Spectrum Hot Pink Lemonade Sour
Craft Collective Beerworks

 

Clear orange-gold color. Small amount of fine bubbles rising from the bottom. Poured a finger thick head, but it reduced to a partial skiff across the surface after half a minute. No lacing.

Has a mild citrus and sugar scent, with a little bit of the barnyard currently affecting everybody local. Swirling the glass kicked up more barnyard, some sulphur, and some leather.

Sour lemon flavor first, followed by mild raspberry. There is just a touch of mild malt. Light bitters kick in at the midpoint. The aftertaste is dominated by light lemon and bitters.

Fine bubbles cause some tongue tingling. It generates a fine foam despite the visibly low carbonation in the glass. Just a little astringent.

The barnyard and sulphur scents are a major detractor every time I raise the glass to my face. It helps to blow in the glass as I raise it. The flavor profile is quite nice once the glass is pulled away from my nose; it is something like a heavy radler.

355ml can - another sub-brand of this massive contract brewing concern in Vancouver. Can't say that I've ever had a beer made with pink lemonade, something my mother would always whip up for us (what makes it pink, Mom? Grape juice. Mind blown).

This beer pours a clear, bright medium, salmon-tinged, bronzed amber colour, with one zaftig finger of puffy, loosely foamy, and fairly fizzy dirty white head, which leaves a few instances of remote islet lace in places around the glass as it quickly blows off.

It smells of bready and doughy caramel malt, lemon and red grape juice, a bit of bland lactose, and some rather ephemeral earthy, musty, and floral hop bitters. The taste is gritty and grainy pale malt, a weirdly raspberry-like fruitiness, faded plain yogurt, and more well, well, understated musty, herbal, and dead floral hoppiness.

The carbonation is average in its palate-pleasing frothiness, the body a so-so middleweight, and mostly smooth, as nothing really exists here that might cause any sort of concern at this particular juncture. It finishes off-dry, the malt and morphing fruity character holding court.

Overall - yeah, nothing in this one's name actually comes through to any measurable degree in the end product. It's not bad, but it's also not sour, lemony, or hot pink (save the label). Kind of disappointing, really.