Ridgeback Ale - No Label Brewing Company

Mora2000

Texas

3.7/5  rDev -0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Growler filled from The Whip In in Austin.

The beer pours a reddish-amber color with a white head. The aroma is full of toffee and cocoa. The aroma is fairly sweet and is definitely all about the malt.

The flavor is more complex than the aroma. I get a lot of cocoa and toffee notes, but I also get a little bit of dark fruit and cherry notes. There is also something that resembles vanilla in the flavor which goes very well with the other flavors.

Medium mouthfeel and medium carbonation.

Serving type: growler

11-03-2011 04:29:23 | More by Mora2000

champ103

Texas

3.53/5  rDev -4.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On tap at the Public House in Katy, TX.

A: Pours a dark amber/red/brown color. A two finger white head forms and recedes in a second. Plenty of sticky lace is left behind.
S: Toasted and sweet caramel malt. Some light hops. Overall, fairly neutral.
T: Sweet and toasted malt again. Bread and biscuit as well. Some citrus hops lingering. Enjoyable.
M/D: A medium body that is a bit thin on the carbonation. Not hard to drink, I could quaff a few without a problem.

Decent and enjoyable for the most part. The pale ale blows this away however.

Serving type: on-tap

01-08-2011 01:12:48 | More by champ103

JMad

Texas

4.13/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer pours a very dark brown color with a red tint, the head is tan with loose bubbles. It has a strong sweet toffee smell with a hint of chocolate. Tastes very good, I detected some dark chocolate with caramel and bread with a hint of bitterness from the hops. It has a medium body with moderate carbonation and a dry finish. This is a very nice amber I could drink this a lot more.

Serving type: bottle

11-03-2012 01:12:48 | More by JMad

BryanCarey

Texas

3.78/5  rDev +1.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Ridgeback Ale pours to an amber/reddish hue with a cloudy body and a nose that combines cocoa, toffee, and just a dash of herbs. The foam level is moderate, but leaves a good deal of lace on the sides of the glass as you consume.

Ridgeback Ale offers a nice amount of complexity and the taste is fuller than the nose would indicate. Flavors of cocoa and toffee are present, as expected based on the aroma. But examine each sip a little more and you will discover other pleasant sensations such as pale malt, caramel, some roasted malts, grains, vanilla, and a touch of dark fruit and herb. The bitter sensation in the finish is slight, with the taste quickly returning to that of sweet malts in the aftertaste.

Ridgeback Ale was just recently released in bottles, along with the two other No Label Brewing core products. My review is based on the bottled version, but I have sampled the draft version dozens of times and find both of them similar in taste and enjoyment. The complexity of this beer is well above average and upon first impression, the taste of cocoa is the one that stands out. But with more samples and more sips, other flavors make themselves known and the complexity continues to deliver all the way to the bottom of the glass.

Ridgeback Ale is a good choice for the craft beer lover who wants something a little more adventurous without going to extremes in any direction. Grab a six-pack of bottles and enjoy the great taste of this non- pretentious and interesting amber ale.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2012 20:50:36 | More by BryanCarey

KKB

Massachusetts

3.48/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A – A medium brown-rouge color that is translucent with a very small top of beige-white head and very little carbonation flowing up from the bottom. It doesn’t look awesome but lets see what she smells like.

S – The aroma is just a smack of toffee, butterscotch, burnt wheat toast and perhaps a hint of vanilla and dark fruit. Really the most prominent smell though is the burnt toast aspect with the surrounding flavors just serving as sweetening elements. I’m not sure how I feel about this smell, it’s kind of turning me off, but I am intrigued—it is unique.

T – The flavor is definitely an improvement upon the aroma, but only in the intensity with which the flavors are at. The flavor is much sweeter than the aroma with the toffee/butterscotch playing a far bigger role, but the burnt toast that was first noticed in the aroma is still very much present in the taste. It’s not wholly unpleasant, but I wouldn’t call it great either. It definitely has a bit of vanilla element to it and I can see where I thought up the dark fruit in the aroma as there is just a hint of it in here. Malt is definitely the star though…As it warms the flavors come together more congruently and it begins to taste rather good actually.

M – Mouthfeel is medium, moderate carbonation, not overly smooth or silky but it is kind of nice.

O – I do not love this beer. I think that it works, and for a while I was actually feeling it, but at the end of the day I don’t love the smell or the flavor. I don’t really recommend it.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2013 05:14:47 | More by KKB

kyleelton

Texas

4.03/5  rDev +8.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4

This is a really nice looking beer. Beautiful, thick, creamy head that sticks around a while, then laces the glass. I wanted to be a little clearer, but the color is right on.

I'm getting floral hops and some roastiness in the nose. Tastes like slight caramel with some bittering that doesn't over power. Quite roasty. The body is excellent. The malts stick to the roof of my mouth.

This is a very nice beer. Feels much hardier than most Ambers. Also, with more flavor than most.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2012 04:06:54 | More by kyleelton

pgfault

Texas

3.03/5  rDev -18.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3

Poured from tap with minimal head, which diminished quickly. Not much lacing on the glass. Very dark amber in color, not quite opaque. Despite its color, the nose just isn't there. There's a faint hop aroma, not many malt notes. Initial taste is crisp with a slightly hoppy bitterness. As with the aroma, I was expecting a complex malt profile, given the dark color, but couldn't find it. The finish was lightly bitter. It's flavors come out a bit more as it warms.

Despite having a deceptive flavor profile, it's still quite drinkable as is... certainly drinkable in the Texas summer.

Serving type: on-tap

04-17-2013 00:01:54 | More by pgfault