Red Chair IPA - Deschutes Brewery

corby112

Pennsylvania

3.93/5  rDev +1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Pours a dark amber/orange color with a thick, frothy white head that has very good retention, slowly fading into a lasting that coats the glass with soapy lacing.

Earthy, floral hop aroma with hints of grassy pine, citrus fruit and pale malts. Dank, oily hops with hints of grapefruit and orange peel along with some caramel and biscuit from the malts.

Full bodied with a prominent earthy, bitter hop flavor up front that lingers over the sweeter notes and malt backbone into a dry finish. Lots of grass and dry pine needle flavor that's slightly countered by sweet grapefruit and orange peel. There's a decent malt backbone with hints of caramel and biscuit, providing nice balance without taking away from the hops.

Overall this is nicely balanced and easy to drink but the hop profile is a touch one-dimensional. Other than that it's a pretty favorable, enjoyable beer. I wish they would have kept this in bomber form.

Serving type: bottle

11-20-2011 06:36:00 | More by corby112

Cavery

California

3.05/5  rDev -21.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Shared with Klym on a farewell session

750ml into Stone Nonic.

A: A golden pumpkin pie that changes in color gradient towards the head, that appears like a crust upon the pie. A money three finger head with sea foam froth to spare. Oh red chair, you know what I like.

S: really quite light smelling. A slight pinch of cardamom that falls into zucchini bread. really just a flat sweetness that comes off a bit hollow. I can't really say any specific origin of the sweetness other than "malt", but even the malt takes a seat in favor of brown leaves.

T: Straight forward malt sweetness with almost no detection of hops. The hops are latent and lingering, but it's so light that I would hesitate in calling this an IPA. Most certainly it falls into the light roasted category of Pale Ales. A two note beer that plays the same song of dried apricots and toffee sweetness. Can't help but mutter "been there done that" a thousand times.

M: mouth is appropriate, it simmers as it should. It has that pleasant lighter-than-soda-pop carbonation that lasts as it should. Though this falls into the same trap that the taste does, in that this has been done for too long and too many times.

O: I would definitely feel sheepish in calling this an IPA. It really just doesn't have that flavor profile that I'd readily associate with the style. I can't help but have that idea really knock my drinking experience of this beer, as it's really treacherous to offer something in that lags in an already well-established style. This beer is an anachronism, It's a pale ale incognito. Somebody get the time machine, and send this thing back.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2011 03:16:00 | More by Cavery

Klym

California

3.4/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Shared with Cavery! Poured into a Stone nonic.

A: A hazy golden amber with a frothy head constructed of individual, very fluffy bubbles. Lacing is beastly. Darker than expected for a single.

S: I was sniffing too hard and accidentally snootered it so my smell may no longer be reliable. A heap of fresh and dead grass with hops and a hint of caramel. Not very aromatic but not surprising as it seems to be intended to be pretty light.

T: Light taste with wheat, caramel, almost floral flavors, a little bit of salty butter with hops just poking the tip of their head in at the end to say hello. Smooth and very unoffensive flavor, almost no bite.

M: Very smooth mouthfeel with soft carbonation, but I think a crisper mouthfeel would've been more appropriate to offset the weakness of the taste.

O: This drink wants to be a pale ale and doesn't quite make it as an IPA. That being said, there's little wrong with it. Some unusual scents and flavors that go well together-- in fact, I'd recommend drinking this with an open nose, as mixing the scent and flavor really enhances the experience of this beer. I can't give it too high of marks though when I think of the many great single IPAs out there. Would be curious to rereview this recipe under the new red chair NWPA and give it a fairer evaluation relative to its peers.

Serving type: bottle

06-22-2011 02:58:53 | More by Klym

whatthehull

California

4/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured into a New Belgium snifter

A - Lovely translucent copper, 1 finger offwhite/tan head and some streak lacing

S - Very citrusy, floral both in Malt and Hop. Smells a tad sweet, but just a bit. Grapefruit, mango, peach, apple, orange, carnation, roses and maybe some lavender, oak, freash wheat, barley, lemon grass. Very hoppy but such a nice malt to balance it out

T - Wow, all the citrus explodes and finishes into a nice toasted malt, earthy bitterness. Grapefruit, lemon grass, mango and orange all are in the taste. The floral notes turn into more of a soapy tatse. It's really nice. I love that in a beer

M - A bit sticky, nicely carbonated, not at all chewy but the flavor lingers like a chewy beer does. Flavor last a while on the palate

D - This drinks like a daily. I could have this all day every day on draft or bottle. Very nice APA

Final thought - $7.99 a six, 6.4% ABV. Tons of flavor and easy to drink? BOOSH!

Serving type: bottle

04-09-2011 19:06:08 | More by whatthehull

philbertk

Washington

3.93/5  rDev +1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Deschutes Brewery--Red Chair IPA--India Pale Ale--Bond Street Series--2009 Release. 22 oz. Bottle. 6.40% ABV--55 IBU's. 4.5 / 5.0. IPA Big foamy thin white mild lace head. Clear fizzy bright thin pretty amber red color. Intense floral earthy hop malt front. Tangy mild sweet dry toasted hint caramel hop infused fully fermented mild fruit body. Dry rich hop spice clean mild bitter end. Resinous. Sampled 4/30/2009. $4.69 Each. NEW BREW!!

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2011 04:53:41 | More by philbertk

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.13/5  rDev -19.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from notes. Picked up at the brewery, so I assume it was fresh.

Pours a moderate light brown color with a white head and some lacing. Not much in the way of retention. The nose brings some very light citrus hops and some bready malt. Doesn't really take things too far in either direction. The taste is the same way with some really faint malt and not much of a hop presence. Pretty plain feel as well. Drinkability is decent enough, but nothing special.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2010 23:03:03 | More by Thorpe429

Gobzilla

California

3.9/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A: poured a brownish golden orange with yellow highlights that had a half finger of head and left good bubbly lacing sticking to the glass.

S: lots of citrus dominate the nose with a good sweet caramel malt presence and a mild hop piney grassy aroma.

T: the graasy hops are more potent on the taste with citrus grapefruit that help out on the bitter bite but orange accents and a decent malt caramel backbone.

M: the brew was medium in body with a good amount of carbonation which had a citric, sweet, and mild bitter finish.

D: it drank pretty good but it was for sure way better when it was fresh. I'm kinda sad that this beer is retired and will not be able to enjoy again.

Serving type: bottle

10-11-2010 07:15:27 | More by Gobzilla

July2Nov

Hawaii

3.75/5  rDev -3.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Note* Had this one in the refrigerator for a while, and since it is a retired beer, I decided to bring it out and finally taste it.

Appearance: Opaque sunburst amber color with a great frothy, one-inch head and plenty of carbonation racing to the top. Beautiful.

Smell: I could smell this one from about a foot away. Potent! Slightly sour, with bread notes pouring out. Citrus also noted near the end.

Taste & Mouthfeel: Mild hops straight away. Spikes up just a bit and then smooths back down (buttery biscuit flavor) for a mellow and highly drinkable IPA. Aftertaste has that dry-mouth tingle.

Drinkability: Much like it's successor, this "Red Chair IPA" is easily, one of the smoothest IPA's out there. Becoming more of a fan of IPA'sl and as always...a HUGE fan of the Deschutes Brewery and all of there beers, even though it took me so long to finally pull this one out.

Serving type: bottle

08-02-2010 01:19:03 | More by July2Nov

ShadesOfGray

Pennsylvania

3.2/5  rDev -17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Poured from a 12oz bottle into my tasting snifter. Pours a hazy golden color with a nice size frothy white head. Head dissipates to a creamy surface. No real lacing to speak of, just a few random bubbles here and there.

Aroma is different. Can definitely pick up the hops, but a strange fruit smell I can't quite put my finger on. Almost like pear? Has a slight malty aroma.

Flavor is ok, nothing special...pretty average. Light and crisp mouthfeel. Carbonation is pretty high...not a bad thing though. Mostly faded hops...not sure if I have an older bottle...but overall, a decent IPA...nothing special thouh.

Serving type: bottle

05-14-2010 17:38:06 | More by ShadesOfGray

maximum12

Minnesota

3.98/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Deschutes, welcome to Minnesota! Bottles as well as kick-off parties today & it's a good day to have another excellent brewery enter the state. And thanks to chickencoop for shipping me this in a recent exchange. No idea this one was retired already.

Choppy orange leaning compass-wise towards reddish. Smell is soapy hops, pine underneath. Someday someone is going to tell me which variety of hop creates that soap smell.

Red Chair is a subdued, milder IPA. The malts & hops do an intricate dance, complete with ribbons, that bind them together & makes it difficult to tell where one begins & the other leaves off. A faint, almost raspberry taste darts in & is immediately run off by the ending hops, but it's there. Nice bitter finish. As the nose, so the taste, with soap & pine blitzing over the malt in the end.

Drinkable as all get out. A gulper. The soapy feeling is followed up by a clean dryness that makes me reach for more quickly.

Overall very good. Haven't tried the new formulation, but this is a beer that appears not to have needed further tweaking. Ah, well.

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2010 01:42:25 | More by maximum12

champ103

Texas

3.23/5  rDev -17%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

A: Pours a hazy orange color. A two finger white head forms with decent retention. Not much lace is left behind.
S: A big juicy hop aroma up front. Citrus and grapefruit. Some sugary, caramel malt lingers to balance everything out.
T: Tons of juicy and bitter hops. Huge grapefruit and citrus again. that lingers on and on. The balance that was in the nose is all but gone.
M/D: There is medium carbonation. Though this is to much on the thin and watery side for my liking. The bitterness makes this harder to drink than I would like.

A one and done purchase for me. Not one of Deschutes better offerings. Their Inversion IPA is much better IMO, it seems like the brewery agrees since this is recently retired.

Serving type: bottle

03-11-2010 20:53:57 | More by champ103

Gyle41386

South Carolina

4.08/5  rDev +4.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Guess we had one of the bottles before the "retirement."

Amber-orange pour. Not much foam, light rings of lacing on the glass.

Nice citric hop nose with some light caramel malt.

Lightly sweet malt up front, then plenty of citric (orange, specifically) hops. Very hoppy without being overly bitter; just good hop flavor throughout.

Light-medium body with tingly carbonation. Very easy drinker.

Serving type: bottle

03-04-2010 22:33:40 | More by Gyle41386

ybnorml

Rhode Island

4/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

retired eh. well i musta got one of the last bottles. THANKS John.
A cloudy dark amber beer. Has a creamy off white head with nice lace. The aroma is grassy/herbal and malty. With a biscuity background. The taste has a slight sweet apple note on the tip of your tongue. Followed by a caramel note in the middle. There is a peppery dry hop bite on the finish. kinda close to an english style IPA. Again thanks John this was a nice drink.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2010 19:14:57 | More by ybnorml

srandycarter

California

4.22/5  rDev +8.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Like this one

A - Pours beautiful clear amber, lots of off white head, reduces to ring fast. Tons of cling lace.

S - Standard fare - huge malt factor, probably heavier on malt than hops.

T - Luscious malt center, hopped well towards end.

M - Medium body, good carb, good coating. Balance on the sweet side, but good.

D - Easy, my friend, very easy to drink.

Serving type: bottle

02-10-2010 05:18:22 | More by srandycarter

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

3.51/5  rDev -9.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Something between Mirror Pond and Inversion, although I like both of those more than this.

Pours a little darker brown than expected, but what foreshadowing. Aroma, a woodsy tinge. Taste, more of the brown flavor again hinted at in the appearance. A mellow ipa, balanced, good malt backbone, a little more than I prefer, but a good "non extreme" IPA.

Mouthfeel is cool, you can feel a little more without the over the top hop blast, drinkability suffers at $6 a 22, you can get a lot better beers for that price.

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2010 20:38:44 | More by Beerandraiderfan

brewdlyhooked13

Ohio

4.58/5  rDev +17.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 5

Appearance - even with a gentle action this baby puts up three solid fingers of cream-colored foam. A very effervescent amber/orange brew beneath it, high clarity. Very sticky lace as the head slowly recedes.

Aroma - light caramel malt, big citrusy pungent hop presence. Doesn't smell like a big beer, but the hops have a large intense bouquet to them.

Taste - oh my. A biscuity, almost tea-like start. The hops are very orangey with just the mildest grapefruit edge. Big but not bitter, the swallow and aftertaste show plenty of substance without the medicinal component often paired with heavy hop usage. Excellent balance, the finish has plenty of hoppy dryness to it and just a touch of warmth in the throat when it's all said and drank.

Mouthfeel - smoother than it is creamy, the carbonation and medium body keep it from feeling overly heavy.

Drinkability - an ideal session IPA in my book. Not too spicy, extremely flavorful, and a respectable abv. Kudos to BGThang for getting this into my hands. Thanks dude!

Serving type: bottle

01-30-2010 20:28:46 | More by brewdlyhooked13

taxguyjase

New Mexico

3.65/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Pouring a pale amber with a pretty foamy almond head, the Red Chair IPA from Deschutes Brewery is mouth watering to look at. There's a really nice hit of piney hops when you take a whiff of the beer. Those hops are really potent and sour, but sweetness from the malt balances it out very nicely. Makes for a very favorable IPA that isn't just a bunch of pungent hops. There is some bitterness, but nothing that will pucker your face up. Definitely good mouth coverage, as light sourness sticks around. Light carbonation gives it a nice thickness and a medium body. Smooth going down.

Appearance - 4.5/5.0 - Pale amber, foamy almond head. got my mouth watering
Smell -3.5/5.0 - Piney hops with some sourness
Taste - 4.0/5.0 - Sour hops blend well with lightly sweet malt; very favorable
Feel -4.0/5.0 - Light carbonation, medium body, some thickness
Drinkability - 3.0/5.0 - Very enjoyable, but not my favorite IPA. Wouldn't go out of my way to get it again.

Serving type: bottle

01-10-2010 22:13:32 | More by taxguyjase

CHILLINDYLAN

Washington

4.15/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Copper with tangerine and cherry highlights. Small tannish bubbly head. long slender lacing.

Herbal and citrus, lemon peel. Toasty bready caramel backing. Hint of esterous yeast.

Hop juicy orange, lemon peel, bit of grapefruit. medicinal caramel and toasted crackers. herbal and medicinal in the aftertaste, pine, hemp, tea leaf. Not a big bitter IPA. Well balanced and good hop taste.

Smooth, refreshing, lively carbonation, slightly sticky and dry. med body.

Good, well balanced, not too bitter IPA. very drinkable. Good intro into IPAs?

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2010 21:40:47 | More by CHILLINDYLAN

birdypowder

Oregon

4.28/5  rDev +10%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Red Chair creates its own category on the label calling itself a North West Pale Ale. I would put it into the strong pale category. The hop aroma definitely approaches IPA levels but the bitterness does not. This makes the beer more sessionable, though at 6.4% ABV, not too sessionable.

Aroma:
Big hop nose hits you first. Some citrus and a little pine. Once past that you can find a mild berry aroma.

Appearance:
Medium sized off-white head that dissipated fairly quickly leaving a thin layer of foam on top of the beer. Some slight lacing. Copper in color with a noticeable haze.

Taste:
Big hop kick up front, then a very smooth middle which shows off some delicious malt sweetness, again berries come to mind. Throughout the hops are showcased but the beer remains in balance. Medium bodied.

Finish:
There is no big bitter finish like an IPA would have. Instead the hops are still noticeable and a very mild bitterness lingers for just a bit. Very satisfying, it gets you ready for the next sip.

Serving type: bottle

01-02-2010 07:58:37 | More by birdypowder

sprucetip

Alaska

4/5  rDev +2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

From notes. Clear, copper, active, with modest white head, good retention and lacing. Very attractive. SMELL is rich and malty, balanced by floral and grassy hops. Has legs. TASTE like gthe nose, a smooth and delicately balanced blend of rich maltiness and floral hoppiness with restrained bitterness and a clean finish. FEEL med/full body, some fiz, abit of warming and a rich viscous texture. OVERALL totally sessionable, full flavored IPA with some depth and complexity.

Serving type: bottle

12-11-2009 06:09:35 | More by sprucetip

SkeeterHawk

Texas

3.78/5  rDev -2.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

This beer was a gift to me from one of my customers after I helped them a little in planning a beer party off hours. Anyway, this is probably not a beer I would have bought myself, so, thanks, Natalie!

Appearance: Pours a mostly clear slightly burnt ornage color with a small, but thick, head of off white bubbles. The bubbles are tight and fall slowly leaving a decent amount of lacing on the glass when it falls.

Aroma: I initially get the (to be expected) "C" hops in the aroma along with a rather pleasant toasty malt aroma and some sweetness from crystal malts. It has a nice complexity and balance so that you can actually pick out some of the malts.

Taste: The beer itself is pretty good with a decent interplay of malt and hops pretty much the whole way through and especially in the finish. The malt takes a supporting role as it should in this style, but still is able to add balance in the finish. There is a slight chalky feeling left on the back of the throat that lingers for quite some time with the bitterness...this is a little unpleasant to me. Overall the beer has a pleasant mouthfeel and finishes with enough body and sweetness to let you know that this beer is not very small and shouldn't be taken lightly.

Opinion: This beer is actually pretty good for this style. I am not a hop-head, so I am sure that I am not appreciating this beer as much as others would...however, it is an easy drinking brew with a nice overall aroma and flavor profile. I will certainly finish this bomber bottle, but I don't know if I will be buying it in the near future.

Serving type: bottle

12-10-2009 01:16:52 | More by SkeeterHawk

aglose45

Pennsylvania

3.98/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4

Thanks to alexd3891 for this fine beverage in a trade!

A: Poured a beautiful golden amber with an off-white head.

S: Smells a bit of tart citrus fruit, but there is a strong malty, bread-like sweetness backing it up.

T: There is a hint of citrus in there, but I'm also getting a good amount of pine. However, there is more malt flavor than I expect in an IPA.

M: The mouthfeel is very solid. There is a good level of carbonation and an okay amount of stickiness from the hops.

D: This beer drinks very easily, and i enjoyed it. If I had my way I would have it be a bit hoppier, but overall I did enjoy it. I would drink it again, but wouldn't actively seek it out. Also, I sat on this bottle for a bit, so that probably had something to do with the lacking hop "pop" that I was looking for...

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2009 03:11:20 | More by aglose45

RonfromJersey

New Jersey

4.33/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Hazy red orange body, topped by four fingers of creamy white dentable foam.

Fresh pine and citrus aroma is heavily enticing without being overpowering.

A sweet malt foundation pours down the center of the tongue while simultaneously juicy fruity hops burst along the roof of the mouth. Nice hop bite at the swallow, and a fine tingle into the aftertaste. Great balance for an ipa.

Firm if not quite chewable mouthfeel, it carries the beer well down the throat.

Fine drinkability. Enjoying this bottle and wouldn't mind another.

Just noticed a "best by" date of 08/19. If this beer is three months past prime and is still this good, it must be something fresh.

Serving type: bottle

11-23-2009 06:00:28 | More by RonfromJersey

Ryan011235

Ohio

3.6/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a snifter on 10/5/09

Best by 10/17/09

A - Dark amber color. Slightly cloudy with a few floating particles. About 1/8th inch layer of retention. Ok lacing.

S - Rather on the light side. Floral hops are mostly what's there. Some citrus juiciness, too.

T - Very bitter. Cutting & harsh; a razorblade of pine hop lacerates the palate. Watery swaths of floral & citrus (grapefruit, orange peel & maybe a bit of lemon peel). Faint hints of dry & burnt bread.

M - Thin mouthfeel with potent & prickly carbonation. This is a scrappy critter. Dry bitterness on the finish. Almost off-putting. Almost. The beer becomes a tad more forgiving as it warms.

D - This is an odd one for me. I would think twice about recommending this for someone not acclimated to hops. This would be an interesting beer were it ever on cask.

Serving type: bottle

11-07-2009 06:41:10 | More by Ryan011235

Anthony1

Colorado

4.2/5  rDev +8%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bright translucent copper in appearance, loose frothy off-white head that settles to a thick cap that retains. Wide thick patches of sticky lacing.

Bready carmelized malt on the nose, floral and citrus hops, some pine and grapefruit.

Light toasted malt can't quite hold its own with the puckering piney citrus of the hops, which pretty much carry the show, no discernable breaks in the finish or aftertaste, the hops presence is consistent, yet a bit one-dimensional as a result. The mouthfeel is pleasant, a smooth, rounded medium-bodied affair, with a bit of carbonated kick on the finish to give more of a crisp than oily texture. A nice mellow IPA when all is said and done, it offers a hop kick that pleases but doesn't smack you upside the head. Yet on that note it doesn't really stand out from the American IPA throng as a result of that either. Good easy gateway beer for the style in a way, not too intimidating.

Serving type: bottle

11-02-2009 18:56:18 | More by Anthony1