Beer style

Fruit & flavored beer

Also called Fruit beer, Flavored beer, Spiced beer, Honey beer, Radler, Shandy, Pumpkin ale

A fruit or flavored beer is any beer brewed or blended with fruit, juice, spices, herbs, honey or other flavorings that are clearly noticeable. Strength and color depend on the base beer; radlers mix beer with lemonade at about 2 to 3% ABV.

Origin	Worldwide; modern craft versions from the 1980s
Alcohol (ABV)	2–8%
Color	Varies with the base beer and the fruit
Glass	Tulip, goblet or flute
Serving temperature	4–9 °C
Classic examples	New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red, Früli Strawberry Beer, Liefmans Fruitesse, Samuel Smith's Organic Strawberry Ale, Abita Purple Haze, Stiegl Radler Grapefruit

History

Brewers have flavored beer with fruit, honey, herbs and spices for millennia; before hops became standard in the late Middle Ages, gruit herb mixtures were common. Colonial Americans brewed with pumpkin and spruce. In Bavaria, the radler, beer mixed with lemon soda, is said to have been popularized for cyclists by innkeeper Franz Kugler in 1922. Modern craft brewers revived fruit and spiced beers from the 1980s, with American examples such as New Glarus Wisconsin Belgian Red and Buffalo Bill's Pumpkin Ale, while Belgian brewers added fruit to witbier and blond bases.

Appearance, aroma and taste

Fruit beers usually take on the color of their fruit: pink from raspberry, deep red from cherry, purple from blackberry or blueberry, orange from apricot or mango. The aroma should clearly show the fruit or flavoring while letting the base beer remain identifiable. Sweetness varies widely, from dry, tart fruit ales to sweet, juice-heavy beers. Spiced beers show cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger or vanilla, and honey beers a floral sweetness. Bitterness is generally low so that the added flavors dominate.

How it is brewed

Brewers choose a base beer, often a wheat beer, blonde ale or stout, and add fruit as whole fruit, purée, juice or extract, usually during or after primary fermentation to preserve fresh aroma. Fruit sugars ferment, raising alcohol and drying the beer, so some brewers backsweeten or pasteurize. Spices are added late in the boil or steeped after fermentation. Radlers and shandies are blended rather than brewed with fruit. Fruited lambics belong to lambic, and the BJCP judges fruit beers on how well fruit and base harmonize.

Food pairing

Match the fruit to the dish. Cherry and raspberry beers pair with duck, pork, chocolate desserts and cheesecake. Citrus and tropical fruit beers suit grilled fish, salads, Thai and Mexican dishes. Pumpkin and spiced ales complement roast turkey, squash and pies. Honey beers work with baked ham and soft cheeses. Radlers are summer refreshers for salads and grilled chicken. Fresh goat cheese and mascarpone are versatile partners for most fruit beers.

Fruit & flavored beer beers on the map (7)

BeerGuessr lists 7 brands whose flagship is a fruit & flavored beer, from 5 countries. Most come from France (2). Their strength ranges from 3.7% to 8% ABV.

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Fruit & flavored beer: questions and answers

What is a radler?

A radler is a mix of beer and lemon soda or lemonade, usually around 2 to 3% ABV. The name means 'cyclist' in German. It is similar to the British shandy and is popular as a summer refresher in Germany and Austria.

Are fruit beers sweet?

Not always. When fruit is fermented, its sugars become alcohol, leaving a dry, tart beer. Many commercial fruit beers add juice, syrup or sweeteners after fermentation, making them sweeter. The label or brewery description usually indicates which approach is used.

Is a kriek a fruit beer?

Kriek is a fruit beer made by aging lambic on sour cherries. Because it is based on spontaneously fermented lambic, it is treated as its own Belgian style. Other cherry beers made from non-lambic bases count as general fruit beers.

Related styles: other beers

Non-alcoholic beer

All beer styles →

Sources: styles.bjcp.org, styles.bjcp.org, en.wikipedia.org

Last reviewed October 2026.