Black Raspberry Thunder
Muskoka Brewery

Black Raspberry ThunderBlack Raspberry Thunder
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From:
Muskoka Brewery
 
Ontario, Canada
Style:
New England IPA
Ranked #2,864
ABV:
6%
Score:
85
Ranked #20,425
Avg:
3.74 | pDev: 11.23%
Reviews:
6
Ratings:
20
Status:
Active
Rated:
Jul 25, 2022
Added:
Jan 30, 2019
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  3
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Bf_89:
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Rated by Bf_89 from Canada (ON)

3.69/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Apr 29, 2019
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.76 by burnaby391 from Canada (ON)

Jul 25, 2022
 
Rated: 3.73 by valianes from Canada (ON)

Nov 09, 2019
 
Rated: 4.18 by nullbort from Canada (ON)

Aug 10, 2019
 
Rated: 3.83 by DaPan from Canada (ON)

Jul 14, 2019
Photo of leaddog
Reviewed by leaddog from Canada (AB)

4.23/5  rDev +13.1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Appearance - Pours a raspberry red with four fingers of frothy raspberry head.

Smell - citrus, earthy, and floral hops, raspberry puree, raspberry ice cream, vanilla, bready malts, caramel, and earthy yeast.

Taste - citrus, earthy, and floral hops upfront. Then quickly goes into the raspberry puree and raspberry ice cream. The vanilla, bready malts, caramel, and earthy yeast finish the brew off.

Mouthfeel - Medium bodied with moderate carbonation. Finishes tart with the raspberry and hops lingering.

Overall - A flavourful fruit-forward IPA that truly delivers on the raspberry front. I like how all elements work in unison and the ice cream adds another dimension of creaminess. Worth trying as it reminds me as a kid of picking raspberries in my raspberry bush back home in Ontario.
Jun 23, 2019
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Reviewed by Cramshawbar from Canada (ON)

3.02/5  rDev -19.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25
A bizarre, albeit refreshing beer. It looks like a sour but the taste straightens you out quickly - it's not. The IPA element takes away from the sweetness, from any promise of a milkshake (not a big loss), and from much of the flavour, if we are to be honest. And it has nothing to do with a New England style, not sure why it is labelled here as such.
This may be semi-good beer ice cold in a summer day, otherwise it's a flat and rather mundane production.
Apr 27, 2019
 
Rated: 3.76 by sdm9465 from Canada (NS)

Apr 24, 2019
 
Rated: 3.83 by ben741 from Canada (ON)

Apr 12, 2019
Photo of biboergosum
Reviewed by biboergosum from Canada (AB)

4.05/5  rDev +8.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
473ml can - a collaboration with Kawartha Dairy, apparently.

This beer pours a murky, dark purplish amber colour, with four fingers of puffy, rocky, and mildly bubbly pale pink head, which leaves some decent layered cloud form lace around the glass as it quickly dissipates.

It smells of rich raspberry puree, bready and doughy cereal malt, vanilla cream, a further domestic citrus fruitiness, and very faint earthy, musty, and floral hop bitters. The taste is grainy and bready caramel malt, raspberry ice cream, additional dark berry fruity notes, a hint of damp minerality, and more understated leafy, herbal, and dead floral hoppiness.

The carbonation is adequate in its palate-pleasing frothiness, the body a solid medium weight, and rather smooth, with a genial creaminess pretty much there from the get-go. It finishes off-dry, the frooty and milky essences having a bit of lingering fun together.

Overall - this does indeed come across as a well-rendered, fruit-forward version of the style. Full of flavour, it's like dessert in a glass, and reminds me of mushing fresh-picked raspberries into vanilla ice cream when I was a kid (basically a home-made DQ Blizzard}. Good, good stuff!
Mar 21, 2019
 
Rated: 3.68 by Simon212 from Canada (ON)

Mar 09, 2019
 
Rated: 3.75 by GoHabsGo from Canada (ON)

Mar 03, 2019
Photo of TerryW
Reviewed by TerryW from Canada (ON)

3.86/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
Hazy ruby red. Moderate head and very good lacing.

Raspberries and hops on the nose. Not overly fruity. Fruit to taste followed by bitter hops. Good raspberry flavour. Moderate body. Overall a decent beer, not excessively sweet or fuity.
Mar 03, 2019
Photo of Pmicdee
Rated by Pmicdee from Canada (ON)

3.5/5  rDev -6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
April 27 2019
Mar 03, 2019
Photo of thehyperduck
Reviewed by thehyperduck from Canada (ON)

4.02/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
473 mL can from the LCBO; best before Jul 5 2019 and served slightly chilled.

Pours a clear reddish-magenta colour, with one finger of frothy, slightly lavender-tinged head seated atop. It settles off within the next two minutes, leaving behind a modest-sized collar, but no cap and little in the way of lace. The aroma features a pleasurable undertone of macerated, tart raspberry and sweet blackberry - two of my favourite fruits, particularly in the context of brewing (which means we're off to a good start). Hints of vanilla and milk sugar also come through, as do suggestions of citrus fruit and gooseberry.

Yummy stuff; it's like a rasp/blackberry vanilla milkshake in beer form, which is presumably what they were going for. The lactose provides a constant baseline sweetness, with notes of blackberry and raspberry filling in most of the blanks. The vanilla comes through, loud and clear, on the back end, briefly overlapping with fruity notes of passion fruit, grape and indistinct citrus pith; these flavours quickly fade in time for the finish, which reverts back to the berry/vanilla/milk sugar motif established beforehand. Sweet aftertaste, with the vanilla and berry lingering for a moment or two. Medium in body, with low-ish carbonation levels that gently brush against the palate; it feels smooth and fulfilling on the palate, just as a milkshake IPA should. Excellent drinkability; finishing one can is an effortless endeavour, and I wouldn't shy away from a second serving.

Final Grade: 4.02, an impressive A-. Muskoka's Black Raspberry Thunder is a pretty strong effort - though, as I've already mentioned, I love raspberries, so your mileage may vary significantly. They've nailed the milkshake aspects... it's the IPA side of the equation that (barely) leaves me wanting. Still, I enjoyed my glass more than I thought I would, and as far as gimmick beers go it's much more well-crafted than that salted caramel stuff they put out last year. Worth looking into, and one of this brewer's most interesting products in a long time.
Feb 27, 2019
 
Rated: 3.87 by ikidunot from Canada (ON)

Feb 27, 2019
 
Rated: 2.25 by Jotora from Canada (ON)

Feb 24, 2019
 
Rated: 3.79 by Sammy from Canada (ON)

Feb 17, 2019
 
Rated: 4.04 by Electros from Canada (ON)

Feb 17, 2019
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Reviewed by taxandbeerguy from Canada (ON)

3.98/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4
Review from notes. $3.65 CDN for a can served cold into a pint glass.

Appearance - Pink and purple. Two fingers of frothy pinkish white head. Very good staying power, turbid and exceptionally hazy within. Certainly could pass for a milkshake.

Smell - Raspberry and cream, like a raspberry smoothie or milkshake.

Taste - Like the nose, fruity raspberry with a thick dense ice cream or creaming backing. Reminds me of those Campino candies from back in the day (don't know if they still make them). Quite delicious. Some bitterness but it's a fruity bitterness or absence of sweetness found in some fruit and under-ripe fruit.

Mouthfeel - Thick and full like a milkshake. Just enough juiciness from the fruit flavors.

Overall - Raspberry Thunder hits the milkshake brief to a T. Tasty beer worth the cost, especially for those who have enjoyed the better milkshake IPA's.
Feb 16, 2019
Black Raspberry Thunder from Muskoka Brewery
Beer rating: 85 out of 100 with 20 ratings