Ballast Point Tongue Buckler Imperial Red Ale

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

Serve in Snifter, Tulip

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Draft at PP Strong Ale Fest ’05. Listed as 8.5%. Golden brown pour. Medium carmel malt aroma, some medium fruits - cherries and a touch of orange. Medium bodied, carmel malty flavor, with good amount citrusy hop, and a bitter bite to finish.

Cask at O’Brien’s, San Diego. Dark amber. Aroma of lychee and cherry. Sweet and full bodied with clean mouthfeel. A major hop monster, backed by solid amounts of malt, the mouthfeel is however a bit mellow. The finish is sugary with punishing bitterness.

9th Annual San Diego Strong Ale Fest: 8.5% Big grapefruit and pine hop aroma. Some malt is lingering around in there. Huge hop flavor, of mostly pine, that grows to a big long bitterness. Name fits this beer very well. I just wonder if this is the same beer as previous.

Tasted on tap at the 2005 Pizza Port Strong Ale Fest. Orange gold colored “amber ale”. Medium sized head. Aroma is malty and fruity. A medium bodied ‘barley wine style ‘amber ale.’ This version was listed as being 8.5%. Malts are fruity and sweet. Lots of orange peel and citrus. Lots of floral and citrusy hops. Is this really an amber ale? Lots of hop bitterness balanced with a lots of malt sweetness. Stick to the back of the tongue bitterness. Nice beer. Mouthfeel is full and round. Finish is clean and smooth. Aftertaste is bitter.

Draught (cask) sample at O’Brien’s, San Diego. Hazy ruby-amber colour. Aroma and flavour are both quite hoppy, very fresh and tea-like, with some sweet fruitiness to back it up. Mouthfeel is very soft, as expected from a cask ale. Very nice stuff, great way to kick off the night at O’Brien’s.

On cask at O’Brien’s. Pours a dark amber color with a decent head and good amount of lacing. The aroma was lemony and grassy. THe flavor didn’t have a whole lot to it other than citrus and hops. It was also slightly warm with a hint of alcohol to it. I am a huge hop head and this beer just wasn’t as good as i was hoping/expecting.

Red amber color, frothy small white head. Toasty and sweet notes complemented by a muted grassy hop aroma. Very sweet, some crisp huskiness but not enough to dampen the almost cloying sweetness. Hops most noticable in the finish, some resin and citron. Mouthfeel is medium and smooth.

This brew pours with a deep amber-red body topped by a medium thick head with a good amount of lacing. The aroma and flavor remind me of lemon iced tea, Arizona Lemon iced tea to be exact. The finish does have a little piney bitterness in it. Meidum to full bodied, slightly warming and smooth.

UPDATED: JAN 25, 2005 (Draft: Liars’ Club in San Diego, CA) A hop-head’s delight! Very hoppy flavor, quite malty, lightly sweet, but the strong bitterness rules this beer from start to finish. It’s too bitter without sufficient maltiness for my taste. Clean and crisp on the palate, and medium in body. Nice, balanced nose is malty, hoppy and lightly sweet. Light amber color. Light tan head maintains itself quite well, leaving lots of broken rings of lace.<hr>(Draft: O’Brien’s in San Diego, CA) I figured I’d give this beer another shot, and I’m very glad I did. I think the first glass I had several months ago was still pretty hot, as I’m enjoying this a lot this time around. It’s still fairly bitter, but not over the top. It’s malty, sweet and shows a tealike flavor. The palate is wonderfully smooth and silky. Malty, sweet, hoppy nose shows nice balance. Dark amber color and fully clear. Off-white head fades to a thin layer, leaving large patches of lace on the glass. I sampled this side by side with Bear Republic’s wonderful Double IPA (Racer X), and while not quite as good as Racer X, this is still a very nice beer, one that I won’t hesistate to order again. Ratings are for this review.

This is the Bitter of Bitters. Although not a particular fan of the strong hops, I must admit...this is a great beer. Mike at Ballast Point knows his stuff!