Big Rye Wibby
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant

Beer Geek Stats
From:
Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
 
United States
Style:
American Amber / Red Ale
ABV:
7.5%
Score:
Needs more ratings
Avg:
4.2 | pDev: 4.52%
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
9
Status:
Active
Rated:
May 18, 2014
Added:
May 01, 2011
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
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Recent ratings and reviews.
Ratings by stakem:
Photo of stakem
Reviewed by stakem from Pennsylvania

4.3/5  rDev +2.4%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
I got to have this on the hand pump at the Lancaster location on 5/20/11.

This brew appears a clear amber color with some ruby and orange coloration when it is held up to the light. 2 fingers worth of fluffy yellowish stained head form atop the brew and hold strong throughout the duration of the experience. Patches of lace stretch upwards across the glassware.

The smell of this brew is bright with citrus hops and fruity/floral sweet indications. It's a very fresh aroma coming out of the glass with crisp hop characteristics that are very pleasing upfront. As the brew warms, it gets a little spicy with a touch of mineral aspect through the middle. The back of the nose finishes with a toasty malt inclusion lightly reminiscent of caramel.

The taste of this brew is very fruity and floral with hops. More sips reveal fruity and rindy fresh hop flavors that start to develope a bitterness that comes across lightly medicinal. More hop flavors are present with each sip bringing forth notes of grass, herbs, and flowers. The backing of this brew is toasty caramel sweetness. The alcohol inclusion is fruity with esters and a light warmth is noted.

This is a pretty darn good brew. Very well balanced and enjoyable to the point where I could see myself drinking several of these quicker than one should. It is medium bodied and lightly carbonated. Very smooth in the feel. It has been awhile since I had the regular wibby offering but I am hard pressed to pick out any easy distinguishable features that set these two fine brew's apart.
May 25, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 4.25 by Durandal_777 from Pennsylvania

May 18, 2014
Photo of yourefragile
Reviewed by yourefragile from District of Columbia

4.13/5  rDev -1.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
From notes, on tap at IH Lancaster.

Pours a red/dark copper with a large off white head and thick sheets of lace. Mildly rye spicy aroma with caramel malt, floral and earthy hops. Medium thick body, with moderate carbonation and dry, spicy finish. Flavor is hoppier than the aroma, blending nicely with the strong rye spice and strong grapefruit bitterness/sweetness. A very enjoyable rye amber.
Dec 31, 2011
Photo of thain709
Reviewed by thain709 from Pennsylvania

3.95/5  rDev -6%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
On-tap during Hop Attack, my last beer of the night

A - A darker shade of copper body...the head was an off-white color and stood two fingers tall...it settled into a nice cap and left pretty good lacing

S - You can pick out each component in this beer...the sweet, citrus hops; sweet, caramel malt; earthy, spicy rye

T - Again, all the flavors are present on the palate...you can detect the 20% rye malt as it gives off an earthy flavor in the middle-end of the beer...and it finishes the beer off with its spicy aspect...the citrus hops kick things off and that's pretty much it for them...the caramel malt and rye malt take over from the middle to the end of the beer...creating an earthy, spicy finish with just a touch of bitterness

M - Medium bodied...the rye shines in the finish presenting earthy and spicy flavors...light bitterness

O - It was nice adding the rye to the base beer...I actually enjoyed the normal version a tad better...I wasn't a fan of the finish of this beer
Aug 01, 2011
Photo of Thorpe429
Reviewed by Thorpe429 from Illinois

3.88/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap at the Lancaster location on Memorial Day 2011.

Pours a reddish-copper color with a good off-white head and a bit of lacing as it makes its way down the glass. The nose carries some light rye spice as well as a bit of sweetness. Some floral and earthy hops there as well. The flavor packs a bit more punch, and the hops come out more. Light floral and earthy flavors mix well with a bit of a rye spice. Good bready character and some light sweetness. Medium body with a light bitterness in the finish. Pretty good.
Jun 03, 2011
Photo of orangesol
Reviewed by orangesol from Pennsylvania

4.12/5  rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Served on cask at Iron Hill Lancaster.

A – Pours deep, dark, brown with a one and a half finger tall white head leaving thick rings of lacing down the glass.

S – Smells of spicy rye, pungent citric hops, sweet caramel malt, and lots of grapefruit acidity. The citric aroma's are strong but the grainy rye helps to balance them out. Very nice stuff.

T - Starts off with a bright grapefruit hop bite up front quickly giving way to a mix of spicy rye, sweet caramel malt, and an overall chewy feel that combines with the hops and the rye to linger thru the finish. The hops were a great compliment to the spicy rye.

M - Medium body and flavor with moderate carbonation. Full feel, growing a bit thin toward the end, with a mix of hop bitterness and spicy rye in the finish, lingering for a short time.

O - I enjoyed this one. The bright hops were a welcome addition to all that grain. They really held their own throughout the glass. I am glad I got to try this one on cask.
Jun 01, 2011
Photo of akorsak
Reviewed by akorsak from Pennsylvania

4.47/5  rDev +6.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
A growler filled on 6-May-11.

A: A dark amber, more caramel brown than not. Still translucent, it is a struggle at times to see through it. An off-white tan head, make half a finger, is lacing all around the mouth of my glass.

S: The ale is at least an arm's length away, and yet the sweet citrus hops continually waft into my nose. The citrusy grapefruit is intense, a suitable pairing for the spicy aniseedy rye. This nose is hard to beat, so fresh and sharp.

T: Rye and caramel, a malty start, register first, a nicely sweet start. The rye has dark spicy bread notes and anise-y licorice; well at-home with the amber side. Grapefruit hops are assertive, following the rye. They are big and bold, bitter, even a little resiny. A pleasing bitterness, both rye and citrus, leaves a long-lasting impression. No horseshit Jack, this beer really shook the pillars of heaven.

M: A mother lode of hops running through the dark, spicey rye - if a body catch a body and all that good stuff. The growler reaffirms my love.
May 08, 2011
Photo of Kegatron
Reviewed by Kegatron from Pennsylvania

4.42/5  rDev +5.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
On tap @ Iron Hill Lancaster on 4/29/11. Served in an oversized mug.

Pours a deep copper, with a finger of off-white head. This retains with some creamy bunching, as this stays rich looking, and leaves back some sticky swathes of lace. The aroma is fresh and floral, with bright bitter grapefruit character being blasted up the nose. A bold, sticky, and spicy mix of rye, toast, and caramel, fills out the back and just matches up perfectly with those assertive hops. This just smells delicious!

The taste matches this, with a bright and bright green grapefruit bitterness that spread out into the mouth. This is well balanced by an equally strong blend of sticky caramel sweetness and doughy rye, leaving a spicy and dry impression on the finish. The mouthfeel is medium-fuller bodied, with a lively sharpness to the carbonation that then gets much more smooth and slick along the back. The 7.5% ABV gives this a bold feel overall but still keeps this very approachable for the size. I ripped through this mug much faster than I thought I was going to!

Count me as a fan of the regular Big Red Wibby from here but the rye addition takes this to a new level, with a dark and spicy character to this that perfectly pairs up with the sticky sweetness of the malts and that brazen hop profile. As a matter of fact, this seemed to be even more hopped than the original! This is probably one of the best rye beers that I've had recently. I loved every drop!
May 04, 2011
Photo of Slatetank
Reviewed by Slatetank from Pennsylvania

4.24/5  rDev +1%
look: 4 | smell: 5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
I had this on tap at Iron Hill Lancaster -10oz glass served chilled.

The color is deep bronze with copper highlights and thick glass coating cream is rocky and has a fine bead. The retention and clarity are very good. The aroma is fresh squeezed hops - the dank citrus rind and blood orange juicy nose has light herbal accents, but really is an array of so much hop goodness you could probably find every hop smell descriptor adjective suitable. the feel is following up a hoppy pungent scent in an apropos way - dense resinous, juicy and strong bitter oily hop feel. The carbonation is moderate and body is relatively full for the strength with a light astringency and subtle roast accent with high alcohol in the finish w/ dry end.

The Big rye wibby is a bit green to my taste buds, saturated with hops so much that the malt seems clouded or obscured sllightly. I would not be able to tell this from Big Red Wibby side by side since the hopping is very similar - juicy citrus with some ruby red grapefruit flavor and drying alcohol w/ light tropical accent and mild yeastiness in the finish which is bitter and dry. I think this is not really a good fit for the American Amber style personally. It has way to much hop flavor for one and would better fit the double IPA category since the only thing it has in common with amber is the color -dark red. I understand that it is a reformulation of the original Big Red Wibby with rye malt but there comes a point when there is barely any malt flavor and it quacks like a double IPA it probably is ...you get my drift, but anyway it is a tasty beer with lots of hop flavor -well worth the price of admission a good beer if you want to saturate your palate with hops. I was told by Paul they used 2 bales of hops in this recipe!
May 01, 2011
Big Rye Wibby from Iron Hill Brewery & Restaurant
Beer rating: 4.2 out of 5 with 9 ratings