Beer Review: Erie Derailed Black Cherry Ale

Serving Type: Bottle

ABV: Five percent

Appearance: Derailed  Black Cherry initially has the look of a wheat beer (although it's a cream ale). It's a fluorescent shade of orange and features a bit of fogginess throughout the body. The beer is crowned with what's a thick and fluffy head at first, but some weak retention caused it to fade away fairly fast. Aside from that, there was a tiny bit of ample lacing left on the inside of the glass.

Smell: The cherry in this beer was apparent almost immediately. It both sweet and tart. I feared that it would be dominated with an aroma that was too sweet, but I was fortunately proved wrong. It also doesn't smell artificial as plenty of cherry beers do.

Taste: Once again the cherry is the dominant sensation. It hits the front of the tongue with a sweet and tart punch. There's also a subdued maltiness to it that you won't catch until the aftertaste. Not much hop presence at all to compliment everything else.

Overall Rating: 

When you look at cream ales, it's a style that usually has its malt and hop characters toned down. So, the lack of it here is actually correct. The only reason I took some points away is the fact that I prefer a cream ale with either a strong malt or hop character. That's strictly a personal preference. I also wish I could have had a head on this beer that didn't run off so fast.