New Belgium Frambozen
Frambozen begins with the aroma of fresh red raspberries, followed by the ripe seductiveness of a fruity brown ale with depth and delicate malt notes. It is deep ruby in color, with flavors just as rich. Every year, New Belgium sends a delegate to the Pacific Northwest to oversee the process of turning freshly picked berries into a pure juice to be added in fermentation. The coming of Thanksgiving at New Belgium is ushered in with the first sighting of our cellar operators scuttling about, covered head to tow in a festive crimson berry wash.
3.4
685 reviews
Fort Collins, United States
Community reviews
355ml bottle pours a ruby color with a bubbly off-white head that settles quickly leaving some spotted lacing on the glass. Aroma is predominantly raspberries with some hints of grains and grass. Taste is tartness from the raspberries and a light grainy malt sweetness with a grassy hop bitterness. Light bodied with medium carbonation that leaves a nice tickle on the tongue. A decent fruity brew that hits the spot.
bottle. Beautiful deep mahogany with small head. Chocolate malt aroma. Quite a bit of chocolate in the flavor as well. Raspberry is present, but not as forward as I expected it to be. Pretty nicely balanced.
Poured from a 12oz bottle. Aroma is like "My Little Pony". Flavor is definitely fruity, sweet and a bit tart. It felt slightly over carbonated. Even though the fruit flavor is raspberry, there was a cranberry like tartness to it.
Unexpectedly nice fruit beer. Pretty ruby red color. Raspberries galore in the nose. Taste was earthy and not too sweet which is what I feared. Still plenty of raspberry to go around. Nice.
A pleasantly bubbly beer to start. Write a sweet taste that’s fits well with this style.
Draft at Whole Foods in Alexandria, VA. Ruby body with a frothy head. Sweet berry and fruit punch aromas. One dimensional and lackluster. Too sweet and imbalanced. No nuance or depth. Precisely what I have come to expect from a large brewery contantly making mediocre beers at exorbitant prices. Fail.
BBD 4/12/15. Pours a lovely clear medium garnet. Normal head volume, below normal lacing and retention. Rich nose of raspberries over a light sweet base that seems biscuit in nature. Light body with just a hint of smoothness. Well carbonated with a lively effervescence from the onset through the finish. The flavor profile is where this ale shines. Intense raspberry with a subtle underlying biscuit sweetness that never becomes prominent enough to balance the tart raspberry. It never hits the puckering stage, but the effervescence maintains a prickly tartness on the tongue. The finish is somewhat crisp and leaves you with a tart raspberry flavor. This one avoids the sickeningly sweet fault of many raspberry ales.
Depending on light and angle; dark copper or red. Minimal head. Aroma of raspberries and twigs. Nice light ale with true raspberries. Have to see if they do a sour version!
Clear red/brown. Definite raspberry but not too sweet and not over-powering. Nice balance, pretty good.
12 oz. on tap at New Belgium hub at DIA. Appearance: half finger white-pink head that does not last, clear, burgundy color. Aroma: raspberry. Palate: light body, dry drisp finish, average carbonation. Taste: sweet raspberry into light wheat sweetness, then finish is back to fruity. Overall, very ejoyable, fruit is not overpowering, lightest of tartness.
Nice effort although a bit uneven. I like the raspberries on the nose. In the brown ale, they come off a bit sweet. But overall a good beer to offer around Christmas time.
New Belgium is usually a lot better than this. Sickeningly sweet, cloying raspberry flavour with a totally off nutty brown ale flavour afterwards. Tastes almost like they wanted to make a sour then wussed out and added a ton of sugar.
12oz bottle pours with a clear amber red body that supports faint head. The aroma offers up some solid sweetened raspberry fruitiness as well as a cranberry sort of juice note. The taste is pretty thick and sweet and brings up raspberry fruitiness that has an edge of fruity tartness. It gets a little kool-aid like here and there as well as having a slight Belgian yeastiness. Meh.
Quite good for a mashup. Pours a light, translucent amberish brown with a finger of bright white head that dies instantly. The aroma is covered in raspberry fruit notes and light toffee/cara malts. A bit sweet in the middle with raspberries and caramel malts predominant. The finish is flat and sweet with raspberries throughout.
I am confused by the label pronouncing a brown ale, which a pour will only reveal in color only. I was hoping for more malt.
12 oz bottle pours a pinkish brown. Fruity aroma of raspberries. Tastes is tart raspberry. A little dry. Nice beer.
On tap at the magic tree. Not a fruit beer, definitely more like a tart sour or wild brew. Mild tart aroma. A darker orange beer color. Decent taste from the start. Not as tart as I was expecting but definitely sour in there. Enjoyable and mild fer sure. Small amount of fruit comes thru after each swig. Little bit of bitterness sets in on the finish. Very goold overall beer experience.
On tap at Bodega. Clear red pour with thin white-ish head and lazy stick. Aroma of muted fruity, herbal. Tastes of jammy fruit, floral, moderately sweet, just a little tart. Ok.
Keg @ Beer Run. Deep reddish Amber pour with a small head. Nose is surprisingly soft. Mellow raspberry meat and some pain au chocolate. Flavor of raspberry purée. Roasted grain. Dried wood. Cocoa. Simple. Almost watery. Hard to believe the ABV advertised. Soft carb.
12oz bottle given to me from Ptaz! Pours a purple hued brown color with a purple tinted white head of foam. Aroma of toasted grains and fresh raspberry purée. Taste of toasted grain, fresh sweet and tart raspberries, and some grassiness. More I’m drinking this the more I’m liking it.
12 oz bottle pour. Pours a reddish color with a sweet, sugar, red raspberry aroma. Sugary sweet fruit and berry flavor. Cherry and raspberry. Sweet berry flavor all the way through the finish. Not a while lot more than that. Overall a tasty beer. Good stuff.
11/23/2014. From bottle. Reddish hue with a white head. Raspberry aromas with malt. Sweet raspberry flavors, some earthy tones mid palate. Nice seasonal brew.
Slightly fruity. Definitely a Christmas holiday beer. It would taste great with the family in the evening.
4 oz draft pour at Churchkey. Poured a clear ruby color with a small off-white head. Aroma was raspberries, light spices, very holiday like. Flavor was nice semi-sweet, semi-tart raspberries. Girlfriend thought it tasted a bit like juice. Pretty tasty. I’m gonna look for this in bottles...
Bottle into a tulip at New Belgium Hub, at DIA. Crystal clear red, with the slightest brown tinge. Light, whitish head. Bright raspberries, light honey. Some bitterness, some lighter sweetness. Fair amount of carbonation, some acidity, quite effervescent. Lighter body. Reasonably long finish.
4 oz draft pour at ChurchKey. Ruby with off-white head. Aromas of respberries, light herbs and spices. Tastes of raspberries, light spices, herbal and floral notes. Medium-light body with a dry finish. Nicely balanced.
Tap - good size foamy head, nice dark amber/red color, mild raspberry aroma and flavor, fair malty backbone - ok overall
"a little more tart than say...a Lost Coast Raspberry Brown, which is both good and bad. I think this beer is more complex (due to the secondary fermentation), but LC is richer. Overall, this was a pleasant, ruby-brown colored ale. Nice head retention, decent aroma, sweet mouthfeel and finish, but not overly so."
As much of a problem I have generally speaking with fruit beers, I can’t seem to quit this one. I look forward to it every season, and I’m looking forward to it this year. I will buy a 12-pack, and rotate it in with dark and malty winter brews for its tart freshness and warming finish. Great hops. And few beers I’d rather have in my glove while grilling something nice and fatty out behind the house in seasonable temperatures. A nostalgic, festive favorite.
Bottle at home. Pours a reddish brown with a thin off-white head. Aroma is berries and some maltiness. Flavor is raspberry jam with toffee or caramel. Slightly sweet. Some slight tartness also. Sort of a vanilla ice cream with raspberry sauce and caramel - with a hint of alcohol. Nice beer.