Loco Imperial Red - Iron Horse Brewery

jdense

Oregon

3.65/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

22 oz. bottle poured into Piraat snifter purchased from some store in the Tri-Cities area.

Deep amber body, tan semi-rocky finger and a half head with quick dissipation, decent lacing. Spicy hops in the nose with some bready malts present. Prominent hop presence on the taste buds, piney, a bit of citrus, malts fairly well hidden, not real balanced. Nice carbonated mouthfeel. At this ABV, and given lack of balance, one is enough, thanks. After recently drinking HUB's GABF winning Red and Laurelwood's awesome Deranger, to be honest, this isn't in the same league. Worth a try, but not one I'll seek out again.

Serving type: bottle

10-16-2009 01:04:21 | More by jdense

beefandbean22

Washington

4/5  rDev +10.2%

11-23-2011 19:35:33 | More by beefandbean22

rrock44

Washington

4/5  rDev +10.2%

11-15-2011 01:54:50 | More by rrock44

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

2.83/5  rDev -22%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured out a dark red and brown, didn't really look the part of a red. First time having it in the bottle, had it on tap before at the fresh hop festival, that beer was so awful, I decided to age this one for almost 1.5 years.

Aroma, sweet, almost wine like. A thin beer, an appreciable degree of malt and tannins to it, didn't pick up hops at this age, but didn't come across very sweet or boozy either. Buttery and infected notes were no longer here. Would really compare this to a thin bodied red table wine more than anything.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2011 18:05:54 | More by Beerandraiderfan

RomaniIteDomum

Florida

4.05/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Yet another brew shared at a local tasting.

Pours a nice red color with a lively head.

Smells sweet with a nice hoppy balance.

This has a nice flavor with a good hop presence and a great malt balance.

Full bodied and easy to drink.

This is a very drinkable beer. Good, but not really too memorable.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2010 22:54:09 | More by RomaniIteDomum

barleywinefiend

Washington

4/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Poured a deep reddish color with good carbonation and a nice white head

S:Sweet, bread, and more bitter hops than i expected

T; Some caramel, bread, booze anf has a sharp hop bitterness

M: Creamy with booze, bittering but not bad

D: Good beer overall

Serving type: on-tap

05-09-2010 14:18:13 | More by barleywinefiend

ccrida

Oregon

3.9/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bomber poured into a tumbler, Brass Ass is a hazy, ruddy brown with an off-white head leaving scattered lace.

Smell is a slightly sweet, with a sour citrus hop punch, a bit of a grass compost note.

Taste is heavier on the maltiness, the citrus hops definately provide a nice counter, but it's closer to a big amber then a red IPA. Not that there's anything wrong with that! On either side of the spectrum, it's a style I really enjoy, although honestly closer to the red IPA side (which this very well may have been freshly made vs. this bottle from the shelf at whole foods). Nice fruity aftertaste, a of mix of apricot english ale esters and malty sweetness.

Mouthfeel is on the thicker side, but a nice creaminess to it.

Drinkability is pretty good, a satisfyingly sturdy big red. I prefer a more extreme DIPA like hoppiness to cut the viscosity, but the strength is generally well hidden, and overall, it was enjoyable, although I'm not in a huge hurry to seek this out again, unless I caught it on draught at it's freshest (which this for all I know may very well be).

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2010 07:00:57 | More by ccrida

tiffanya

Washington

3.5/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12-oz bottle from 99 Bottles in Federal Way, Wash. sampled on May 6, 2008. Now 22-oz are available no longer in 12-oz'ers.

A robust amber. Creamy mouthfeel. Bitter start moves toward malty sweetness with notes of brown sugar, caramel, and nuts. Bittering piney hops become secondary focus (behind the malts) as the beer becomes more smooth and malt-focused as it moves toward room temperature.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2010 21:27:53 | More by tiffanya

EliottJW

California

3.9/5  rDev +7.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours nicely, almost looks like a cider. Decent head that subsides rather quickly.

Smells solid enough. Bready and sweet... Though it's a touch funky. I almost expect it to be a little sour.

A little estery. I expect to read that it was brewed with some sort of fruit. Ends with that bread that I get in the nose.

Mouth is probably my favorite part of this beer. Medium bodied and creamy as I'd like. Drinks as a solid beer drinks.

I could drink this stuff for a while. Not my favorite ever, but I definitely like it. It's an interesting drink.

Serving type: bottle

10-18-2009 03:10:10 | More by EliottJW

loren01

Oregon

3.73/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A: Pours a reddish color into pint glass, one finger witdth frothy white head, good lace down the glass
S: Smell is dominated by piney hoppiness, and slight fruity (pineapple/pear) scents
T: Caramel malt up front followed by a huge piney bite at the end
M: Medium bodied beer, perfect amount of carbonation as far as I'm concerned for this style.
D: Pretty darn good double red ale, this one grew on me the more I drank of it...I would buy this in the future for sure.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2009 04:37:33 | More by loren01

snaotheus

Washington

4/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

22 oz bottle picked up at Iron Horse Brewery -- which, by the way, serves beer (doesn't look like it's listed as a location here on BA). Drank it out of a hotel's cheap plastic cups.

Anyway, Pours a dark ambery-red with a couple fingers of head. Probably very lacy, but hard to evaluate in a plastic hotel cup. Smells rich and hoppy and toffee-ish.

Taste is dominated by toffee and hops. Sweetness and thick maltiness are in the background, and maybe a little woodsmoke.

Feels thick and heavy in the mouth, but has nice carbonation. Enjoyable -- would (and will) have again.

If someone feels like going through the pain of cropping-scaling-sizing, I'll send a photo to upload.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2009 06:03:33 | More by snaotheus

richtersf

Oregon

2.58/5  rDev -28.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

burnt copper red with slightly off white one-finger head that disappears almost completely

big malt smell, id say almost rusty

tastes immediately malty, with a good hop middle and metallic finish that reminds me of busch light

mouthfeel is light to medium with far too much carbonation that ruins the entire experience for me.

very drinkable, i could probably down a few of these 22 oz bottles but i'd search out better beer first. not impressed. bummer

Serving type: bottle

05-04-2009 03:47:31 | More by richtersf

RedDiamond

Oregon

3.58/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Looks like Loco Imperial is the same beer as Iron Horse's Locomotive Ale. New name, new label, same brew. Loco's a nice beer but it's new configuration brings no discernable improvement and it turns out my numeric evaluation of it is remarkably similar to my old review of Locomotive. The beer is clear tawny with lively carbonation and a cherry-pine aroma with notes of gum wrapper sweetness. Loco is enjoyable if somewhat generic in its balance with some cola-pumpernickel taste and grassy bittering. The body is notably full.

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2009 02:51:34 | More by RedDiamond

beertunes

Washington

3.6/5  rDev -0.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into bubble pint glass. A deep Amber/bright red color, very attractive. A medium khaki head that dissipated quickly, leaving a lovely, sticky lacing. Nothing noticeable in the aroma, just an average West Coast hop first, malt second impression. Solid tasting, very enjoyable, but not special. A very nice hop tang, could use a little more malt foundation. Very nice body, with that hop tang dominating. Nicely drinkable, I could see myself sticking with this beer throughout an evening at the bar while listening to Chuckanut Drive. A solid beer, worth seeking out.

Serving type: growler

02-07-2009 11:06:39 | More by beertunes

RJLarse

Washington

3.35/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

I bought a bomber of Loco Imperial Red Ale at a grocery store. Poured in to a pint glass.

Pours a brilliant garnet red/amber color and is clear. A one fingre creamy beige head caps the brew, and melts away quickly to a frothy ring around the side of the glass. Some bubbles can be seen rising in the glass.

Smell is a sweet caramelized grain aroma, with a little brandy scent, and maybe some peat and pine needles along side.

Taste is a caramel malt flavor, almost immediately overtaken by a citrus hoppy bitterness, mild grapefruit, then giving way to the sweet caramel finish and a bitter aftertaste.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with mild carbonation and a little heat.

A drinkable red ale, but not particularly sessionable. I think the ABV is a little high for the style, I usually like to find red ale in the 5% - 6% range. But I would have this again if presented.

Serving type: bottle

01-26-2009 00:01:51 | More by RJLarse

froghop

Washington

3.35/5  rDev -7.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

pours a cloudy copper-orange with a very small light beige head, above average lacing.

smell of citrus, hops, and come caramel.

taste is watery yet sticky, hoppy, caramel, a bit of grapefruit in the back, ends a little bitter.

overall a average brew that is on the hoppy side.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2008 04:36:59 | More by froghop