New summer beer by Liefmans under Moortgat, a variation on their ’on the rocks’ theme already applied several years ago to their overly sweetened, bright red Fruitesse. Like Fruitesse, the serving suggestion on the back label states that this product is at its most refreshing when poured into its own glassware (a bowl) containing six ice cubes. Since I do not had those readily at hand, I tasted it in my usual way - and would soon regret it. Moussy, lightly lacing, quite dense and fairly stable, egg-white head showing gaps in the middle eventually, over a lightly hazy yellow blonde beer with greenish tinge. Weird and artificial aroma of fried pineapple slices with lots of white sugar on top, pineapple candy, industrial apple juice, the same whiff of industrial elderblossom extract I found in that new Grimbergen Fleur d’Abbaye last week but notably more outspoken here, diary aspect (cheese spread - which, in combination with the added pineapple scent, strongly reminds me of Paschka Ananas), something ’green’ and herbal which I suppose is the basil flavour though breathing something vaguely peppermint leaf-like as well, bubblegum and very strongly so, white bread dough, something faintly Key lime pie-like which cannot but represent the lime flavouring, soggy gingerbread, bath foam and, adding insult to injury, a vague DMS accent. Unsurprisingly, the onset brings a whole lot of sticky yellow fruit sweetness with an ascorbic or lemon extract-like touch, reminiscent of Napoléon lemon candy, pineapple-flavoured bubblegum (if such a thing exists) and oversugared industrial apple juice; mouthfeel is light, with medium carbo. Vague and thin soapy wheat and pale malt underneath are barely identifiable, suffering below a truckload of horribly sticky sweetness which cloys the ’finish’; bitterness remains very, very faint, only noticeable very far away in the background - but you’ll have to listen extremely carefully to hear it from behind all that sugary noise and even then it remains completely dim and colourless, could just as well be originating from the industrial extracts that went in here by the gallons. Elderblossom and basil extract whiffs are there retronasally, but the extremely sweet lemon- and pineapple candy aspects ruin even that, the sugar still sticks to my teeth long afterwards. If only I had chilled it to near-freezing, sweetness is less noticeable at low temperatures... Before they ceased activities, the previous owners of this brand (Riva) launched a series of oversugared Fruitesse beers, the name of which is still kept for that cherry pink one, but none of them was even remotely as sticky as this. Cloying, gaudy yellow candy from beginning to end, more cloying even than a Radler, the current - to me incomprehensible - popularity of which clearly inspired this, in concept, alcohol strength and functionality. Liefmans is a brand with a long - sometimes rather turbulent - and proud history, the embodiment of the eastern Flemish interpretation of ’oud bruin’, and this brand does not deserve to be shamelessly ’Radlerized’ like this. This is worse even than that red cherry version. Shame on Moortgat for blatantly abusing the brand they took over from Riva - they are comitting the exact same crime with it, if not worse.

Pours clear blonde, good White head. Smell is Lemon, syrupy. Taste is sweet, chemical, Lemon -like sweetness. Very unnatural and blank ,sugary, Chemical. Hilst the fruitezse was girly, but still ok, this should be making them feel ashamed.