LIFE

Brewologist | Strawberry Short's Cake glass of dessert

Steve Goble
USA TODAY NETWORK-Ohio
  • Strawberry Short's Cake attempts a strawberries-and-cream vibe in a refreshing beer
  • At just 4.3 percent alcohol by volume and almost no bitterness, it is made for cooling off
  • The overall impression is sweetness, both in the biscuit maltiness and the berry-and-sugar finish
  • This one is best served cold, and it certainly will relieve a parched and dusty throat

I think I bought this beer because of my mother, and my kid.

I certainly did not buy it because I thought a strawberry shortcake-flavored beer was an awesome idea.

Mom used to make us strawberry shortcake as a summer treat. She didn't bake angel food cake, pick fresh berries and whip up a creamy topping from scratch, mind you. She bought angel food cake from a store, thawed out frozen strawberries swimming in red syrup and piled Cool Whip on top. We loved it.

I also used to call my kid Strawberry Shortcake, before teenage eye-rolling put a stop to such parental nonsense.

So when I saw a brew called Strawberry Short's Cake from Short's Brewing Company in Michigan, I had to set aside the Spock-like part of my brain that said strawberry shortcake and beer is an illogical combination, and instead go with my Kirk brain and just boldly go.

I didn't really boldly go, at least not right away. The brew languished in my refrigerator for a couple of weeks before I worked up the nerve to give it a shot. I looked at it a few times, then reached for something else instead.

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The moment of truth came after I'd lifted an ungodly number of heavy boxes into a van, driven them to our new home and then unloaded said boxes into our basement. I was hot, I was cranky, I was drenched in sweat and I needed an attitude adjustment. I also needed to meet my column deadline. Once all those factors were taken into consideration, I realized it was time to boldly go. So I boldly went.

The beer is billed as a golden ale brewed with fresh strawberries and milk sugar. I do not generally go for sweeter beer styles, so I had some concerns.

I poured a glass and set it up for a photo. The head was decent, but faded quickly and was pretty much gone by the time I got an image. The brew caught the sunlight nicely, though; it looked sort of brownish-red or reddish-brown, depending on whether I stood in the sunlight or the shade.

I inhaled and enjoyed the aroma, although it did not remind me of mom's strawberry shortcake. It had a bit of a berry-and-biscuits vibe, light and enticing. I was starting to feel a bit better about the beer.

So I took a nice, cold swig. Timid sips never tell you much about a beer, right?

The first impression: This did not taste like strawberry shortcake. It reminded me a bit of that dessert, but only a little. Strawberry and cream flavors were part of the mix, but not the dominant force.

The second impression: This was a real beer, not a gimmick. Attention was paid to making sure there was a nice malty richness going on. Short's used Victory malts, a variety I have brewed with a few times. That's how Short's achieved a cake-like aroma and flavor.

The third impression: The beer certainly did slake my gargantuan thirst.

The fourth impression: Ultimately, this brew was too sweet, especially in the finish, for me to consider buying more. It needed a bit of tartness to put it in the right zone for me. If you happen to like fruit beers on the light and sweet side, however, you might like this one quite a bit.

Strawberry Short's Cake is very light, at just 4.3 percent alcohol by volume and only 10 International Bitterness Units, so it could be a nice session beer.

I am not sure what food I would pair with this beer, although it might be a nice accompaniment for a handful of fresh strawberries. Whether you serve it with food or use it as dessert or just drink it to cool off, I would serve it right out of the fridge rather than cellar temperature.

Beer Talk

If you'd like to suggest a beer for me to review, tell me I'm just plain wrong about your favorite brew or ask a beer question, feel free to tweet me; I'm @Brewologist. You can find Brewologist on Facebook and Pinterest, too.

Steve Goble is a producer for Media Network of Central Ohio. Email him at sgoble@gannett.com.

Strawberry Short's Cake, from Short's Brewing Company.