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Hop Rod Rye
Bear Republic Brewing Co.


Beer Geek Stats
| Print Shelf Talker
- From:
- Bear Republic Brewing Co.
- California, United States
- Style:
- Rye Beer
Ranked #6 - ABV:
- 8%
- Score:
- 94
Ranked #2,514 - Avg:
- 4.22 | pDev: 9.72%
- Reviews:
- 2,088
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Oct 30, 2022
- Added:
- Mar 27, 2002
- Wants:
- 305
- Gots:
- 379
SCORE
94
Outstanding
94
Outstanding


Notes:
The first American Rye IPA brewed in America, Hop Rod Rye features big piney aroma of Columbus, Cascade, and Centennial hops and a robust malt bill with rich malt bill of Rye, Munich, medium crystal, and a touch of black malt.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Rated by gefinley from California
4.21/5 rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
4.21/5 rDev -0.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Packaged 6/7/22.
Oct 08, 2022Reviewed by RyanK252 from California
4.19/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.19/5 rDev -0.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
Bottle poured into a Bear Republic Brewing Co pint glass
A: Pours copper brown amber with a frothy tan head that settles to a firm layer and laces nicely.
S: Toasty bready malt, rye spice, earthy, herbal, pine, floral notes, light citrus, faint hints of dark fruit, and a little toffee sweetness.
T: Peppery rye right up front, toasty bready malt, spicy pine, floral notes, underlying citrus, grapefruit lemon, and orange, earthy, green herbal notes, hints of dark fruit, and toffee sweetness.
M: Just a touch on the fuller side of medium body, moderate carbonation. Deceptively smooth for an 8%er.
O: Could have sworn I reviewed this one at some point, but I'm glad I was able to snap some up. Definitely a piece of NorCal brewing history. Excellent Rye IPA!
Jun 24, 2022A: Pours copper brown amber with a frothy tan head that settles to a firm layer and laces nicely.
S: Toasty bready malt, rye spice, earthy, herbal, pine, floral notes, light citrus, faint hints of dark fruit, and a little toffee sweetness.
T: Peppery rye right up front, toasty bready malt, spicy pine, floral notes, underlying citrus, grapefruit lemon, and orange, earthy, green herbal notes, hints of dark fruit, and toffee sweetness.
M: Just a touch on the fuller side of medium body, moderate carbonation. Deceptively smooth for an 8%er.
O: Could have sworn I reviewed this one at some point, but I'm glad I was able to snap some up. Definitely a piece of NorCal brewing history. Excellent Rye IPA!
Reviewed by ryan1788a5 from Massachusetts
4.11/5 rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
4.11/5 rDev -2.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
16oz can poured into a New Belgium globe.
A: Dark ruby red color with lighter orange hues. Super healthy head formation and retention. A solid two and a half fingers of cream-coloered head stick around for the duration and leave behind gobs of chunky lacing in a loose ring formation.
S: Juiced ruby red grapefruit, pine and resin, green and spicy hop oils. Underlying malt toastiness, sharper earthy rye spice, and a distinct crystal malt sweetness that brings a touch or berry/candy shell. Clean fermentation profile, probably chico yeast.
T: Opens with a fat crystal malt sweetness. Caramel, toffee, and candy shell. This very quickly gives way to a drying blanket of toastiness, flashes of burnt crust, and a lot of spicy rye. Hop profile hits hard and fast with a lot of vibrant and bitter ruby red grapefruit juice. Butter line and resin too, along with an oily and green spiciness. Bitterness is quite firm. The finish dries quite a bit with long lingering rye spice, oily hop bitterness, and traces of soot.
M: Full bodied with some chewiness and a very round and creamy malt texture. Plenty of raking hop astringency too. Ample carbonation scrubs firmly.
O: What a throwback. I do think this is the first rye IPA I ever had, circa 2008, but I can't remember ever revisiting it before today. I do miss rye beer in general, and feel like it got unfairly buried under the sea of west coast and hazy IPAs. This particular beer is considered a venerable classic within the rye sub-styles, and deservedly so. I love what they've done with the hop profile: the rye is unabashedly bold, and there's some interesting specialty malt character to round things out and create just enough balance to ground the bitterness and spiciness. Drinking it bakes me feel like I pulled something special out of the beer archives, but in this case I didn't have to blow any dust off of it because it was nice and fresh at my local packie.
May 15, 2022A: Dark ruby red color with lighter orange hues. Super healthy head formation and retention. A solid two and a half fingers of cream-coloered head stick around for the duration and leave behind gobs of chunky lacing in a loose ring formation.
S: Juiced ruby red grapefruit, pine and resin, green and spicy hop oils. Underlying malt toastiness, sharper earthy rye spice, and a distinct crystal malt sweetness that brings a touch or berry/candy shell. Clean fermentation profile, probably chico yeast.
T: Opens with a fat crystal malt sweetness. Caramel, toffee, and candy shell. This very quickly gives way to a drying blanket of toastiness, flashes of burnt crust, and a lot of spicy rye. Hop profile hits hard and fast with a lot of vibrant and bitter ruby red grapefruit juice. Butter line and resin too, along with an oily and green spiciness. Bitterness is quite firm. The finish dries quite a bit with long lingering rye spice, oily hop bitterness, and traces of soot.
M: Full bodied with some chewiness and a very round and creamy malt texture. Plenty of raking hop astringency too. Ample carbonation scrubs firmly.
O: What a throwback. I do think this is the first rye IPA I ever had, circa 2008, but I can't remember ever revisiting it before today. I do miss rye beer in general, and feel like it got unfairly buried under the sea of west coast and hazy IPAs. This particular beer is considered a venerable classic within the rye sub-styles, and deservedly so. I love what they've done with the hop profile: the rye is unabashedly bold, and there's some interesting specialty malt character to round things out and create just enough balance to ground the bitterness and spiciness. Drinking it bakes me feel like I pulled something special out of the beer archives, but in this case I didn't have to blow any dust off of it because it was nice and fresh at my local packie.
Reviewed by harrypowers from Massachusetts
4.15/5 rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
4.15/5 rDev -1.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.25
Pours a hazy brown with a small head and light lacing.
Smells of malt and caramel.
Tastes of toasted semi sweet spicy malt with a slightly bitter, alcohol warm finish.
Medium body and carbonation. Lush smooth mouthfeel.
This is an excellent old-school West Coast IPA.
Mar 13, 2022Smells of malt and caramel.
Tastes of toasted semi sweet spicy malt with a slightly bitter, alcohol warm finish.
Medium body and carbonation. Lush smooth mouthfeel.
This is an excellent old-school West Coast IPA.
Reviewed by mothmanscott from Georgia
4.4/5 rDev +4.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.4/5 rDev +4.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
From notes 12/15/12: Pours a clear hazy deep amber/light brown which clears some as it warms. As the beer settles a small amount of sediment becomes evident. The pour produces a heavy finger of frothy, variously bubbled, somewhat lasting, light tan head that leaves a thin pasty wash of lace. Aroma is hop forward earthy, floral, grapefruit, pine with a fruity hint, rye bread and rye spice. Taste is nicely balanced: earthy, grapefruit, orange zest, pine: caramel malt heavy, rye spice and a hint of chocolate. Sweet, lightly bitter finish with a caramel bitter aftertaste. The 8% ABV is well hidden with pleasant warming appearances in the finish and aftertaste. Mouthfeel is medium to heavy with moderate carbonation, very smooth, creamy and rich. Very, very nice.
Nov 10, 2019Reviewed by JNeakrase from California
3.96/5 rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.96/5 rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A really smooth, pleasant quaff. The rye gives it a spicy complexity, but it retains the fruitiness and herbal qualities of a nice brown ale. Biterness is well-balanced, making it easy to drink. Nice, silky mouth feel. Overall, a fun little beer and a nice effort for Bear Republic.
Dec 02, 2018Reviewed by Act25 from New Jersey
4.27/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
4.27/5 rDev +1.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25
Where's this beer been hiding? I love it. Found in bomber in bodega in SF for night cap.
a) Pours a dense 1 finger cap in the smallest glass and HOLDS IT, Lasts, laces, rocks it over a hazed ice tea body.
s) IPA made more bitter, more astringent by rye. But too faint.
t) Taste is abundant. Brings intense bittering, balanced by grainy sweet, whiskey like but hiding ABV well, then cascade of hop citrus, pine, grass, earthy floor, and dank flavors. Some mollasses, dark toasted grain, long finish, with pepper, muskiness, earthiness.
f) Creamy, great mouth feel, luscious. Matches the whiskey, creamy head look.
o) Overall favorite rye (18%!) beer.
Feb 13, 2018a) Pours a dense 1 finger cap in the smallest glass and HOLDS IT, Lasts, laces, rocks it over a hazed ice tea body.
s) IPA made more bitter, more astringent by rye. But too faint.
t) Taste is abundant. Brings intense bittering, balanced by grainy sweet, whiskey like but hiding ABV well, then cascade of hop citrus, pine, grass, earthy floor, and dank flavors. Some mollasses, dark toasted grain, long finish, with pepper, muskiness, earthiness.
f) Creamy, great mouth feel, luscious. Matches the whiskey, creamy head look.
o) Overall favorite rye (18%!) beer.
Reviewed by stevoj from Idaho
3.91/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.91/5 rDev -7.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Draft at Rohnert Park location. Dark amber with creamy head, curtains of lacing. Malty aroma, some funky hops. Taste brings in the rye, dark bread flavors, more of the hops, and leaves with a nice lasting tingling on the tongue. Flavorful.
Jan 31, 2018Rated by BEER88 from North Carolina
4.5/5 rDev +6.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.5/5 rDev +6.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Yup. Very tasty stuff right here!
Sep 04, 2017
Hop Rod Rye from Bear Republic Brewing Co.
Beer rating:
94 out of
100 with
4756 ratings
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