I recently picked up a few bottles of Belgian beer in Freeport (Lambic Framboise / Chimay - Red / Steen Brugge - Dubbel Bruin)... the best stocked grocery store I have ever seen! I sampled these 3 - 750ml bottles in the best form... with good friends. It was tasted in champaign flutes.
Framboise Lambic by Lindemans:
Fruit beers are one thing... Framboise Lambic is a journey unto itself! I'll spoil the ending right now... this beer was fantastic, if not a typical beer.
Appearance - The first appearance was that of deep ruby with obvious berry look. The head was deep (1/2 poured depth) and pink, with fine bubbles. My second thought was "this doesn't look like beer" unless it was in a psychedelic techno color world. My third thought was this looks nice! So deep ruby, nice pink head with good retention.
Smell - Raspberry! It is all raspberry. It smelled like desert. But it smelled real, not fake and contrived. It was pleasant and complex. At this point, I'm still wondering... what is this going to taste like?
Taste - First impression is raspberry pie with almost perfect balance... not too sweet, but a little, real raspberry taste but not overpowering (hard to describe this beer actually). The taste lingered with a refreshing mild aftertaste. I thought, this would be a nice aperitif or warm summer afternoon refreshment... well actually, one of these would taste good anytime of day :-)
Mouthfeel - Think Prosecco. Prosecco is a nice Italian white sparkling wine (I prefer it to Champaign). It had nice bubbly feel, refreshing, but still somehow, substantial on the tongue... it wasn't too light, it had some body, with fizz and a nice smooth berry finish.
Overall Impression - Not your standard "beer", but I liked this beer. Both friends really enjoyed it as well, and I must say, one of them has not been considered an adventurous beer drinker. Excellent taste, mouth feel and overall enjoyment. I will be buying more of this beer.
Lambic has a new respect in my mind for beer.