Untreated:
appearance: a hazy pink that has a very white head. There is almost an orange hue to the pink
nose: A very light scent of wheat with undertones of cherry
flavor: very light in flavor, a slight hop bitterness slips into a dry finish of wheat and cherry.
mouth feel: nice and balanced with a light body, the head does leave quickly but the carbonation is medium
overall: very pleasant summer beer. The balance of the wheat and cherry works really well and the dry finish. 7.5/ 10
treated:
appearance: the head stays around longer than the untreated beer. Color is identical
nose: Very similar to the untreated beer, but a very very slight chemical scent is at the end of the nose
Flavor: that’s definitely sweeter than the untreated. The white sugar sweetness removes the dryness from this beer completely. The wheat character is also faded. The Cherry perception is increased.
mouthfeel: a rounder body with that chemical taste that is nearly undetectable. Medium bodied and the carbonation seems higher.
overall: This worked better than I thought it would, the white sugar and the slight chemical flavor really brought out the carbonation and the cherry flavor. Next time I will use a different sweetener and less chemicals, but this was a worthwhile endeavor. This opens up very many possibilities!!!!
This process definitely worked, but it needs a lot of tinkering to make beer that is truly outstanding. Luckily, I learned a whole lot about this process on my recent visit to Sam Adams. The end product I am hoping to make is a fruit beer that actually tastes sweet enough to be considered a dessert beer, but one that tastes very similar to the fruit used. This could also really help in my cider, which I have yet to be fully satisfied. Much more to come.