Style: Berliner Weisse
ABV: 3.5%
Nick’s Take
On a rainy Sunday afternoon, Joe and I made our way back to one of our local bottle shops, Jarvis Street Bottle Shop, to seek out some new North Carolina beers. We each made selections and agreed to exchange a few; among our choices was today’s NC Beer of the Week subject, “Electric Overdrive.” This Berliner Weisse comes from Fortnight Brewing Company in Cary, NC, and is canned with a super fun label (as you can see in the photos) that caught our eyes.
Joe and I believed that we had not yet reviewed a beer of this style yet, and I am grateful that we discovered “Electric Overdrive” to be the inaugural Berliner Weisse review of East Carolina Beer and Brewing. A German-style sour ale, Berliner Weisses tend to be low ABV (around 3%), have refreshing, tart, and fruity attributes, and an acidic quality from the fermentation of yeast and lactic acid bacteria. It’s a very friendly option to those who may not enjoy the taste of most beer but enjoy sparkling, juicy beverages.
After allowing the beers to chill while we worked on a home brew in Joe’s garage (post on this coming soon!), we each grabbed a can and a glass to conduct our tasting. I didn’t know what to expect when pouring my beer, as the appearance can vary greatly for this style (based on the recipe and if any fruits/extracts/syrups are used). I really enjoyed the vibrant purple-pink hue of “Electric Overdrive,” which is somewhere between fuchsia/magenta and plum. It’s quite hazy and opaque, not allowing light to trespass much. There was some strong head development after pouring, but that pink foam eventually disappeared with almost no remnants to be seen.
My brain may have been signaling the aromas to my olfactory receptors in advance because I immediately smelled strong notes of tart berries. I tried to get past that initial wave with some subsequent smells and detected some sweetness underneath the pungent acidity. I was imagining this beer to be a berry medley with some lactic acid to create a sweet and sour blend of flavors. It really was an exciting mix of aromas that was encouraging for the flavors that I’d find.
To add to the evident tartness, this Berliner Weisse is very crisp and bright in mouthfeel (true to the style). Each sip provided tingles from the carbonation and it was almost akin to drinking champagne. While this was pleasant to drink and felt refreshing, there was a bit of a drying attribute that often comes from bubbly beverages. I also developed some acidic build-up that coated my tongue due to the level of lactic acid in the beer, but it was not off-putting.
With the obvious tart component of the Berliner Weisse, I really enjoyed the additional flavors. I noted raspberry and blackberry (they seemed to align with the tart berry flavor I was getting from the beginning), some sweet, juicy flavors of blueberry and pomegranate, and not much at all in terms of the malt or hops. I enjoyed that it wasn’t entirely sour with no sweetness to dull it, as it may have otherwise been difficult to drink. Fortnight’s actual brew recipe only calls for blueberry and pomegranate, along with passion fruit and hibiscus, so I was a bit off with my own perceived flavors; however, it shows that the goal was to implement fruits that contain elements of both sweet and sour.
This was a great choice of beer after spending the afternoon working on a homebrew and needing something refreshing to drink. If you can handle (and enjoy) some tart, acidic drinks, I think you will really enjoy “Electric Overdrive.” It was incredibly easy to drink, has a low ABV, and packs a lot of refreshing elements (sparkling/bubbly, fruity, juicy). After enjoying this Berliner Weisse from Fortnight Brewing Company, I am eager to try the other brew of theirs that I have in my refrigerator.
Cheers!
Abbreviated tasting notes
Appearance: Deep magenta color, develops a bubbly pink head, and settles with almost no trace of foam. (4/5)
Aroma: Berry tartness on the nose (raspberry, blackberry, blueberry), some sweetness detected to cut through the puckering-sour aromas. (4.5/5)
Mouthfeel: Crisp and zippy carbonation, medium body, and mouth-drying. A little acidic build-up/mouthcoating. (4/5)
Taste: Pretty tart upfront with flavors of raspberry and blackberry, but also juicy and sweet like a blueberry pomegranate juice that is enhanced by the sparkling attribute of the carbonation. (4/5)
Drinkability: A refreshing blend of sweet and tart flavors in this light Berliner Weisse make it easy to drink if you aren’t put off my the acidity. (4/5)
Total: 20.5/25
Joe’s Take
I’ve got a case of the Monday blues… wait I mean brews (bah-dun-tis). Stupid jokes aside we have a NC beer of the week post for you. Tonight’s beer is “Electric Overdrive” by Fortnight Brewing in Cary, NC. The brightly colored can with some retro inspired art caught our eyes as we perused the aisles of Jarvis Street Bottle Shop here in Greenville. The selection never disappoints when we visit the bottle shop and I still have yet to stop in for a pint off of their draft system, but it’s definitely on my list. Anyway, we were excited to try this beer as neither of us have had anything from Fortnight Brewing and wanted to give them a try. So we grabbed a four pack of this fruited Berliner Weisse and sat down to give it a tasting.
I poured “Electric Overdrive” into my goblet and was immediately struck by the color of the beer. It was a deep pink/purple color that looked like a berry medley juice. It was hazy and completely opaque. At first there was a robust pink head that faded quickly and left no trace on the edges of the glass.
The aroma of this beer was very appealing and gave off notes of berries, most notably aromas of raspberry/blueberry/blackberry. There was a detectable acidity on the nose and I knew this beer was going to be tart and crisp. There was a faint note of sour “funk” that was not too strong but had some hints of brettanomyces like barnyard scents.
The mouthfeel of the Berliner Weisse was tart and the acidity left a somewhat stinging sensation on the tongue. I enjoyed the level of acid in this beer, but if there was much more it might be too overbearing. The beer was medium-bodied and had a moderate amount of carbonation. The acidity left the mouth feeling quite dry on the finish and it was a battle between the dryness beckoning me for another sip and the tartness keeping me at bay.
“Electric Overdrive” had a great flavor. I had expected it to be sweeter than it was, but I enjoyed how toned down the sweetness was. I think the color of the beer played tricks on my mind and gave me a preconceived notion that it would be sweeter than it was. Up front I tasted berries similar to those I sensed on the aromatic evaluation. I got notes of blackberry, blueberry, and raspberry. Underneath those berry flavors I detected that sour “funk” coming through and began to taste flavors reminiscent of horse blanket or barnyard. I think the flavors melded together nicely and made for a well-rounded beer. The sour factor of the beer toned down some of the other flavors present and made it so there was not an overwhelming character of one certain taste.
With the strong acidity and very fruity characteristics, I would probably limit this beer to one in a session so as to not blow out my palate. However, I would definitely drink this beer again (and am glad I have another in my beer fridge). Overall, I think Fortnight did a great job and made a highly enjoyable fruited Berliner Weisse with “Electric Overdrive.” I’m glad we also grabbed a 4-pack of one of their IPAs to get another taste of what they are brewing (I might just have to break one of those out tonight).
Cheers!
Abbreviated tasting notes
Appearance: Deep purple to pink. Completely opaque. Robust pink head that fades quickly. (4.5/5)
Aroma: Sweet berry with a hint of sour funk. Blueberry, raspberry, and black berry. Slight barnyard aromas. (4/5)
Mouthfeel: Tart, slightly stinging acidity. Medium body and carbonation. Very drying on the finish. (4/5)
Taste: Not too sweet, can taste blueberry and other dark berries. Potent sour flavor but not undesirably so. Finishes with a barnyard brettanomyces flavor. (4/5)
Drinkability: Would drink one of these in a session. Tartness keeps you at bay from sipping too quickly. Would drink again. (3.5/5)
Total: 20/25
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