Calico Copper Amber Ale - Ballast Point Brewing Company

Displayed for educational use only; do not reuse.

BA SCORE
86
good
-
571 Ratings

rAvg: 3.82
pDev: 11.26%
Reviews: 332
Hads: 239

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
Ballast Point Brewing Company

California, United States

Style | ABV
American Amber / Red Ale | 5.00% ABV

Availability: Year-round. bottle (287), on-tap (35), cask (5), growler (3), nitro-tap (2).

Notes:
No notes at this time.

View: Beers (76) | Reviews (40) | Events (0)

Reviews

Sort by: Latest | High | Low | Top Reviewers |

Alström Bros | Show Hads:

« first ‹ prev | 1-25 | 26-50 | 51-75 | next › last »

Reviews by NODAK:

NODAK

Tennessee

3.73/5 rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Initially, the aroma was fairly floral in natural. Like a pale ale, really. Once it opened up, more notes of sweet caramel and a hint of bready goodness was present. Definitely an amber ale, but fairly hoppy on the nose at least.

Pretty crisp upfront...nice hit of floral hops at first...giving way to a fairly, but not overpowering, malty sweetness I'd characterize as mildly fruity than anything...with a hint of earthiness. Bready qualities are slight. Wraps up solidly bitter for an amber and fairly clean with little lingering bitterness.

Solid effort...an amber that leans more to the hops than most that I've had, so that if that's what you're looking for this would be recommended.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2012 03:01:32 | More by NODAK

More User Reviews:

enelson

Illinois

3.25/5 rDev -14.9%

05-25-2013 01:17:37 | More by enelson

erialbill

New Jersey

4/5 rDev +4.7%

05-22-2013 18:09:57 | More by erialbill

bambam2517

Arizona

3.99/5 rDev +4.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz. bottle poured into a pint and drank waiting on the grill to warm up. Served at 45F.

A - Dark ruby to garnet red, with a nice biscuity foam on top. Pretty still body though.

S - Some sweet malts with a hint of apricot, a little bit of pine and floral in the background.

T - I see it as a hoppier amber ale offering, where others see it as a malty IPA. Certainly lower in hop character than a West Coast IPA, but that isnt what its trying to be. I like the hop level here, puts it apart from the typical Ambers out there.

M - Nice roasted flavors build up to a bitter hop mid, and mildly dry and clean finish. Easy drinking, as I find Amber ales to be in general.

O - Summing it up: I'm a Ft. Collins native, I cut my craftbeer-lovin teeth on Fat Tire and Alaskan Amber so amber ales are near and dear to me. I have to admit, Ballast Point has a deft touch when it comes to this style too!

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2013 05:03:24 | More by bambam2517

TMoney2591

Illinois

2.93/5 rDev -23.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 2.75

Served in a Lagunitas mason jar.

*Insert calico cat joke here...I'm above such feline references. Clearly.* This stuff pours a clear sunset amber topped by a finger of lightly off-cream-white foam. The nose comprises perfume-y toffee, very light mint, and a hint of flowers. The taste holds notes of mild greens, mild flowers, sweet toffee, and some orange peel in the back, resulting a sort of off, funky mess. It's hard to put into words beyond that. Just know that I took it as a negative. The body is a light medium, with a light moderate carbonation and a fluid feel. Overall, a strange little amber, one that just didn't do it for me.

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 19:44:38 | More by TMoney2591

touchmeimsac

Pennsylvania

3.25/5 rDev -14.9%

05-20-2013 17:29:46 | More by touchmeimsac

Arsenal0328

Indiana

4.25/5 rDev +11.3%

05-19-2013 23:14:21 | More by Arsenal0328

bcuz7

Florida

3/5 rDev -21.5%

05-19-2013 21:53:37 | More by bcuz7

T100Mark

California

4/5 rDev +4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A 12 ounce bottle poured into a pint shaker glass.

Appearance - The color is somewhere between ruby red and copper. High clarity. Nice head. Stickage is moderate at best.

Smell - Malty sweetness combined with a nice citrus hit. Slightly smokey. This beer has a very nice nose.

Taste - Like the nose, this beer combines a smooth malt flavor with just the right amount of hops. Not much else happening here. Chugable.

Mouth - A bit oily. A bit tangy. Clean.

Overall - A simple, tasty beer. Nothing too fancy or sophisticated. Imagine a classic California pale ale (Sierra Nevada or Firestone) with a touch more malt a bit less hops.

Serving type: bottle

05-19-2013 02:36:33 | More by T100Mark

InspectorBob

New Jersey

3.75/5 rDev -1.8%

05-17-2013 12:33:37 | More by InspectorBob

jwk7324

California

4/5 rDev +4.7%

05-16-2013 05:44:02 | More by jwk7324

beersvh23

Illinois

3.75/5 rDev -1.8%

05-16-2013 04:10:50 | More by beersvh23

Flounder57

Massachusetts

3.8/5 rDev -0.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Having on draft at The Avenue.

Appearance: This beer poured a small head that reduced to a thin layer. It is a dark copper color with good clarity and bubbles coming up through the glass. Nice lacing on the glass as the beer was drank.

Smell: Creamy, caramel, toffee, hops, bready, and fruitiness.

Taste: Same as above with some lingering bitterness and chewy notes. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Mouthfeel: Silky smooth, low to medium carbonation, medium bodied, a little chewy, and easy to drink.

Overall: Pretty solid amber/red ale. Very enjoyable.

Serving type: on-tap

05-15-2013 04:16:24 | More by Flounder57