8th Anniversary Raspberry Wit
Springfield Brewing Company

50cl brown bottle with plastic swing cap. Label lists 8 spicing ingredients on each of an octopus's arms: hops, chamomile, raspberries, orange peel, lemon peel, black pepper, coriander, and ginger.

Cloudy, as it should be, pinkish orange with a tight bubbled white cap.

Raspberries at the forefront in the nose, which also has floral notes, cooked asparagus, something my wife said smelled like stinky feet, and a barnyard funk.

Light in body with ample carbonation. Mellow malt and raspberry flavors at the top gain strength and tartness into the center. Astringency and metallic notes come on at the finish. Bready malt flavors and citric tartness go long in the aftertaste. Vinous flavors gain potency as the brew warms.

I drank a bottle of this around Christmas when it was released - bad release time for this style if you ask me - and held on to one until the weather turned warmed. Kept pretty well.

The 8th Anniversary Ale (2005) - Raspberry Wit from Springfield Brewing Company (SBC) pours up quick & lively with a short lived rocky white head that tops a very bright & colorful pinkish-red body. The exotic aroma is solidly fruity (raspberry sorbet, orange/lemon zest, ruby red grapefruit, etc...) with some underlying spiciness from both the actual spice additions (black peppercorns, coriander, chamomile & ginger) and from the yeast. The flavor starts off with a touch of graininess (barley, oats, wheat berries) then quickly turns towards a tart, acidic raspberry fruit character that lingers towards the slightly sharp, lightly bitter and dryish finish. This medium-light bodied raspberry witbier has a touch of oily-creaminess and some astringency from the fruit & spices and the bottled version could use a touch more carbonation. Try pairing this one with a nice raspberry vinaigrette salad with goat cheese or try a Yellowfin Cobb Salad if your visiting the brewery. Here's to 'The Wizard' and his No. 8 magic potion.

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