Abstract
Fruit flavored beers, also known as Radler, which are mixtures of beer and soft drinks, gained in the last years increasing popularity. The present study aimed at investigating the physical-chemical and sensory characteristics of different fruit beers commonly available on the Romanian market. The antioxidant properties of the fruit beers were investigated in terms of total phenolic contents and scavenging capacity against DPPH and ABTS radicals, such as to have an estimate of the degree of protection against oxidative damage associated to reactive oxygen species. All investigated commercial beers showed good antioxidant properties. Regardless of the flavor, rather large variations of the phenolic content and antioxidant activity were identified among beer samples. The results of the sensory analysis coupled with the physical-chemical and rheological properties indicated the good quality of the fruit beers available on Romanian market.