Double Dread Imperial Red Ale - Mad River Brewing Company

LilBeerDoctor

New York

3.75/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed on 06/22/2009. I had this on draft. The beer pours brown with a tan head. The aroma is of sweet malt and sweaty, grassy hops. The flavor is of sweet caramel malt with bitter hops and a sweet finish. I thought this was pretty good although a touch sweet.

Serving type: on-tap

07-14-2009 16:29:56 | More by LilBeerDoctor

Patrick

Massachusetts

4/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: Pours a slightly hazy dark copper/red color with a nice and fluffy light brown head. Nice thick lacing left behind.

S: Lots of herbal and piney notes coming from this brew. Some dark caramel malt can be detected as well.

T: Nice sweetness up front with some caramel and molasses mixing. The middle has a lingering sweetness and an herbal hop flavor that leads to the finish of piney and earthy hops. Some subtle chocolate is in the background as well.

M: Dry, well carbonated, medium bodied, resiny.

D: Great imperial red, can't say I've had too many, but this one is great.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2009 22:48:33 | More by Patrick

UA8

Washington

4.03/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A- Pours cloudy and dark amber with a tall light brown head.

S- Citrus notes with a backing a caramelized malt.

T- Deep roasted malts, citrus notes, herbal hop bitterness and a touch of pine.

M- Medium to high carbonation but a nice medium viscosity.

D- Quite a hoppy brew but well worth a try. An interesting take on the Imperial red. Another worth beer from Mad River.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2009 03:09:01 | More by UA8

rkuhnel

California

4.22/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Got this in a four pack yesterday from my local NorthCoast Coop. The 12 bottle poured a muddy brown that changes to a cranberry red with with a very foamy tan head with large bubbles that left thick lacing rings as it slowly settled. Nose is malty and full of complex hop aromas showing flowers, citrus, and pine. Smooth and slick mouthfeel. The flavor is actually mild for all those various nuances, and the finish is bitter. This is a very interesting and somewhat unique brew, and like its predecessor, Serious Madness, shows some very creative brewing.

Serving type: bottle

07-06-2009 00:25:59 | More by rkuhnel

Spikester

Oregon

3.8/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Cloudy brown with a large two finger head and very well laced. Aroma is brown sugar. Taste is strong bitter hops and semi sweet cocoa. I did not detect the high abv except in the after effects. Very drinkable and smooth. Hard to believe this would be classed as an American Amber. Maybe an Imperial Amber! IBUs must be at least a 60. Dry bitter finish.

Serving type: bottle

06-15-2009 07:55:45 | More by Spikester

HalenRush

California

3.88/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Purchased at Blue Lake Casino's Playstation 777, a stones throw away from the brewery.

A - Pours a deep deep ruby red approaching copper/garnet hues with a nice tightly beaded pillowy head.

S - The aroma is very citrus with grapefruit and tangerine punching through.

T - The citrus comes through on the taste too. Not as malty as one would think an Imp Red to be. I was expecting a raisin like malt flavor.

M - A bit high on the alcohol bite but very warm and relaxing. Easy to drink in spite of its 8.6% ABV.

D - Of course, the moniker "Imperial" attached to any beer would mark it down in the drinkability category. I found this highly quaffable and its easy to forget its ABV. Its smooth character is a polar opposite of its big brother, "Serious Madness".

I'm really enjoying this second installment of this adventure the boys at Mad River Brewing are embarking on. I think this is a good group of guys sticking to their brewing values when the other local breweries (I won't mention) have changed their brewing practices for the worse in this tough economy. Looking forward to the Belgian Golden Ale!

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2009 06:42:42 | More by HalenRush

cswhitehorse

Oregon

4/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The Double Dread is a limited release beer that I picked up a John's Market. It poured a cloudy dark red with a good 2 finger foam head with decent retention. The lacing was minimal but what was around was sticky.

The aroma was a douse of alcohol in the nose with a deep caramel smell that was lovely. The taste was sweet up front with a really smooth finish. Hop bitterness was moderate. You could taste the 8.6 abv pretty easily but like most doubles, the more drinks and warmer it gets, the smoother it gets. It was moderately carbonated and left me with a happy feeling. It was a very enjoyable beverage and I will buy again.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2009 05:20:47 | More by cswhitehorse