Take Tree’s Grapefruit Radler for a ride

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 13/02/2015 (3957 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

In Germany, they have a beer cocktail called the radler, which translates into English as a “cyclist.” Essentially, a radler is a beverage that is 50 per cent wheat/barley beer and 50 per cent citrus beverage such as grapefruit juice.

At the local beer stores, most of the radlers available from Germany and Canada tend to be made with grapefruit juice, so perhaps it has to do with tradition.

I didn’t even know until today that it was a beer cocktail, I always assumed it was a wheat ale flavoured with grapefruits. So, the more you learn …

I’m not a fan of grapefruit. I find them bitter, sour, peppery — overall, the grumpy cat of the fruit group. I’ve sampled numerous India Pale Ales that use hops to give them a bit of grapefruit citrus zest. But beers that flat out consist of 50 per cent grapefruit juice? That scares me!

Tree Brewing out of Kelowna, B.C., has one of the more popular Canadian radler beers, to the point where it’s almost always sold out whenever I visit the local Liquor Marts. Tree has rarely failed me in the past, so, of course, I had to try their newest beer in town.

Tree’s Grapefruit Radler pours a very light lemon-orange with a surprising amount of sediment that could almost be pulp — it looks more like a breakfast beverage than a beer.

The aroma has scents of a light grainy lager, followed by a lot of grapefruit. There are notes of pepper to sting the tongue, lemon, some orange and the overall scent of grapefruit everywhere.

The flavour has a bit of a malted barley profile in it, but like the aroma, it’s grapefruit! It’s a bit bitter from the combination of hops and the juices, with a hint of a peppery spice, a few tablespoons of sugar, fresh squeezed grapefruit juice and a zest of lemon.

In many ways, this is reminiscent to a fruity cooler or a fruit-flavoured lager (Bud Lime Strawberita), but this is the first fruit beer I’ve seen that has actual pulp or “floating stuff” in it.

I was honestly expecting more graininess from the barley in here, but as a beverage itself, it’s good.

However, as a beer, if someone handed me this, I would never guess it even contained beer — and rightfully so, as this has a whopping 2.5 per cent ABV.

Tree’s is the truest grapefruit radler I’ve had in a long time — less syrupy, less sugary and with a more natural grapefruit zest compared to what’s already out there (I’m looking at you, Moosehead).

I dislike grapefruits, but this is a great beer to sip on as a beer mimosa with crêpes and bacon on a Saturday morning.

Currently, the only local Liquor Mart with Tree’s Grapefruit Radler is the 10th and Victoria location. At $2.50 for a 500ml can, it’s something worth trying with your breakfast on a day off.

Rating: Three out of five pints.

Cody Lobreau is a Canadian beer blogger who reviews every beer he can get his hands on as he believes that he should try every beer twice to get an understanding if it’s truly good or bad.

» BeerCrank.ca