2cc Red
Rock Bottom Restaurant & Brewery

Murky butter caramel that brightened to orange, then lemon, as my eyes traveled down the pint glass. The cap was a loose, unsticky collection of bubbles that lasted longer than expected and deposited a small amount of sudsy lace. In the end, the attractive ale and the less than attactive foam cancelled one another out.

The two C's of the name refer to Cascade and Columbus hops (I made them lowercase because it looks cooler). The aroma was bright and grapefruit, orange and lemon hoppy. It's hard to say which hop was dominant since they're so similar.

The flavor score was on the fence throughout the entire pint... and I finally decided to award the higher rather than the lower. This brew deserves a little slack because a red doesn't have to be over-the-top hoppy to be good. It helps, though.

Modestly sweet caramel malt distinguished this red ale from... say... an American pale ale. The top notes were the classic ones imparted by Cascade and Columbus hops (see 'aroma' above). This was enjoyable beer and the pint was gone in a big hurry, but a bigger alpha acid bite on the back end would have... yadda... yadda... yadda.

I'm still trying to decide how I feel about cask-conditioning. It makes beer easier to drink quickly (which isn't necessarily a positive) and it results in fewer burps, but it also takes away some of the mouth excitement and most of the volumizing creaminess imparted by picture perfect carbonation. This one might not have seemed so tame with more bubbles.

After drinking 473.18 cc of 2cc Red with my lunch today, I'm even more convinced that a hoppier red is a better red. As always, your mileage may vary. Hops are expensive right now, but I'd love to see what a 'no holds barred' version would taste like.