Much like their cocktail namesakes, our Crushin’ Its have been immensely popular this summer. So much so that we decided to bring everyone a brand new flavor this year!

Rounding out an already powerhouse family is Raspberry Lemon Crushin’ It, which debuts this week for a limited time in our Tasting Room, both on draft and in six-packs to go.

We caught up with some crew to find out more about this fascinating brew.

Last year, our Back Door Release crew were tasked with the challenge of coming up with a new flavor of Crushin’ It.

“We wanted it to be true to the crushes people can find at bars,” Social Media & Design Alchemist Courtney Rosenberg says. “These beers follow what people are drinking. It’s an ode to those cocktails.”

The fun part about offering different flavors is that it gives everyone the chance to try each new variety to find their favorites.

One of our brewers, Emily Siddall, had a few moments after her shift to talk with us about this brew as well.

“Usually the Crushin’ Its get a whirlpool hop addition on the hot side,” Emily says. “We also add a couple bags of dextrose, so that helps bring up the ABV a bit.”

The base beer for our Crushin’ It family is made the same way, and the variants get their unique characteristics post-brewhouse.

“It’s interesting. A lot of that is post-fermentation. They want to add those fruit juices so that the yeast doesn’t change the flavor of the fruit juices too much. It makes those flavors more prominent,” she says.

“Otherwise, the yeast is going to be like ‘Cool, more stuff to eat!’ Then, you could run into problems with the ABV increasing,” she shares.

For this particular brew, Emily mentions that the flavors help round out what Crushin’ It has to offer.

“I was surprised that it had more sour and tart characteristics than I was expecting,” she says. “Raspberries have a natural tartness, and that’s definitely present here. You get a natural raspberry flavor. The lemon comes through with that puckery sensation, too.”

“People who enjoy a tart beer, or one that’s almost a sour, are going to love this. It’s really nice and refreshing,” she says.

If you’re a fan of Blueberry Lemon Crushin’ It, you’ll likely adore the Raspberry Lemon as well! They both use Lemondrop hops.

“They both have a lemon, citrusy tartness to them,” Emily says. “The raspberry accentuates that tartness more as well.”

“It’s nice because it gives more variety to the Crushin’ It family. You have the OG Crushin’ It that’s nice and sweet; it’s almost like a mimosa in a can. I love that one,” she shares. “I also really love the Grapefruit Crushin’ It. It’s just a little less sweet, and it has a nice freshness to it and just a tiny bit of tartness. Blueberry is a bit more tart, and the sweetness of the blueberry balances that out. This one drinks almost like a dry rosé.”

Much like the other Crushin’ Its that have come before, Raspberry Lemon keeps the signature 8.0% ABV mark as well.

“When I think of high ABV beers, I usually think of winter or cold weather. Something to warm you up a little bit. But this is so fruity and has a little bit of a hop bite to it,” she shares. “It screams summer to me. The whole line does, honestly.”

“I think there are going to be a lot of people who like this one. Even people who maybe haven’t come around to the Crushin’ Its before now. It is Crushin’ It, but it’s a different experience,” she says. “This one is the new kid on the block.”

It’s an addition that brings something new to the table as well.

Our Crushin’ It line now has a distinct spectrum, from sweet and heavier-bodied brews to light and tart varieties. This brew helps round out that lineup to give a burst of tart flavor!

Emily is familiar with the Crush cocktails as well.

“The first time I ever heard about them was in Ocean City, Maryland,” she says.

What are the chances?? That happens to be the purported birthplace of the cocktail as well, which has since taken Delaware, New Jersey, and the region by storm.

“I saw a sign about it. I think I had one there, but that was a girls’ weekend trip, and I don’t remember a lot of that,” she says with a laugh. “More recently, I had one at Nauti Spirits, the classic Orange Crush. It’s so refreshing.”

Of course, while you can make a Crush at home or order it at a bar, it’s hard to beat these cans that pack a punch and can fit easily into your ice chest or beach bag!

In addition to its unique flavor, Raspberry Lemon features an entirely new hop for Cape May Brewery as well.

“Barbe Rouge is from France, and it’s our first time using this hop, as well as one from France,” says Production Planning & Specialty Brewing Manager Brian Hink.

“This hop has a red berry characteristic to it. For all of the Crushin Its, we try to pick a hop that will compliment the fruit. With Blueberry Lemon, Mosaic provides some intense blueberry notes. Lemondrop is very lemon centric as well. For this one, we were looking for a red berry-oriented hop. Some people get notes of strawberry, raspberry, or generic red currant in these hops. It’s a fun twist to throw into this one,” Brian says.

“It’s a newer hop for us, so it would be fun to potentially play around with this in the future, and showcase the hops even more,” he says.

Raspberry Lemon Crushin’ It is available exclusively in the Tasting Room starting today, Friday July 16th for a limited time.

The flavor was inspired by some of the cocktail concoctions from our friends in Delaware, and we hope you enjoy it as much as we do.

If you love this one and want to see more of it, make sure to show it some love this weekend and grab a pint or take home a few six-packs from the Brewtique!