United Nations of Beer

Unibroue Ephemere Raspberry beer

by Ashley Cotter-Cairns
(UNOB HQ)

Unibroue Ephemere Raspberry beer (5% ABV)
Unibroue, QC, Canada

Unibroue Ephemere Raspberry beer is the first fruit beer I have had for ages. That's not to say I didn't enjoy Belgian lambics on occasion. Just that I never got into the habit of seeking out fruit beers.

There's a strong smell of raspberries as soon as you open the bottle. Enough to put off any casual passers-by who are on the fence about fruit beer, I'd imagine.

The beer pours clear and amber-reddish. Without knowing if I committed some horrendous faux-pas, I upended the final drops of beer and got quite a bit of sediment in the glass, turning it cloudy. I'm used to drinking ALL of a bottled beer. Note to self: more research required.

Fortunately for berryphobes among you, I can report that initial impressions were very favourable. Unibroue Ephemere Raspberry beer does have raspberry overtones, but it's first and foremost a tasty reddish ale. Not bitter, of course, but far from sweet too.

After a while, the raspberry began to bug me a little. I'm not used to the taste of berries without the sweetness. It seemed more of a novelty rather than an enhancement to the taste of the beer. It's probably best drunk over dessert, as I couldn't see myself chugging too many of these. The syrup of pecan pie with ice cream will cut the raspberry taste to perfection.

If you're curious, suck it and see. But if you're a fruit beer sceptic, I doubt whether this one will change convert you to the cause. I'd say that this probably has its place, but it won't muscle its way onto my A-list.