Cherry Lager - Lakefront Brewery, Inc.

PurpleCloud

Wisconsin

3.28/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

A: Translucent red with a slowly fading white head.

S: Heavy on cherries, low on hops and barley.

T: Fairly sweet with a hint of funk at the end. It's pretty low on the actual beer flavor though.

M: Surprisingly smooth with low carbonation.

D: Too sweet for more than one or two.

Overall: Cherry Lager's not a bad beer, but it is a bit too sweet. I liked the color and overall appearance, but the taste was really only average and needed more hops.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2010 02:48:02 | More by PurpleCloud

ejimhof

Pennsylvania

2.75/5  rDev -15.4%

05-05-2013 22:25:42 | More by ejimhof

Circleo12

South Carolina

3.75/5  rDev +15.4%

12-17-2012 00:07:00 | More by Circleo12

cmeinz

Ohio

3/5  rDev -7.7%

11-27-2012 20:51:18 | More by cmeinz

t0rin0

California

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%

10-20-2012 02:59:53 | More by t0rin0

bzach

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev 0%

10-16-2012 07:13:24 | More by bzach

Highstplz

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev 0%

10-01-2012 00:29:05 | More by Highstplz

NilocRellim

Minnesota

2.75/5  rDev -15.4%

09-17-2012 21:29:30 | More by NilocRellim

MrTana

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%

09-07-2012 03:42:23 | More by MrTana

DIPADude01

Wisconsin

3.25/5  rDev 0%

07-28-2012 18:38:10 | More by DIPADude01

TonyTalon

Wisconsin

3/5  rDev -7.7%

06-06-2012 04:07:52 | More by TonyTalon

beckrich22

1/5  rDev -69.2%

06-06-2012 01:27:32 | More by beckrich22

thecheapies

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Poured into a Hoegaarden glass.

Cloudy rusty red-brown with more floaties than I've ever seen in a lager. This one was NOT decanted properly. The head is more like just a ring. 3.5

Toasted grains, light toffee, and a strange fruitiness. Overall, a very subdued aroma. 3.5

Eek! Tinny cherry flavoring overtop a boring amber lager. Not sweet, which is a plus at this point. Very strange fruit flavor with loads of metallic flavors. Slightly tart upfront, but not sour. Soured maybe. Watery taste with some medicinal Band-Aid flavors rearing up. A mediocre-at-best brew. 2.5

Decent body/carb balance. Gulpable, if it weren't for the off-flavors. 4.0

I see what they were trying to do here, and while it was unnecessary, it still flagrantly missed the mark. It doesn't taste terrible, per se, but you can tell they cut corners in all departments. 3.0

Serving type: bottle

05-31-2012 02:54:38 | More by thecheapies

wakajawaka76

Illinois

4/5  rDev +23.1%

05-30-2012 14:40:01 | More by wakajawaka76

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

4.23/5  rDev +30.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a pilsner glass.
5.5% ABV, Bottled Apr. Wk4 notched on label.

A - Cherry Lager poured a slightly hazy ruby-hued rust color with an effervescent off-pink head. The foam trickles down to a ring of loose bubbles with no lacing left in it's wake.

S - Freshly picked cherries with an underlying cherry skin tanning aroma overlaps the hefty malt base. Munich and Vienna-like malts impart caramel sweetness and toasted bread to the soft, muted nose. As this beer warms up, it opens up in a big way; honey-drizzled toasted sourdough English muffin with a dash of cinnamon and floral hop attributes are released.

T - A soft blanket of gentle tart Door County cherries is draped over the smooth, well-crafted malt base. Almost like a delicious Oktoberfest in the background, this lager exudes crisp maltiness; great underlying caramel and toast qualities balances the cherries well so this fruit beer isn't whipping cherries at your face. Floral, lightly herbal noble-like hops finish Cherry Lager out with another layer of complexity.

M - Crisp effervescence and a medium body work well with this beer to really allow the lightly dry and acrid tannins of the cherry skins to impart a delicate tartness that marries the sweet malt nicely. Gentle hops add subtle bitterness to further add balance.

O - Sadly, Lakefront's Cherry Lager is very much under-appreciated. Offering layers of subtle complexity, this lager is very well crafted and understated, showcasing both beer AND fruit, not just a bushel of bold cherries. The smooth, deliciously malty lager base beer is quite a treat in and of itself, but the cherries add a very nice smooth fruit flavor with just a squeeze of tartness on the finish.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2012 22:26:42 | More by BeerFMAndy

AlphaKing414

Wisconsin

3/5  rDev -7.7%

04-02-2012 03:10:32 | More by AlphaKing414

bigbeers84

Minnesota

3.5/5  rDev +7.7%

01-31-2012 10:11:50 | More by bigbeers84

murf1087

Indiana

3/5  rDev -7.7%

12-12-2011 22:58:31 | More by murf1087

jmdrpi

Pennsylvania

3/5  rDev -7.7%

11-22-2011 05:11:54 | More by jmdrpi

CFHMagnet

Ohio

2.98/5  rDev -8.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

A heavy handed pour nets a finger or beige head. This beer is rose colored. It wants to be amber but its rose colored. Its translucent with some bubbles rising, the head died down in less than a minute to a thick ring and light dusting.

I mostly smell malt and... adjunct lager.

I taste good cherries and not so great beer. Cherries start the show, then there is a weak showing from light hops and weak malt, then cherries show up again.

Light bodied. You get a lot of carbonation off of this beer. A little on the sour end.

Serving type: bottle

09-10-2011 03:05:08 | More by CFHMagnet

tkepx182

New Jersey

3.18/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

A: This beer has a Reddish/ Orange color and was cloudy when held up to the light

S: Smells of Cherries and hops

T: The Cherries are the most dominate taste in the beer with the barley and hops as background notes.

M: It was a little rough over the tongue, but still held the classic lager feel

O: Although this beer was not my "cup of tea" I did happen to find it very refreshing; Definitely a beer for cherry lovers

Serving type: bottle

09-08-2011 01:17:55 | More by tkepx182

merc7186

New York

3.35/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I had this beer from a 12oz bottle poured into a chilled Lakefront Brewing Cherry Lager pint glass (obtained on brewery tour).

The beer has a nice reddish copper color to it, has a nice white head and decent lacing on the glass. The smell is mild malt and has a sour cherry scent to it. The taste is decent with a nice mild malt taste with a sour cherry finish to it, different but nice. The mouthfeel leaves you with a bitter finish but beer is well carbonated. Overall, a nice sour summer lager but not much more than that.

Serving type: bottle

08-12-2011 00:39:54 | More by merc7186

womencantsail

California

3.4/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Thanks for sharing another excellent beverage, Bobby.

A: The beer pours a slightly cloudy red-orange color with a thin layer of off-white head.

S: I don't get too much of a cherry aroma from this at first. There is a bit of cherry skin to it and a slight fruity sweetness, but as it warms up, the intense cherry comes through. Some yeast and grass, as well.

T: There is some cherry sweetness and a bit of cherry skin. Just a hint of cinnamon on the back end. It's slightly acidic and grassy with a little bit of bread/biscuit malt. Not very much going on with the flavor, to be honest.

M: Light in body with a moderate to high carbonation.

O: I wasn't expecting much from this, and it delivered on that front. But really, not awful (which I was expecting).

Serving type: bottle

08-06-2011 19:23:04 | More by womencantsail

DabblinWiscCraft

Wisconsin

3.48/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a rosy amber color--similar to a ruby red grapefruit juice--cloudy, with a half inch eggshell head that quickly falls to a scant lace that leaves just a bit of cling. There are slightly sour bread notes and less imposing malt in the nose. If I didn't know any better, I'd say it was a run-of-the-mill lager by the bouquet alone. Bread and quite subtle cherry flavors are at the front. There's a good impression of cinnamon on the palate, as well. More tart cherry flavor than sweet, for sure. Other spices seem to be present--perhaps cardamom. There's more of a wheat cracker note at the close. The feel is a bit heavier than light-bodied. Smooth, quite effervescent, fairly clean-finishing, and somewhat dry at the close.

It's interesting. I just bought a fairly fresh 6 pack of this Cherry Lager, and it doesn't taste nearly as good as it did when I recently sampled it at the Lakefront Brewery tour. The cherry is much more muted than I remember...and less sweet. I can appreciate that this beer--unlike so many fruit beers in this vein--doesn't try to be fruity first: It is first and foremost a lager. And I think it is successful, both as a lager and as a lager brewed with fruit. While it might not knock your socks off, this is a nice change-of-pace brew that doesn't try to do too much or overwhelm with sweetness.

Serving type: bottle

07-28-2011 08:04:28 | More by DabblinWiscCraft

jhp40219

Kentucky

4.13/5  rDev +27.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz. bottle poured into a regular pint glass.

A - Small white head that dissipates quickly leaving only a white ring around the edges. Color is a hazy amber red. Slight lacing on the glass.

S - Slight malt and cherry smell. Not very strong, but nice.

T - Strong natural cherry taste up front with a nice malty, biscuity taste behind it. Very sweet and tasty! If it didn't say lager on the bottle, I'd swear this was an ale.

M - Light carbonation, full body.

O - Evenly balanced, nice real cherry taste. Very good!

Serving type: bottle

07-10-2011 03:39:24 | More by jhp40219