Marble Red Ale - Marble Brewery

brentk56

North Carolina

4.43/5  rDev +8.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Pours a clear caramel with a huge tan head; the retention was solid as was the lacing

Smell: The caramel malt and piney, earthy hops to provide a unique aroma that has elements of chocolate and pipe tobacco

Taste: The unusual combination detected on the nose jumps out on the taste buds, with the hops adding an earthy and fruity dimension by mid-palate; after the swallow, the caramel and chocolate flavors emerge to balance out the bitter flavors; pipe tobacco elements linger in the finish

Mouthfeel: Medium body with moderate carbonation

Overall: Quite the surprise to discover a Red ale with a totally unique flavor profile; really enjoyed this beer

Thanks, sunkistxsudafed, for the opportunity

Serving type: bottle

02-16-2012 01:37:29 | More by brentk56

oberon

North Carolina

3.98/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4

Poured into a standard pint glass a clear medium amber color with a half finger off white head atop that was gone pretty quickly.A healthy dose of fruity hops hit ya in the nose along with caramel malt but not overly sweet smelling,the hops win out.Like the aromas a good shot of fruity hops at the onset of the palate,not bitter just lightly sweet fruitiness,light roast and caramel malt make it balanced.I like a good hopped up red and this quite good,it seems smaller than it's abv,just a slight sharpness in the mouth keeps it from being 4's across the board.

Serving type: bottle

05-08-2013 21:13:48 | More by oberon

TMoney2591

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev -14%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Served in a GameWorks shaker pint glass.

Thanks to papollo for this bottle!

This is, I'm sure this time, the last of my New Mexico stash from Paul. What a ride. This one pours a clear deep sunset amber topped by a half-finger of short-lived ecru foam. The nose is rather hop-forward, focusing on the citrus end of the spectrum, with a bit o' frosty caramel tossed in for good measure. The taste echoes the smell, leading with a stiff shot of orange peel; light caramel brings up the rear, rounding things out but not able to really assert itself to any appreciable degree. The body is a heavy light, with a moderate carbonation and a dry finish. Overall, an alright brew, but not really doing it for me.

Serving type: bottle

10-09-2010 00:12:50 | More by TMoney2591

Gueuzedude

Arizona

4.05/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

A soft pour into my large Tripel Karmeliet tulip produces a one finger thick, nicely tanned head. The beer is a dark, concentrated red hue that shows a clear, bright ruby hue when held up to the light. Ahh, the aroma is explosively hoppy, this is most certainly not a malt focused, forgettable "Red-Ale"; packed with enough hops to scream look at me. Aromas of dank herbaceousness, fresh cut pine needles, spicy-oily citrus, dirty grapefruit, lychee, big tangelo zest aromatics and, quite simply, a note that smells characteristically of "hemp" that it makes me think I have become lost in some hippy party.

The beer is quite bitter tasting, and much more light bodied than I was expecting; but that makes for extreme quaffability. Despite the rich color the malt character plays a much subdued role here; much of this is just a perception because of the over-the-top hop character that contributes flavors of pine sap, dank hemp oil, green tobacco, and a biting herbal, peppery bitterness. A secondary hop character of grapefruit, lychee, and bright bergamot is noticeable just behind the herbal hop character. There is actually a little bit malty, even if it is quite subdued; there are touches of toasted malt, some light caramelized malt character as well as a nicely caramelized biscuit note that are just barely noticeable as the beer warms up a bit more. The malt tends to linger in the finish after the abrasive hop character has had a chance to dissipate.

Wow, what an aggressively hoppy beer; I was expecting this to be hoppy, but the hop character has completely drowned out the malts that are only noticeable because of the rich color that this beer has. This might even be more hoppy than the IPA, at least to my poor shocked tasted buds that were expecting a somewhat malt balanced beer. This is a fantastically tasty, if you are a die-hard hophead. This is definitely not the most balanced beer, nor is it delicate and soft, make not mistake this is an in your face, harsh, explosive, celebration of the hop. This is a definitely must try session beer for the hop-heads out there.

Serving type: bottle

06-28-2010 03:12:14 | More by Gueuzedude

mactrail

California

3.1/5  rDev -23.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.5

Amazingly hoppy for an alleged Red Ale. Astringent and woody flavors followed by a big bitterness. A reddish amber color in the wine glass. Big foamy head. Some hints of roasted malt and a mere touch of caramel with the espresso bitterness taking over. Some kind of medicinal aftertaste.

Big, big hoppy red for the big hophead. This is an attractive and fragrant beer, but so overly bitter on top of the faint malt that I find it undrinkable.

Serving type: bottle

07-13-2011 04:29:53 | More by mactrail

twiggamortis420

Texas

4.47/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

12 oz bottle pours an absolutely crystal clear, bright maroon color with a huge topping of creamy tan foam. Retention is awesome, as is the lacing. This is a stunning looking beer, wow.

Nose is bright tropical citrusy hops, big time. Highly roasted, if not burnt biscuit malt creeps in a little bit, but hops are pretty insane on the nose. Right up there with the best of red/imperial red ales on the smell.

Taste is more about hop flavor than bitterness, but man is it fresh and deliciously juicy. Resinous citrus and ganja flavors abound with a really nice, clean finish. Malt plays a nice role and provides some toast and sweetness. Body is light enough to be refreshing and I like the relatively low ABV compared to the likes of Stone 13 and Lagunitas Lucky 13. This is quite a surprising and amazing beer to come out of Albuquerque. Hopefully more people out there get to try this one.

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2010 22:41:17 | More by twiggamortis420

StonedTrippin

Colorado

4.13/5  rDev +1.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

incredible red! love love this one from marble. pours a sunrise red color with a rising tan foam head that lasts. reeks of caramel malts and tropical fruity hops. flavor is surprisingly hoppy for a red, a lot like the odell's version in that respect. the profile is passion fruit and tangerine, which plays all kinds of tricks on the heavier malts. this beer has a lot going on! feel is really nice too, great carbonation makes the medium to fuller body feel quite approachable and sessionable. marble continues to impress me, and this might be my favorite yet. a very very well made glass of beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2012 23:52:35 | More by StonedTrippin

merlin48

Kentucky

4.1/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Sixpack at the Bearden Beer Market in Knoxville, Tn. Pours a clear copper body with a tall beige head. Very good retention and some sticky patch lacing on the glass.

Aroma is hoppy grapefruit, orange rind, and some toasted caramel.

Mouthfeel has a medium body and carbonation and some hop oiliness.

Taste is on the hoppy side for a red ale. Crystal, Cascade, and Simcoe are put to good use here. Grapefruit and lemon rind bitterness combine with a mintiness to give the toasted caramel malt base a run for its money. Tasty and well balanced.

Certainly one of the hoppier red ales I've tried. Goes down easy.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2011 01:08:00 | More by merlin48

onix1agr

Pennsylvania

4.4/5  rDev +8.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

12oz bottle into a pint glass thanks to oglmcdgl.

Bursting out from the bottle Marble's Red Ale is red indeed with some brown tints showing up as well. A nice huge, tight, tannish/beige whisp of foam up above leaving patterns of lace, Sticks around.

I was expecting a stinker as in old pale malt but I am greeted with a bouquet of aroma hops leading into rich caramel and a bit of pine. A great mix between malt and hops, I cant tell who wins. A bit of cocco with warming.

This is by god good beer and it tastes like it. Noticing that the bottled on date is less than a month old helps out. Starts off hoppy, simcoe and the like, some citrus some pine. Some malt in the middle and I taste some crystal malts which always helps things out.

Always lets you know it's there with every sip. My 1st sip, I was blown away by flavor and it stung my tounge a bit. The carb is at a perfect level for where the body is at which is also kinda perfect. When did this brewery pop up, they do good work.

This is what a red ale should be, a fighting race between the hop taste and malt sweetness to keep things in line, with neither really winning in the end. Not sessionable in alcohol size but I would not mind drinking a sixer of this. Hey Marble, come to Philly, we will take care of you.

Im not sure how long marble has been around, but im guessing kinda new since I've never heard of them. What impresses me is the craft that went into this and the bottle on date which is still an issue with many bigger breweries to employ. If I had a choice between this and lets say any Ballast point products, I would choose this in a heartbeat, just for the up front nature of the date.

Serving type: bottle

05-03-2011 04:41:05 | More by onix1agr

ArrogantB

Colorado

3.68/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Picked up a sixer of this along with the IPA, solid beer. Nice dark red color, hefty head. Smells like hops woven around a real nice maltiness, pine too which I did not get from the IPA. Taste is chewy malt, more pine but the hoppiness is not jarring and is well integrated into the beer. You definitely notice it but it never takes over. Nice stuff.

Serving type: bottle

04-18-2012 04:14:44 | More by ArrogantB

Reagan1984

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +10.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Continuing my beer journey through New Mexico. I've already reviewed the Marble IPA and really enjoyed it. But, I think I like this hoppy red even more. In some slight ways reminded me of Nugget Nectar.

Beautiful beer. Pours with a nice 2 finger off white head. Nice and creamy and still it collapses upon its own weight. Excellent clumpy lacing. Deep amber color, certainly some reddish/maroon tints.

Aroma is bright, fresh and full of hops. Pine like with a small amount of sweetness. There is certainly a sense of the malt in the aroma. Slightly toasty.

Flavor is fantastic and in my eyes very well balanced. Big hop punch up front followed by a nice toasted malt flavor.  While there is a pine note still, I get more citrus peel in the flavor. A real toasted sense to the malt flavor. Dark crusty bread with hop bitterness in the aftertaste. I really like this.

Slightly carbonated, medium bodied. A little oily.

I found this to be wonderfully drinkable. Another of my favorites in the Hoppy/Red category.

Well done and I continue to be impressed with Marble.

Serving type: on-tap

04-11-2010 23:53:49 | More by Reagan1984

BeerAdvocate

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Review from BeerAdvocate Magazine Issue #38 (Mar 2010):

From the sticky sea foam lacing to the stunningly clear brownish-red hue, this beer is a treat to look at. Orangey minty hop aromas wrap around a tight package of caramel malti- ness, flaunted by the very smooth, lush and semi-creamy medium body. Heavy load of cara- mel and a bit of juiciness meets the sharp bite of hop bitterness to make for a very balanced beer. Some toasted breadiness pushes up against the lingering orange rind hop flavor, with some fruitiness in the middle. Ghost-like roasted tone in the semisweet, bitter finish.

We love us some old-school Red Ales, all hoppy and everything, with the malt to back it all up. Seriously good beer here.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2011 02:07:59 | More by BeerAdvocate

Phelps

Arizona

4.15/5  rDev +2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Looks: irrepressible. The beer pours a lovely light mahogany with hues of dark orange tippling about. A tightly woven head of light peach sits atop, reluctant to leave, while battalions of bubbles rise to meet it. I let the beer warm for a good ten minutes and the head doesn't even budge. Spotted lace in varied shapes and sizes, from tracks to webs to full sheets. Glorious.

Smells: straightforward. Grapefruit citrus with some piney spice mixed in and backed by sweet caramel and honey-glazed toasted biscuits.

Tastes: solid. Perfect blend of citrus and pine in the hops, with a bitterness that's dialed back to an acrid tinge at the back of the tongue, reminding of orange pith. Sweet raw sugar, maybe a bit of caramel malt. Every now and then I get the flavor of a handful of skittles. More like an IPA than a red, but it's still a good flavor. A nice bready biscuit flavor comes out more as the beer warms, but more malt would be desired.

Feels: dulcet. Medium carbonation, with a soft feel just a shade under medium. A little tongue-numbing.

Drinks: like hoppy red ale -- the best kind.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2010 07:37:43 | More by Phelps

EgadBananas

Louisiana

3.98/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a brilliant ruby color, with a nice finger of off white head. Little bit of retention, and lacing.

Smells of straight bitterness. Not floral, or citrusy. Just hop bitter. It's great. There is a fir malty tone as well. Balance is not forgotten.

Taste is malty and bitter, head to head, grudge match to the death. Equal parts here, or maybe slight hop profile is more pronounced. Either way, its a great red.

The feel is light to medium body, with a noticable smoothness.

Drinkability is great, and very easy to keep em coming.

Serving type: bottle

07-24-2010 06:19:02 | More by EgadBananas

arizcards

Arizona

4.28/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Picked up at Papago Brewing as part of a mixed Marble sixer in early March for $10.00.

Beer poured an amber red with a solid tan head that is leaving lacing behind.

Nose is toasted grains, nuts, with a slight hint of hops.

Taste is a mouthful of chewy caramel malts well balanced by citrus and piney hops.

Mouthfeel is full and luscious, surprising given the abv is not that big.

Overall this is a very good beer, drinks like a double red, plenty of flavor to go around in a beer that is not that big.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2011 00:20:01 | More by arizcards

yemenmocha

Arizona

4/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a crimson red with generous head that leaves plenty of lace. Nose has plenty of toffee and candied citrus. On the palate the toffee comes through again with passion fruit citrus to balance. Has that "juicy fruit" flavor to it. Medium to light bodied and easy drinking.

Serving type: bottle

05-09-2010 02:41:18 | More by yemenmocha

Ryan011235

Ohio

3.63/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On tap in a tall mug on 3/5/10 at Fox & Hound Pub, Albuquerque, NM

Medium brown with tobacco burst hues. Clear. Thin head with skim retention. Not much lace.

Lots of floral hops in the nose. Smells kind of juicy. Light candied notions. Earthy hops, too. Caramel malt is prominent though there is subtle breadiness.

Tastes plenty earthy with a showing of pine bitterness. Dry. Smooth caramel and bread. Manages to avoid being too sweet. Strangely, there are mild hints of fruit a slightly roasted twinge. Perhaps Scottish malt? Unsweetened chocolate and a hint of espresso toward the back end.

Medium-full body with an even, coating feel that lingers on the finish. Carbonation offers moderate agitation.

Overall impression: quite good. Happy to have tried it.

Serving type: on-tap

07-05-2011 23:59:29 | More by Ryan011235

GilGarp

Colorado

4.03/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle served cold into a goblet.

Marble Red is a deep redish brown with good clarity. The head is thick and settles slowly leaving spoty lace behind.

Aroma is malty sweet with a heavy dose of British and Northwestern hops.

Flavor is big for a red ale but still nicely balanced. Bold malt base with caramel and toast. Hops are earthy, spicy, and a little grassy.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied and well carbonated.

Overall a really well done hoppy red.

Serving type: bottle

05-10-2012 02:37:23 | More by GilGarp

mntlover

Tennessee

4.2/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Pours a nice amber color with a two finger light tan head that falls to a ring with some good lace.

Aroma is wonderful fruity mango sweetness blends with caramel sweetness nice fruity notes from hops are wonderful. Also a touch of cascade bitterness.

Taste is good not as wonderful as the nose but nice. god caramel malt base with a good supply of hops. Not as fruity sweet as the nose hops more citrus bitter like most west coast hopped brews. Finish is lingering grapefruit along with some earthy metallic notes.

Mouthfeel is nice medium body lightly peppy carbonation bringing hops to the front.

Overall quite good if I could find this locally it would be rotated in with my regular amber fix. Want to thank merlin48 for this sample.

Serving type: bottle

08-25-2011 01:37:11 | More by mntlover

Duff27

Illinois

4.15/5  rDev +2%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A- Good foamy inch long head on top of a clear red beer. This looks amazing. Head retention and lacing are well above average.

S- Getting some hops in the nose, unexpectedly...citrus notes.

T- Piney hops, caramel malts. Quite reminiscent of a malty IPA.

M- Medium to medium-light mouthfeel. Nice carbonation bite at the end of each sip.

D/O- I saw the BA rating before reviewing this and would have doubted it would stand up to it as far as I was concerned, but the appearance set the tempo for a most enjoyable hopped-up Red Ale. Great introduction to Marble Brewing for me.

Serving type: bottle

06-17-2011 04:20:31 | More by Duff27

DrinkSlurm

Connecticut

4/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Poured from tap into nonic pint at freshcraft in lodo. Pours a nice amber haze with sticky head. Really nice hop aroma with some sweet malts. Taste is very hopped malt and biscuit. Its uber bitter and feels like is double digit abv...its a really tasty and assertive redbut its way over bitter...

Serving type: on-tap

11-30-2012 01:56:16 | More by DrinkSlurm

Domingo

Colorado

4.33/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Heard lots of good things about Marble. Lets see if the hype is warranted. This was a fresh 12oz bottle brought back from NM.
Pours a nice deep reddish brown. Just the right size head and lots of lacing.
The nose is really hoppy with notes of pine and citrus zest. Impressive thus far.
The flavor starts off hoppy (unusually) and then starst to reveal some malty caramel breadiness in the middle only to let a hop/malt balance take over with the finish. Wow...again, this is pretty ideal. It's interesting how the hop resins and sweeter flavors seem to mesh so well. It's using 3 hop varieties and they're a perfect match of different complimentary flavors.
Easy drinking but very flavorful. Big hops, big balancing malts, too.
This is about as good as a red gets. Reminds me of the Odell red beers, but maybe even better.
Terrific beer in all areas. A gem of a red ale. Probably my favorite red to date.

Serving type: bottle

09-05-2010 03:40:31 | More by Domingo

pokesbeerdude

Colorado

4.28/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Picked up a six pack of this at Jubilation Liquors in Albuquerque, around $8.

A: Clear red in color, verging on brown, cream colored head, about half an inch thick, great head retention, nice lacing, a few bubbles of carbonation. Nice looking beer.

S: An abundance of resiny citrus hops, some nice pine accents as well, underneath all of that is a nice biscuity malt profile, somewhat roasty as well. Nice smelling beer.

T: Follows the nose nicely, up front excellent hop profiles of grapefruit and citrus rinds, biscuity, and just a hint of roasted malts and a few nice honey and caramel malt notes. The tastes blend together to make a nice bitter tea-like profile. Just a touch of alcohol. Excellent.

M: Lighter body, medium carbonation, dry, just a hint of alcohol warmth. A little more body would be nice, but it works well with this beer.

D: A little on the strong side to be a session, but this is very easy to drink. One of my favorite red ales, working through the six pack of this over the last few weeks has been a pleasure. Excellent beer. Highly recommended.

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2010 01:29:00 | More by pokesbeerdude

elgiacomo

Georgia

4.23/5  rDev +3.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12oz bottled May 15, 2012. Served at around 40-45F.

Pours cloudy red with a one finger beige head that leaves a few small spots of lacing and holds a nice cap.

Aroma features nice caramel and bready malt, some fruity notes, good bit of citrus and floral hops. Good to very good strength.

Flavor is citrus hops, caramel malt, fruit, cherries, apples, dark bread, moderate sweetness, mild bitterness, minimal alcohol.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied, slick, good carbonation.

Very nice hoppy Amber Ale. Really nice. Very impressed by both this and the IPA from Marble Brewery.

Serving type: bottle

07-21-2012 02:16:30 | More by elgiacomo

bump8628

Oklahoma

4.2/5  rDev +3.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

On-tap at the brewery, deep amber, almost ruby, a beautifully colored red. Lots of hops on the nose, mostly pine, but a solid hit of citrus too. Malt evens it out a bit more on the palate with a slather of caramel malt. Dryness keeps things drinkable which is perfect for a hoppy red like this. This one came off as hoppier than Marble's IPA.

Serving type: on-tap

12-23-2011 15:48:47 | More by bump8628