Cheery Cherry
Stolen Sun Craft Brewing and Roasting Company

Poured into a paper cup: color is amber with tan head and fine bubbles, head presents less than one finger thick, lacing on the glass sides.

Smell is light tart cherry, some subtle malt and light sweetness, earth hops, limited Belgian yeast character.

Taste is cherry forward, more jolly rancher cherry than mad elf cherry, light malt and sweetness, limited Belgian yeast character more sweet and malt notes.

Mouthfeel is moderate carbonation, moderate/strong sweetness, low bitterness.

Overall a fully cherry brew with moderate malt character but missing some Belgian yeast notes that i like in a dubbel.

Stolen Sun Craft Brewing and Roasting Company "Cheery Cherry"
16 fl. oz. can coded "50424107 FIRESIDE"
$

Notes via stream of consciousness: This is a Belgian-style Dubbel with added cherries, probably Montmorency from Michigan. It's poured a mostly clear brown body with a reddish sheen and ruby and orange highlights when held to the light. The head is a 3/4" cap of creamy off-white foam with a bit of a pinkish cast to it. The aroma offers some cherry and a suggestion of acidity over a mild, dark-malt accented base. Let's give it a taste... there's some Belgian yeast character to it with some clove and other 'spiciness', some dark fruit, clear cherry, tartness, earthiness, and a softly caramelish malt with a hint of chocolate. It's not that bitter, maybe 18 IBUs or so, and that works out perfectly as the tartness from the cherry juice helps to balance it. I'd love to try the base beer without the cherries as it is a bit obscured. What's the ABV on this? Ahh, there's nothing on the label but I'm guessing 7 to 8%. What's BeerAdvocate got it listed at? 7.5%, yeah that's right there. There is an alcohol is presence that also helps to dry it but it's otherwise nicely cloaked. As it warms it becomes a touch more honeyish, and more dark dried fruitiness comes through (raisin, fig, etc.). Personally I could use just a touch more sweetness but I think it's perfectly fine as it is, and perhaps a little more "drinkable" as it is. I'll get back to that in a minute. The carbonation is median to moderate and gentle caressing on the tongue before becoming velvety smooth. It's very fine-bubbled and it seems like a natural carbonation although I doubt it as that would be really hard to pull off. I'm guessing it's at least partially natural though. In the mouth it's medium bodied but with a touch of a dextrinous character to it. As noted, it's not overly sweet though, and certainly well balanced. I think that this is a beer that I could drink all year 'round, and that goes back to the sweetness level. I'd certainly single this out as a fall / winter celebration beer but I think it would be great as spring opens up as well, and I'd even have it in the summer as an after dinner beer or night cap. It's very nice to just nip at, although you could also work through it at a much quicker pace as I've done here today.
Review #8,939