Bonita Applebaum - The Funky Buddha Lounge & Brewery

dimenhetfield

Florida

5/5  rDev +18.2%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Big thanks to Ryan for sharing this with us before it’s even released. When the guys at the Buddha make a "apple pie" beer you expect it to taste just like an apple pie and that’s exactly what they did. This is by far one of the best creations they’ve come up with thus far. Incredible aroma and flavor, apple pie all the way. Wouldn’t change a thing about this beer.

Serving type: on-tap

08-07-2011 19:34:31 | More by dimenhetfield

DosBeerigos

Florida

4.93/5  rDev +16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Call me a home-er. The fact of the matter is I will continue to give good beers, good reviews and this is just another case.

I have had nothing like this before. The nose of the beer is strong with Grandma Smith Apples, hints of cinnamon and vanilla dance around the sour green apple notes.

Close your eyes and it taste like someone blended an apple pie, and is serving it to you in a glass. The attack is filled with apples (but not like apple juice), mid-palate is the pie spices even has a hint of the crust in it, and the finish is again clean. The only thing is that the apple flavor lingers just a tad.

Time and time again, I rack my brain out to try to figure out exactly how these flavors get into the beer. Like Maple Bacon, No Crusts, and the Blueberry Cobbler the guys at the Buddha seem to preform magic on the flavor profiles of their beers.

Unlike No Crusts, I could drink this beer all night, and amazingly the wife was a larger fan!

Serving type: on-tap

08-10-2011 18:37:09 | More by DosBeerigos

kfsv034

Florida

4.93/5  rDev +16.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Was super excited to try this beer and I most definitely was not disappointed.

Beer pour mud brown with a nice 1 finger creamy white head.

This is what I would imagine a kid playing in the yard would smell when mom puts a freshly baked apple pie in the window. Smells of apple, cinnamon and pie crust

Holy apple pie. This is amazing tastes just like and apple pie. Vanilla, apples, cinnamon and a spectacular pie crust flavor

Mouth feel is medium bodied and nicely carbonated

Simply put Funky Buddha rocks!!

Serving type: on-tap

09-24-2011 21:50:01 | More by kfsv034

bearsxco

Massachusetts

4.83/5  rDev +14.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured in a sampling glass at EBF 2012

Poured a light brown with a light brown head. Smell was wonderful, all apple pie. Taste just like a fresh apple pie, crust and all. Nice mouthful, not too sweet at all. Just a home run here. Funky Buddha did a great job with this one.

Serving type: on-tap

02-06-2012 10:51:56 | More by bearsxco

rfgetz

New Jersey

4.48/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Pours an smber brown color, fluffy and bubbly off-white head. Scent brings wonderful notes of baked apples and cinnamon, solid lightly sweet toasted and biscuity malt profile, light notes of dark dried raisin. Taste follows suit, big baked appels and cinnamon, malt is toasted and biscuity as nose promised, little more sweetness from brown sugar, hint of dark fruit and vanilla. Medium bodied, bubbly. Fantastic beer, so elegant and bold I would have beleived this was a 10% ABV sipper. Another winner for sure.

Serving type: on-tap

06-07-2012 13:24:07 | More by rfgetz

corby112

Pennsylvania

4.45/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Draft at Prohibition Taproom in Philadelphia, PA.

Pours a dark golden amber color with tangerine edges and a two finger light beige head.  Great retention only slowly fading into a lasting ring. Streaks of soapy lace left behind.

Spicy autumnal aroma with tons of cinnamon, ginger and clove along with sweet apples and light malt.  Apple chutney sweetness along with caramel, toffee, cinnamon, apple pie and graham cracker.

Medium body that's bursting with sweet and spicy apple pie flavor.  Lots of cinnamon, ginger, clove and nutmeg along with sweet apple pie filling.   Sweet malt notes underneath as well with some caramel, toffee and hazelnut lingering into a slightly dry finish.  Another great experimental dessert beer from these guys.  They really nailed the aroma and flavors but at the same time it still feels like a beer.  Excellent!

Serving type: on-tap

08-25-2012 03:25:01 | More by corby112

GallowsThief

Florida

4.43/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A – Poured out a dark cola brown with a frothy light head.

S – Huge smell of cinnamon immediately. Most definitely smells like apple pie. Nutmeg and vanilla.

T – Talk about apple pie in a glass this is it. If you would throw a slice of pie in a blender it would taste exactly like this. Big apple tastes with a huge dose of cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla. Extremely tasty. Fairly sweet as well.

M – Medium body with average carbonation. Covers your palate in sweetness.

O – Crazy tasty brew here. It is definitely a dessert brew for me and I could only drink one as its sweet but damn good. You cant explain how much this tastes like an applie pie in a glass. Nice!

Serving type: on-tap

10-23-2011 14:29:39 | More by GallowsThief

Beerisheaven

Pennsylvania

4.43/5  rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On tap at the Buddha event @ Prohibition tonight.

A - Pours a garnet brown color with a nice head that leaves some lacing as my glass is drained. You can get a much better representation of the presentation of the beer v. the smaller pours @ Capones. Very nice.

S - Wonderful beer that would be perfect for X-mas season. Nice combination of apple, cinnamon, breadt biscuit, some vanilla, and everything else that is good and that should be in a glass.

T - Follows the nose and again would make a great Christmas beer to go with your dessert. Great combination of flavors, each represented nicely and without being overly sweet or cloying. Really nice.

M - Pretty nice, about what you would want it to be.

O - For some reason, the Last Snow did not taste right tonight. I did not get nearly the coconut and coffee that I got on Sat from the Last Snow. It is almost like I was poured something else. If the Snow tasted Sat like it did tonight, I would say that this is better. But the Snow I drank on Sat was better than the Apple tonight.

I loved this beer and would drink this around the holidays for sure. Thanks Buddha for some great beers this week. Please come back.

Serving type: on-tap

06-06-2012 00:29:43 | More by Beerisheaven

biggsbowler

Florida

4.4/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer and vanilla ice cream would be the perfect dessert. The beer is murky brown in color. This beer smells awesome with apples, cinnamon, and nutmeg. Its taste about the same as it smells with some added caramel. Its smells like a super sweet beer, but its really very drinkable. Now where is my ice cream!!!

Serving type: on-tap

10-07-2011 13:13:43 | More by biggsbowler

jsanford

Georgia

4.4/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On-tap at Brewvival 2012

Pours a hazy brown-amber with a thin off-white ring. Wow, this certainly smells like apple pie : cinnamon, apples, caramel, and pie crust. Phenomenal. Taste is spot-one, more apples, cinnamon, and caramel. I had no idea what this was, but man I loved it. Smooth mouthfeel, with a medium body and good carbonation. Unique and delicious, sweet without being cloying. These guys are something special.

Serving type: on-tap

04-22-2012 16:54:13 | More by jsanford

kingcrowing

Vermont

4.35/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

On tap poured into a sampling glass at EBF 2012.

Pours a light brown unassuming color with a small light brown head. Nose is cinnamon sugar, apples, it's got a ton of these apple pie notes, almost as good as the PB&J beer but not quite as instantly identifiable.

Taste is like liquid pie, lots of those apple pie spices, and somehow flakey crust as well. Mouthfeel is light and crisp. Overall its done a good job at being unique and I love it.

Serving type: on-tap

02-05-2012 14:04:01 | More by kingcrowing

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

4.28/5  rDev +1.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This beer much like the other FBL brews at the EBF were great. This beer poured out as a really nice amber color with a good head that stuck around for a while. The smell was packed with apple and some spicy aromas. The taste followed the nose rather closely, there were lots of sweet and tart apple flavors in this brew. The mouthfeel was creamy and dry. Overall it was loaded with flavor and highly enjoyable. Really makes me wish I went to Florida more often.

Serving type: on-tap

02-07-2012 05:19:04 | More by Knapp85

TKEbeerman

Florida

4.25/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: Poured into a glass this brown ale pours a deep caramel with a very thin head. Not to impressive, but solid non the less.

S: the aroma is sweet apples with hints of cinnamon, almost like the aroma of the crust of an apple pie.

T: the flavor follows the nose. Sweet apples with hints of cinnamon and a little nutmeg.

Mf: mouth feel is a little on the thin side for a brown ale.

Overall this beer is a perfect autumn brew.

Serving type: on-tap

08-25-2012 23:11:00 | More by TKEbeerman

brentk56

North Carolina

4.23/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Appearance: Presents with a cloudy auburn color capped by a decent head that leaves some good lacing behind

Smell: Apple pie spices and crust

Taste: Up front comes the crust with the apple pie flavors arriving by mid-palate; nicely combined after the swallow and into the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium body with low to moderate carbonation; somewhat flabby

Overall: Other than the odd mouthfeel (which I have noticed in a few of the other Funky Buddha beers I have tried), this is a very interesting beer and another example of this brewery's unique approach to beermaking

Serving type: on-tap

02-27-2012 03:57:18 | More by brentk56

Mora2000

Texas

4.23/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottled shared at bu11zeye’s 10,000th rating tasting. Thanks to ericandersnavy for sharing.

The beer pours a brown color with a tan head. The aroma is awesome, with a ton of cinnamon and apples. The flavor is also great but is more complex. I get a lot of apple and cinnamon, as well as some oak, vanilla and rum notes. There is also some nice alcohol flavor as well as a good bit of sweetness. Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation. Very nice.

Serving type: bottle

05-22-2012 03:52:04 | More by Mora2000

Urbancaver

Ohio

4.22/5  rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

First off...

Sexiest growler ever!

Before i even pour it I get a huuuge whiff of cinnamon.
Pours a hazy reddish brown. Light white head. Smells overly of cinnamon. I enjoy the aroma but it is a bit fake because it's so over the top.
Tastes sweet wnd cinnamon heavy. Apple underneath. A pretty nice profile. Spot on for an apple pie beer.
Nice mouthfeel. Overall pretty solid.

Serving type: growler

10-12-2011 23:07:43 | More by Urbancaver

MasterSki

Illinois

4.2/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle courtesy of Jason. Served in a Hill Farmstead glass.

A - A thin light tan foam settles to a few wisps and a thin ring of bubbles, leaving minimal lace behind. Head volume is low, but retention is pretty good. Hazy cider brown body.

S - The aroma is pretty impressive, and accurately captures the smells and intricacies of apple pie. Tart apples, spices, brown sugar, pie crust, they're all here. Not sure what else to say here.

T - The taste isn't quite as convincing, with the delicate subtly and depth getting smooth over and brown ale flavors muddling things up a bit. There's some Gala apple sweetness mid-palate and the cinnamon and other spices show up in the finish very briefly. Enjoyable, but not the home run that the aroma is.

M - Pleasant medium carbonation, medium-light body, and a tannic apple flesh texture. Lightly sticky finish.

D - A beer that is very successful at what it sets out to achieve. I enjoyed a few small pours of this one, but it's not a beer that i think I could have in large (i.e. pint) formats, even with the lower alcohol.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2011 21:36:52 | More by MasterSki

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

4.15/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

On Tap at Hulmeville Inn.

Bonita Applebaum sports a medium brown color with some redness casted throughout. A nice half inch of medium tan foam that sticks around leaving some spray paint type lace. Smell is what is advertised. Apple pie to the max. The toasted malt scent is muted under a heaping of cinnamon and holiday scents. This is a good brown. While the apple and cinnamon dominate in every sense of the word, the base brown ale malts are intact and holding firm. Fruity and semi sweet, not cloying. The body is at about medium with bubbles. I don't know what it is about this beer, but I would want to drink it every X-MAS for some reason or another.

Serving type: on-tap

06-08-2012 04:12:35 | More by onix1agr

xnicknj

Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

on tap at EBF

Pours a cinnamon brown color with a thin crop of tanned head on top. Some wispy film left behind with some spots of lacing.

Smells like a warm apple pie, seriously. Cinnamon, pie crust, apples and sugar. Some hints of spice and sweetness.

Plenty of apple flavor up front with a smooth sweetness. Lots of spice with cinnamon and nutmeg, which really creates a nice apple pie taste. Biscuit and pie crust tones in the malt with more sugary apple notes towards the finish.

Medium body, decent carbonation, a bit chewy and sticky on the tongue. Not quite as thrilling as some of their other offerings, but another fun beer that I'd love to have again.

Serving type: on-tap

02-11-2012 16:08:08 | More by xnicknj

thagr81us

South Carolina

4.1/5  rDev -3.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Had during Brewvival 2012! Poured by Paul himself! Served from tap into a Brewvival sampler imperial pint. Poured red-orange with a minimal tan head. Maintained decent lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt, apple, bread, sugar, and cinnamon. The flavor was of sweet malt, apple pie (only way to describe it), cinnamon, and sugar. It had a medium feel on the palate with medium carbonation. Overall this was a pretty good brew. Apple pie in my beer!? The eff is this!? Okay, I will give it a try... MOTHER OF GOD! This was pretty much my reaction to try this thing for the first time. I was completely blown away at how they were able to pull this off in such a nice and enjoyable manner. All of the flavors one would associate with a dessert was there and really nice. I don't know how Funky Buddha does it, but bravo on another solid offering.

Serving type: on-tap

02-29-2012 18:50:16 | More by thagr81us

hoptualBrew

Florida

4.03/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap this afternoon, officially called "Bonita Applebaum". On tap into a Chimay golbet.

Looks like the sweetest & richest beer you can conjure in your endless imagination. Dark grainy sugary brown. Little light khaki head, and left a moderate amount of lacing down the glass.

Smell is apple pie all over with a lot of cinnamon & vanilla. Loads of cinnamon though!

Taste is the same. Very rich beer. A dessert brew for sure. Apple pie, bready, tons of vanilla & cinnamon. The back is pretty spicy & it seems the cinnamon dries out the palate a bit. Body is pretty thick (7/10) & rich.

Was telling my buddies, I think this would go really well over some vanilla ice cream!

Serving type: on-tap

08-12-2011 00:49:40 | More by hoptualBrew

Rifugium

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

First had: on tap at Prohibition Taproom, Philly, PA

Hazy garnet-cider pour, with a small bubbly head; decent retention and a bit of lacing. Excellent aroma, perfect recreation of apple pie, soft apples, blast of bready cinnamon crust, with a touch of vanilla. Taste wasn't nearly as full or inviting as the aroma, unfortunately. It's a lot like the aroma, but a bit thinned down (brown ale = bane of my existence). Sweet, sugary apples, cinnamon and nutmeg, caramel malts. Body was juicy and on the lighter side. I almost want to try this mulled. Overall pretty nice, but not one of the better ones I had from FB. Can't beat the aroma though.

Serving type: on-tap

06-07-2012 16:54:15 | More by Rifugium

Sean9689

Illinois

3.88/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Thanks, Jason! 22oz bottle into Darkness tulip.

A - Pours a medium cinnamon brownish color, white head, thin collar, no lace or cap.

S - Smells like apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, dark fruits. Pretty spot-on close to apple pie, if you ask me. The sweetness and spices are really nice...almost like apple cider.

T - Not quite as good as the nose. Apples, cinnamon, nutmeg, brown sugar. Not as sweet as the nose suggests, and the finish is a little medicinal/harsh to me. Still, very interesting.

M - Light to medium body, good carbonation, creamy finish.

O - A really "cool" beer. The nose was excellent but the taste wasn't quite as outstanding. Still, a very good beer in it's own right and something I would have again, if offered.

Serving type: bottle

12-19-2011 16:00:03 | More by Sean9689

billab914

Virginia

3.8/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

On tap at Churchkey the other night. It had a caramel brown color to it with a thin white head barely covering the top. Nice looking color to it.

In the aroma I immediately get the cinnamon and apples. There is a little bit of a doughy presence to it as well. It pretty much smells like an uncooked apple pie. It was pretty good, but I couldn't help think how good this would be with some bourbon flavors as I love apple cinnamon infused bourbon.

The taste also really reminds me of raw apple pie ingredients, especially the apple and cinnamon mixture that goes into the pie. A little bit of that doughy flavor is there as well. I like apple pie, so this was pretty appealing overall.

The mouthfeel is thin and a little watery with carbonation being on the lower side. Overall I thought it was a pretty interesting and good beer, but it falls a little short of amazing in my opinion. I can only imagine what little heavier mouthfeel and some bourbon could do for this beer.

Serving type: on-tap

06-14-2012 16:00:47 | More by billab914

starrdogg

District of Columbia

3.45/5  rDev -18.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

On tap at ChurchKey in DC.

Pours a brown with a medium off-white head. Smell reminds me more of a pumpkin beer than I expected with lots of baking spices and some apple. Flavor follows the nose, but holy cinnamon! At first it's got a nice spicy apple thing going on, but the cinnamon really takes over here and makes it pretty one-dimensional. Mouthfeel is medium-bodied with good carbonation. Overall, this was my least favorite of the Funky Buddha beers at ChurchKey and frankly is the first one of their beers that I think is rather overrated. I'm not the biggest pumpkin beer fan, and this didn't really set itself apart from your average pumpkin beer. To me it's basically a pumpkin beer, but replace the pumpkin with apple and then overload on cinnamon.

Serving type: on-tap

06-08-2012 00:29:38 | More by starrdogg