Mast Landing Medley Apple Blackberry Cranbery

Mast Landing's Medley Apple Blackberry Cranberry is a fruited sour beer from Maine, built around three fruits that each pull in a different direction: apple for a crisp, juicy tartness, blackberry for dark-fruit depth and color, and cranberry for a dry, puckering edge. Beers in this style usually pour a deep pink to garnet, often with a slightly hazy body, and the aroma tends to lead with the berries, with the apple coming through as a fresher, brighter note. Expect a light-bodied, tart beer with the acidity doing most of the structural work rather than hops. Bitterness in fruited sours of this kind is typically very low, so there is little to compete with the fruit. ABV and IBU figures aren't supplied here, so check the label for the exact numbers. Cranberry is the fruit most likely to set the tone on the finish. It brings tannin and dryness, which keeps the sweetness of the apple and blackberry from reading as juice-like and leaves a clean, slightly astringent close. That makes the beer more food-friendly than its color suggests. For food, lean on richness and salt, which the acidity cuts through. Soft-ripened cheeses such as brie or camembert, fresh goat cheese, and a charcuterie board with cured pork all suit it. Roast turkey, pork loin or duck with a fruit-based sauce echo the cranberry and blackberry directly, and a sharp, vinegar-dressed salad with toasted nuts works the same way. A not-too-sweet fruit tart or a plain almond cake is a reasonable dessert match, as long as the dessert is no sweeter than the beer. Serve it cold but not ice-cold, around 40 to 48°F (4 to 9°C). Straight from a very cold fridge, the fruit aromatics mute and the tartness comes across sharper and thinner. Ten minutes on the counter lets the berry notes open up. A tulip glass or a stemmed beer glass is the right choice, since the narrowing rim holds the fruit aromatics in, and a wine glass is a fine substitute. Pour gently, since fruited sours often carry a lively but short-lived head, and leave any slight haze or sediment in the glass for the fullest flavor.