Beer of the Week: Scuttlebutt Brewing’s raspberry and lemon ale
Published 1:30 am Friday, October 13, 2017
The Mad Kraut
Scuttlebutt Brewing, Everett
Style: Raspberry and lemon ale
Stats: 6 percent ABV
Available: On tap at Camano Pumpkin Project Oct. 14, and at the taproom and restaurant.
My thoughts: For a recent Oktoberfest, Scuttlebutt head brewer Matt Stromberg needed to brew a beer that was perfect for the fall but clocked in under 6 percent ABV. He felt the brewery’s Raspberry Moeite, a barrel-aged Belgian tripel made with raspberries, would be a great fit, but the beer has an ABV of more than 9 percent.
So he got creative. He blended some of the brewery’s Homeport Blonde with the tripel until it got down to 6 percent. He then added lemon juice. It’s not a shandy because it’s not made with lemonade, but it’s pretty darn close. The beer has a tart twang on the finish and tastes like a Belgian beer kissed a raspberry lemonade. It’s a great beer for a crisp fall evening.
As for the name, Stromberg is half German and, as a brewer, finds himself frequently angered, so the name seemed fitting.
Stromberg and the Scuttlebutt crew will be pouring The Mad Kraut and its Dunkelweizen-style beer 10 Below in the beer garden at Saturday’s Camano Pumpkin Project at Kristoferson Farm. Ale Spike Brewing and a few other local breweries will also be there. Along with the beer garden, there will be pumpkins, live music and a pumpkin-launching trebuchet.
From the brewery: A 6 percent raspberry and lemon ale named The Mad Kraut. This beer could be described as raspberry lemonade. It’s not a shandy due to the way we produced it but would be very similar to a shandy in final presentation. Very drinkable and quenching as a lemonade should be. There is a subtle depth to this beer that people will enjoy.
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