Betrayal Imperial Red - Speakeasy Ales & Lagers

JayQue

Virginia

3.75/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Nice Red Ale. Not an overly sweet, mild boring one. Pours a hazy red color with a lot of light coming through. Small white head with worse than aerage retention. Some lacing. Spell ispiney hops and caramel malts. Fairly strong. Tastes good. Strong piney hops presence balanced by a strong caramel malt presence. Kind of like a barleywine lite. Very impressive for a red ale.

Mouthfeel is crisp. I assumed it was 5.9% but if this is an 8% beer, it is very smooth with no hint of the alcohol level.

A good Red Ale, I would drink this again.

Serving type: bottle

09-03-2011 18:42:49 | More by JayQue

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

3.95/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Light brown and light red appearance, good head, another quality looker from Speakeasy. Mild aroma of toastiness and hops, a little nuttiness to it.

Great taste, smooth, still kept a hop mouthfeel, but stayed away from just making a super bitter nugget hopped red or something along those lines. Rich, toffee, even vanilla. A little bit of citrus as well.

Very good mouthfeel, alcohol not noticeable at all. All those nuances. Great balance, hoppy, yet not bitter, smooth, not high alcohol, a little bit of everything.

Where did BA get 5.9% for this? Says 8.2% on the bottle. Maybe because it tastes like 5.9%?

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2011 20:37:53 | More by Beerandraiderfan

Huhzubendah

District of Columbia

4.05/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

On draft at Churchkey in D.C.

The beer is amber to orange in color with an off white head that leaves plenty of lacing on the snifter. The aroma brings a large helping of pine and hops. The flavor follows suit, though not quite as good as the aroma. Lots of pine in the flavor with a more assertive malt presence than the scent would indicate. Medium bodied with minimal alcohol presence. An enjoyable beer, I would have this again.

Serving type: on-tap

08-20-2011 20:23:59 | More by Huhzubendah

DovaliHops

California

4.08/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

This bottle says 8.2%...not 5.9. Pours a dark crimson red color with a medium, off-white head. Scent is very malty with a nice balance of hops and tropical fruit. Boy does this beer remind me of something...I can almost promise I'm not the only one who finds this very similar to Bigfoot with a little age on it. Definitely reminds me of a hoppy barleywine. Strong dark fruit flavors with bitter hops and caramel malt. Just a pinch of alcohol flavor. Very bitter hop finish with brown sugar. Mouthfeel is full bodied with a creamy finish. Drinkability is high. This is definitely one of the better offering I've had from this brewery.

Serving type: bottle

08-20-2011 07:18:28 | More by DovaliHops

HalfFull

California

3.43/5  rDev -12.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Not being a huge fan of Amber Ales, I do get a bit curious when they get Imperial on me, especially if they kick it up in the hop department so we'll see how this one fairs. I hope I won't get betrayed.

Poured form an etched bomber into a wine glass/globe. A touch soft spoken on the pop of the cap at 45 degrees, the beer nonetheless pours with a frothy inch of light tan foam. Largely clear and a crimson/ruby in the light, appearing a deep amber otherwise. Offers good retention and classy lacing.

Aroma of caramel malts, touch of dark fruits and a moderate piney hop sense. Bit too malt forward for my tastes for the style within a style. This one weighing in at 8.2% not the 5.9% noted here.

Flavor matches the nose. Malty with caramel notes and a light cherry touch. More caramel and a bit of subdued milk chocolate on the finish.

A bit sweet and almost overbearing. Try this one with grilled meat or sloppy BBQ for a good balance. Rather lightly hopped and slightly askew overall for the ABV, otherwise intriguing and fairly well done.

Serving type: bottle

08-18-2011 03:40:02 | More by HalfFull

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.83/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

On tap at Churchkey yesterday. Served in a mini-snifter.

Pours a dark copper color with a thin light tan head and some spotty lacing. Thin collar throughout. The nose brings forward some heavy pine and a bit of toasted malt. The flavor brings a heavy dose of pine and some slight citrus along with some amber malt sweetness. The two don't complement each other as well as I would have liked. Sweetness isn't nearly as prevalent in the feel, which is heavily bitter and slightly chewy. Solid beer.

Serving type: on-tap

08-11-2011 10:56:39 | More by Thorpe429

jeffjeff1

California

4.15/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

I got this from my wife. She picked it up at her work.

Appearance- dark reddish color, thin head

Smell- piney hops, sweet and bitter smell, very nice

Taste- balance of sweet and bitter, piney hops, very nice

Mouthfeel- medium bodied

Drinkability- I thought it was very good. I would buy it again.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2011 19:07:26 | More by jeffjeff1

AwYeh

California

3.8/5  rDev -2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

22oz bomber poured into pint glass; bottle says its 8.2% ABV.

A: Deep, clear, reddish brown color. Lots of bubbles– looks a bit like cola. Half inch of tan head, subsides quickly but leaves thick lacing.

S: Sweet smell– lots of caramel and toffee, joined by some pine resin hop aromas. Hint of alcohol.

T: Nice balance of sweet and bitter here– initially the caramel and toffee are strongest but there's a very noticeable hop presence in the middle, and the finish is lingering and bitter.

M: Smooth and with medium-high carbonation– goes down easily and finishes dryly.

O: Just a bit less than the sum of its parts, found myself enjoying this one less as the glass wore down. Still a good beer, and definitely worth a try if you're a big fan of (imperial?) ambers.

Serving type: bottle

08-04-2011 05:40:36 | More by AwYeh

avaldivia

California

4.38/5  rDev +12.3%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured from bottle into a pint glass.

A: Excellent dark red color. Very bright and enticing. Nice head. Good lacing.

S: Whoa! Good amount of hops and caramel. A bit of alcohol on the nose.

T: Deep malt flavor that I really enjoy. Definitely hoppy for a red ale. A hint of an alcohol burn on the finsh. This is a very deep, complex, and wonderful taste.

M: Medium to thick body. Good carbonation.

O: excellent limited release that I hope will be released again and again. I will pick this up and order it, wherever I can find it.

Serving type: bottle

07-31-2011 05:18:51 | More by avaldivia

biegaman

Ontario (Canada)

3.85/5  rDev -1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On-tap at Pi Bar, in San Francisco.

Speakeasy Betrayal pours a deep, deep crimson that only directly into the light reveals its shocking secret - that it's actually transparent! (but you need a bright afternoon sun, artificial indoor lighting isn't strong enough to penetrate the sooty red beer). It has a well proportioned head that leaves ornate lacing that looks rather dapper in the tulip glass.

The flavours in the aroma smell faint, but are still perceptibly characterful; you'd think they made the beer with the peels of the most bitter oranges they could find, squeezed in a drop of grapefruit juice and let the malts they'd use sit near the stove before hand (they have a lightly smoky, toasted quality to them). Hard to know if it will be more bitter or sweet.

And the great thing about this style is that it needn't chose one over the other, it can be (indeed, should be) both! Here they co-exist in virtual harmony, as if the brewer somehow made a bitter tasting caramel, or a grapefruit that is as sweet as they normally are sour. No alcohol shows, so far as I could tell. But it could be concealed in the soft rose petal flavour.

The mouthfeel turns out to have lots of ashy, lightly smoky malts; they taste toasted just to the point that any more so and we'd call them roasted. Still, there is a lot of caramel sweetness and, lest you forget, a great deal of hoppy bitterness on the finish. The impression I get is of it being very dry and "nutty", like toasted almonds or hazelnuts.

Betrayal doesn't have the thundering properties to suggest that it's been brewed with the hop head's iron palate in mind, and while that might cost it the highest marks on this site, it should afford it a lot more success with the general populace. And with the amount of character it has, my guess is it will guide that populace to better tastes and higher standards.

Serving type: on-tap

07-27-2011 16:40:10 | More by biegaman

birchstick

Missouri

4.33/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

A - pours a brownish chestnut color with a nice tan head

S - smells of biscuit and toasted malt with a bit of grassy hops

T - this starts off with caramel malts and fades to a nice toasted and biscuit malt flavor. This beer is all malts and in a good way. Really flavorful and delicious.

M - super smooth and a nice body

D - one of the best amber ales I have had to date. Big thanks to KevSal for the hook up on this one. If I lived in San Fran I would drink this frequently. Recommended!

Serving type: bottle

07-16-2011 23:20:45 | More by birchstick

mikechance

California

3.68/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

My tasting is coming from a 22 oz bottle I recently got at BevMo. It has a nice caramel color with a slight head. The smell is very malt heavy --- I can’t pick up anything else. It is a nice tasting beer that is very malty, creamy and smooth with very little aftertaste. I’m picking up a little bitterness and hints of vanilla. It’s a very solid beer, but it doesn’t seem to capture the essence of red ale for me --- as if focusing on the “imperial” (8.2% ABV) was more important than retaining the red ale experience.

Serving type: bottle

07-15-2011 04:32:08 | More by mikechance

OBeerMeGreatOne

California

4.28/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a very deep ruby/scarlet/blood red. Very beautiful hue. It pours with about an inch of head, huge globs of lace are left behind.
Caramalts, strawberry, citrus and sweet country white bread make up the smell.
The taste is bready and fruity, with a good amount of hops to bitter it up at the finish. Citrus and herbal hop taste more specifically. I like the balance quite a bit. The brew is thick going down, bit not in a bad way. It's a bit highly carbonated, but not bad.
A little high in price for the style, but still pretty good. I'll probably grab at least one more before they disappear.

Serving type: bottle

06-27-2011 00:27:38 | More by OBeerMeGreatOne

Billolick

New York

3.93/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

16 ounce pour from the growler station at DeCicco's in Ardsley, NY.

A- Dark and near glowing orangy amber. Clear under a dark khaki dense and lasting 1/3 inch head. Leaves fine lace up top, frothy light sheeting and better then average fine patterns of lacing.

S- nose seems somehow muted, could be a stuffy nose...I just get some light malts.

T- Flavorful and quite worthy/sturdy brew, nice layers of malt, caramel, some light rye, spicy alcohol infused dark honey. Malted up and moderately complex brew.

D- Yes, I'd want to drink this over and over again...so good "drinkability"

Serving type: growler

08-21-2010 02:42:56 | More by Billolick

david18

New York

3.75/5  rDev -3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

I had a twelve ounce draft of this at the Ginger Man in Manhattan's mid town. I was told that it was an imperial but, in any case, I liked it a lot. The color was a deep amber or red with a light colored head and interesting aroma. Speakeasy makes great ipas but I haven't been crazy about their other brands. This one, however, was quite good.

Serving type: on-tap

07-26-2010 18:06:01 | More by david18

womencantsail

California

4/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: The pour is a nice amber color with a tan head.

S: Quite a nice caramel malt backbone to the beer with a hint of bread and piney hops. Not much citrus, but a good balance of malt and hops.

T: The balance continues in the flavor. Again, a good sweet base with some hops and bready malt to prevent the beer from being overly sweet. A bit of piney and bitter hops on the finish.

M: The body is medium with a middle of the road level of carbonation.

D: A pretty nice beer. Not my favorite red ale, but good flavors and balance that I don't find any major faults or problems with.

Serving type: on-tap

06-27-2010 06:41:05 | More by womencantsail