Racer 5 India Pale Ale - Bear Republic Brewing Co.

francisweizen

Australia

4.5/5  rDev +6.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

An excellent IPA from Bear Republic. This pours out a creamy orangey/peachy colour with a large white head of foam. The aromas are all fresh cut piney/citrusy hops with a nice malt backbone to boot. The taste is a hop explosion with some great bready malts on the finish. The mouthfeel is quite smooth and reminds me of real ale. Bottle conditioned magic, I tell ya. The drinkability is excellent as well. All hail the bear! Why is this stuff SO EASY to get anywhere in NYC, but impossible to get in PA, why....why....why....!?

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2003 15:36:12 | More by francisweizen

Realale

Missouri

4.72/5  rDev +11.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Clear light copper. Very fine white head settles to a complete cap leaving nice lacing.

Nose is citric hop over a slightly rich biscuity malt. Very well-balanced.

Balance carries through to the palate. Lots of malt, and lots of wonderfully extracted hop flavor. Finish is long, and well-balanced between hop bitterness and malty sweetness.

Very soft beautiful bottle-conditioned mouthfeel really keeps the hop bitterness in check. Simply excellent. Its nice to find an American IPA that has the malt to balance, not just support, the hops.

Serving type: bottle

12-09-2003 04:11:48 | More by Realale

goz

Massachusetts

4.53/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

Pours amber/copper with a large white creamy head that somewhat lasts and leaves a fair amount of lace. Aroma has hints of sweet maltiness, but is dominated with strong citrus hoppiness. Flavor starts with some fine malts, then comes a pile of chewy, juicy, super fresh tasting hops that linger around for a while. Medium-full bodied, slightly acidic, ends pretty dry.

Serving type: bottle

12-08-2003 00:48:34 | More by goz

Weissenheimer

New Jersey

4.22/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

I usually don't go for IPAs unless I have companion food to fend off the hops, but as I take a single taste of this stuff I know that it will be fine on its own. My pint arrives with a small head which soon diminishes to a foamy strip winding its way across a thin film of suds. The beer has a pleasingly mellow, coppery tinge that softens it from amber to something reminiscent of pumpkin. It carries a happy, crisp, moderately hoppy scent.

The taste is amazingly full and round for an IPA. I am very impressed. It has a big, lovely, solid body backing up a hoppiness which brings green, growing things to mind. Its metallic bite is embedded in an overarching rounded taste which protects me from what might otherwise be a harsh experience. Toward the end of the pint I notice a slightly woody element. This beer is not all that complicated but its fullness provides an enjoyable drinking experience.

Serving type: on-tap

12-07-2003 22:38:44 | More by Weissenheimer

BeerResearcher

Massachusetts

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This is a big IPA...could be called an Imperial IPA. It pours a bright shiny copper with a medium-sized off-white head and some trails of lace. The aroma is mostly made up of fragrant floral hops, with a hint of sweet malt. The body is fairly full and sweet for the style. Caramel and vanilla wafer come to mind. A big blast of fresh sharp-edged hops jumps out with grapefruit, lemon zest and a faint metallic tang. The warming alcohol mixed with the lush sweetness gives this brew a sort of brandied candy flavor, only a tad more astringent in the finish.

Serving type: bottle

12-07-2003 02:34:43 | More by BeerResearcher

nomad

Kansas

4.22/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Poured a beautiful shade of golden amber, well conditioned by the bottle. Head was thick and tight foam, leaving strips of stain.

Smell was sweet and thin in a nice, clear way: grapefruit with stickly pine, joined by some peach notes and herbal scents. As it warmed it coalesced into a honey-dipped fruit smell. Delectable.

Tasted of grapefruity goodness with a sweetish but appetizing malt backbone. Its big floral flavors were tastier than ever in an IPA. Had some straight fruitiness in time with a mediocre bitterness in the finish. Full-flavored but a little thin in flavor and mouthfeel, the finish detracted a smidge too.

Regardless, a very good West Coast IPA fighting hard against the competition, but is more drinkable than some of those hop-monsters though.

Serving type: bottle

12-06-2003 17:33:28 | More by nomad

tavernjef

Minnesota

4.6/5  rDev +9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Nice ambery copper color, somewhat hazy with little floaty things, hop leaf bits probably, finger high off-white head of thick bubbly froth, fades slowly to a thin haze and a ring which remains present the whole glass. Lace is sticky in large webby sheets. Aroma is oh so nice with lovely hops of piney deepness and citrusy oils with a soft, round caramel maltyness. Straight up IPA nose from the West coast eh, quite nice, could smell it at arms length. Taste has a nice piney sense with a mellowness thats welcoming; increasing citrus of dull orange oil and grapefruit mixed with a touch of woody dryness and a nice even bittering hop bite thats resin filled and quite nice the whole way through. Caramel malts keep a sweeter notion overall on the under side. Feel is solid medium bodied with a nice little creamy smoothness and fluffyness that slides right down. This beer clinched it for me. I love hops!! I've held back on wanting a hop fix, but no longer, I'm going to start hoarding hop heavy beers dammit! This was a very nice IPA! The bomber was gone in no time! And I thank Drewbage1847 for it!

Serving type: bottle

12-05-2003 23:53:33 | More by tavernjef

scottum

Vermont

3.98/5  rDev -5.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a pale amber with quite the short head for a slightly hard pour of an IPA. Hops are bitter and citrus tinged. Malts are a bit bready and sweet, but do an admirable job of mellowing the hopster. A very mild taste of the 7% still shows through. Overall a very decent IPA. Worth a try.

Serving type: bottle

12-02-2003 18:08:37 | More by scottum

drewbage

California

4.55/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Poured from a 22oz bottle into my Map Room pint glass.

Beer pours copper orange with a fair haze. Tough soapy and sticky white head hangs onto the glass and

Aroma is piney and deep resin with sticky citrus, sweet orange oils and a light alcohol Grand Marnier like finish.

Flavor starts with a soapy orange bitterness and proceeds through a with a medium malt body with spiced overtones. Finish has a return of the hoppiness this time with more grapefruit and lemon characters.

Overall an excellent example of the style that would drive most of the drinking public running towards the nearest case of Keystone.

Serving type: bottle

11-24-2003 07:11:57 | More by drewbage

winomark

Missouri

4.05/5  rDev -4%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Appearance: Pours a deep gold with a wispy, off-white head.

Aroma: Hop citrus and spiciness hits hard. Tiny alcohol and malty notes in the back.

Taste: Lots of hop bitterness and dryness is dominant. Malt makes a tiny appearance to offer some balance. A hop-head's dream beer.

Mouthfeel: Dry and crisp, but has good body. A wonderful, hoppy finish.

Drinkability: A great IPA; much better than I remember. Would love to make this one a regular at my house.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2003 15:10:28 | More by winomark

taez555

Massachusetts

4.53/5  rDev +7.3%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

This beer poured a big thick white head with a clear amber body.

The nose was beautiful. Fresh sharp citrus hop. Pepper (not necessarily black), flowers, touches of pine needles, caramel, malt. Basically this is what A.P.A.’s are supposed to smell like.

The taste was nice and creamy. Medium to full bodied. Rich caramel and a big fresh malt taste. Smooth with a high level of bitterness, but balanced perfectly against the malt. The hop flavors, (citrus, pepper, pine, flowers, grapefruit, lime peel) are all present and balanced, but so much more subdued than you might expect from such a big beer.

It ends slightly medicinal but nicely bitter and hoppy.

Overall just an amazing IPA. Very smooth, clean and easy drinking. Lots of big malts, and huge fresh hops, all perfectly balanced and yet so well mellowed it doesn’t overshadow anything else. A must try beer. Yum.

Serving type: bottle

11-12-2003 09:30:27 | More by taez555

AtLagerHeads

Ohio

4.28/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Another one of the very fine SoCal IPAs, this one has a great level of hopping that seems perfectly mated to the fine malt base. The clear copper body is covered by a single finger of off white head that laces the glass very abundantly. The aromas are equally well balanced between a fine carmel malt and the lovely floral hops.

The taste of this beer is just great with strong malt and hop presence. The feel is great as well with a nice medium body and a crisp and dry finish. Very good drinkability from this nice brew.

Serving type: on-tap

11-09-2003 23:46:30 | More by AtLagerHeads

RoyalT

Ohio

4.08/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Appearance – Very clear, thin-looking body with a tremendous, foaming head that laced and pitted my Ruination glass.

Smell – Sharp, piney hops lead the way here. If there’s a malt balance I can’t find it. This one is all about the hops. Very complex, actually, with some floral and citrus notes.

Taste – The taste sees through the promises of the nose. The complex hoppy flavor comes out at the tongue, but not overly sharp. There’s a tremendous smoothness to this ale that reminds me of NW style IPAs.

Mouthfeel – Very smooth and medium-bodied. This one is also exceptionally dry and refreshing.

Drinkability – Clean and distinctive offering of the style. I brought a few more Bear Republics back with me from LA and am looking forward to giving them a try.

Comments - The brewery is located in Healdsburg, home of the CA Wine Country. It's a beer island in a sea of vino, so woulid probably appreciate a beer-lover's visit.

Serving type: bottle

11-06-2003 04:19:53 | More by RoyalT

barleypop

California

3.58/5  rDev -15.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

I partook of this on tap at Bear Republic. Its appearance was that of clover honey with not much of a head to speak of.

The nose I can only describe as that of a sticky marijuana plant. Not that I know what one smells like. I’ve been to the Haight one too many times.

The hop flavors come through strongly. I think there is a hop stuck in my teeth! There are some biscuity malt flavors somewhere in the background struggling to make themselves heard. An exceedingly dry finish.

Overall, a bit too hoppy for my liking. Could use a bit more balance. It literally tastes like hops steeped in boiling water. Introducing the worlds first IPA Iced Tea!

Serving type: on-tap

11-04-2003 20:15:11 | More by barleypop

Gusler

Arizona

4.43/5  rDev +5%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Draught @ Papago
The beer as it’s poured straight from the tap a cloudless golden amber with the head a majestic crown of white, creamy in texture with a fine sealing coat of lace upon the glass. The floral aroma of the hops greets your senses first, followed by the sweet fresh malt sweetness; start carries on the malt sweetness to the middling top. Finish is perky in it’s acidity, the hops potent and pleasing in their spicy bite, desert dry aftertaste, and one “damn” fine IPA in my books, and one I always keep on hand in the bottle and a great example of a California IPA.

Serving type: on-tap

11-01-2003 06:15:47 | More by Gusler

UncleJimbo

Massachusetts

4.33/5  rDev +2.6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Sampled on tap at Redbones.

This IPA poured a hazy, copper color with white foam that settled to a thin coat that clung to the glass a bit. The smell was sweet malt and fruity hops. The taste was sweet and tangy malt balanced with fruity, floral hops, and some hoppy bitterness in the finish. The mouthfeel was smooth and very hoppy, though well balanced with malt. The body was medium with modest carbonation. The finish was dry. This was a very nice IPA. I would like to try this in a bottle.

Serving type: on-tap

10-30-2003 06:57:31 | More by UncleJimbo

Jason

Massachusetts

4.22/5  rDev 0%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

22oz brown bomber with no freshness date.

Appearance: Mildly hazed golden orange, a most excellent froth with a web like trail of lace.

Smell: Clean and fresh citrusy hop aroma, hop oil and a pungent coarseness show the bucket loads of hops they used. Light estery alcohol, toasted malt lay meekly underneath the hops.

Taste & Mouthfeel: Nice hard slap of hop to begin with, the pungent bitterness lingers on and on. Lots of hop flavour and a soothing bottle conditioned smoothness that can’t be beat! The maltiness is muscular but laid back with a biscuity flavour throughout. Mild presence for what the alcohol should show though it does warm the body after a while.

Notes: This is one of those Hop-o-licious brews. Sock it to me baby … I love those hops and keep them coming. Paired this one up with a bowl of secret Mexican Surprise Casserole … delicious!

Serving type: bottle

10-27-2003 02:26:30 | More by Jason

WVbeergeek

Ohio

5/5  rDev +18.5%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance: Orange copper glowing heavenly tone with a massive vanilla cream colored head so massive and full of hops even from a distance wonderful evenly dispersed sketched patterns of lacing very appealing to the eye. Aroma: Extremely pungent but so very appetising almost mesmorizing so I warn thee don't spend to much time sniffing this awesome brew it's so hard to back away the old snout and quit wafting this baby toward my olfactories that are working overtime in order to host this well balanced hop monster. So many enticing and prosperous aromas flying around besides the hops which are breathtaking by the way, but a sweet engulfing aroma is entwined within the massive amount of hops creating the recipe for a succesful big IPA. Taste: Wow, should we even start this part of the beer, might as well it's fucking awesome. I now know why this beer has the surrounding hype that exists when mention it's name the crashing wave of foam carrying bready pine cone infused hops and caramelly sweet malt within the viscous juicly hopped body it's beer nirvana. These beers have truly surpassed everything else certain brewer's have taken it to the next level this beer is no where near the gimmick that some beers attempt to be, but it does so well in soothing my hopheadedness that I can't help but thank anybody that had to do with getting it into my reach. Mouhfeel: The resilent foaming head holds such a fluffy creaminess with each sip followed by a flowing wave of the combonaiton of the body of this beer bringing texture and sensations along the palate that I didn't know could be obtained. Drinkability: It's redamndiculous how friggin' amazing this beer is and how bad I want to order a case from somewhere I would be dangerous with a case of this stuff b/c once this bottle got to the halfway mark I was thinking where can I get more, easily consumed challenging but so enjoyable and drinkable in general.

Since arriving in the Burgh and becoming accessible two blocks down the road this has been by go to hoppy ale, amazing in all regards.

Serving type: bottle

10-01-2003 22:04:05 | More by WVbeergeek

ManekiNeko

Virginia

4.25/5  rDev +0.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Served on tap in an large weisse glass at my local Hard Times Cafe

Appearance: Slightly hazy peach color with an appropriately frothy head. The head could've stuck around a bit longer, but oh well. Excellent lacing as this rather tall glass of beer was consumed.

Sell: A great blend of floral and bitter hops on the nose, with the floral aromatics taking the center stage. Nice backing of pale malt.

Taste: A near perfect balance of malt and hop flavors: not too sweet, not palate-numbingly bitter. Grapefruit notes on the finish. My girlfriend, who has an aversion to bittering hops, kinda liked this one.. maybe she's getting acclimated...

Mouthfeel: Nice medium bodied feel, slightly astringent, but this is an IPA.

Drinkability: Oh yeah. If this is on the tap when I go the place next, I'll probably snag it. This is a rock-solid IPA. Me likey.

Serving type: on-tap

09-28-2003 19:06:58 | More by ManekiNeko

PatandDavid

Massachusetts

4.28/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5

Re-Review 9/5/04

Looks like I had this just a little over a year ago, and this time it was super.

Autumn gold in color, nice malty aroma, sheet lacing. I found the taste to be 100% hop candy. In this I mean the hops were prominent and fresh, but also that there seem to be so much hops packed into the beer that there is actually a candy like note (not syrupy, but candy-like). Very smooth, I had 2 of these which means that I will be making adjustments to my previous tally.

old review:

Had this on tap at Redbones...Color when served was of cloudy apple juice. I didn't pick up too much aroma from this one. Not too much head, but left beautifully striped lacing all through my glass. Taste was very citrusy, fresh, with a nice tart mouthfeel. Not a lot of malty notes in this one. I didn't find it it overhopped or anything, but the one taste sensation was: citrus. Would drink again (actually I have a bomber in my bier kabinett waiting for me). Reminiscent of Rogue Brutal Bitter imo. Pat

Serving type: on-tap

09-28-2003 18:52:37 | More by PatandDavid

mikeys01

Colorado

3.88/5  rDev -8.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Appearance of the Racer 5 is a nice early sunset orange, with a whitecapped frothy white head. Very good clariy on draft. Aroma is good and freshly hopped -probably due to the freshness of the brew - they apparently brew 2 batches a day at BR, with the majority being Racer 5. Also smells fairly fruity, more than expected. Good flavor of citric hops, lightly malted, and pinish bitterness. Very smooth and not too heavy considering it's on the bigger edge of IPA's. Very drinkable, right up there with my other favorite IPA's such as Stone, though the two aren't very comparable. I could drink this stuff all day....

Serving type: on-tap

09-24-2003 17:04:33 | More by mikeys01

far333

Connecticut

3.58/5  rDev -15.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Dark orangey apricot color with a beige thick, oily looking head that clings to the sides of the glass. Aroma is of hops, honey, pear, and alcohol in equal amounts. Flavor is not very hoppy, but has hints of orange peel and honey and some floral notes. There is a distinct alcohol flourish in the back of the tongue in the finish, and it also lingers afterward. Mouthfeel is a little watery, a bit low on carbonation. Tasty beer, but needs more balance. The flavor is overpowered by the alcohol.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2003 03:58:18 | More by far333

LiamStLiam

New York

4.18/5  rDev -0.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

OK, three-fifths of the way through the 22-ounce bombers that recently arrived.

I like IPAs and this one is very good.

Pours a mid to dark brown with a thin, light head.

Very nice, citrusy nose.

I am coming to the conclusion that the Bear Republic folks brew really good beer.

Very representative of the style and a well-done version. I could relax and drink a number of these.

Mid-range hang time and just a touch of metallic finish.

An enjoyable beer.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2003 02:40:04 | More by LiamStLiam

brakspear

Wisconsin

4.35/5  rDev +3.1%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 5

22 oz bomber bottle.

A very good and extremely drinkable Westcoast IPA, dangerously so at 7% apv.

The appearance is a soft and "relatively" clear light orange with a clumpy white head. But for some reason this bottle has sheets of sediment floating. I thought they were hop flower petals at first. They really detract from the appearance, but have no effect on taste or mouthfeel.

The aroma is a nice grapefruit/citrus blend, but not overpowering to scare off newcomers to the hoppier Westcoast IPAs.

The flavors are a very nice blend of malts and bracing hoppiness. A generous malty breadlike flavor gives way to smooth bitterness with just a slight snap in the finish. Very drinkable for a beer of its potency.

I would definitely put this in the stable of cross-overs beers into the more extreme IPAs available on the Westcoast.

Serving type: bottle

09-24-2003 01:00:36 | More by brakspear

hungryghost

District of Columbia

4.28/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Copper, amber color.
Good bubbly, head. The variance in size of bubbles making up the head, almost give it a lumpy appearance.
Floral hop aroma with a pine musk.
Lingering rings of lace appear, marking each step in the process of emptying the glass.
Sharp hop bite with a slight citrus taste. The hop flavor slowly disipates as a nearly sweet feeling skates across the tounge. Liking hops is a pre-requisite for this one.
At 7% I may not be able to type well after a full 22 ounces.
Maybe I should eat...

Serving type: bottle

09-06-2003 02:36:30 | More by hungryghost