Ballast Point Calico Amber Ale

Brewed by Ballast Point Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
San Diego, California USA

Serve in English pint, Shaker

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Clear, copper-red with a large, chunky tan head. Malty, fruity. Taste is mild, floral bitter, spice, softly hopped.....caramel. Not exciting, but quite decent.

I poured a 12oz bottle into a goblet. It had an "enjoy by" date of 6/29/13. It cost $2.99 ($0.25 per ounce).

Appearance: Dark maple brown hue. Opaque. Forms a small, white, soapy head which mostly dissipates but does lace the glass a bit.

Smell: Noticeably earthy, slightly malty aroma. Something weird to it, though, reminiscent of a dog’s breath.

Taste: I’m not usually a big fan of amber ales, but I figured a prominent West Coast brewery would be able to make it exciting for me, that’s why I bought Ballast Point Calico Amber Ale. Though it’s pretty clear right away that this isn’t your typical California hop bomb. In fact, the brewery’s website describes it as an ESB. So which is it? Whatever the case may be, the end result is an average beer.

The palette could be described as either an amber or an ESB, though it seems to be missing the fruity notes of an ESB, but does have the raw dry bitterness I often find in an American amber. The base malt body is quite mild with the faintest trace of maple, toffee or brown sugar. Though the bitterness is still quite strong as it imparts a dry bitterness throughout the second half of the swig. A slightly starchy aftertaste, though it fades away cleanly and quickly. There’s nothing really exciting to this beer; the flavors get repetitive, but never repulsive.

Drinkability: The mild taste and the comfortable mouthfeel make Ballast Point Calico Amber Ale an easily drinkable beer. At 5.5% ABV its weight is right where it should be as it’s not particularly light, but there’s nothing to it that would make it seem heavy.

Pours a very rich, mahagony dark brown, with an aroma of cinnamon and floral. The taste is superb, with more cinnamon spice right away, and fading into pine needles and a faint hint of fresh flowers, all the while being gently supported by a creamy malty texture. More please.

Pours copper with small white head. Aroma contains sweet malt, some raisins and grapefruit. Taste is piney and hoppy with a long dry finish.

Pours a clear, darker amber with a medium white head. Aroma is balanced well and contains floral hops, toffee, pine, and some citrus grapefruit. The taste has a good amount of citrus, being mostly grapefruit and hints of lemon and orange. In addition, I find caramel and yeast. Its bitter, with a piney citrus grapefruit aftertaste. Medium bodied, sticky in texture, with a lot more lively carbonation than I was expecting. This is pretty good. Its tasty and easy drinking.

Pours unfiltered amber with full off white head. Floral aroma with hint of hops and citrus. Slightly hoppy taste but definitely not overpowering. Very good amber ale. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

Had it on tap at World of Beer in Evanston IL. Poured a rich orange / amber hue with a yellow firm head and even lacing. The aroma was Mildly bitter with a smooth hop taste.

On tap at Whetstone Station, Brattleboro Vt. Served in a pint glass. Pours a deep red/amber color with a 1/2" white head. Spotty lace. Sweet malty aroma with soft earthy hops. Sweet flavor. yet clean and crisp. Medium in body. Finishes sweet.

Bottle. Fucken A, bros, NY is finally getting some Ballast Point goodness and it LIFTS. Pours a ...wait for it... Amber color with a slightly off white head. Aromas of toffee and some floral hops. Taste is bitter-sweet up front but finishes dry with a nice hop bite. Good.

Bottle. Apparently out of date. Nose is pretty much dead. Malt profile is still excellent. Lots of caramel. Hop profile unfortunately non-existent. Will seek out a fresh bottle because a decent hop profile would make this very nice. ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone