Trail Ridge Red
Estes Park Brewery

Trail Ridge RedTrail Ridge Red
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From:
Estes Park Brewery
 
Colorado, United States
Style:
American Amber / Red Ale
ABV:
Not listed
Score:
82
Avg:
3.38 | pDev: 11.54%
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
13
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Nov 16, 2013
Added:
Jan 09, 2003
Wants:
  1
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by ROGUE16:
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Rated by ROGUE16 from Delaware

3/5  rDev -11.2%

Dec 05, 2011
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.25 by jaydoc from Kansas

Nov 16, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by Eric908 from South Dakota

Jul 31, 2013
 
Rated: 2.75 by carteravebrew from Colorado

Jun 18, 2012
 
Rated: 4 by PhatAtUT from Texas

Dec 03, 2011
Photo of ColoradoBobs
Reviewed by ColoradoBobs from Colorado

2.97/5  rDev -12.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
12-ounce bottle brought to my table with an eight-ounce chilled glass, which I let warm up, at the Dunraven Italian Restaurant in Estes Park, CO (which, by the way, makes some mighty fine Italian food).

Moderate pour yields a smallish off-white quickly fading head over a clear dark amber body, with hardly any evident carbonation.

Smell is molasses, caramel malt, grass, mild pepper.

Taste is (skunky) sour mash, cracker malt, mild floral hops with metallic bitter finish.

Best part is the mouthfeel, which is round and full in the finish.

Easy to drink, but why?

Another sub-par brew from a sub-par microbrewery, at least for this part of Colorado, what with Oskar Blues, Left Hand, New Belgium, Odells, Fort Collins Brewing and Boulder Brewing all within 50 miles.
Apr 09, 2008
Photo of Beaver13
Reviewed by Beaver13 from Colorado

3.48/5  rDev +3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
12 oz bottle (labeled as The Stanley Hotel Redrum Ale). Pours a brownish copper with a thin creamy off white head that quickly recedes to a thin film.

The aroma is sweet caramel malts and fruity hops.

The flavor is sweet and sugary caramel malts with some toasted biscuit and nuts. The finish has some good "C" hop flavoring but is lightly bitter. The mouthfeel is medium and kind of watery.

Overall, a pretty nice hoppy amber. I think this one is pretty underrated.
Dec 26, 2007
Photo of kimcgolf
Reviewed by kimcgolf from Georgia

3.2/5  rDev -5.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3.5
Pours to a dark amber, with off-white head that diminished fairly quickly, and decent lacing. The aroma was hops and slightly citrus. Flavor was a tasty balance of hops, and as the glass warmed, more malt. The only down side to this was the palate. The body was slightly thin, and the finish was watery, that turned quicklyu to dry and slightly sour. Not a bad beer, but I failed to detect much int he line of bitter. More like a mixture of an Amber and a Pale Ale.
Aug 03, 2006
Photo of rowew
Reviewed by rowew from Colorado

3/5  rDev -11.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Presentation: 12 oz longneck. Label has a fairly average looking picture of trail ridge road.

Appearance: Pours red with just a bit of haze, and a thin head. Quickly fades to nothing.

Smell: Muted malt sweetness and just a touch of floral hops. Subtle, but not un-appealing.

Taste: Very low carbonation level, smooth mouthfeel. Highly drinkable, but not too exciting. Tastes about like it smells.

Overall impression: Not bad - definitely drinkable, but nothing to set this one apart from the masses.
Jul 20, 2006
Photo of ndekke39
Reviewed by ndekke39 from Ohio

3.58/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Tried this beer as a sampler at the Estes Park Brewery bar (they do free sampling). This turned out to be one of my favorites of all their beers. Deep redish color to it; small, white head (although the lack of head could have been due to the small glass). Sweet aromas - brief hints of caramel mixed in with the floral hops. The sweetness carried over into the taste. Again, a dark, caramel flavor to it, which dominated a little bit. The hops balanced out the flavor a bit, but the sweet won out in the aftertaste. Light carbonation, very good drinkability. If I had had more time, I would definitely have ordered a pint of this one.
Jul 11, 2006
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Reviewed by beveragecaptain from New Jersey

3.38/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
12 ounce bottle. Estes Park Trail Ridge Red pours out a brownish color with very little head. Sweet, malty flavor with fruity hops. The flavor is sweet and candy-like. Burnt sugar comes in and fruity hops. Tastes a little like bubblegum. The hops have a good flavor, but there is very little bitterness. Finishes with an iced tea flavor. Medium mouthfeel. Decent drinkability. This is just an average red. The main problem is the lack of bitterness.
Feb 10, 2006
Photo of marcobrau
Reviewed by marcobrau from Illinois

3.76/5  rDev +11.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
This red ale pours with nice bit of bright white foam that leaves lacework down the sides of my straight-sided pint glass. This beer doesn't offer much in the aroma department, some malt is detected, alongw a slight breadiness. Fruity flavors meld with a silky smooth caramel maltiness with a satisfying result. Spicy hops come into the picture towards the finish, which is a bit tart, fairly long, and bitter. The fairly light body and smooth mouthfeel make for a very easy going beer that comes across more like a English special bitter than an American amber ale. (This is not necessarily a bad thing.)
Mar 04, 2005
Photo of Mitchster
Reviewed by Mitchster from Michigan

4.06/5  rDev +20.1%
look: 3 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours out to a clear ruby red, forming a small beige head with poor retention and minimal lacing. Carbonation is mild to moderate. The aroma is quite interesting...I immediately notice the aroma of a supermarket flavored coffee aisle, followed by fruity and citric hops, and boatloads of vanilla. Swirling it produces more of the flavored coffee character. I've never smelled this before in a red ale, so it's taken me by surprise but it's intriguing. Taste begins with a moderate degree of citric and fruity hop flavor, followed by the pleasant flavored-coffee note, lots of vanilla, and then a nice toasted, nutty character. A slight bit of chalkiness creeps up towards the finish. Bitterness is fruity and mild to moderate in intensity. The finish is clean, lightly dry from roasted barley astringency, and with lingering hop notes in the aftertaste. No off-flavors or perceptable alcohol.

A very interesting red, and one of the more enjoyable one's I've had...only red in color, this is closer to a hopped up American Pale Ale in taste. The coffee and vanilla notes make it interesting, though it may not be what you're expecting. Nevertheless, this was an enjoyable brew and I'd drink it again next time I'm out here in Estes Park.
Nov 10, 2004
Trail Ridge Red from Estes Park Brewery
Beer rating: 82 out of 100 with 13 ratings