Once Upon An Orchard - Raspberries & Blueberries
Allagash Brewing Company

 

It pours a beautiful ruby red with brownish tinting, about a finger of pink fluff on top that last or is replenished or both.

Smell is fruity, raspberry dominates but blueberry is there. Maybe a faint whiff of malt underneath. If I try really hard, I can detect an extremely tiny big of funk...barely there. Tea comes in a bit, but this is mainly raspberry.

The taste opens fairly acidic but not overly so. Then raspberry - quite fresh and bright and bringing a ton of fruit acidity. The blueberry is a deeper flavor, tea-like and less bright. I get a little salty note - huh? The fruits linger long after the swallow - nearly but not quite too much. It's intensely flavored, but maybe a tad bit unidimensional. There's some tannin and phenolic bite, but it seems to come from the fruit. There's an extremely mild funk that comes and goes a bit. A slight residual fruity sweet jam taste develops after a bit. No real detectable level of vanilla.

Feel is close to medium, but lively carbonation lightens it up. The lingering fruit keeps it from being a refresher, but that's fine.

Ok...so I don't think this is a Flanders Red, but it touches some elements. I don't know what to call it, actually. It doesn't have an abundance of the Allagash wild ale thing going on, but it has some. It doesn't say what it's aged in and I don't get woodiness. I do get a mineral tang so maybe one of their other toys? I'm not going to sweat the classification - enjoyable beer.

Glass into Nucleated Tulip
Look: Hazy dark red/purple, pouring a creamy 1/2 finger head which dissipated into lacing and a ring
Smell: Strong citric acid, raspberry jam, yeast, fresh blueberry
Taste: Moderately tart, raspberry and fresh blueberry juice with a hint of yeast. Finish is berries and light malt notes
Feel: Light-med body with moderate carbonation and a crisp finish
Overall: Great beers. Flavorful and refreshing