Passionfruit Berliner Weisse
Funky Buddha Brewery

UCLABrewN84 from California

3.81/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Growler pour at Woodshop 8 held at The Hermosillo in Los Angeles, CA.

Thanks to mrbubbler for sharing this one.

Pours a hazy light yellow-orange with a foamy bone head that settles to wisps of film on top of the beer. Small dots of lace slowly drip into the remaining beer on the drink down. Smell is slightly sour and tart with malt, grain, and passion fruit aromas. Taste is much the same with slightly sour and tart grain and passion fruit flavors on the finish. There is a mild amount of acidity on the palate with each sip. This beer has a good level of carbonation with a crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty good beer with a solid passion fruit presence that is slightly better in the aroma in my opinion.

Oct 29, 2013

Alieniloquium from Florida

3.69/5  rDev -16.9%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

On tap at the brewery's grand opening. Served in a snifter.

Appearance - Very hazy orange yellow. No head. Just a thin collar.

Smell - Excellent fruit aroma. Dominating passionfruit. Incredibly fruity. Nothing else to it besides fruit and acidity.

Taste - Great fruit flavor right up front. Tons of passionfruit. Behind it is the seemingly standard Buddha grain and weird lemon chemical flavor. The passionfruit does an excellent job of covering the Thera Flu flavor, but it still comes out.

Mouthfeel - Medium body. Medium carbonation. That off flavor is almost completely covered, but it rears its ugly head after the passionfruit dies down.

Overall - It's gotta be the base berliner giving it that flavor. Something is off, but so many great flavors in this otherwise.

Jun 02, 2013

DaSolomon from New York

4.85/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75

Opened alone side some awesome BAs, thanks Joel for bringing this treat.

A: pours a bright light yellow-lemon color

S: Passionfruit explosion along with sour notes

T: Much like the nose, passionfruit dominates with lemon sour funk, like juice and just as easy to drink.

M: soda like, very carbonated.

O: I could drink this all day while at a tropical beach, really blew me away.

Apr 25, 2013

joel66 from New York

4.73/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.75

A - poured a flourescent urin color, no head

N- Passionfruit blisss, sour brett

T- sour fruit, passionfruit, ripe lemons, persimmon, brett, slighth funk, juice

M- strong carbonation.

O- Very unique depth of flavor. I could drink this all day while laying in the sun. Looking forward to trying more from FB

Apr 25, 2013

MusicaleMike from Pennsylvania

3.73/5  rDev -16%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

Poured on draft into a snifter. Pale straw color with plenty of haze. Arrived with a small, white head that disappeared in less than a minute. No lacing or anything like that. No head is common with the Berliner Weiss style, so I don't give it any poor marks for that. In fact this looks like a true German Berliner Weiss, so I give is higher marks for that.

The aroma is simple, but exotic and delicious. The aroma of passion fruit wafts out of the glass, though it is soft and does not seem over the top or fake. Also, pretty clear aroma of lactic acid.

The taste is surprisingly less "exotic" than the aroma. Quite a modest sourness, with only the initial sip bringing sour to the back and sides of the tongue. There is a very light flavor of passion fruit, though it seems to be counter-balanced with a fresh hay and wheat flavor. I was hoping that the passion fruit would stand out more and contribute more to the flavor, as I also expected it to contribute to the tartness, but alas, it did not...

Light body and active carbonation. Pretty solid for the style and I have to give it credit for keeping this beer as close to the style as possible.

I drank a few glasses of this, and definitely thought I would try more if I saw it on tap again. Unique twist on the Berliner Weiss, and my only critique would be to dial up the passion fruit a notch or two.

Jan 20, 2013

fmccormi from California

3.93/5  rDev -11.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

On tap at Redlight Red Light in Orlando, FL during Zwanze Day 2012; poured to a 10oz, tall and straight tumbler, kind of like a high ball glass.

Appearance (4.0): One finger of white head dies down to a thin collar with minimal lacing and retention. The body is a pale, straw-yellow color with orange hues; cloudy, but not opaque. Seems about right for the style, so I can’t complain about the head and the body is very pretty.

Smell (3.5): Surprisingly cheesy—like a good deal of cheesy, lactic funk. But, the passionfruit scent (which is pretty distinct, if you’re familiar with it) lends itself surprisingly well, adding a sweetness to that funk and a sunny, lightly sweet, fruity character alongside it. Still, it’s mildly off-putting.

Taste (4.0): Thankfully, there’s less cheese and more fruit on the palate. Not that I don’t like weird, funky cheeses—just not in my beer. The passionfruit, again, offers a surprisingly natural complement to the funk of it. Very little acetic acid, really just lactic—moderately tart, fruity but not too sweet at all. Finishes with a clean bitterness, leaving just traces of passionfruit juice (which itself has a naturally kind of syrupy character to its flavor) and some of that funky cheesiness. Which, fortunately, blends better as it warms up. Overall, it ends up being very drinkable.

Mouthfeel (4.5): This has a very nice, gaseous feel: the carbonation expands nicely, tingling fully on the way down with some great, dynamic action. The body is almost medium-weight, surprisingly, for such a (relatively) small beer. The passionfruit sticks around as much as the cheesiness, which is good. Very easy to drink, but not forgettably so.

Overall (4.0): Easy drinker, for sure. The cheesiness can be off-putting, but it blends better toward the end. It’s light and refreshing, but the body has enough character that you also can’t throw it back like water—not quite. There’s more going on here than something so light, and it’s good. Very curious to try more of Funky Buddha’s berliner weisses!

Dec 02, 2012

corby112 from Pennsylvania

4.26/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Draft at Monk's Cafe in Philadelphia, PA.

Pours a cloudy yellowish-orange color with a half finger white head that quickly fades away without a trace of lacing. Doesn't look great but still a lot better than the key lime.

The aroma of this beer is bursting with juicy tropical fruit yet it still has characteristics of the style. Some citrus and lactic funk to go along with the passion fruit and other tropical notes. Some of their other Berliners smell and taste overly sweet and dessert-like but this is the best one I've had so far, staying truer to style while containing a dominant fruit presence.

Medium bodied with light carbonation and a nice balance of tropical fruit, citrus, bread and lactic funk. Tart and puckering with a decent amount of lactic funk and sour acidity. More sour than the other FB Berliners I've tried. Still, the beer is dominated by sweet, juicy tropical fruit elevating the flavor to another level. This is countered by the lactic funk, citrus acidity and sourdough bread notes, rendering it more like a traditional Berliner weiss than the others in the series. Delicious, well balanced and very refreshing.

Aug 20, 2012

largadeer from California

4.59/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

What an awesome beer. Has the typical cloudy straw-colored Berliner appearance. The nose is straight passionfruit at first; fresh ripe passionfruit. It's damn impressive. Citrusy and lactic notes pop out as it warms, along with a bit of wheat. The palate offers more of the same, with a huge, bright passionfruit flavor that's remarkably three-dimensional. Citric lactic sourness are at a pleasant moderate level. The beer finishes clean with a touch of grain and yogurt. Exceptionally tasty stuff.

Aug 13, 2012

scottyshades from Florida

4.15/5  rDev -6.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On-tap at FB 7/20, served in tulip

A: Pours a super cloudy beige color with a small white cap. Looks like grapefruit juice

S: Tart and ripe passionfruit dominates the nose. Super acidic, this will be sour!

T: Passionfruit, super sour passionfruit. Mouth puckering sourness

MF/O: Super tart and a little dry. Lower carbonation and a good feel to it. Heartburn central. One of the most sour beers I've consumed, but also very delicious.

Jul 22, 2012

ColForbinBC from New Jersey

4.39/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On-tap, served in a pint

A hazy yellow body with a white cap that fell quickly to a few bubbles over top of the liquid.

The nose is fresh passionfruit, fresh wheat, and acidic. The passionfruit lends both a sweet and tart profile on top of an already sour beer. The nose is just so soft and inviting, I keep diving back in for another whiff.

On the palate, sweet passionfruit remains steady throughout. A rush clean wheat and Berliner style tartness through the middle and into the finish. Perfectly tart, with just the right amount of sweet fruit to knock the tartness back a bit.

Light body, clean, refreshing. The finish is dry and clean. Right on point.

This is a fabulous Berliner. The passion fruit complements everything so damn well. I would love the opportunity to have this regularly.

Jun 27, 2012

stakem from Pennsylvania

4.33/5  rDev -2.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Philly beer week at Monks with Ryan from Funky Buddha not only in attendance but helping to deliver the goods to patrons. As mentioned in other reviews, all the draft lines were spewing foam so beer was dispensed into pictures before standard pint glasses were served. On this glorious berliner-lover occasion we had the opportunity to sample the raspberry, lime, peach and passionfruit versions side by side.

This version appears in a pint similar to most berliner experiences. Pale and hazed in color with a quick dissolving white cap atop. A swirl releases some white bubbles but in typical berliner fashion any resemblence of a cap is quick to fade.

The smell of this brew is a little more earthy than the other offerings. It strikes up a suggestion of lacto-like yogurt quality as well as a fruity element I am guessing is the passionfruit but im not terribly confident since ive only had but 1 or 2 other experiences with this fruit. For the most part, this is a clean smelling take in the style.

The taste of this berliner is significantly more sour than the other 3 versions available on this day. It boasts an earthy fruit quality from the passionfruit but wow the sourness is a main factor here. Whereas the other offerings include a fresh cereal-grainy sweetness, this one has much more tartness filling the profile.

This is a light bodied, modestly carbonated and very refreshing/easy drinking. This is a brew I would really like to sit down with in a less stressful environment to enjoy but I dont see that happening anytime soon. If you get the chance, try this. It is the real deal. Nicely done.

Jun 08, 2012

Rifugium from North Dakota

4.04/5  rDev -9%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

First had: on tap at Monk's, Philly, PA

Big gush of foam out of the tap, poured into a pitcher, finally settling to a serve-worthy consistency. Cloudy dull dishwater yellow pour with a ringlet of bubbles that faded to about nothing in the glass, despite all the activity from the draught line. Aroma was fairly tart, lactic, fruity, an indication of things to come; also a bit of potpourri...reminded me of the scents you get when you walk into AC Moore craft shop. Taste was, as expected, full of passionfruit, and fortunately not too sweet, not too sour, definitely some tartness and citric acidity going on. Light-medium body, drinkable, but mind your heartburn if you're drinking it in larger quantities. Expectedly one-dimensional, but gives you what you came for. Nicely done.

Jun 04, 2012

brystmar from Texas

4.48/5  rDev +0.9%
look: 3 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Thanks to pittsburghkid for the trade! Shared at a tasting last night. There probably aren't many of us who have tried this both on tap and from the bottle, so I'll be comparing the two.

Pour color is reminiscent of cloudy Lemon-Lime Gatorade. Almost zero head or lace, which is surprising given how gorgeous & foamy the draft version was at this year's EBF.

Still, the aroma has no problem overwhelming your nostrils with a torrent of fresh passionfruit. Smells wildly acidic and imminently sour (moreso than its draft counterpart), leading to a different but equally amazing aroma. I'm sniffing the empty bottle right now ~24hrs later, still marveling at its lusciousness. Ryan & Co. craft the best aromas in beer today, hands down.

Taste is sharply acidic and puckeringly sour. Showcases an abundance of fresh, juicy passionfruit. It blasts your taste buds with an unrelenting stream of passionfruit flavor from start to finish, yet still manages to be crisp, clean, refreshing, and totally sessionable. Not quite as good as the draft version (which is one of the best beers I've ever tasted), but still absolutely world-class.

Once again, the Buddha does not dissapoint!

**EDIT** Had this again on tap in June during Philly Beer Week, and there seems to be a huge amount of batch variation. That particular keg wasn't nearly as intensely fruity or sour as the EBF keg or the bottle reviewed above, which is likely a factor of the fruit itself being either more or less ripe. Was still delicious, though not as jaw-droppingly incredible.

Apr 15, 2012

Huhzubendah from District of Columbia

4.59/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Bottle shared by Thorpe429. Thanks Mike.

I was pretty excited to try this beer and it did not disappoint.

The beer is hazy and yellow hued with a small and fleeting head. The aroma is fantastic. Mouth watering scents of passion fruit and a nice, light funky aspect. The flavor, while perhaps a step down from the aroma, is still quite excellent. Again, passion fruit dominates. Light bodied with a mild tartness. Utterly chuggable. Highly recommended.

Mar 18, 2012

Sean9689 from Illinois

3.94/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On-tap at Hunahpu's Day 2012.

A - Pours a hazy golden yellow, spritzy white head, no lace/retention/collar to speak of.

S - Citrus, light wheat, and fruity tartness. I can't say I actually get a huge amount of passionfruit, but it's fruity, so I guess that's what it is. Very light, subtle, and enjoyable nose.

T - Nice level of fruit notes, citrus peel, wheat, lacto-tartness. Not to sharp, yet not too subtle...just right. Really liking this one, but I wish there was more fruit...needs a bit more.

M - Light, crisp, refreshing, good carbonation, dry tart finish.

O - A really nice berliner, but nothing that blew me out of the water (see CCB Pilot Passionfruit/Dragonfruit). Really easy to drink and very enjoyable on a hot day in Tampa. Would have again, over and over.

Mar 13, 2012

yourefragile from District of Columbia

3.83/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 3 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to Thorpe429 for sharing this baby whale.

Pours a pale whitish yellow color, slightly clouded, with a wispy white head. Some foamy lace and minimal retention as expected. Aroma is ridiculously awesome dominated by the fruit with trace amounts of wheat or the underlying Berliner (portending impending doom of the flavor). Taste is dominated by an overly acidic, unpleasant Berliner with much softer fruit presence than the nose and a faintly tart finish. The passion fruit also unfortunately presents itself more as more of a syrup floating on top of the weak Berliner (similar to some of the Upland lambics) rather than blending with the base beer. Very refreshing and enjoyable, I'd love to drink a glass or 3 gallons or so of this, but doesn't really hit the mark for a world class Berliner.

Mar 10, 2012

drabmuh from Maryland

4.54/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Wow, thank you for sharing this huge rarity Thorpe. Beer served in a cervoise. Beer is sort of whitish with a wispy head, moderate carbonation, hazy, looks fine.

Aroma is very lactic at first but the fruit cuts through with a vengence. Strong sweet fruit aroma.

Beer is light in body, great fruit, late tartness on the palate, lactic creaminess, no hint of acetate, a great little beer here. I love berliners.

Mar 08, 2012

mdfb79 from New York

4.27/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

From 03/03/12 notes. Big thanks to Thorpe429 for sharing this one. 22 oz. bottle into a tulip.

a - Pours a murky pale yellow color with one inch of bright white head and moderate to high carbonation evident.

s - Smells of tart passion fruit, sour tropical fruits, light funk, very acedic. Awesome sour and fruit nose, I'm a huge fan of it.

t - Tastes of tart fruity malts, sour, passion fruit and kiwi, tropical fruits, acidic. Not as fruity as the nose but nice and sour, and still quite good.

m - Light body and high carbonation. Acidic and tart, very nice for a berliner.

o - Overall I thought this was a really nice berliner weiss; I like I like it a little better then their Key Lime one, though I might just like this type of fruit better. Nose is really nice and sour, would love to get more of it.

Mar 06, 2012

Thorpe429 from Illinois

4.22/5  rDev -5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Huge thanks to TroubleMaker for sending this bottle out my way. Served in a SAVOR wine glass.

Pours a semi-hazy light yellow-golden color with a foamy white head. A bit of retention and slight sticky lacing on the way down. The nose carries a tremendous amount of passion fruit with some light sourness in the background. The fruit addition is really working, but the backing Berliner isn't fantastic.

The flavor confirms my initial impressions. I really dig the use of the passion fruit and the flavor works quite well with the berliner base, but the base just has acidity without the accompanying fruit and other complexities that I really enjoy with world-class Berliners. Also, the passion fruit isn't as strong as it was in the nose. With that said, it's still a good base made much better by the fruit.

Light body with crisp carbonation and a quite acidic finish. Overall, a pretty good Berliner made much, much better by the fruit addition.

Mar 06, 2012

starrdogg from District of Columbia

4.89/5  rDev +10.1%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Huge thanks to Thorpe for sharing this rare gem. My first Funky Buddha beer ever!

Beer pours a hazy yellow with a fluffy white head. The aroma is just amazing, one of the best-smelling beers I've ever encountered. The passionfruit stands out primarily, but also blends perfectly with the the slightly sour more typical berliner aroma that is hiding back there as well. The flavor is equally awesome, the best berliner I've ever had and quite frankly one of the best beers I've ever had. It's on the tart side for the style, and the fruit flavors just mix perfectly, and it keeps from being too sweet. It's very light and carbonated. Overall, my first experience with Funky Buddha was an absolute home run. Now I understand why these guys get all the hype they do. From what I can tell, they deserve it.

Mar 03, 2012

dimenhetfield from Florida

4.97/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

On draft for EBF. No need for me to go into some long drawn out explanation of how this beer was well balanced with fruits and flavor and such. This beer just plain and simply rocks!! The sour fruit flavor is just mind blowing. No idea how the Funky Buddha does these things but frankly I don’t want to know, I’m just glad they do it.

Feb 07, 2012

Brittmb29 from Florida

4.2/5  rDev -5.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- unfiltered yellow body with a hint orange (color of ripe passionfruit) retains a thin rim of white head without sticky lace.

S- tangy berliner sour along with passionfruit sweetness. wheaty body and yeast also light.

T- Follows nose, comes on with great berliner sour followed with the wheat and yeast flavor (stronger than in the nose). Amazing passionfruit flavor, really captures the essence of parcha pulp. Light sour comes back in the end but passionfruit stays throughout.

M- Totally crisp without being harsh (even with the light pucker from sour). Finishes dry and mostly clean, with a light sour over the lips.

O- Really wish this beer was available on growlers, incredibly happy the brewery has taken to doing berliners this past month. Best passionfruit flavor in any drink i've ever had and not the most sour berliner so it is more drinkable without overwhelming the palate.

Oct 19, 2011