Red Tail Lager - Mendocino Brewing Company

mjc410

Virginia

3.9/5  rDev +21.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The pour into my Prima Pils glass raises a creamy two-finger off-white head that has a lot of large bubbles constantly popping. Consequently, it gradually falls. The lacing is slippery, but has some good stick to it at the fringes. The body is a slightly hazy golden copper. The nose is sort of sweet and sour, with a bit of citrusy hops. Very pronounced cereal scent, too. The taste reminds me of Saison ever so slightly, and also of perhaps a filtered wheat. It has a lot going on: not quite a clean grain taste as expected from a lager. There are a lot of fruity esters, and a small bit of spiciness. It's interesting, and quite drinkable. The mouth is medium, with a high and not-too-coarse carbonation level. A fun beer that I might just get again.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2007 21:40:48 | More by mjc410

od_sf

California

3/5  rDev -6.8%

05-19-2013 22:00:52 | More by od_sf

pathead

Nevada

2.5/5  rDev -22.4%

04-13-2013 00:44:13 | More by pathead

Celtics76

Rhode Island

3/5  rDev -6.8%

03-07-2013 17:22:56 | More by Celtics76

Forzzaitalia

3.25/5  rDev +0.9%

02-04-2013 00:24:32 | More by Forzzaitalia

cliff1066

Virginia

3.25/5  rDev +0.9%

12-11-2012 04:57:18 | More by cliff1066

Eaglefan344

Missouri

3/5  rDev -6.8%

10-23-2012 19:08:54 | More by Eaglefan344

Stizz19

3.75/5  rDev +16.5%

10-17-2012 16:51:54 | More by Stizz19

bzach

Indiana

3/5  rDev -6.8%

10-16-2012 07:11:53 | More by bzach

beerpadawan

California

3/5  rDev -6.8%

08-25-2012 20:37:50 | More by beerpadawan

ktanner99

Oklahoma

3.75/5  rDev +16.5%

07-21-2012 01:27:41 | More by ktanner99

Brushkanna

New Jersey

3.75/5  rDev +16.5%

06-30-2012 00:29:18 | More by Brushkanna

tfsimpkins

Florida

3/5  rDev -6.8%

05-07-2012 14:04:29 | More by tfsimpkins

yergermeister

Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +24.2%

04-18-2012 14:45:52 | More by yergermeister

jak

North Carolina

3/5  rDev -6.8%

04-02-2012 14:54:44 | More by jak

LJWalker

Alabama

3/5  rDev -6.8%

02-08-2012 04:14:09 | More by LJWalker

alcoholinside

Illinois

3.5/5  rDev +8.7%

12-18-2011 01:55:33 | More by alcoholinside

mikesgroove

South Carolina

2.9/5  rDev -9.9%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

golden amber with a crystal clear look to it. A small head of maybe an inch rose up, but immediatly fell back down, leaving a naked top to it.

The aroma was light. Lots of light grain and bready malts abound here. Small light fruit notes and an overall light profile. Taste was more of the same, light grain, light fruits, small doses of grain. A crisp, clean, and refreshing profile. Very light feel

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2011 18:47:02 | More by mikesgroove

barnzy78

Illinois

3/5  rDev -6.8%

11-28-2011 04:43:03 | More by barnzy78

whatthehull

California

3.45/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Tasted June 10th 2011 (from notes)

Poured into a la Chouffe snifter

A - a cloudy copper, two finger off white head and some lacing

S - sweet, yeast, some fruit, floral, slight earthy hops. Big malt and toasted wheat and grains. Oh and smells slightly sour

T - sweet and then bitter right up front, dry floral hops, slight fruit, wheat, sourish yeast and a nice dry and sweet malt

M - slightly chewy, medium/high acidity, full bodied and long finish

D - drinks with the best of ales, nice balance

Final thought - this is a nice ale. Nice price at $7 and a decent 6.3% ABV

Serving type: bottle

11-22-2011 06:45:00 | More by whatthehull

TheWhiskerReview

Tennessee

3.9/5  rDev +21.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a hazy dim copperish color with brick-orange tones. One-finger head with nice retention and decent lace.

Nose is simple, with delicious caramel and sourdough bread aromas. A faint hint of strawberries perhaps?

Medium-bodied with chewy, grainy malt- thick and robust for a lager with nice spice and dried herbal flavors joining the sourdough bread crust.

I really enjoy the rustic nature of this, and it's full-flavored enough to save it from being too easydrinking. One of my top sessionables for sure.

Serving type: bottle

05-05-2011 04:33:51 | More by TheWhiskerReview

thagr81us

South Carolina

3.15/5  rDev -2.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Served from bottle into a Grolsch Pilsner. Poured yellow-orange with a half finger white head that subsided to a minimal amount quickly. Maintained decent lacing throughout the glass. The aroma was comprised of sweet malt and caramel. The flavor was of sweet malt, caramel, slight earthiness, and very slight earthy hops. It had a light feel on the palate with high carbonation. Overall this was not one of the better beers that I have had. There was no complexity at all in this beer. Aroma was very bland as was the flavor. Maybe this is typical for the style???

Serving type: bottle

02-28-2011 17:14:53 | More by thagr81us

malty

Michigan

2.15/5  rDev -33.2%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

WPours a little cloudy with a dull copper hue. Head quickly dissipates to a mere off-white halo. Minimal visible uprising carbonation.

Smells like an English Pale Ale. Sweet, mostly malty with a tiny bit of brightness. This thing does not smell at all like any lager I've ever tried. Caramel, sour dough bread and that's about all.

Wow, very off-putting flavor of plain yogurt (faint, but still perceivable). There's some sweet malts happening, but the sour/tartness claims my pallet's attention.

Watery body (light) with a quick and strangely oily finish. Carbonation is very minimal.

Drinkability is poor. I'm not going to finish this 12 oz. glass.

Overall a very weird/poor example of ANY lager that's touched my lips. If this would have been billed as a Pale Ale, I might have connected with it a bit more. Very uneven and out-of-balance. Tastes like poor-bad homebrew. I wish I could find a redeeming quality, but I honestly can't.

Serving type: bottle

04-11-2010 17:16:25 | More by malty

matjack85

Illinois

4.08/5  rDev +26.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

I bought this single 12oz brown bottle at the Binny's store in Plainfield, IL for $1.49. There is no freshness date on the label, nor is there any informatiom about the beer.

The beer poured a cloudy medium brown amber color, but changed to a honey golden hue when held to the light. It made a nice 2 finger fluffy off-white head but it didn'y last very long and it left no lacing on my glass.

The smell was all malt - and lots of it. I could also detect a touch of yeast from a loaf of dark brown bread, but from the smell, I think this is going to be really malty.

The taste was sweet caramel malt, but it wasn't sugary. There was a nice bready flavor as well. No hop bitterness to this at all, but that's not all that surprising for this style. I checked their web site to see if they used any hops at all, and it said that they did, but just a touch. This is a pretty simple beer - just malt and bread flavor, but I liked it. It's not going to win any awards for complexity, but it has a really nice taste if you like your beer on the sweet side without being cloying.

This is a very light bodied beer with light carbonation to match. Pretty clean finish with just a touch of lingering sweetness.

Drinkability is high. Low alcohol, light, and refreshing.

Serving type: bottle

01-07-2010 07:18:44 | More by matjack85

yelterdow

New Jersey

2.93/5  rDev -9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

Served at fridge temperature in the SABL glass for maximum performance.

Appearance- Burnished gold, the hue is rich and deep for a pale lager. The creamy two-finger head condenses into a firm, long-lasting topper that laces in just a few places along the inside of the glass.

Smell- A sweet, aromatic malt character is front and center, with a fleeting hop presence that wisps past the nose. An English type of overall presentation, with a bready overtone.

Taste- The balance of malt and hops is nice, but the flavors just seem a bit "off" as if they are past their prime. There's a 13-digit number lasered near the bottom of the bottle, but I have no idea how to interpret it. Not a smooth finish, as the lingering aftertaste is rough and sweet.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability- Solid, easy carbonation makes this beer feel great in the mouth. It's smooth in the swallow, but it doesn't save the overall drinking experience... it would have been helpful to know if this example was recently bottled.

Serving type: bottle

12-30-2009 04:39:21 | More by yelterdow