Bear Republic Red Rocket Ale

Brewed by Bear Republic Brewing Company
Style: American Strong Ale
Healdsburg, California USA

Serve in Snifter, Trappist glass

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Dark reddish-brown with a tan foamy head that laces nicely. You can detect the bitter hops and sweet malt in the aroma and it does not dissapoint in the mouth. Excellent creation, enjoyed very much.

Beautiful clear reddish brown color with a creamy off white head - good lacing. Nice balance between toasted malt sweetness and hop bitterness, certainly well-hopped but not overbearing. Very enjoyable.

nice strong hoppy flavor, wonderful dark blood ruby color, a nice smooth flavor, sweetly scented

Reddish brown color with a nondesipating white head. Smells hoppy, sweet and carmel. Taste bitter spicey hops and a medicine taste.

An amber color with an off white head. A malty hop aroma with hints of citrus and an almost metallic nose. A little spicey with hops and a nice caramel malt.

UPDATED: NOV 24, 2003 Wasn't anything like I expected but completely satisfied none the less. Not your typical Red Ale, more like a cross between a Red Ale and A Porter. Poured thick with a beautiful fluffy head and thick lacing around the glass as I drank it. In fact, I was really impessed by the thickness of the lacing and the beautiful almost mountainess head. Tasted real nice with a great balance of hops (just enough to provide some fragrance and bitterness) and malt which was of a toasty smoky Stout like roast. This was my first encounter with Bear Republic and surely a sign of good things to come.

This had an odd oily pour, very stout like. A caramel color beer with a medium light tan lasting head. Initially floral hops aroma with layers of malt, toffee, and brown sugar. A subtly sweet malt/toffee taste dominated by hops, but not overpowered by them. Chewy. Finish is residual hops that do not leave the mouth dry. Refreshing if you can get by its thinly veiled comparison to a Scottish ale. Take care to keep the yeast in the bottle as this makes this a bitingly bitter beer.

Dark ruby. Very hoppy aroma. Flavor has more character than the aroma would suggest. Some smoke. Good stuff.

UPDATED: FEB 6, 2004 -Bear Republic comes in with another heavyweight. This time they've taken a rightfully obscure style, Scottish Ale, and turned it into a mandatory periodic purchase. The hops blast is a fantastic counterpunch to the rich malt profile. It's a malt profile that stands by itself... which is so unlike the malt profiles of other Scottish Ales that tend to get lost in the "smokiness" of the style and ultimately come across as thin. Not the Red Rocket, there is a concerted effort by the hops, malt, and alcohol in attacking the smokiness. Ultimately, the forces of good (hops, malt, and alcohol) win out over the forces of evil (uninspired thinness of character typical of the style). The result is a full-spectrum completeness that has been begging for years from this style. ........................ Mixing notes: With Red Rocket the hops do a fine job of wiping the smoke off the palate, like ginger at a sushi bar. If you're looking to linger over the smoke as it usually carries over between sips of Scottish Ale then forget about it. However, since the beer has a very resinous (but not oily or slick) character it can be used to some advantage when exploring the malt profiles of other beers... maibocks, in particular. My favorite combo is a 22oz Rocket followed by a bottle of Ayinger Maibock. I'm not sure what it is but the malt flavor that comes out of the Ayinger after drinking a Rocket is nothing short of fantastic. And the effect lasts throughout the whole bottle of maibock... such is the "lingering" nature of the Rocket (what do you know, it's a Scottish Ale after all). Finally, both of these dogs clock in at 6.8% ABV and after the first round your mental acuity becomes inversely related to the volume of your voice.

Hoppy aroma. Very smoky malt flavor. Hoppy finish but well balanced. Burnt malt flavor gives this beer some character.