Love At First Bike - Sierra Nevada Brewing Co.

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

3.64/5  rDev -1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Originally brewed to celebrate the wedding of Gina and Brian Grossman, who first met on the famed Sierra Nevada beer bike at GABF, this red ale features five different hops and malts. The beer will walk you down the aisle with tastes of biscuit, caramel and berry, which is balanced nicely by a generous kiss of citrus from the use of whole cone hops. That's the brewery write up, here's mine.

At 5.7abv and 49ibu, it was going to be interesting to try a more traditional red ale again, instead of the imperial reds that have flooded the market the last couple of years. Nice clarity, equal parts red and amber. Drank at the brewery restaurant. Aroma was a little muted, didn't have that aroma I can't describe but appears frequently with red ales, but it also didn't have the sweetness that a good one could, the hopping, truly is minimal for a Sierra Nevada brew.

Taste wise, much better, the malt sweetness and citrus hops are in balance, for real this time. A little more substantial than a crowd pleaser, this is a sessionable beer for sure. Easily drank mine, enjoyed it, definitely one of the better red ales out there, imagine the hop schedule was similar to SNPA.

Serving type: on-tap

01-23-2013 16:57:29 | More by Beerandraiderfan

DMc8ride

Maryland

3.75/5  rDev +1.4%

03-28-2013 22:06:51 | More by DMc8ride