Petite Cranberry
Cascade Brewing / Raccoon Lodge & Brewpub

splendid beer, affordable in the can, and really refined and interesting, a leader in this style and in this packaging as far as i am concerned. the base beer is a barrel aged blend, as almost always with cascade, wheat and blonde ales, tons of cranberries, a little orange peel and cinnamon too, i thought it would be more fall spicy than it is, this works great in summer heat too, nice and subtle on the extras. stunning ruby stained glass pour, radiant red with lots of fizz and some soda type head on it, clear until the last drop in the bottom of the can, no sediment at all, this totally sparkles and the color is gorgeous. the aroma is tart, red raspberry and red currant too along with the tangy cranberry, very little cinnamon here when its cold and first poured, but i get some of the sweet orange. most impressively to me is the bretty funk that comes right out in front, its sour of course, really acidic actually, but the funk level is high here too along with the oak, way more complex than a lot of these, and well ahead of expectations. the flavor is les funky but the fruit pops with all the pucker, lemony lactic front end, more vinegar on the back end, really bold and authentic cranberry the whole way, a little vinous with the oak, and now more of the cinnamon on the finish as it warms, really mild and complimentary though, and the slightly oily orange element is a cool accent too. lots of tartness, light on grain and light on body, dry at the end for how fruity is is, and overall really one of the better expressions of cranberry in a beer i can recall ever having. drinkable at this abv even with the acid, great complexity from the ferment, and this is leagues ahead of the kettle sour types that dominate the canned sour scene. truly impressive, so glad i picked this up! amazing refinement, brilliant carbonation, super unique flavors!