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| Brewsters' River City Raspberry Ale |
Ahhh…
Brewsters. Allow me to be nostalgic for a moment. Brewsters is where it all
started for me. In the fall of 2007. New to the big city life, knowing only 3
souls, and being literally one block and an intersection away – Brewsters was
it.
I
hated beer very much at that point, but really only had Canadian, Lucky and the
one beer that shalt not be named (John Oliver gets me)… so …obviously.
I
was a spiced rum and coke, non-beer drinker looking for a change and Brewsters
quickly became a local hang out for us at least once a week. The change was
inevitable.
November
2007- 2011 plus beer, plus friends equals the best of times.
The
first time I dabbled back in the beer world since my first few sips in high
school was November 2007 and it was a pint of Brewsters Brew Foot Blueberry
Ale. It was like how you felt when you first heard the album ‘Throwing Copper’
by Live in its entirety, or when you put bacon in your grilled cheese sandwich
for the first time. You dug it. You were intrigued. It was really good.
Yup.
Brewsters in Oliver Square holds a special place in my heart; mostly for all
the memories and stories that developed at those tables for the next few years
while we held a pint in our hands. But also…Brewsters beer is damn good.
I’d
still order a Blueberry Ale over the Raspberry Ale 100% of the time. But that’s
because I love the Blueberry. Don’t let that stop you from ordering the
Raspberry though – it’s fantastic.
Described
as fruit wheat beer mixed with raspberry puree, this ale is refreshingly clean
and clear. It’s low on head and super smooth to drink. I don’t find the
raspberry flavor to be overwhelming or tangy– it’s subtle with very little
after taste.
If
you order a pint of this at Brewsters it comes with raspberries floating on the
top of the beer. Grab a six pack from the local liquor store and the labels
have an almost trendy retro look that could be mistaken to be an old fashioned
root beer in the fridge. The bottles are also stamped with the date the beer
was bottled so you can make sure you’re picking the freshest of the crop.
Alewife Anne sez:
Typically, I hate brew pub chains like Brewsters; they're invariably populated by douchebags with neck tattoos and ballcaps, macking on girls who agree to kiss their girlfriends in order to get the douchebags to buy them more drinks. Gross. And even grosser than the social dynamics in these places is the beer, where Stella Artois is considered a bold choice (NOT!).
But the beer at Brewsters is so good that I will enthusiastically hole myself up in a corner (preferably one where I can't see the large screen tvs featuring "professional" sports) and order a pint or two. There's always something seasonal on tap at Brewsters, and we're lucky that the River City Raspberry Ale is around all year long.
The 5% apv wheat ale is a perfect base for the raspberry puree used to flavour it. It's a lovely golden colour, brilliantly clear and crisp and with a lively effervescence. A thin head melts away to the edges of the glass to allow the tart, winey raspberry nose to float up. What impresses me most is how balanced it is--it's a masterful blending of the hoppy wheat ale and fruit. The raspberry is there, but it's a complement, not the dominant flavour.
This is a thoroughly enjoyable beer. The River City Raspberry Ale transcends all the disdain and snobbery that fruit beers have had to endure. This doesn't have to be just the one character beer you start the night off with before settling into the session. This one will give you raspberry all night, and in the nicest possible way.
And, if, like me, you can't stand the douchebags and the faux lesbians for too long, Brewsters offers their product in bottles or growlers at the bar to take home at a reasonable price! Or skip the pub altogether and hit Sherbrooke Liquor Store for a six-pack!
3.5 hop cones out of 5.
And that's the truth. PHHHTTT!
And that's the truth. PHHHTTT!
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