Racer 5 India Pale Ale - Bear Republic Brewing Co.

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

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

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

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

Rumrunner

California

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

22oz. bottle.

This is a very nicely created IPA.

A dusky bright amber. Some elements floating in my glass. A huge frothy white head. Very good lacing. Scents are floral and fruity. Hops are mild. A nice malty quality to the scent.

Nice bitter hop bite at first. Then it mellows in to a fruit taste. Some sweet lemon. A malty ending that is smooth compared to the hop bitterness at first.

Mouthfeel is clean and medium bodied. A little density to this IPA. It drinks very easy. A very minor syrup quality to the feel of the IPA. A well thought out and complex IPA. I'll have another.

Serving type: bottle

08-19-2003 06:39:53 | More by Rumrunner

aaronh

Pennsylvania

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

Bright copper color topped by a thick cream colored head. Slight chill haze, active carbonation. Much more reserved and fruity aroma than I was expecting. Instead of smacking you with hops, it's got a bit of balance and some complexity in the aroma. The taste is hop laden, to say the least. Very bitter up front, then a puckering hop quality truly sucks your cheeks together. A nice floral sweetness comes in at the finish, along with a bit of malt. Initial bitter either subsides as the beer warms or numbs the taste buds to leave a smoother, softer flavor experience in its wake. Aftertaste is multiple types of hop notes, with pine, florals, and just down right bitterness mixed with a touch of sweetness. Hop burps start after two drinks, with a nice herbal note to them. Combination of alcohol and hops create a burning warmth in the throat and stomach. Mouthfeel is full and somewhat silky. For the intensity of flavors and moderat ABV, this is an insanely drinkable beer. Very good. I like this one a lot.

Serving type: bottle

08-08-2003 05:05:45 | More by aaronh

StevieW

Florida

4.38/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

22 oz bomber bottle. Cloudly dull amber color. Off-white head, not nearly as rocky and fluffy as the XP Pale Ale. Moderate cascade hop presence. Nice citrus and floral notes. Not as juicy and resiny as the other one either, but still a nose full of fresh hop aromas.
Taste is tight, sharp and bitter. Very good IPA flavors. Bitterness is sharp and cuts through the palate. Leaves huge bitter hole on the tongue. Sweet malty undertone. Very gulpable. Easy to guzzle, and guzzle. Resounding hop burps. Cleansing. Very good IPA. I paired this with a grilled barbecue pork chop and horseradish cheddar covered broccoli. It did the job perfectly. Cut right through the tangy barbecue sauce and horseradish cheese. Highly recommended. I wish I had more of these Bear Republic beauties. It was pure pleasure to drink them the last 2 nights.

Serving type: bottle

08-07-2003 02:32:48 | More by StevieW

SheepNutz

Kentucky

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

22oz. bomber poured into a pint glass. It pours a slightly hazy reddish-orange with 1 small finger of head. There is a little bit of lacing left on the glass. The smell is a rich hoppy floral aroma, with some fruitiness also. The taste has good hops, and isn't overpowering, like some bigger IPAs. There are also some cirtus notes, and just enough malt for balance. The mouthfeel is nice and smooth. The drinkability is very nice for being 7%. A good offering for hophead rookies.

Serving type: bottle

07-09-2003 18:36:01 | More by SheepNutz

beerguy101

California

3.48/5  rDev -17.5%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pale gold colored IPA with a large foamy head. Aroma is malty and spicy. Lightly malted, heavily hopped. A highly hopped IPA, yet there is a definite malty overtones. Nice balance of hops and malts. Finish is clean. Aftertaste is bitter with some malt sweetness.

Serving type: bottle

06-25-2003 17:02:54 | More by beerguy101

jcalabre

California

3.4/5  rDev -19.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Originally sampled on 13 May 2002. I am writing this review from my notes. This is a nice drinking IPA. It is certainly better than average with a good hoppy nose and flavors. Others (Stone, DFH, Victory, Bells) are better, but I wouldn't pass this one up

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2003 19:49:32 | More by jcalabre

johnrobe

Tennessee

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

Appearance: Dark gold - light orange amber, a tad lighter than its American IPA peers. Off-white head that leaves plenty of lace.

Smell: Grapefruit, pinepapple, a little citrus and pine.....all the glory that is Cascade!

Taste and mouthfeel: Hopheads rejoice! Bear Republic has managed to extract a ton of PNW hops flavor into this brew with only a scant amount of bitterness. All the aforementioned smells translate to the palate backed by a sweet, bready, lightly kilned maltiness. Creamy, slightly chewy mouthfeel, yet a bit lighter than say, a Stone IPA. Good Stuff!

Serving type: bottle

06-20-2003 18:52:00 | More by johnrobe

brewdlyhooked13

Ohio

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

Pours with an orange hue. A fine creamy white head, while not big, holds on well. Pouring out the bottom half adds the sediment which clouds up the issue. 2 appearances, 1 beer. Bonus points!

Aroma is reminiscent of hop monsters past. Major floral smell, almost candy-like and some pine notes in there.

Taste is brief, but solid malt up front, then the hops prevail. They don't force their way onto the palate too soon, but wait for just a moment before blending with and transitioning from malt to hop. It's not necessarily balanced, but it doesn't have to be, it's really not supposed to be. The fact that the hops share the stage at all is noteworthy. If you've not had the likes of Hop Ottin, Ruination, Hop Devil, or Dogfish 90 Minute, then this will be a shock. Otherwise it's really a tasty IPA with a well-defined hop bite that is as much sweet as it is bitter due to some creative and delicious malt infusion. A good pick for the intermediate hopster.

After drinking about 10 ounces from the glass, I swirled and poured the remaining 8 or so from the bomber. Adding that sediment softens the hop profile considerably, making the taste as balanced in an IPA as Two Hearted Ale, though considerably less intense. 2 tastes, 1 bottle. Bonus points!!

This doesn't taste like it's 7%, I could handle 4 of these easily before I figured out I should've stopped at 3. A unique taste every hop lover owes to them self to try.

Serving type: bottle

06-04-2003 21:05:53 | More by brewdlyhooked13

kbub6f

New York

4.15/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Bought from the fridges at Gaslamp Liquor in San Diego, seven hours in my carryon, a couple of weeks in my fridge, reviewed 45F-70F.

This is a very pretty looking beer. The big, cream-colored head is dense in the middle with coarse bubbles around the edges. Lacing is monstrous: thick, 3-D sticky scary clumps. The color is a slightly hazy pure amber. Very fine carbonation and fine sediment on the last pour.

Hop-o-rama! The nose is darkish sweetish malty... quite complex. The front is like fresh squeezed hop juice with some caramel sweetness. The middle is creamy with a little toffee and a touch of chocolate. Very thick and a little oily. Delicious hop bitterness dominates the finish, but there's more to it than that. There's a little grass and something else I can't quite put my finger on (but it's good). The aftertaste is quite grainsy with some nice alcohol warming.

What a great, tasty beer. It's intriguing... I can't quite grasp the complexity. But I'm going to ding it a little on drinkability: with the thick body I was satisfied with one.

Serving type: bottle

05-29-2003 17:36:51 | More by kbub6f

beernut7

Massachusetts

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

This tasty IPA pours with a slightly hazy amber color and a slight lace on the glass. Mild buttery and floral spice aroma. The complex flavor involves a stronger malt presence especially bringing out a caramel roundness paired nicely with a moderate bitterness and a mild spice compared to the style. Quite drinkable and very well-balanced. There is a distinctive toffee flush through the finish.

Serving type: bottle

05-25-2003 09:05:36 | More by beernut7

BierReise

Florida

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

I didn't find this IPA as nice as the Alesmith but still an excellent brew. Deep copper color with ample froth which lightly laced the glass. Nose is hoppy with pine really standing out. A gentle bitterness which is nice and the way I personally like IPA's to be. Good to the finish with consistent flavor throughout.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2003 18:22:53 | More by BierReise