Red Scare
Revolution Brewing

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From:
Revolution Brewing
 
Illinois, United States
Style:
American Amber / Red Ale
ABV:
7.1%
Score:
90
Avg:
4.13 | pDev: 8.23%
Reviews:
9
Ratings:
18
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jul 30, 2014
Added:
May 28, 2011
Wants:
  4
Gots:
  0
Dry hopped with 30 lbs. of Citra, Chinook, and Cascade.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
 
Rated: 3.5 by Dybasi from Illinois

Jul 30, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by XmnwildX12 from Minnesota

Dec 11, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by Drucifer from Illinois

Oct 17, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by RMelyon from Illinois

Jun 22, 2013
 
Rated: 4.5 by spycow from Illinois

Mar 10, 2013
 
Rated: 4 by thewimperoo from Illinois

Feb 03, 2013
Photo of jegross2
Reviewed by jegross2 from Illinois

4.62/5  rDev +11.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Reviewing the Red Scare from Revolution Brewing Company out of Chicago, Illinois. This imperial red ale is super-hopped with Citra, Chinook, and Cascade hops

Score: 97

This is a long overdue beer review from iPhone notes dated 06/27/12.

Appearance: Color is a deep ruby. Served with a finger-plus of soapy, cream colored head that settles to a thin layer atop the glass. Spectacularly thick lacing with awesome retention. 4.5/5

Smell: Super grapefruity, grassy pine, peach, subtle pecan, and lemon. Some caramel in background. Huge fresh notes of hoppy citrus prevalent here. Smells like an outstanding imperial IPA with a faint twist, not a traditional red ale. 5/5

Taste: Super hopped caramel malt backbone. Heavily bitter, mildly sweet. Huge amounts of citrus. Hops, lemon, and like the nose, ample grapefruit. Hint of roasted malt. Very light earthy spiced onion flavor on back of tongue in the finish. Lingering hop bitterness. Nice complexities. 4.5/5

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied, medium carbonation. Has an oily mouthfeel on the tongue, but much drier mouthfeel on the swallow. 4.5/5

Overall: Absurdly stellar red ale that drinks smooth for it's hoppiness, but is too complex to labe a simple hop bomb. There is a healthy amount of bitterness without ever becomeing "too bitter." This is about as much of a "red ale" as Nugget Nectar; which is why I probably enjoyed it so much.

Recommendation: Better than Nugget Nectar. If you like the hoppy, IPA-like take on the "red ale," then seek this one out

Pairing: The bacon fat popcorn the brewpub sells.

Cost: $7 for a 13 oz tulip pour.
Dec 16, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by MarkFy from Illinois

Aug 07, 2012
 
Rated: 4.25 by Duff27 from Illinois

Jul 27, 2012
Photo of KDawg
Reviewed by KDawg from Illinois

4.08/5  rDev -1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
poured from tap at revolution. Pours a dark red color with a small foamy head.

Very good and malty aromas with notes of grains, hops, some bits of citrus and malts. Very good depth as well.

Medium/full bodied. Very smooth with some real nice polish and flavors of grains, citrus, and hops.

One of rev's best brews that I've had. Real good depth with real good balance as well. This is a damn good amber ale.
Jul 03, 2012
 
Rated: 4.5 by AndreaAle from Illinois

Jun 28, 2012
Photo of emerge077
Reviewed by emerge077 from Illinois

3.88/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Served on draft in a tulip at the brewery taproom.

Looks very nice, the beer has a saturated reddish copper color and bright clarity. A thin one-finger head of creamy offwhite foam settles on the surface, depositing doome drippy lacing on the opposite side of the glass.

Aroma is a bit subdued, but there's some specialty malt sweetness and traces of fruity marmalade from the hops.

Bitter citrus peel and more marmalade flavors, slightly fruity with a substantial body and bready malt base. Hops are well integrated and though potent, they aren't abrasive really. Reminds me of Alpha King back in the Cibak days...
Jun 28, 2012
Photo of JohnnyChicago
Reviewed by JohnnyChicago from Illinois

4.3/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
On-tap at the brewpub; served in a tulip.

A: Deep garnet with a small white head.

S: Rich caramel malts and piney hops jump out of the glass.

T: Follows and improves on the smell. The hop presence is strong with pine and resin notes and a slight tropical fruit flavour. Malts balance out nicely with caramel and a bit of molasses sweetness.

D: Alcohol is completely hidden and the beer is very well balanced. I'll have another, but any more and the alcohol will be slowing me down.

Overall: A great ARA! I can see the similarities with Nugget Nectar and Hophead Red. This is a sweet, but hoppy brew that is a step above most in its style. It has great, intense flavours, but still manages to maintain its balance. Good stuff!
Jul 14, 2011
Photo of AgentZero
Reviewed by AgentZero from Illinois

4.27/5  rDev +3.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Revolution doing some great stuff lately, they are far and away becoming the best Chicago brewery. Excited to try this.

A - Appropriately ambere colored beer with a small white head that didn't stay for very long.

S - Sweet malts with some nicely bitter piney hops and a touch of grapefruit. I'm thinking Nugget Nectar right off the bat.

T - Really nice, the sweet malts have a bit of caramel that comes through. Some moderate grapefruit, and nice bitter resin on the end. For a hoppy amber, this is pretty spot on.

M - Smooth, soft but present carbonation, medium bodied.

O - Really good beer, particularly if you like hoppy ambers. Wouldn't have guessed it's 7.5% either, the alcohol is well hidden. Grab it if you can.
Jul 09, 2011
Photo of yeahnatenelson
Reviewed by yeahnatenelson from Illinois

4.3/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Imbibed at Revolution Brewpub 06/03/2011.

Appearance -- Pours a rosy garnet hue with a tuft of sudsy parchment head. Handsome.

Smell -- An abundance of pithy citrus and resin greet the nose, as well as signs of a firm red malt backbone with moderate sweetness.

Taste -- Firm resinous hop bitterness with flavors of pine boughs and grapefruit rind. Exceptional malting, with that quintessential toasted red malt flavor and low sugar cookie sweetness. Finish is toasted red malt and resin bitterness with a twist of grapefruit.

Mouthfeel -- Medium-light in body with crisp carbonation. Feels good.

Overall -- I am typically VERY critical of Revolution, but this was a really exceptional example of the style. Furthermore, it's quite distinctive and example of the style and not a cookie-cutter 'West Coast Red' clone. I'd gladly take this over any of the top-rated hop-forward American Reds.

Additional Notes -- The growler I had a few weeks later was just as good, if not better.
Jun 20, 2011
Photo of Sean9689
Reviewed by Sean9689 from Illinois

4.3/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Thanks to Ethan (whartontallboy) for the growler. Poured into Bruery tulip.

A - Pours ruby reddish/brown, small white head, whisps on top, thin ring.

S - Crisp hoppy bitterness, touch of malty sweetness, floral notes.

T - Smooth bitter hops mixed with a touch of malts. Both together are nearly perfect and neither overpower one another. Smooth bitter finish.

M - Light, crisp and refreshing, good carbonation, clean finish.

O - Wonderfully done. Both hops and malts are right on-point for me and it's just a nice mix. Had a few of this one during the night. Another winner from Rev.
Jun 13, 2011
Photo of whartontallboy
Reviewed by whartontallboy from New York

4.47/5  rDev +8.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Poured into a Stone IRS snifter from a growler that was just a few hours old.

Deep, dark red color, small head of white bubbles that doesn't stick around all that long. Clear around the edges, but the color is deep enough to make it impossible to see through the glass.

Aroma is dominated by grapefruity hops with a touch of sweet malt and a bit of pine.

Taste is quite good. The same citrus hops from the aroma, but the pine plays into the flavor much more clearly than in the nose. Nice grapefruit/orange flavors, a bit of bready malt, hints of apricot, and a lingering piney bitterness in the finish. The 7.5% ABV is well disguised in this one.

Medium body, and there's not a ton of carbonation. The bubble situation doesn't really hurt at all, though, as instead of feeling syrupy, the relatively low carb makes the beer come off as resiny. I don't think I'd like it as much if it had more carbonation, actually.

Overall: Hoppy reds are one of my favorite styles, and this one doesn't disappoint. I would echo MasterSki's comparison to Nugget Nectar; it's almost impossible not to make the connection between the two given the style. This one's not quite as aggressively bitter as Nugget Nectar, but it's the more drinkable of the two for me.

This is easily my favorite hoppy beer Revolution has done thusfar. I really enjoy Anti-Hero as well, but Red Scare just nails the hoppy amber style that I love. Worth seeking out, and it something I really hope Revolution keeps brewing.
May 30, 2011
Photo of MasterSki
Reviewed by MasterSki from Canada (ON)

4.35/5  rDev +5.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
On-tap at Revolution for Fistival. Served in a taster glass.

A - Filled to the brim - a thin white partial cap and thicker collar. Transparent amber body.

S - Hops! Big citrus zest and pine notes - you can taste the Cascade and Chinook. Some sugar cookie malt background and enough malt backbone to make it a red ale rather than just an IPA.

T - Taste has more toasted crystal malt and sugar with less aggressive hop flavor. Still, there's a good amount of grapefruit mid-palate and some low but present bitterness. I actually like the taste a but better than the aroma.

M - Smooth medium body, medium-low carbonation, and a dry crisp and refreshing finish. Light residual hop oiliness. No obvious alcohol.

D - I liked this much better than Brown Sound. It's a really good hoppy amber in the vein of Nugget Nectar and I went back for multiple pours of this one throughout the festival. Recommended!
May 28, 2011
Red Scare from Revolution Brewing
Beer rating: 90 out of 100 with 18 ratings