Great Divide Ridgeline Amber Ale (Arapahoe Amber)

Pours a sharp clear amber. Medium head that fades rather quickly. Decent carbonation. Not much action with the aroma and taste. Mild malts. Not bad.

Why this beer is rated so lowly I cannot fathom. 12 oz. bottle. Foamed a little upon opening. Poured a clear copper tangerine color with an average, mostly lasting and very creamy light custard colored head. Excellent lacing. Medium malty aroma with the distinct impression of fresh pretzels. Light yeastiness of dough and soap and some light pine and citrus hoppy smells balance things out nicely. Flavor is lightly sweet and lighty bitter with a noteably smooth maltiness. This amber’s mouthfeel demostrates its quality best. Medium to full bodied with lively carbonation and a thick creamy feel. Really superb, and quite a bit more than I was expecting, even from a good brewer like GD. Not to be missed.

Bottle. Pours an amber colour with an off-white head. Malty aroma with some hints of caramel. Sweet malty flavor. Has some hints of caramel. Malty aftertaste with almost no bitterness.

Bottle. Not bad - just nothing special. Pretty appearance with deep amber color. Good feel in the mouth - medium body. Just no flavor. Still I didn’t hate it. Just not great.

The Ridge Line was just alright for me. The pour was a nice golden brown with a bit of orange in the color. There was a white head that left some minimal lacing on the glass. The aroma was pretty bland, and so was the flavor I thought. I love this style, and I felt that there should have been something more in the flavor than I found. The taste was malty, with just a bit of hopiness to help out--but once again--nothing profound."

A very sweet, cake batter aroma. Odd pour - this filled a squat hourglass plisner glass 100% with beady foam and no liquid beer. When things finally condensed, the beer was a lightly hazy copper. Bad label. Sure enough, when sipping the beer from the bottle, the beer was hypercarbonated. Nutty, distinctly nutty. Dry, food beer. Faint cocoa cookie aftertaste. Not very hoppy. Bitterness is from the malt.

From a long neck 12 oz. brown bottle with a notched bottled along the right side of label, Feb/week 3. Made a decent appearance, poured a hazy reddish copper with a foamy head that settled into a thin lacing, minimal amount of sticking, good carbonation. Had a caramel and nutty nose with leafy herbal hoppiness at the edges. A semi-crisp, chewy and smooth medium bodied mouthfeel, above average drinkability. Nutty caramel malts with a very subtle fruitiness that is gently broke up with soft herbal tea bitterness, a little dry leafy as well and a sweet tea and nutty finish. An o.k. Scottish Ale/Amber Ale, a nice change of pace from a good Colorado brewery, but not something I would want on a regular basis.

Bottle. Dark golden in colour with a small head. Malty and sweet. Notes of caramel and a slight hint of hops.