When I poured the contents it looked very close to an Amber Ale or light colored Brown Ale.  The head was thin and beige and dissipated quickly.  The beer was clear and displayed some great Fall colors.  Behind that it was all aroma.

This aroma was laced with molasses, brown sugar, toffee, caramel, toasty bready notes, and spicy.  Just like the bottle suggested, the chilies gave a nice kick to the aroma without adding “heat or strong chile flavor.”  It paired well with the deeper malt profile adding a little life to the party.  While the color made this beer seem like it was going to be an Amber ale…the aroma suggested a deeper Brown ale.

Interesting!?! That was the first thing I thought after my initial sip.  The chilies were noticeable, but not overpowering dancing delicately in between the smooth malt notes.  Forward hints of caramel and brown sugar lap over the tongue lending a very sessionable quality to this brew.  I found that as I progressed to the back half of this sip, the chilies presented themselves.  Mini darts pricked my palate every so slightly which were then relieved by the sugary malt flavors.  The aftertaste is highlighted by a full salvo of chilies right away and then mellows into a brown sugar, caramel, almost mole flavor.  I really enjoyed this brew and found it to be rather unique.  It reminded me a little of New Holland’s El Mole Ocho beer.

The brewing is hired out to Argus Brewery which is also located in Chicago, IL.

I poured my bomber into a tulip glass, knowing it would open up the nose well. I was not wrong: Shark Attack came out a deep brown/red color, much darker than I expected. This is going to be malty! The head developed nicely, and I could easily smell many different notes in the nose: deep, rich malt and citrus/pine. It smelled … thick. High ABV, highly sweet.

Your palate will be Shark Attacked when you drink this beer. It’s big and bold, which is something that Port does well: super heavy with the malts, which give some toasty caramel and even chocolate flavors to the beer. The beer is no thirst quencher: its high ABV and sweetness make it viscous and chewy. Sure, there are hops. Plenty of Centennial and Cascade, which add a tangy, bitter twinge to the middle and finish of the sip. They linger on the roof of your mouth, while the malts settle everywhere else, and the alcohol provides that familiar warmth as you exhale.

As a big double/imperial beer, Shark Attack comes through. Although I cannot say that I love it personally: it was too heavily malted to really stay a favorite. I think the bold malts and bold hops sort of cancel each other out in some ways, and you’re left with 750mL of heaviness that is super hard to finish. As far as hoppy red ales go, I think lower ABVs and a little more hops make for a real winner.

From the pour I can tell you this is not the darkest looking red ale that I’ve seen. In fact, it looks just likes about the same color as most double IPAs to me. The head is slow to form and does so just enough to let you know it is not a flat beer before it fades off just a slow. There is some lacing as you sip as this beer is rather sticky both in aroma and mouthfeel.

Speaking of which, the aroma is pretty laden with hops. Citrus qualities can be found as they dry hop this beer with Amarillo. A hint of grapefruit, orange juice, and some mango lead the way before the malts catch up.  On the sweeter side of things the malts give off that classic light toasty character with the slightest touch of caramel. There is no abv warmth or heat in the smell. For the most part, although this beer is an imperial red ale, the signature highlights seem a bit muted. As I said, it reminds me more of an imperial/double IPA.

The taste is just as described above. Pretty straight forward. This beer does not pull any fast ones on you from nose to palate. There is a pleasant orange quality that I thoroughly enjoyed towards the middle of the sip. The hopping is not too strong as I was expecting, but it did carry a moderately sticky mouthfeel. The finish is clean bitter wash as a light toasty sweetness settles during the aftertaste. This was an approachable higher abv beer that might be worth checking out as a gateway into bigger beers.

But alas, I must not judge a beer by its bottle and so I must indulge. As I’ve been doing of late, ever since learning the proper pouring technique, I dropped this red ale directly down into the center of my pint. It foamed, as most do, and rapidly settled to about two fingers. It was a nice aspect of the beer, it left breathy tan film around my glass and heaps of head, like surf foam on a beach. The body was rich, a dark mahogany, farther along the journey towards brown than red. In the light, there were glimmers of ruby, too. The hops were present immediately on the nose, but balance was obvious, even before my first sip, as a nutty maltiness reigned in the earthy, piney notes.

I should have known by the head, but this red ale shocked me first with its smoothness. The body was great, filling my mouth with a purposeful recipe of malt and hops. The pine was the second to finish, followed only by a light bark, oaky and dry. As it warmed, the bark-like quality became more refined, more specifically cedar than just plain ol’ bark. The malts were on the heavy side, adding a weight that helped make this a great winter time choice (it is available January-April).

Red Ales make me feel like curling up in the living room, just a few feet from a roaring fire and listening to the sounds of a blustering winter wind. This fine selection from Odell does that in droves, giving me a strong, solid brew founded in malt, but peppered with pops of interest with a fair hop profile. A great balance and a great brew.

Today’s O’so is the Rusty Red. Self described as ‘smooth, malty, rich, bready, balanced, pleasant and harmonious,” this beast has a lot to live up to. Since none of the brewer’s adjectives relate to the appearance of the beer, I’m left to my own devices. It has a tan wisp of a head after a minute or two. The majority of the brew looks like a dirty apple cider, it’s dark orangy-brown and altogether hazy. It smells mostly yeasty, bready, with a tinge of sour nuttiness. Plain, not overly appealing to be honest. That sour nuttiness is forward on the taste. The finish is more cloying than most, dry and that slight sour on the back of my tongue. Unfortunately, I have a checklist of features that this brew should be checking off. Of the aforementioned characteristics, however, bready and perhaps malty, are the only ones that jump out of the glass. The mouthfeel, while not un-smooth, is nothing to brag about and I have had too many good beers to think this one is rich.

I would have loved to love this beer. My first encounter was so positive, but this one I just felt … O’so let down.

Now, to where reviewing gets subjective. I love a good red ale, and this one had all the right elements. In the end, though, it just didn’t thrill me the way an awesome beer usually does. It’s better than your average craft-brewed red ale…perhaps even better than your better-than-average red ale. But it’s lacking a key element, something to push it from great to superb (not sure what that is). In any case, don’t shy away from a bottle if you find one. It’s still delicious. Grade: B+

Taylor: The whole hopped-up red ale style is one I’m really coming to enjoy. This big red brew from Chicago’s own Half Acre Brewing Company (when will they open a brewpub?!) remains true to form: specialty, comes in a bomber, has awesome artwork, and contains a fermented concoction. With preconceived notions about how the perfect India Red Ale should taste (see Grand Teton Pursuit of Hoppiness), we poured this dark, malty-yet-hoppy beverage into our glasses and set upon it. It looks like a through-and-through red ale, and maybe even a little darker still, with a nice big billowing tan head. Very well carbonated. I expected a significant malt presence. But it’s also hopped, so the nose smells of resinous pine.

Considering the hop profile of Half Acre’s Daisy Cutter Pale Ale, I would have to say that I was hoping for more hops in this India Red. The malts are dominant and the hops take a back seat, more of a tempering presence than anything else. I was hoping more hops would bring all of the flavors bursting to the surface but instead it was more subtle. Still, this is a tasty brew. Just not everything I hoped for. And I wish their website told you more about the beer. Grade: B

Capital’s version, dubbed rustic for whatever reason you’d like to dream up, pours in that typical red ale way. Its ‘red’ is more of a pumpkin with a copper lowlights. The head disappeared disappointingly fast, giving me time to take just one perfect picture before it exhausted itself and sighed into a small blob on one side of the rim.

The scent was pleasant and surprising. A burst of sweetness and malt spilled forth initially and in good portion. There was a slight orange rind hint and just enough yeast to make me think I’m making it up. That orange jabs a little harder on the sip, overcome quickly by the army of Washington Island malt. Unfortunately, the overall mouthfeel is flat, unexcited. A slightly bitter linger follows the malty core, but it isn’t enough to spark any more interest from me.

Capital has done some great work on bocks and I have, truly, learned my way around that style a bit due in large part to their introduction. However, this one leaves a lot to be desired. The drinkability that I love in a red is lacking and the heartiness that so often helps to balance feels awkward and heavy.

These were just some of the thoughts swirling around my head last night as I partook of this unexpectedly glorious liquid. It’s called Pursuit of Hoppiness. Need I say more? Well, yes, actually…I do. I had never heard of this beer (or its brewer) until I grabbed the bottle off the shelf a few weeks back, so there’s definitely a shroud of mystery surrounding it. At the very least, its name isn’t being tossed around much here in the Midwest. And it’s certainly not getting mad props like Firestone Walker’s Double Jack, or every Stone beer ever created.

But it should be.

In the words of Grand Teton themselves: “Pursuit of Hoppiness Imperial Red Ale is brewed to showcase the brash beauty of American hops: Summit, Simcoe, Chinook and Nuggets at 100 International Bitterness Units (IBU).” There’s more to it than that, but you catch their drift; they used the word “brash”. From the moment the cap pops off, bold, zesty, spicy, citrusy hops from the American Northwest bombard your senses. To be honest, the intermingling scents were strong enough that my nose was confused at times. Is that cherry I smell? No…roses? No…tangerines? Pine sap? Grapefruit? I’d like to think all of the above. It isn’t the most powerfully dry-hopped beer on the planet, but by merit of the sheer volume of hops used in the brew process, you’ll find a veritable citrus explosion emanating from your glass. And that color…awesome.

Before you taste it, you think you know what’s coming. “I’ve had hoppy beers before,” you tell yourself. “Hopslam? Pliny the Elder? Hop Stoopid? Arctic Panzer Wolf? It can’t be more extreme than those.” And…you’d be right. But this isn’t just your standard ridiculously hoppy beer. It’s not an Imperial Pils, or IPA, or APA, or what have you. It’s an Imperial Red Ale. And as such, it has a certain level of complexity most other insanely hopped beers can’t touch. The hops are still there, sure…bitter and spicy and so juicy you’d swear you were eating them. But beneath the bite is a delicate toastiness, a clean caramel tinge…a nutty, earthy backbone that never leaves. You can tell this ale wasn’t made to just overpower you with hops. It was carefully crafted to be an all-around great beer. As if to prove my point, my parents each took a sip, then promptly poured themselves their own glasses. How many average, non-craft beer crazy Americans can get excited about a 100 IBU beer?

The brewery isn’t well known, the bottle design is reserved, and it’s name is somewhat gimmicky. But I just gave it an A+. So…you know what to do. Grade: A+

John: My favorite beer man recommended I give this a try since I love IPAs. With a name like “The Pursuit of Hoppiness” it was hard to resist so I bought a bomber. It poured with a nice head that stayed around for awhile. The color was a cloudy amber that was appealing to the eye. The aroma lived up to the name–hops! I discovered something in this tasting namely I like citrusy, grapefruity IPAs more than I like caramel leaning IPAs. This beer had the hops but was heavy on the caramel as well. Imagine candied hops and you’ve got it. Not my style. Give me an IPA that shouts hops. Mouthfeel is medium smooth so it’s pleasant. This finishes with a dry, memorable exit. If you like hops and caramels get this. If you are more of the hoppy IPA type try it once to broaden you spectrum. Grade: B+

Taylor: I am in full agreement with Noel’s review. This beer should be judged as a Imperial Red Ale and not an IPA. It is absolutely positively amazing from start to finish. Wow. Grade: A+

Thankfully, I was on to BrewDog before I bought 5 A.M. Saint. I’d seen the Tactical Nuclear Penguin and Sink the Bismarck videos. I knew what they were capable of.

I poured this rather expensive single bottle ($3.19, really?) into a regular pint glass. It was nice and red, with a foamy head, and a sucker punch of hops, right to the nose. They added a lot of finishing hops to this beer: Nelson Sauvin, Simcoe, Cascade, Centennial, and Ahtanum to be precise. Since finishing hops lend to the aroma of a beer, the nose on this one is particularly huge.

As for taste … it is surprisingly more balanced than expected. Without knowing the manner in which this beer was hopped, I would think that most people would expect it to be very hoppy based on the nose alone. But really, the taste is balanced and closer to the classic Amber/Red Ale style. It is malty and crisp, with a twang of hops in the finish that leaves you thirsty for more. I found this beer to be very unique, but also close enough to its style category to merit a higher grade despite the nuance.

At 5.0% ABV, here is a bright, unique Amber Ale that really does buck trends by means of the way it is hopped, but doesn’t sacrifice the style. It seems like BrewDog isn’t just throwing loads of hops into the mix just for the hell of it … perhaps they know a thing or two about the brewing process and are indeed trying to lead people towards a true expansion of the palate. I say, well done.

An Imperial version of the Dry Hopped Saint Rogue Red it is not (although their bottles share the same robed, Jesus-like figure), but the XS Imperial Red still pours a reddish brown color. Different malt and hop recipes set the two apart, and upon first whiff, this XS series reminds me more of Scottish Wee Heavy than a red ale. There’s a roasty, peaty caramel aroma in the nose with a heavy dose of booze. The mouthfeel is a little thinner than one might expect (although at around 8% ABV, it isn’t a very strong Imperial), with a decent bit of carbonation, but the flavors are awesome. You expect it to be sweet but are instead hit with a spicy hop bitterness and hints of chocolate and toffee. That peat-y roastiness lasts through the whole sip, and I still can’t believe this isn’t a Scotch ale. There is also a hint of fig or some other dark fruit in there. It’s all executed so flawlessly, the balance is perfect, and there are no off flavors to speak of. Alcohol lingers in the background throughout, but doesn’t sting your throat. Yum.

Perfect for a snowy day, and dangerously drinkable and refreshing for an Imperial. John Maier does it again. Grade: A

Tom: Topped with a nice tan/reddish head this deep amber brew was the cause of much excitement. I love Rogue’s Red Ales so my hops were high. The aroma was sugary, maple, toasty, caramel, and only had a light fruity hop quality. It did not have the same dry hopped aroma like the other Reds which I found disappointing. Sipping the 7 oz left a very predominate caramel taste similar to that of an Irish Red ale. There was a slight boozy quality towards the latter half of each sip, but for the most part it was fairly tame. I did notice a minor chocolate/biscuit combo mid palate and the hops never really impressed me like I had hoped. Overall, I thought this was closer to wee heavy (80 or 90 schilling). Grade: B