Judge’s Review: 88 Rating – Stone Buenavida Hard Seltzer – Mango by Stone Brewing Co.

Fruited Seltzer | Year-Round | United States

By David Sapsis

Judges Rating: 88
Aroma: 20
Appearance: 6
Flavor: 36
Mouthfeel: 8
Overall Impression: 18

Stone Buenavida Hard Seltzer – Mango by Stone Brewing Co. is being judged as a fruited seltzer with mango flavoring against the 2022 Beer Connoisseur Seltzer Guidelines for fruit seltzers.
The seltzer is presented to me at 42 degrees Fahrenheit in a kölsch stange, a narrow tube-shaped glass outstanding for evaluating aroma. Color is neutral, clarity is bright and carbonation appears medium-high. 
The aroma delivers a fresh and green mango fruit of medium strength along with a backdrop of almond nuttiness. It is dry and relatively mild in strength but quite nice. I detect no ferment character.
The flavor is a bit more directly noted as mango with nice fruit and acid tartness, but not the ripe (overripe?) mango rich sweetness noted in many mango-flavored products. The body is medium-light with a nice grainy nature and some texture that adds dimension, as does the appreciable carbonation. The finish is quite dry and tart and lightly fruity without being cloying.  
A fine sparking seltzer with medium level fruit flavors, packaged in a dry and acid-balanced grain ferment that represents fruited hard seltzers well. Drink alone to slake thirst, or equally with some hearty fat-laden food (pastor tacos, anyone?) where the dry and fruity counterpoint would clean the palate and ready the mouth for the next bite.