Strawberry Blonde
Belmont Brewing Company

caveman from Connecticut

3.48/5  rDev +13%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.75

Tasted from 220z bottle into clean beer glass. poured clean
Color. straw good carbonation.
Smell. Nice strawberry, not to over powering.
Mouth Feel. Was good, nice upfront sharpness. found mid palate to be thin.
Taste. Nice strawberry undertones. Not overpowering

All in all its a nice summer sipper. I personally wanted a little more body or a little more strawberry.

May 20, 2017

floorguy105 from California

4.55/5  rDev +47.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

My nephew bought this beer at Albertons. Left it in our frig. and my wife and I opened it up and were pleasantly surprised.
Yes, it's a fruity beer, but done tastefully and not overwhelmingly I have tasted many beers over the years and I have always leaned toward lighter ales, especially as I got older. I personally do not like hoppy beers which are common among
the younger crowd. So to the person that says this beer is the worst beer and tastes like cat litter, I say that what the hoppy beer tastes like to me! Keep it up, Belmont Brewing Company, you have a winner in our house. By the way, did i tell you I went back to stock up on this beer!

Apr 23, 2017

WoodBrew from Ohio

3.2/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3

Trying the Strawberry Blonde at the brewery. It poured a clear golden with white head that is leaving a spotty lace. The scent is undoubtedly strawberrys. The taste is way to sweet and strawberry for me. The Mouthfeel is lighter in body with good carbonation. Overall it's ok if you like fruit beer.

Sep 13, 2016

Nrose1985 from California

4.28/5  rDev +39%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

It is very rare that I feel a fruit beer is done right. I personally detest the designation "fruit beer" when it come to finely crafted brews such as this. All too often I find brewers are far too over the top with the fruit that it makes the product undrinkable. I drink beer because I like beer. If I wanted a strawberry juice cocktail, well, I'd simply make one of those. So many times I've picked up a bottle of strawberry beer and felt like I took a huge swig of strawberry soda, which might be fine in its own right, but when you're expecting to taste beer it provokes a gag reflex from me. So, it is with much celebration that I confirm this is a damn fine BEER. The strawberry notes are very forward on the nose which is quite pleasant, especially when tempered with the mildness of the pallet. This is an extremely refreshing and enjoyable brew for a warm summer day and with enough complexity to satisfy a beer enthusiast. I'm so happy I found this on the shelf and even happier to find it is brewed year-round. So, if you want a mouthful of strawberries in your beer, look elswhere (shouldn't be too hard as practically every other product fits that bill). If you love beer and want to be intrigued with the alluring scent and delicacy of a finely crafted ale, give this a try.

Mar 24, 2016

Jackolope from California

4.05/5  rDev +31.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

It was hot as balls today so I wanted something light and refreshing. I let my lady choose and she wanted this one because she loves strawberries. It was only 5 bucks so I played along, but I got to say, it was pretty good. I don't know exactly why I liked it because I don't usually like fruited beer, but this one did the trick. It smelled like strawberries and had a faint hint of berry taste without being too strong. Very refreshing. I kinda wanted another one after I finished the first, so I say 4 stars.

Aug 17, 2015

TruePerception from California

2.75/5  rDev -10.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.75

(Previous review, transferred from beer journal)

Belmont Brewing Co's Strawberry Blonde: Appearance: pale yellow; Smell: decent amount of strawberry scent, touch of wheat; Taste/Mouthfeel: strong wheat taste, almost non-existent strawberry flavor; okay-ish

Poured into a pint glass.

Aug 30, 2013

Lam from California

3.81/5  rDev +23.7%
look: 3 | smell: 5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

I have tried on tap and in bottle. I though it was quite good.

It was a strong smell of strawberry with a note of lager.

Drinking it was delicious, because it actually tasted like strawberry. I am not sure it can be my to-go drink in the summer, but i would consider it.

Feb 15, 2013

BeerJustice

1.06/5  rDev -65.6%
look: 2 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

Bought this beer at Ralphs grocery store in CA. I am not sure how to express the heinous smell and taste of this beer; a mixture of cat litter and moldy strawberries. To put this in context, I love beer, I will try anything a brewery makes, and I am generous because I understand how difficult it is to make beer. But this beer was either massively skunked - or it is just a terrible, terrible beer.
I want to be nice. But I cannot. THIS BEER IS ONE OF THE WORST BEERS I HAVE EVER HAD. This is the only time in the past 20 years I have actually poured out the whole beer after a few tastes (yes, I was trying to be generous).

Jul 19, 2012

UCLABrewN84 from California

3.08/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

On tap at Belmont Brewing Company in Long Beach, CA.

Pours a slightly hazy gold with a beige head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Foamy streaks of lace form around the glass on the drink down. Smell is of grain and artificial strawberry aromas. Taste is the same with a medicinal strawberry flavor. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp mouthfeel. Overall, this is a pretty average beer with a disappointingly fake strawberry presence.

Apr 03, 2012

Jugs_McGhee from Louisiana

1.99/5  rDev -35.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 1

1 pint 6 fl oz brown glass bottle with stnadard pressure cap served into a N'Ice Chouffe beer stemflute in low altitude Los Angeles, California. Reviewed live. Expectations are above average; the name makes it sound appealing.

Acquired at Ralph's market in Los Angeles, California. Not paired with food. Served refrigerator cold and allowed to warm over the course of consumption.

A: Pours a one finger head of no cream whatsoever, bad thickness, and bad retention (>30 seconds). Colour is a clear yellow. Not horribly appealing.

Sm: Heavy artificial strawberry syrup. Clean malts. It's pleasant, and certainly strong.

T: Artificial strawberry syrup is rampant, with candy-esque flavourings. Clean malts are buried beneath it. Feels very fake and loud. Poorly balanced and built all around. No layering. Simple and uninspired.

Mf: Smooth, wet, and thin. A bit overcarbonated, actually. Hardly suits the flavours well at all.

Dr: Hard to drink on account of the foul artifical flavour, which grows more and more repugnant as you continue drinking it. This might set you over the edge into vomit territory if you're already fairly bollocksed. Not a good beer by any means. Poorly executed and artificial.

D-

Feb 27, 2012

BilbosNuts from Missouri

3.15/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 2 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to my buddy McD0uche for picking this up for me to try.

Poured from a 22oz bottle into a pint glass.

A: This is a pretty unappealing looking beer. No head at all, clear golden in color, and very still. Uninviting to say the least.

S: The smell is an orgiastic feast for the nose. Slightly sweet strawberries create a very inviting, refreshing aroma. It is followed by grassy and toasted malt scents.

T: After that awesome aroma, the taste was a bit of a letdown. Definitely not as pronounced as the aroma, the strawberries are very muted. Grassy and skunky tastes come through at the end and make it sort of unpleasant.

M: The feel is light bodied and contains limited carbonation. It has a watery finish.

O: The aroma saved this one. The other characteristics were definitely lacking. If they could be brought up to the same standard as the aroma, this could be a superb strawberry beer.

Feb 05, 2012

emerge077 from Illinois

3.58/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5

$4.59 bomber from Bottles N Bins in Monterey CA. Served in a cylindrical stange glass.

Tons of foam, somewhat overcarbonated, though it rises and forms irregular peaks on the surface, sort of like Duvel. Bright golden color, racing streams of champagne carbonation that never slow down after 20 minutes. Copious sticky lace, decorating the glass in 3-D cartoonish clusters inside the glass. Swirling the dregs of the bottle brings up some tiny dark seed-like floaties that could be strawberry seeds.

Smells like fresh strawberries, leafy ripe and sweet. Later there's something vaguely medicinal, more a potential byproduct of a possible infection than cough syrup flavor. No idea of they used whole fruit or an extract, but with the odd track record of reviews it wouldn't be surprising if whole fruit brought some random wild yeast in the mix (for better or worse).

Tastes a bit bland though, the club soda carbonation hurts the feel a bit. Dry and crisp, highly attenuated with a light dry and tart strawberry flavor, light bitterness in the aftertaste. Pretty gaseous, overcarbonation scrubs the flavor away fast. Not sweet or artificial. Overall better than expected, but not sure if this bottle was a fluke or intentional, considering the varied reviews.

Oct 11, 2011

srandycarter from California

2.9/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A - Macro pilsner color and foam, leaves fast to disk. Some cling around the edge.

S - Artificial strawberry and light malt.

T - Taste matches smell.

M - Light bodied, good carb, lousy balance even for such simple flavors.

D - Better than a Coors light on a hot day... maybe.

Mar 30, 2011

Jemonster from California

3.47/5  rDev +12.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

A: Very pale and slightly opaque with white head.

S: Very nice clean dried strawberry scent. Smells like alpine strawberries, strong and sweet.

T: Really bland! Disappointing given the smell. Can't taste the strawberry as much as I thought. The strawberry flavor comes off as artificial.

M: Nice and crisp. Bubbly. It is nice for a hot day.

D: Tastes like an average American macrobrew with some strawberry thrown in. Wouldn't buy it again for the price.

Mar 25, 2011

Hojaminbag from Colorado

3.77/5  rDev +22.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Belmont Strawberry Blonde has a dull, clear, golden-colored body and a small off-white head. Not a whole lot in the retention and lacing departments.

The aroma surprises me because it smells like fresh strawberries. It is quite pleasant.

The flavor is more of the same. A light malt base with a bunch of fruity strawberry flavor. This beer succeeds in not being overly sweet, syrupy, or cloying. The strawberry flavors taste natural.

Light bodied with high carbonation, which works well for this beer.

This beer was a pleasant surprise, pretty enjoyable if you like fruit beer.

Jan 11, 2011

ccrida from Oregon

4.77/5  rDev +54.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Bomber poured into a tumbler, Strawberry Blonde is hazy straw yellow with a white head that leaves scattered lace. Looks like a wit.

Smell is pure strawberry, but not overly strong, nor artificial.

Taste is quite good, a light, clean blonde ale with definate strawberry flavor that is not overly sweet, syrupy or fake. Fantastic for the style (which I recognize is a love or hate thing), this would be a home run served from a keg at a hot BBQ. There's a hint of tartness from the fruit that really enhances the refreshingness.

Mouthfeel is dry, sprizty, but not too sharp. Light bodied but not watery.

Drinkability is very good. Perfect hot weather beer when you want a little flavor but something you can session. Don't hate on it just because it's got fruit, if this was made by Fantome or some other cult Belgian brewery, it would be a top rated fruit beer. In fact, it tastes ALOT like Fantome, which also uses fruit juice, even though they don't advertise it is a such. Being that Fantome is my favorite beer, I just realized why I love this so much.

Jun 04, 2010

spoons from California

2.75/5  rDev -10.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Poured from a bomber to a tulip

The color in this is a foggy yellow/gold. Lot of carbonation bubbles all around the glass.

Smells of strawberrys, like fake candy strawberries. Also some sweet apples..

The mouthfeel is super fizzy and watery. A malty aftertaste compliments the light body and sweetness of the beer.

This is not a good fruit beer, but not a drainpour. Wouldnt go searching for this one.

May 11, 2010

Gobzilla from California

3.77/5  rDev +22.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

A: pours a golden yellow with a finger of head and very little lacing on the glass.

S: smells griany with hints of strawberry and very little malts on this one. absolutely no hops presnce.

T: crispy bubbly grainy with hints of strawberries and sweetness. Its a light beer but I gotta say it's probably one of my favorite blondes of all time.

M: light to meduim body with good bubbly carbonation.

D: This blonde has really been great in my book and is absolutely bananas with BBQ in the summer.

May 11, 2010

MisterClean from California

3.2/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Thanks to Mark C for bringing this to the big brew day.

A - Pours a slightly cloudy gold with a 1 finger white head, which dissipates fast. Leaves light lacing.

S - Strawberries and light bittering hops.

T - Strawberries, some slight brett, breadiness, and bittering hops.

M - Light bodied, hop dominated, and slightly bitter.

D - Not bad, but could use more malt complexity. I'm also thinking there may have been an infection as the brett was probably incidental.

Oct 20, 2009

birdypowder from Oregon

2.47/5  rDev -19.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

My strawberry blonde needed a wash. Maybe an acid wash of the yeast, or a better wash of the bottles before filling? I think there was a slight infection so if I have a chance to try this beer again I will, but this review reflects the beer I purchased.

Aroma:
Mild pleasant strawberries, slightly sweet smelling and an aroma of sparkling applejuice.

Appearance:
Nice white head but small in size, small dense bubbles, good beading, very hazy (my first indicator of infection). Pours a tarnished slightly greenish gold color. Some small floaters detected. Good lacing

Taste:
Big sourness up front (my strongest indicator of spoilage) which I'm sure has masked some other more subtle flavors. Slight acetic taste as well. Light to medium bodied.

Finish:
Curt dry finish.

Oct 14, 2009

weirdboy from California

1/5  rDev -67.5%
look: 1 | smell: 1 | taste: 1 | feel: 1 | overall: 1

Had this on tap last night at BBC.

This beer was utterly shameful in every way imaginable.

Appearance: There was literally no head whatsoever, and very little carbonation. It looked like a glass of apple juice.

Aroma: Very strong buttery aroma, laced with strawberry.

Taste: Butter. If you like diacetyl flavors, this is the beer for you. It was like drinking a stick of butter.

Mouthfeel: Did I mention it was like drinking a stick of butter?

Drinkability: My wife insisted on drinking it, but I wanted to send this back to whatever hell it came from after a single taste.

Overall: I cannot imagine how any brewer could live with themselves knowing a beer like this is being served representing their work. I have had the bottled version of this before, and it was nothing like what they were serving on tap last night. If you love butter, or wish to imagine yourself in Harry Potter book drinking a butterbeer, go to the BBC and order a strawberry blonde.

Aug 30, 2009

aforbes10 from Iowa

4.3/5  rDev +39.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle from CostPlus World Market in Davis, purchased because it was new and cheap. Pours a cloudy yellow-orange with a short, but well-retained white head that laces fairly strongly for the style. Smells like mild strawberries, but also a bit tart/sour, which is intriguing. Bitey, snappy taste, more like a wild ale than a blonde, with a hint of strawberry sweetness and a nice tang of sour, wheaty flavor. Surprised how much i like this, its really quite tasty and complex. Zingy flavor hangs on throughout, though it gets a bit more dry on the finish. Refreshing and fun. A winner in my book.

May 08, 2009

hopdog from Pennsylvania

2.38/5  rDev -22.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

22oz bottle (contract brewed at Bayhawk Ales).

Poured a lighter and hazy yellow color with an averaged sized white head. Aromas of strawberries (not fresh strawberries, more of an artificial aroma). Tastes of strawberries (but not as strong as the aromas). Lightly sweet with a light tart finish.

Dec 05, 2008

gpogo from California

3.48/5  rDev +13%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A- Pale gold with white head. Small amount of head that dissipates quickly

A- Strawberries, almost worries me about the taste.

T- Lighter strawberry taste than I expected. It also doesn't taste chemical like I expected, both good things! Sweet taste, but not overpowering. Sortof leaves an aftertaste similar to the aftertaste from eating strawberries.

M- Medium-light body. Goes down very smooth. Moderate carbonation.

D- Very drinkable. Light and refreshing. I'd like to get a non beer drinkers opinion on this as I feel with the strawberry and light taste even they may enjoy it.

Apr 26, 2008

monkeybeer from California

2.78/5  rDev -9.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A- Pours cloudy golden orange with a tiny white head.

S- Smell is strawberry (artificial) as some hops

T/M- Taste is very light on strawberry; it is there but defiantly more in the smell than the taste. It is a bit acidic at the end and you can detect some hop flavor as well

D- It was okay, I would probable not purchase this again or seek it out, but if it was offered to me I would drink it.

Mar 10, 2008