Raspberry Tart - New Glarus Brewing Company

NeroFiddled

Pennsylvania

4.53/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

A beautiful reddish body with a purpleish cast is capped by a short head of pink foam that quickly receeds to a thin collar and leaves little lacing about the glass. Fresh raspberries greet you in the nose and beckon you to take a sip! It's delicately effervescent carbonation tickles the tongue; and its medium body gives some girth to its sweet and tart flavors. The raspberry is quite authentic, and it's so juicy and puckeringly tart-sweet that you'd think you were drinking delicately carbonated raspberry juice! It finishes dry with a wash of acidity and some residual, lingering raspberry flavor. This is quite amazing, and it easily matches the intensity of some of the sweeter versions of raspberry lambic from Belgium. Brilliant!

Serving type: bottle

05-15-2005 21:46:36 | More by NeroFiddled

orbitalr0x

Illinois

4.33/5  rDev -0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a dark red with a small pink head on top. Just a vibrant, lovely color here. As I swirl my glass I get some good stringy lacing on the sides. Whoa! My first sniff brings huge fresh, ripe raspberries...like a fresh made jam from fruit just picked from the garden. A hint of wheaty maltiness is hiding in the background along with a touch of spiciness.

First sip is a wash of sweet/sour raspberry goodness. The pale/wheaty malt background gives it a bit more of a beer feel to it. However..this is all about the huge raspberry flavor..fruit beer on steroids. A slight mellow spiciness on the back of the palate rounds it out. Quite acidic overall and slightly puckering. Raspberry beer is quite yummy.

There is a good medium body that has a syrupy consistency to it. Goes down smoothly. An interesting beer for sure. Not one I could see myself drinking much of...but a good change of pace. I can see how this could be a love it or hate it affair. I'd say it's definetly worth seeking out...especially if you're a fan of fruit beers. Cheers to New Glarus and I'm glad I have another 750.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2005 05:07:41 | More by orbitalr0x

clvand0

Kentucky

4.43/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours a bright red color with almost no head and doesn't leave any lacing. The aroma is just like raspberry jam - smells really good. The flavor is all about the raspberry. It's not nearly as tart as I expected. Tart, yes, but in a mild and enjoyable way. Very tasty and much better than I expected. Mouthfeel is just medium, but right where it should be. Very drinkable.

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2005 17:06:12 | More by clvand0

SheepNutz

Kentucky

4.25/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to Kevin (kmpitz2) for waiting until I was around for this beer! 750mL bottle poured into a tulip-style glass. It pours a deep purple-red color with one finger of light pink head. There's a bit of lacing left on the glass. The smell is full of sweet raspberry aromas. There's just a hint of sourness, but it's mostly sweet overall. The taste is very very sweet. Lots of raspberry flavor coming through. There's some tart flavors in there as well. A very fresh flavor. The mouthfeel is very thick and heavy. The drinkability is damn good, especially since it's only 4%. A nice fruit beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-13-2005 22:36:34 | More by SheepNutz

mschofield

Massachusetts

4.1/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a rich dark red raspberry color, topped with a thin red-tan film, leaves webs of lacing.
Like the name says, it smells like raspberries with a tart bite, light wheat.
Raspberry taste, nice tartness to offset the sweet malt and fruit, somewhat wine like. Not much hop presence.
Medium to full bodied, I tried it really cold like they suggested, but it's good when warmer it becomes more like a fruit wine than a beer at that point however.

Serving type: bottle

03-29-2005 23:38:55 | More by mschofield

ALESwhatCURESya

Wisconsin

2.68/5  rDev -38.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 1.5

I am going to be with venom here and be the minority on this top 100 beer, but I couldn't stomach this stuff. I popped this open to celebrate my 1-year anniversary with my wife the night before we left for Maui with our wedding cake (raspberry swirl). I poured this into champagne flutes and it came out a deep purple(good band) color with a pink head of bubbles. The aroma was like a kick to the face with fresh raspberries just picked. At this point I was excited to take my first sip. There was an extreme amount of sugar cloyness that left me reaching for a glass of water. The heaviness of the sugar was not pleasant and there was no resemblence to beer coming from this. I love raspberries more than about any fruit and this was too much for me. It felt like I was drinking a can of oregon raspberries in heavy syrup. I know my opinion doesn't count, but this one is way overrated and doesn't even compare to the Belgian Red.

Serving type: bottle

03-10-2005 02:37:49 | More by ALESwhatCURESya

walleye

Michigan

4.1/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

thanks to bieristgut for bringing this home. from the bottle. poured what else but raspberry red with a pink head. aroma raspberries juice with carbination, caramel, hints of wood. flavor rasperries with a nice tartness, some sourness this was more like a wine cooler than a beer for me. but still liked this one.

Serving type: bottle

02-26-2005 03:10:38 | More by walleye

goodbyeohio

Oregon

4.38/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

looks great, fruity. red, red, redder than red with that girly pink foam. shared the bottle with two other people, as rumour had it this beer would not hold up to multiple glasses

aroma is raspberry. nothing else. the fruit, not the pasteurized, processed, syrupy raspberry flavoring you'd find in a jolly rancher.. real fruit.

taste is amazing on this beer. first thing that comes to mind is raspberry jam. mouthfeel with substance (not thin and soda-like how i had anticipated) mixed with extreme raspberry combines for that jam sense-memory. the perfect amount of tartness, but nowhere near cantillon.. and significantly more sour than a lindeman's. the perfect middle ground for me.

i was able to go 2 glasses (flutes) when all was said and done.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2005 22:43:09 | More by goodbyeohio

trancefishy

Colorado

4.13/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours out an effervescent pink ruby colour, with a pretty nice and surprisingly long lasting pink head.

Aroma is knock your socks off raspberries. It’s like sticking your face in the berry bucket when you are picking. Even more so, I would say. I can’t stop smelling this, even though I really want to take a sip.

Taste follows the aroma perfectly. While the aroma is sweet smelling, the upfront taste is neither sweet nor tart, just flavourful raspberrries. Once mid-swig though, it start to kindly drop down to a tart finish. Not pucker your lips tart, just enough to remind you this isn’t pressed raspberries you are drinking. There is nothing else in the taste, it’s just raspberries, albeit, delicious raspberries. There is no real indication this is even beer, just carbonated tart raspberry juice.

Mouthfeel is nice, carbonated, and this stuff is surprisingly drinkable. I split this with one other person, but, I think I could have drank the entire 750 by myself if need be. Very good, highly recommended.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2004 22:09:26 | More by trancefishy

OldFrothingSlosh

Pennsylvania

4.22/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Big-assed champagne bottle courtesy of AKSmokedPorter.

Appearance: Impressive appearance, with the brew looking very much like freshly-blended raspberries. Very active and fizzy pinkish-hued head is boisterous at first and quickly settles down to a thin layer. Slight sheeting action from the head. Not opaque, really...more of a "filled with chunks" appearance.

Smell: Aromas are simply amazing. A beer you can smell from across the room. Fresh, fresh raspberries occupy your olfactories. It's hard to imagine just how the brewers managed to achieve such a wonderful aroma to this beer.

Taste: One taste and it's hard to imagine that you are actually drinking beer. So much raspberry in the flavor. Waterfall of sweetness that is quickly followed by a pucker-inducing tartness. Only as it warmed did any other beer-like qualities begin to peek through. Still, these are token in nature and merely attenuate the avalanche of raspberries assaulting your palate. Certainly one of the more different beers I've had in a long, long time.

Mouthfeel & Drinkability: Lots of fizziness here, but I think that really helps with the gargantuan sweetness. Drinkable , but tough for one person and this big bottle.

Notes: I'm not sure why...but towards the end of this beer I kept wondering what it would taste like if I mixed it with some imperial stout. A raspberry-impy stout sounded really good at the time. Must seek out other offerings from this brewer. And thanks again to AKSmokedPorter for this gem.

Serving type: bottle

10-06-2004 12:07:09 | More by OldFrothingSlosh

CRJMellor

Arkansas

4.38/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Pours a deep maroon or purple with a tan head that has a red tint to it. Little bit of spotty lace on the glass.
Aroma is wow ! Pure, fresh, tart raspberries with some can sugar and just a hint of citrusy hops.
Flavor is beautiful, sugary raspberries that is just cut by a short burst of spicy yeast and hops.
Mouthfeel is very champagne-like, although more on the syrupy/sweet side than champagne but similar palate characteristics.
Drinkability is very high. Fruit beers are always hard to assess. Generally due to sweet or tart flavors. This beer is an absolute treasure. Well done, NG. Thanks to trbeer for this rare treat.

Serving type: bottle

10-03-2004 23:36:06 | More by CRJMellor

Crosling

Colorado

4.4/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Deep red bordering on purple.

A simply gorgeous bouquet lets loose through the top of the glass. Hints of raspberries, pie crust and cherries.

This beer is a huge success, as in they accomplished everything that they were hoping to do. Raspberries were really the only thing cohesive in this brew. The malt character? Ha! None. The hop character? Ha, once again! Obviously with the use of aged Hallertau, they didn't want any hop flavor to come through. The raspberries though were just simply utterly delicious and consumed my entire mouth. The tartness balanced the sweetness of the raspberries perfectly. I didn't find this beer cloying at all. What a delight!

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2004 13:43:46 | More by Crosling

blitheringidiot

Pennsylvania

4.8/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 5

Dark cloudy stormy purple violet pour, that looks like preserves in a glass for cryin' out loud.

Scents overwhelm me nose. This is heavenly in the aromatic aspect. Tight raspberries that I can almost taste again as memory brings back this one. Lingering raspberry syrupy goodness aftertaste.

Bitter pucker causing delicious flavor. This is like Welch's Grape Juice concentrate without the water added. What else can I say?

Medium body. Teeny particles laft over afterwards.

I could easily drink this all night, unfortunately it is rarer than air in space.

Last swigs: Good puckery tart that was generously provided at a tasting at the General Lafayette Inn. Delicious! I really enjoyed this one.

Beer is good. Happy beering.

Serving type: bottle

08-09-2004 17:02:31 | More by blitheringidiot

shapudding

Pennsylvania

4.22/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

One of the treats at the tasting from the General Lafayette!

Very dark raspberry jam color that you can't see through. It has a light pinkish head that reduced down to mainly holding to the edges.

Intense scent!! You can smell the fresh raspberry puree aroma from almost 2 feet away! The first sip hits you with an insane burst, it tastes like you just bit into a big overly ripe juicy berry. Reminds me somewhat of sparkling red grape juice. Medium body with a good amount of carbination. I really enjoyed this but personally could not do more than say 2 or so glasses at a sitting, since there is so much flavor, so it would not be a good session beer, but it really is very great tasting!

Serving type: bottle

07-27-2004 23:09:48 | More by shapudding

Gueuzedude

Arizona

3.53/5  rDev -19%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours into my glass with a deep pink colored head. The beer is a dark red color that is approaching black (though it has a ways to go). I get strong aromas of raspberries emanating from my glass as I pour this beer. The sweet raspberry notes dominate the aroma, though perhaps a hint of acidity comes through, but not much else. The beer is definitely sweet. It has a full fruity flavor and an almost thick body from the residual sugars that are left behind. It is quite tart in the finish, though it could perhaps use a bit more to balance the syrupy sweetness. I also get a bit of raspberry skin tannin in the finish. The sweetness really over powers that rest of the complexity that might be found in the base beer. This is definitely enjoyable, but is a bit too sweet and cloying to be a 'beer' for me.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2004 05:51:20 | More by Gueuzedude

yankeeheel

Maine

4.88/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Pours a very dark red with a nice red tinged foamy head. Good retention and lacing.

Smells like raspberries.

Tastes like raspberries. Berries everywhere. Nothing but berries. I'd go on about any other flavors but there aren't any. It is what it is and it is damn tasty.

Mouthfeel is a little too sweet, but what do you want, everything?

Wow, what can I say. If there's a better fruit beer bring it on.

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2004 00:32:25 | More by yankeeheel

Rastacouere

Quebec (Canada)

4.8/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Gorgeous.. wow.. gorgeous. An easy scored 5 for the appearance. Fully lasting full pink head over a fully opaque superbly dark body. I'm truly impressed, seduced, intrigued. Mostly sweet aroma, tempting, you can't tire of it, you can't get your nose of that glass. I love raspberries and I'm all set for the cruise. This starts with a pure raspberries attack, will your defenses hold? You bet, keep them coming, hell yeah, I want more. After a few sniffs, you start to graps the necessary subtlety for a perfect 10 in the aroma department. Vanilla accompanies these stellar fresh fruits and who says vanilla often says woody touch which is also true here. First beer that makes me say: "I know what I'm smelling for breakfast tomorrow". People are not kidding when they say you taste the seeds, you almost feel them between your teeths. Marvellously crafted fruit beer, perhaps even better than a personal favorite: Quelque Chose. I can't believe a beer to be so full-flavoured at 4% ABV. Unique creation which can only be rivalled by New Glarus Belgian Red and as MartinT points out, once you're there, it's really only a matter of preferring cherries over raspberries or vice-versa. On parallel, I personally prefered the raspberry tart which seems to have more acidity (although it still could have used a bit more imo). This is the best single focus on one flavor I've encountered in my young life, this extreme sweetness never appears cloying, nor syrupy nor fake. Lots of stuff going on, eminently complex, crisp and contemplative. Superb mouth-filling body with enough carbonation to detract from the never cloying sweetness. A thousand thanks Nexxus for this fine pie! Hunt this out before I do!

Serving type: bottle

04-05-2004 04:55:47 | More by Rastacouere

pbrian

Connecticut

2.48/5  rDev -43.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

Appearance was a cool looking dark blood red/raspberry with thin rim of pink bubbles. Sweet raspbeery jam aroma with an every so slight tartness. Hey, I might like this beer after all. Taste: all I tasted was sweet raspberry puree. No hints of malt or hops or anything else that makes a beer a beer. "Cloying" doesn't even describe the sticky syrupy mess that stuck to my throat. Maybe a little carbonation wouldv'e helped it dance across tha palate a little better, instead it just coated the mouth with sweetness and nothing else. Mind you- there were no objectionable or "off" flavors, just one-dimensional sweet raspberry ones. It's too bad that this bottle was wasted on me because it seems a lot of people enjoy this "beer" but I found it undrinkable and dumped most of the bottle. The wife even laughed at it.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2004 15:30:26 | More by pbrian

grynder33

Wisconsin

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

A raspbeery aroma that starts filling your mouth with water before you can take the first sip, nice little head, a soft creamy raspbeery taste with a hint of tartness and sourness initially, but the sourness doesn't linger in the aftertaste. And the Raspbeery aroma stays with you till the end.For what it is, its wonderful stuff.

Serving type: bottle

03-24-2004 00:22:49 | More by grynder33

marburg

Michigan

4.5/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Fruit beer: These guys do it right.

The beer itself is over-the-top and its flavors remarkably potent. But that's a good thing. Dessert in a bottle. If you're expecting anything less than raspberry syrup, don't bother. But if you ARE expecting pure raspberry, sugary goodness, this is your beer.

Deeep red. Burgandy, even. Glints of crimson show through when held to the light. The aroma of raspberries simply eminates from this beer. Obviously sweet but mouth wateringly tart -- hardly uber-sour in the vein of a true lambic, but certainly acidic enough for any drinker to take notice.

And the flavor? I'll let you know when I'm done picking the bits of raspberry out of my teeth and scraping the sugar off my tongue. Big carbonation. Spritzy and delightful.

Something this intense is bound to be somewhat controversial and subject to very subjective judgements. Just walk away if you don't like the fruit equivalent of an "extreme beer." But coming running full steam ahead if you dig raspberries or "dessert" beers. Because this is IT.

Serving type: bottle

03-16-2004 21:59:37 | More by marburg

Thrasher

Oregon

3.85/5  rDev -11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 3

Raspberries are definitely not my thing, but I discovered this beer had much pleasure to offer. A full 750 would have been too much for me, and probably would be too much for any one person. Fortunately, I had HiroProtagonist and his fiancee with which to split the bottle, and it ended up being the perfect amount. A dark ruby red, with twinges of hot pink both towards the edges and in the small head. Naturally, the smell was overwhelmingly raspberries. The fruit sweetness was undeniable, especially right off the bat, but towards the end of the flavor profile, it turned more tart (tarter?) and led to a puckering finish that was the high point for me. Quite similar to Lindeman's but noticeably less fizzy, more substantial; a rich, fluid, velvety mouthfeel. The entire beer (especially the tart finish) enlivened the taste buds to an amazing degree (better as an aperitif than dessert). What impressed me most was how fresh the raspberry taste seemed, practically fresh off the bush. The lack of any noticeable "beer" flavors definitely had me out of my element, and I found a little went a long way, so as to affect drinkability. Regardless, I found much to enjoy, particularly in the skilled blend of sweet and sour.

Serving type: bottle

03-13-2004 00:20:35 | More by Thrasher

HiroProtagonist

Maryland

4.13/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

New Glarus Raspberry Tart was served from a 750ml wax-sealed bottle...at Pix Patisserie in Portland, Oregon. In a Lindmans flute, the beer was a very deep, almost opaque red, and was topped with a fine pink head that left extremely fine blanket-like lacing. The nose was overflowing with crushed potent sweet ripe raspberries, accented with a hint of tartness. The taste reflected the nose closely. A zippy-prickly ripe juicy raspberry hit powers up into a finely bubbled lightly tart sweetish earthy-berry transition into a drier, tingly finish. Subtle raspberry essence lingers. The body was richly full, and the fine, energetic carbonation was perfect for the presentation of the flavors.
Raspberry Tart was very enjoyable, but I felt the beer would have benefited from more tartness, which would have made both the nose more captivating and the taste more exciting and balanced. But other than this problem, I was highly satisfied with this beer, especially the nice capture of potent fresh raspberry and the perfect carbonation. I was very glad to have found this beer being served in Oregon! Thanks Pix.

Serving type: bottle

03-12-2004 04:46:33 | More by HiroProtagonist

abents

Wisconsin

4.58/5  rDev +5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

In a 750ml bottle with waxed cap.

Appearance: Pours a deep reddish purple color with a light pink head. Lace covers glass here and there.

Smells: of raspberries overpower the nose of this one.

Taste: Hits you like a ton of bricks and its raspberries. Everywhere you turn it's more raspberries. The greatness though is in the tart aftertaste it just smooths out the sweetness you would normally expect. This is one great brew. Amazing.

Mouthfeel: It's like drinking a carbonated alcoholic raspberry smoothie. It's really insane the texture this thing has.

Drinkability: It goes down so easily it's fun. The sweetness does catch up however eventually and trying to drink the whole 750ml yourself is fun, but gets a little too sweet for me.

An amazing and different take on beer itself hopefully it makes non beer drinkers appreciate good beer even though it's done through fruit.

Serving type: bottle

03-05-2004 03:59:26 | More by abents

beergeek279

Pennsylvania

4.65/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Served in the 750 mL bottle, into a St. Bernardus goblet. The color is a grape juice purple, with a bubbly white head. The smell is a nice raspberry. The taste is a very strong raspberry, with a very nice sourness to it, and very well-balanced...basically a lambic taste, and a good one at that. Mouthfeel is well-carbed and very syrupy. As for drinkability, could have a lot of these!

Wow...thanks to Bighuge for this bottle. A simply amazing dessert beer, something I could share with a date or with a non-beer lover. It's a shame this doesn't make it to PA, but I'd absolutely trade for this again!

Serving type: bottle

02-01-2004 19:57:12 | More by beergeek279

BierReise

Florida

4.25/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

750ml capped bottle dipped in wax with no freshness date. Poured a cloudy dark violet color like grape juice. Oh man what an aroma! Big, Big raspberry aroma that is sweet and delicious smelling. Body is much fuller than I expected and really smooth with a sharp carbonated finish. The flavor here although one-dimensional is actually very good. There is so much raspberry in here that flavor of any other ingredient is pretty much buried. Finishes slightly tart and sweet, balanced in that aspect at least. Again, not a bad thing so if you like raspberry you will enjoy this. Also paired nicely with sharp Wisconsin Cheddar.

Serving type: bottle

01-29-2004 22:37:53 | More by BierReise