light graininess. Thin bodied with a hefty dose of carbonation and a crisp mouth feel.

Eh, definitely not the worst fruit infused beer out there, but miles from being near the top, too. The raspberry isn't as strong nor as pure as it should be. Overall, a little boring and uneventful, and the flavors that ARE taking place, aren't the best around. Might be good for people who are easing into the world of craft beer, but they'll soon be leaving this one behind them.

Serving type: bottle

04-08-2013 11:30:51 | More by tectactoe

craft_shannie

Indiana

3.5/5  rDev +2.9%

04-07-2013 17:16:33 | More by craft_shannie

AlexFields

Tennessee

3.09/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3

Pours a lightly clouded medium-dark amber, average head...no hint of fruit in the appearance really, fairly plain.

Smells of light sweet berry, candied sugar, raisin, other generic malt character.

Tastes pretty similar--some moderate sweet berry but not a huge fruit character, some other plain sweet malt.

Mouthfeel is pretty good, solid carbonation, good drinkability.

This is okay, I like it, but it needs a lot more fruit to really shine. I'm confused about why so many breweries still make lackluster fruit beers after the examples set by New Glarus and Selin's Grove.

6.1/10

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2013 02:25:47 | More by AlexFields

beersvh23

Illinois

3.25/5  rDev -4.4%

03-30-2013 02:48:07 | More by beersvh23

hollywood_15063

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +17.6%

03-26-2013 21:04:49 | More by hollywood_15063

match1112

Illinois

3/5  rDev -11.8%

03-15-2013 11:04:46 | More by match1112

Lanstrum

Ohio

3.75/5  rDev +10.3%

03-14-2013 16:17:37 | More by Lanstrum

beergorrilla

Michigan

3/5  rDev -11.8%

03-14-2013 04:39:03 | More by beergorrilla

JDizzle

Indiana

3.75/5  rDev +10.3%

03-05-2013 17:39:39 | More by JDizzle

sixerofelixir

Ohio

3/5  rDev -11.8%

02-28-2013 00:57:30 | More by sixerofelixir

JohnnieNepal

Michigan

3.5/5  rDev +2.9%

02-24-2013 15:52:51 | More by JohnnieNepal

Scotthuller

Michigan

3.25/5  rDev -4.4%

02-18-2013 12:51:41 | More by Scotthuller

nheinzie57

Illinois

3/5  rDev -11.8%

02-17-2013 20:04:59 | More by nheinzie57

NCLorax

North Carolina

1.25/5  rDev -63.2%

02-15-2013 01:57:23 | More by NCLorax