Blindman Brewing Red & White India Red Ale Batch 150* India Red Ale at 6% ABV | 50 IBU (C$5.49 at Oak & Vine, 568 ml, packaged on 24-Jun-2017, acquired 3-Jul-2017, reviewed 7-Jul-2017)
Appearance: clear amber-brown with one fat finger of loose beige head, good retention and minimal patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: toffee, citrus, hint of roasty malts (coffee/chocolate), grass & earth. (6/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter and mildly warming finish. (4/5)
Well, I didn’t get this until a couple of days after the sequicentennial, but that’s OK, because they admit they lied about it being batch #150, so it all balances out. I’m also going to have to disagree with the label claim this is “hazy & crazy hoppy” – it’s clear, and at best moderately crazy hoppy. More to the point, it’s an India Red Ale, a style I’ve had infrequently but never particularly liked. This isn’t bad for the style, particularly in the way the hoppy bitterness lingers and grows, but it’s nowhere near as good as some of their other offerings, like their 1 Year or their New England-Style Pale Ale. The choice of sizes is nice, too, assuming you consider the Imperial pint (568ml) to be more “Canadian” than the US pint (473ml). (13/20)
6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
