Scarlett Red Rye - Speakeasy Ales & Lagers

Murrhey

Montana

3.21/5  rDev -14.2%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Poured from a 12oz standard pressure-cap bottle into a shaker pint glass in Libby, Mont. Reviewed live.

A- Two-finger cream-colored head forms quickly. Thick and doughy looking head with moderate retention, two minutes is about right. Reddish-amber color body with high clarity. Fine looking beer. Nice sticky creamy lacing.

S- Some earthy hops and the slightly sour scent of rye. The grains are present, but not very vibrant. The hops smack of some earthiness and piney bitterness, but not tremendously complex.

T- Middling bitterness, piney hops. Sour and thick rye flavor. Honestly tastes kind of stale.

M- Medium-bodied, sugary and dry.

O- Slightly above average. I've had better and worse examples of the style. Not complaining though. Drinkable and a good example.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2013 03:17:33 | More by Murrhey

flayedandskinned

California

3.38/5  rDev -9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Bottled on 9/21/2012
Poured into a standard tulip

Appearance: Pours a beautiful deep, brownish red with a finger and a half of light tan head. Loads of lacing and good head retention.

Aroma: Spicy rye, sweet caramel malt with faint, leafy, citric hops playing catch up. Pretty low key smelling brew.

Taste: Starts off with a much bigger hop presence than anticipated. The citrusy hops pretty much dominate the other aspects of this beer. Unfortunately,there is very little rye underneath the hops. Some caramelly malt peeks through the brew as it warms. The rye finally makes itself known albeit quietly in the dry, bitter finish.

Mouthfeel: Slick, slightly sticky and off dry. High carbonation for the style.

Overall: A pretty flavorful session beer. I wish the rye had a bigger role in this beer and I also feel that the carbonation is too high for this ale. If the carbonation was dialed back a bit, I think the malt and hops would have a much bigger playing field to interact with each other on. It definitely is a good session beer to have while watching the game with some friends.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2012 23:58:33 | More by flayedandskinned

TheBrewo

Michigan

3.4/5  rDev -9.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

This brew was served from the tap at Rattle N’ Hum in New York, NY. It arrived in a stemmed pilsner glass, glowing a dark ruby coloring, with flecks of gold when held to light. There was a one finger tight and creamy head of tan bubbles, showing decent retention. This left patterned and spotty lacing around the glass. No haze or sediment was noted, and carbonation appeared average. The aroma was of light gingerbread, rye, steely malts, light caramel sugars, cooling lactics, mild char, and herbal hop bitterness. Our first impression was that the beer was a bit mild on the flavoring. As we sipped, bittering rye bite, plastic phenols, warming clove, and charred caramel malts with little sweetness started things off. The middle peaked with licorice bite, light leathers, and more of that phenolic bite from clove and plastic. The finish was watered through, with cooling heavy creamy, and lactics with warmth. The aftertaste breathed of smoke and char, light caramel sugars, mineral, bitter musk, hollow booze, and grassiness. The body was medium, and the carbonation was higher, with huge froth when swirled around the mouth. The palate was otherwise wet and satiated, with decent slurp, sip, cream, and froth. The abv was appropriate, and the beer drank easily, but there was just little to it.

Overall, what we enjoyed most about this brew was its refreshment and coolness on the sip. This was definitely darker in style for a rye beer, with generous attention given to the malty backbone. The flavoring, however, was washed to the buds, and you actually lose a lot of the rye, and sweetness of malt. There was interesting phenolic bitterness, which helped to keep you interested, but really not enough when coupled with the lighter nose to make you refill your glass with the same. This all eases up with heat, making it more refreshing, but again, it is not enough.

Serving type: on-tap

11-17-2012 20:16:04 | More by TheBrewo

merc7186

New York

3.44/5  rDev -8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Thanks to Monkeymagic72 for the bottle.

12oz bottle into pint glass.

A: Brownish Hue, Passes Mild Light, Off White Head, Great Lacing

S: Rye, German Malts, Mild Caramel

T: Rye, Mild Grainy Malts, Mild Caramel

M: Great Carbonation, Medium Bodied, Mildly Grainy

Overall, although the appearance came out very strong, the beer started to fall off from there with a decent nose but the taste didnt equal it unfortunately.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2013 04:59:27 | More by merc7186

mactrail

California

3.48/5  rDev -7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Big foam in the pilsner glass. Second pour yielded a tall whipped cream head with handsome dark copper amber color. Quite sudsy and a pleasant mouthful. A whiff of something bready in the smell. Caraway? Maybe that's my imagination.

The flavor is on the mild side with an odd sweet sensation. Sort of grainy with an interesting resiny tang that may be the rye. Otherwise not much sense of the often spicy and dry rye-ness. Not much in the way of hops, though there is a pleasant bitterish aftertaste. A hint of something like cardboard that is less pleasant. Still, this grows on you after sipping through the 12 oz. Maybe this would be a good quaff. I'll try it more chilled next time. From the six-pack bought at Beach Front Liquor in San Clemente.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2013 06:12:49 | More by mactrail

MCain04

Illinois

3.49/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Extra in a beer trade. Bottled 11/12, poured into Sam Adams glass.

A: dark amber-red and clear, 1 1/2 finger creamy off-white head with good retention, moderate lacing.

S: Not much on the nose, some rye malts, a bit of spice? Not that aromatic.

T: Standard rye tasting malt, not much hop taste, a little bitterness on the back end.

M: Clean and crisp. Modestly dry. Tastes thin.

O: An average rye ale. Probably wouldn't drink it again, but not bad.

Serving type: bottle

02-23-2013 23:47:52 | More by MCain04

clayrock81

Virginia

3.49/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Poured a reddish brown and had nice head retention and lace. A rather light, nondescript aroma for a rye beer as I get a little bit of roasted and sweet malts, along with citric hops and rye, but nothing really going on here and it's a little odd. Smooth, easy to drink, this isn't a bad beer in my opinion but it just seems to misfire. The rye gives it a little dryness and heartyness, and the sweet malts and hops are in there and balanced but as I finished my glass it was more grainy and harsh than anything resembling sweetness or hoppiness. A good beer but not one of the greats.

Serving type: on-tap

05-27-2013 17:31:51 | More by clayrock81

Philousa

California

3.53/5  rDev -5.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Imbibed at City Beer Store on 9/1/12.

Clear, amber/ red ale with sticky white head that barely covers the top. Lots of copper caramel malt aroma with some chalky chocolate. A little bit of weedy, green, wet hops with a swirl. Taste starts with roasty chocolate and coffee. Not too bitter, but smooths out the drink towards the end. A little bit of metallic/blood flavor in the middle for good measure. Spiciness of rye is there, but barely noticeable. Handled the grain well IMHO. Dry finish, balanced MF. This reminds me of an unimperial version of Betrayal. Very good and sessionable. Would be good in the fall with these flavors. I wish they released this in six packs.

Serving type: on-tap

09-07-2012 17:58:47 | More by Philousa

Fatehunter

Oregon

3.55/5  rDev -5.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured one finger of head on a clear, amber colored body.
The aroma is red licorice, rye spice and lemon.
The taste is moderate bitterness with a slight honey sweetness and finishes with a bold bitterness. Nice profile.
The texture is crisp with moderate carbonation.
An enjoyable red rye ale.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2013 03:57:37 | More by Fatehunter

TheSixthRing

California

3.58/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Appearance - Pours a dark, semi-clear amber red with an off-white, 2 finger head. Average retention, the resulting lace is thick with decent stick.

Smell - Primarily caramel and roasted malt with a hint of citrus hop, and a peppery rye note playing off in the background.

Taste - Follows the nose fairly well. Roasted malt character, hints of coffee and chocolate, caramel malt, a touch of citrus hop on the backend... but the rye is so subtle, you might not even catch it if you aren't looking for it. There's a bit of peppery spice in the aftertaste, but it's almost an afterthought.

Mouthfeel - Medium body, with fair carbonation. Finishes semi-dry. Goes down smooth and easy.

Overall - Somewhat disappointed, if only because I've been so impressed with Speakeasy beers in the past. This one's not bad by any stretch, but if you're looking for a beer with strong rye character, you might want to look elsewhere. Not a bad beer, but doesn't necessarily deliver on the promise of the label.

Serving type: bottle

11-01-2012 05:53:12 | More by TheSixthRing

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

3.58/5  rDev -4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

This poured out as a brown color until I held it up to the sunlight and saw its nice deep red hue. The head was a cream color with a decent retention and very thin lacing. The smell of the beer is toasted with a touch of earthy hops and malt sweetness. The taste also gave off a big toasted flavor upfront with some subtle chocolate notes as well. The finish of the beer was bitter with some caramel in the mix as well. The mouthfeel of the beer is medium bodied, it's got a dry finish with a good carbonation. Overall it's a pretty solid brew.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2013 21:54:05 | More by Knapp85

smakawhat

Maryland

3.63/5  rDev -2.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

Poured from the bottle into a Dogfish Ale house glass.

Three fingers of light tan and creamy retention head foam up, big and bellowing with lots of staying power. A super dark reddish brown amber, nearly blood colored but deeper with little slow rising carbonation coming up. The body color on this beer is just true red and to name, exquisite. Minimal lacing, with a little light clump. Love it.

Nose has some chewy dry malt sensations, and light cream. Not much else, but it's very nice and quite solid and simple.

Palate hits with a very light body. Light malts but also a hint of wetness that rolls over the tongue. Finishes clean with a nice classic rye malt spice kick. Hop angle seems to be buried with the spicy malt dominating.

Overall this isn't really that bad, and it's easy drinking. Just a little bit more oomph and depth and this would really hit the spot.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2013 00:08:47 | More by smakawhat

lsummers

California

3.8/5  rDev +1.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Had this on tap at Tony's Darts Away for Speakeasy's 25th.

Appearance is a copper brown that is somewhat opaque. Smell gives away some of the hoppiness but is subtle. First sip I could tell this was a rye beer and reminded me of some rye ipa's only much less hoppy. The caramel and somewhat spicy sour leather notes of the rye come through. You do notice the hops on the backend which is a nice addition. The carbonation didn't really affect the review as I didn't think it added or subtracted, had nice carbonation and wasn't watery or too thick, just about right.

Overall I would like to try this bottled actually, I'm wondering if less of the hoppy notes would come through, as well as if the carbonation makes a difference. A decent rye beer, which is great since the rye selection is small.

Serving type: on-tap

08-31-2012 02:04:36 | More by lsummers

UCLABrewN84

California

3.85/5  rDev +2.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

On tap at Tony’s Darts Away in Burbank, CA.

Pours a clear copper with a foamy khaki head that settles to a film on top of the beer. Thick foamy rings of lace line the glass on the drink down. Smell is of malt, rye, caramel, and herbal hop aromas. Taste is much the same with a slight toast/roast flavor and an alcohol kick with each sip. There is a mild roasty and hop bitterness on the palate with each sip. This beer has a lower level of carbonation with a slightly crisp and medium bodied mouthfeel. Overall, this is a good beer that is tasty and easy to drink.

Serving type: on-tap

08-31-2012 00:43:33 | More by UCLABrewN84

TheMarkE

California

3.89/5  rDev +4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Very good. A limited release, this hoppy rye has great balance and smoothness. Complex and subtle, this is helping me become a big fan of the Speakeasy Brewing.

Serving type: bottle

01-09-2013 03:36:00 | More by TheMarkE

CHickman

New York

3.9/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a slightly hazy copper / blood red color with a massive 2 finger foamy tan head that was full of bubbles and faded very slowly, leaving good foamy lacing and rings as it went down; the head didn't budge for over a minute, dissipating at a snail’s pace.

Smells of fresh clean herbal hops, rye, pine cone, biscuit, dry grass or hay, caramel and light spices; very earthy, clean and light smelling, with the rye and hops playing equal parts for a nice soft enjoyable aroma.

Tastes of orange peel, grapefruit, floral/herbal hops, rye, pine cone/piney hops, cocoa powder, roasted grains, biscuit, grass or hay, caramel, toffee and spices like pepper and mild coriander; like the nose, the flavor overall is earthy and clean, but more complex than the nose with stronger hops, cocoa notes and malt sweetness that made it pretty well balanced and then let the rye sweep through at the end in a cleansing dry manner.

Mouthfeel is thin and watery, with mild carbonation, a light body, and a slightly bitter finish that fades clean with rye trailing and making its mark. The aftertaste is clean, yet funky like cardboard, so this has some different qualities to it. Overall this was much better than I expected and quite easy to drink; borders on a session beer for me. This lady is legit and one I will seek out again.

Serving type: bottle

12-03-2012 03:46:45 | More by CHickman

plaid75

New York

4/5  rDev +7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On draft at The Lark, East Northport, NY.

Poured a murky dark amber hue with a half finger foamy white head. There was good retention and lacing.

The smell featured a soft caramel malts and zesty rye spice.

The taste consisted of a smooth, yet earthy sweetness coupled with a spicy rye malt. Pleasant toasted bread finish. A moderate herbal hop cleaned up the flavor.

The mouthfeel was of typical fullness.

Overall a tasty and well balanced rye ale.

Serving type: on-tap

11-12-2012 21:08:48 | More by plaid75

KTCamm

New Jersey

4.13/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Mix a six pick up at Shoprite Wines. Twelve ounce bottle in pint glass.

Pours crimson reddish brown with virtually no foam on top. Just a smattering of white. Toffee rye nose, subtle sweetness. Pleasing. Rich malty taste with a rye hop bitter in the middle that rolls into sweet finish. Nice bite. Solid mouthfeel. Everything really works together for a tasty end result.

Serving type: bottle

05-11-2013 20:21:43 | More by KTCamm

elNopalero

Texas

4.15/5  rDev +11%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

This pours a malty amber with tight white foaming atop. It doesn’t have a big hop aroma—rather, light dank notes come across the nose along with some malty hints. The flavor is resiny, chewy, and moderate malty. Some dank hoppiness notes bring it together.

This beer is definitely the younger/lighter sibling of their imperial red ale. I think this version works more effectively—I love rye ales, red ales, and at this ABV I could have more than one. Whether in a bomber or sixer I’d love to see this on shelves as well. A winner.

Serving type: on-tap

10-30-2012 01:09:34 | More by elNopalero

pkalix

California

4.21/5  rDev +12.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25

deep, dark red. little head.
mellow hops aroma, something else a bit like an ashtray aroma (but as an ex-smoker, i LOVE it...)
taste is... mellow hops, something else.... something neutral to balance it and i cant finger it out.... is it the rye?
the website SUCKS. says it's been in operation since 1997 but they STILL aint got crap on the website to help bring their products along? rate the beer, i know, but i like a little poetry to go with it- preferrably from the producer...
overall, it's a decent brew. leans to the hop side. low abv. nice color. i get the malt balance in it and i am still learning my rye. could easily drink another, even though it's not my preferred style.

Serving type: bottle

02-05-2013 01:02:56 | More by pkalix