REVIEW: Bravus Brewing Raspberry Gose N/A
Bravus Brewing Company (Anaheim, CA) Raspberry Gose N/A
Where’d We Find It: Soberish AF Bottle Shop, Atlanta, GA
ABV: < 0.5%
Hometown: Anaheim, CA
Our N/ATION Review:
Bravus Brewing was founded in 2015, staking its claim as the first non-alcoholic brewer in the country. The name chosen for the Anaheim-based brand derived from “brave” and “us”, which given how early they were to the cause makes perfect sense to us. Their current portfolio includes six N/A beers across the usual craft styles, as well as a hop water.
I’ll preface our review by saying we’re personally not always fans of a fruit-infused beer. There are many ways one can go awry, including an over-powering amount of either sweetness or tartness, and in particularly bad cases, too much of both. But we were intrigued by the fact Bravus uses what it describes as a “very, very small” amount of pink salt to offset some of the sweetness, which is a typical ingredient in a true German-style Gose (dare we say, bravo).
Speaking of Gose, it’s clearly a popular trend in craft beer styles, and seems to show up in more varieties than pronunciations of the name itself. Our first impressions of the Raspberry Gose were that it felt liked getting slapped in the nose with a raspberry, only in a good way (minus the slapping part). Great fruit aromas, and a strawberry blonde color with light bubbles that reminded us of a Rose wine. That comparison stayed applicable through the first sip, and by the second or third I began to think of what cheeses we had available to sample alongside it. We eventually settled on an extra sharp Welsh cheddar, which proved to be a fantastic combo. With food or without, this is a flavorful, crisp near beer with a satisfyingly fresh sweet taste without being too strong. If you’re looking for an N/A beer to supplant a white or rose wine for a wine and cheese night, this may be the option for you!
So where can you get your hands on some of these? Bravus enjoys pretty wide distribution across the U.S., including in Total Wine & More stores, as well as in Wegmans in parts of Canada. You can also buy online through their website, or as we did, from your friendly neighborhood bottle shop.
Other N/ATION Bravus Brewing Reviews: