Cherry Solstice
Founders Brewing Company

From a 12oz bottle. Bottled on 04/10/2024

This beer has a clear dark amber color to it. There's a 2 finger reddish/white head. The head has pretty good retention, and there's some sticky lacing on the glass.
The aroma has a nice tart cherry aroma to it. The cherry for sure is a real cherry aroma, and not artificial. I am also getting slight hints to my nose of a woody/oak aroma from the barrels.
The flavor up front is the barrel. This flavor part has a nice oak/wood flavor. There's hints of vanilla that come through in that part of the mix. The cherry flavor is next. It isn't as tart as the aroma let on, but there's a decent tartness to it. There's also a sweetness to the cherry. On the finish there's a hint of caramel that comes into my taste buds. All these flavor profiles are quite interesting, but all work well together.
The body does seem full. There's a bit of a crisp feeling to this beer. Nice depth to the body. It has a bit of a smooth feeling and clingy feeling.
You know, I wasn't sure what to expect from this beer. I am pleasantly surprised by this beer. It is damn delicious, and I wish I could have tried this fresh.

This beer is absolutely saturated with cherries, which blend pleasantly with barrel-aged notes. Delicious, sweet, and strong.

 

Pours a rich amber with modest, slightly rosy foam that dissipates rapidly leaving a little lacing. Smell is a cherry jubilee, cherry, malt and a little bourbon. Flavor starts tart before sweet cherry and vanilla come on. End is surprisingly balanced, cherry, malt and alcohol, smooth and warming. Feel is generally smooth,, with fine carbonation, but a more than balance. Bourbon barrel aging dominates the taste of most lighter beers, other than hearty, high gravity beers like stouts, dopplebocks, etc., to an unfortunate degree, but not here. The sweet, tart cherry provides an excellent complement to the bourbon. For fruit beer lovers, this beer brings a nice bourbon flavor and feel, without overwhelming the fruity beer. This beer is similar to, but not quite as good as, Founder's Cranfather, which is a little less sweet and a little more balanced.

 

 

 

This beer is very sweet, with lots of bourbon warmth and vanilla undertones. The cherry is present, almost-but-not-quite medicinal. It's worth a try but I think I'd have a hard time making my way through a 4-pack.

 

Bottled on: 4-10-24

A - Nice vibrant cherry colored pour with perfect clarity and moderate carbonation, and light pink creamy foam on top.

S - Cherry with a slight bit of tang, vanilla, and Bourbon.

T - Tangy cherry, some oak, vanilla, Bourbon, and ends on the sweeter side with a nice lingering sweet juicy cherry tang with a trace of Bourbon.

M - Big silky body with gentle carbonation

O - Unique and something different for a change.