Bear Republic Hop Rod Rye Ale

Brewed by Bear Republic Brewing Company
Style: Imperial/Double IPA
Healdsburg, California USA

Serve in Shaker, Snifter

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22 oz. Bottle. Poured from the bottle with an impressive head which lasted a long time and left a lot of lacing behind. Citrusy type hops dominate the nose, taste and finish of this beer. While the hops took control of this beer, the malt in the background added a real nice dimension to this beer. Hop Rod Rye Ale has become one of my favorite beers and this was my first one. I am a hop lover, so this beer fits the bill when it comes to extreme hoppiness. If you love hops like I do, you will LOVE this beer. It is perfect in my opinion.

UPDATED: APR 17, 2006 Updated 4/17/2006 - (Old rating 9/4/8/4/18-4.3) I always coem back to this beer. It is always so lovely. From the luscious creamy light tan head to the sparkling copper body and that aroma, of that aroma. The rye adds the perfect touch both in flavor and palate. Some might think me crude to love this beer so, but I do love it so.

Updated 3/31/04 - Damn this is the strongest and purest hoppy nose I have ever smelled. This new batch is seriously good. Clear deep reddish-amber with a frothy off-white head. Caramel and piney/citrus hop aromas. A hint of rye? Good hop malt balance, creamy big-body with a very smooth finish.

This is a fantastic beer. Pours a deep copper/red color with a nice white head. The aroma and taste are dominated by hops of which are very flavorful. A wondeful beer and highly recommended.

Yeah, I like this tasty brew! Really hoppy and especially bitter. Fine rustic ale. When you pop one open and take a sip. It’s like finding a treasure. You know that special something in a beer that tells you that it is so right! This beer has it!! I don’t know if I would call it balanced because that bitter really hits you. I will make this a regular for the fridge.

This is it, in all it's glory the empress of all beer. It pours of a sour mash thick frothy head relentless in its existence, only to unveil a lace reminescent of a wave heading back out to sea. The smell of hops is prominent with a malty, slightly citrus nose. The taste up front malty, with a NOS kick of hops in the center finishes with a gorgeous weave of rye and spice. A medium mouthfeel of creamy, oily hops and sea-salts coating the throat like a silky blanket of nectar. This brew is feminine, bitchy and of the highest pedigree. At 8.0 it is drinkable to the point of dangerous, this lady deserves respect. Where Stone's Ruination is a 69 Camaro with a 327 and a punk punching NOS, Hop Rod Rye is a fine tuned Porsche, with Linda Fiorentino driving, wearing a silver, sleak dress. You all bow down to the queen of beers.

Poured from a 12 ounce bottle into a tulip, despite the warning I carefully poured the entire contents of the bottle into my tulip. A: Deep garnet red with carbonation bubbles interlacing with floating fat looking sediments in varying sized clumps. Rather clear overall with a light tan 1 finger foamy head. Despite the sediment, or whatever is going on here, it still looks fantastic, maybe even better with it. S: Nice balance between semi-sweet and bitter. Earthy hops meshed very well with the sweeter malts. T: Earthy hops into a sweeter underlying malt flavor. I really like the balance here. M: Medium body with good carbonation. O: This is a fantastic beer. Whatever it’s classified as I don’t care I don’t put it on the level of an IPA. It’s a nice balance of malts and hops that’s easy to drink.

UPDATED: SEP 2, 2011 Dark , hazy amber color. Hop tang, with sour rye background in both aroma and taste. Solid body. Wonderfully different brew! $7.99/4 pack was very reasonable! 9/2/11 Rerate. On my 3rd. case of this since they entered MI. Red amber color and cloudy, chunky, appearance is second to none! Fruity aroma is second only to Two Hearted. Rye adds spiciness. Bitterness is surpassed by only Liberator and Hop Wallop. 8% ABV is more reasonable than some DIPAs.

This is my favorite beer! The hop aroma is excellent, but it doesn’t end there because it is followed up with very nice flavor that you would expect from a double IPA, not too bitter and the flavor lasts well past the drink. And at the end of the night, you will realize that there is more alcohol present.

An 8% alcohol-by-volume nitro-fuel burning, Hopped-Up hot rod of an ale that smacks of hand-crafted quality all the way. It pours with a dark auburn/brown color and produces a very soft, creamy, aromatic foam head. This is a non-filtered ale, so there are some particulates/sediments in the pour, but it is all healthy and should be consumed with gusto. There is some plum-like sweetness initially and then this ale bites back with a bitter yet warm finish. The rye flavor is evident, giving this beer a dark-bread-crust-flavor at mid palate. What really strikes me, though, is this beer’s wonderful balance of sweetness, bitterness, and alcohol strength. As I look, at my now empty but nicely-laced glass, I am quite tempted to add this beer to my Top-10 List. And so I shall.

excellent beer- perfect- the best rye ipa ever.........................yummy................