Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye IPA - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

BrownNut

Florida

4.03/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Bottle to nonic, 2012 version, just under 4 weeks old.

Well I don't know what happened. A release-year later and I'm not getting the same impression at all as I did last year. It's still a really nice beer, but gone is the pop and zing and exciting taste. And that unexpected mint/planty note I liked so much only appears here and there across the ones I've bought this year. At this point I'd call it a well-made, moderately-bitter IPA and can't give it the 4.55 I did last time. Now it's a 4.5, 4, 4, 4, 4. Still a good score but I was so looking forward to this release.

Prior reviews below.

Botttle to nonic. 2011 version, 12 weeks old.

A - 4.5 - Amber. Great-looking thick off white head that sticks around a good while. Lots of lacing.

S - 5.0 - Smells fantastic. So fresh and fragrant. Strangely what I'm reminded of vividly is the green planty note in a fresh-picked mint leaf after you roll it around in your fingers or chew on it - it's not the main mint flavor that shows up in mint-flavored everything else, it's the sort of planty carrier flavor in the leaf. They say they use Chinook and "Experimental" hops as their aroma hops, so maybe it's one of those. I've never smelled it in a beer and I love it. Must... find... others... like this...

T - 4.5 - Tastes fantastic. More of that planty green note from the aroma, which is just mouthwateringly delicious, plus moderate hop bitterness in perfect balance with the rest. The hop bitterness couldn't have been handled better. It's artful. I'm not sure I pick up any rye notes, which is surprising given others' comments here. But I'm tasting this beer right next to a Terrapin Rye Pale Ale that isn't giving me any rye notes either where I've noted them before. So maybe my mouth is just having a no-rye day. And I wanted it. I love a nice peppery rye whiskey. Maybe next time. Otherwise it leaves behind a tasteful lingering bitterness.

M - 4.0 - Starts soft, ends tannic dry on the tongue.

O - 4.5 - I'm in love with this brewery. Everything of theirs I've had is just top quality and so well made. This one is a standout even among the others. POW! Freshness! It beats Torpedo, for example, which is really good. This goes on my very short list of beers that I'll buy over and over for regular drinking when I'm not beer exploring.

EDIT: OK just found a lone straggler in a pick-a-six rack from the same batch, now 18 weeks old, and those wonderful hop characteristics are gone. It's still a nice enough beer to drink but it had magic in it before. Night and day difference. If I had only ever tried this bottle, I'd have rated it a 3.5. Next year I'll try to find it as soon as it's out.

Serving type: bottle

01-05-2013 02:14:27 | More by BrownNut

BeerAficionadoMCMXC

California

4.33/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.25

This beer always gives me the knarliest farts. They fucking stink too. The beer's good, and the 6.6% always leaves my liver working hard to make me sober enough to work the next morning. I like the fact that I can drink a bunch of it, fart enough to make my domain a gas chamber, then wake up and walk out of the room without noticing the deadly smell that the beer gave me. It leaves a chalky hungover taste in your mouth after you drink 10 and wake up without brushing your teeth, but that's the life of a true alcoholic. An alcoholic's beer if the ABV were a touch higher and the farts were a bit stinkier.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 07:33:05 | More by BeerAficionadoMCMXC

nick_asian

Nevada

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%

05-19-2013 07:11:41 | More by nick_asian

Budinetz

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +2.3%

05-19-2013 06:55:07 | More by Budinetz

bluestar0828

Virginia

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%

05-18-2013 21:10:51 | More by bluestar0828

jbarletto

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

05-18-2013 15:05:08 | More by jbarletto

mattsucks

Ohio

3/5  rDev -23.3%

05-18-2013 14:10:30 | More by mattsucks

beernads

Florida

3/5  rDev -23.3%

05-18-2013 06:58:11 | More by beernads

anewlanguage

Massachusetts

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%

05-17-2013 22:31:18 | More by anewlanguage

Newenglandcraftbrew

Maine

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%

05-17-2013 21:18:44 | More by Newenglandcraftbrew

BeerRefugee

Oklahoma

3.44/5  rDev -12%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Pours a light copper color. Moderate off-white head with good retention and moderate lacing. Medium rye and herbal hops in the aroma. Flavor is mild caramel malt, grassy and piney hops and a moderate dose of rye. The spiciness of the rye and bitterness of the hops predominate--I would have liked a bit more malt for some sweetness and balance. This is a beer that couldn't really decide what it wants to be--it needs more hops and rye to be a really aggressive rye IPA. Or it needs more caramel sweetness to be a more "mainstream" beer. Instead, they split the difference and the result, while good, is not as good as it could have been.

Serving type: bottle

05-17-2013 21:05:43 | More by BeerRefugee

Xzfgiimtsath

Texas

4/5  rDev +2.3%

05-17-2013 12:45:38 | More by Xzfgiimtsath

somethingcreative

Indiana

3.25/5  rDev -16.9%

05-17-2013 01:01:53 | More by somethingcreative

AL89BR

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%

05-16-2013 23:04:07 | More by AL89BR

mverity

Florida

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

05-16-2013 21:39:40 | More by mverity

InspectorBob

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%

05-16-2013 21:33:01 | More by InspectorBob

ajtorres311

Florida

3.25/5  rDev -16.9%

05-16-2013 15:38:34 | More by ajtorres311

Achilles811

North Carolina

3/5  rDev -23.3%

05-15-2013 23:41:20 | More by Achilles811

firstlighthiker

Tennessee

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

05-15-2013 21:45:57 | More by firstlighthiker

twenty5

Pennsylvania

3.75/5  rDev -4.1%

05-15-2013 18:30:39 | More by twenty5

CoreyClark

New York

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

05-15-2013 17:39:23 | More by CoreyClark

JG_McNaulty

Ontario (Canada)

3.5/5  rDev -10.5%

05-15-2013 13:52:59 | More by JG_McNaulty

jburd19

Ohio

4.25/5  rDev +8.7%

05-14-2013 19:14:27 | More by jburd19

Bustersuess

New York

4/5  rDev +2.3%

05-14-2013 19:10:31 | More by Bustersuess

Rob315

Kentucky

4/5  rDev +2.3%

05-14-2013 18:15:19 | More by Rob315