Southern Tier Big Red

Pours a translucent cooper color. I was expecting a little more red :) Not that much aroma. Nice balance, not too bitter. Tasted a little earthy. Pretty solid brew, I wouldn’t have guessed it was 9.5% I thought it was average.

22oz Bomber $5.99 Sam’s Marcey I’ve enjoyed Southern Tier’s offerings so much I was pretty excited to come across Big Red. Leaves the glass a surprisingly clear highly polished copper. Tiny carbonation bubbles chase each other up the sides of the glass. The head grew to two fingers of cotton white creaminess on the pour before falling to a thick crown and leaving patchy lacing on it’s way down. I was surprised to read on the side of the bottle this is brewed and dry-hopped only with Hallertau. Although there’s the (Hallertau) usual suspects, spicy and earthy, there seems to be a melon like fruitiness in there s well. Muskmelon is what comes to mind which I’m sure is the earthiness I seem to find in muskmelons. The Hallertaus are front and center but there is a solid toasted malt presence that trys balancing things out but falls just shy. The spiciness of the Hallertaus adds something unique to a big red ale. The toasted maltiness is certainly there and balances out the spicy earthiness from the hop addition. When I first bought this beer I expected to get a hugely hoppy red ale. Instead, I got a red ale double the size. This is certainly another unique beer from Southern Tier. They hide their alcohol better than any other brewery I’ve yet to come across. With the slow moving carbonation this beer appears to be pretty thick. When you drink it’s actually smooth and moves a little quicker than I expected. Mouthfeel is on the thicker side of medium with a coating mouthfeel. This is an easy one to put away. The fact that it’s just a bigger red and there’s no alcohol present it goes down way too easy. I hate to sound cliche but this is one of those dangerously drinkable beers. Another winner from Southern Tier. Although this beer is a big red ale it’s totally different from all the other big, boisterous, hoppy reds available. While I like those big hoppy reds this is just a high quality expertly brewed red. I’ll follow these guys wherever they go. 12/29/07

Far from the best Southern Tier beer I’ve had, but still not bad. Red and transparent, but not brilliant like most other Southern Tier beers I’ve had. Aroma is a bit hoppy and contains a malty bitter. Flavor is a bit metallic, full maltiness which to me comes across as non-hoppy bitterness, but there’s also a good amount of hop. Mouthfeel is what I’d expect from an amber, and unremarkable but not bad. I’d weakly recommend this beer. I bought this 22oz bottle at 3 Cellars in Franklin, WI.

I was a little bummed with this one. Came out looking a little too thin and watery. Maybe like cranberry juice with water, but not as red. Its got some hops, but its a little too bland. I feel the "imperial" word is used too much, and this is a good example.

Bomber, a few degrees above the recommended 42. Not red, but orange/brown in color. Looks thick. Not much aroma, but what’s there is citrusy (oranges?), grassy and floral. It says 93 IBUs, but that’s more than balanced by the maltiness. Sweet, grainy, and spicy on the tongue. Body is pretty full with soft carbonation. It doesn’t feel like 9% ABV, but the thick body would slow me down.

Peppery ,spicey ,Hallertau hops dominate the aroma, hard for anything else to make its presence known, get this aroma of pennies, and a little malt in background, Taste is sweet malts and tangy hop balance,I like all the hops but the flavors seem to clash somewhat,doesn’t seem to be a real balance , fine only because I’m a hophead

Malt and hop balanced aroma. Not that Big of an aroma though. Taste is sweet bigger than aroma. Nice hop balance, not too bitter. Caramel sweetness, smooth, hides alcohol well. Reddish brown color nice head, retains well. Pretty nice red.

Poured from a 22oz bomber and served in a shaker. This beer poured a clear, dark amber color with a one-finger thick head of beige foam that slowly settled into a thin layer. Some decent lacing coated the glass. The aroma of the beer was made up of mild caramel, grapefruit and floral hops. The flavor included a dull, dry bitterness, along with some unsweetened caramel notes, and a touch of alcohol. A bit lifeless and flat. The mouthfeel was full-bodied and oily with minimal carbonation. Drinkable, but the flavor was just plain boring.