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Hobgoblin Ruby 4.5%
Wychwood Brewery Company Ltd
- From:
- Wychwood Brewery Company Ltd
- England, United Kingdom
- Style:
- English Bitter
Ranked #66 - ABV:
- 4.5%
- Score:
- 84
Ranked #23,105 - Avg:
- 3.67 | pDev: 8.72%
- Reviews:
- 16
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Saturday at 12:25 AM
- Added:
- Jan 07, 2014
- Wants:
- 2
- Gots:
- 16
Canned, cask (tap and hand-pull draft), and 5L mini-cask's of the widely sold Hobgoblin Ruby are 4.5% and reviews of them belong under this listing. Only bottled Hobgoblin Ruby is 5.2% which has it's own separate listing.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Oleg85:
Rated by Oleg85 from Russian Federation
3.66/5 rDev -0.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
Jun 11, 2016
3.66/5 rDev -0.3%
look: 4.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
Jun 11, 2016
More User Ratings:
Reviewed by Squeeb from Minnesota
3.6/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.6/5 rDev -1.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
This is a beer that took a while for me to warm up to. The smell is really pleasant, like fresh fruit of some sort. It tastes exactly like prune juice, and that is what took a while for me to accept. Once I did, I was able to taste the other fruity flavors and the bready flavor that made this one surprisingly pleasant in the end.
Saturday at 12:25 AMReviewed by brureview from Massachusetts
4/5 rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4/5 rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Best served at 50° to 55°.
Pours a darker brown color with a 4F head in an Stone English style pint glass.
Excellent aroma of fruit and malt.
Malty MF. Very smooth.
Some fruit in the taste.
Very enjoyable to drink.
Oct 25, 2023Pours a darker brown color with a 4F head in an Stone English style pint glass.
Excellent aroma of fruit and malt.
Malty MF. Very smooth.
Some fruit in the taste.
Very enjoyable to drink.
Reviewed by barnzy78 from Illinois
4/5 rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
4/5 rDev +9%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
500mL can
BB:09/04/24
L: red hued ale with a foamy beige head
S: caramelized grain, brown sugar, toffee, fruit, earthy hops
T: grain, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, fig, raisin, date, plum, earthy British hops
F: lighter side of medium, ample carbonation, finish is balanced and very dry
O: it’s good to see Hobgoblin back on the shelves! Lots of nostalgic flavors going on with this one.
Aug 12, 2023BB:09/04/24
L: red hued ale with a foamy beige head
S: caramelized grain, brown sugar, toffee, fruit, earthy hops
T: grain, caramel, toffee, brown sugar, fig, raisin, date, plum, earthy British hops
F: lighter side of medium, ample carbonation, finish is balanced and very dry
O: it’s good to see Hobgoblin back on the shelves! Lots of nostalgic flavors going on with this one.
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway
3.68/5 rDev +0.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.68/5 rDev +0.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
March 2017: Cask pint at Slain’s Castle, Aberdeen. Ruby colour, creamy off-white to beige head. Malty aroma and flavour with notes of toffee and caramel, some nutty notes too.
Jun 10, 2023Reviewed by MikeWard from Pennsylvania
3.96/5 rDev +7.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
3.96/5 rDev +7.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
500ml can into a dimpled mug. Best before 4/9/224, so guessing 2 months old.
Really good look to this one. Clear reddish brown body and a good off white head. Strong malty taste and aroma, with a light slightly dry bitter finish. Excellent session beer.
Jun 10, 2023Really good look to this one. Clear reddish brown body and a good off white head. Strong malty taste and aroma, with a light slightly dry bitter finish. Excellent session beer.
Rated by Manta200 from Kentucky
3.75/5 rDev +2.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.75/5 rDev +2.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
4 pack of 16oz cans from Jungle Jim's
Mar 09, 2023Reviewed by Brutaltruth from Ohio
3.68/5 rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.68/5 rDev +0.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
From the 16 oz can in a snifter. This solid ale pours a dark reddish brown with
a nice head of khaki foam that settles to a thick ring, thin swirling layer, and
shows some very nice lacing. Nose of toasted malts, subtle raisin, and dark fruits.
Flavors surpass the nose with a fine presentation of toasted malts, light biscuit, raisin,
subtle cherry, and dark jam hints. Mouth feel is medium light, medium soft carbonation,
smooth, and finishing lightly dry.
A classic ale indeed
Cheers
Feb 24, 2023a nice head of khaki foam that settles to a thick ring, thin swirling layer, and
shows some very nice lacing. Nose of toasted malts, subtle raisin, and dark fruits.
Flavors surpass the nose with a fine presentation of toasted malts, light biscuit, raisin,
subtle cherry, and dark jam hints. Mouth feel is medium light, medium soft carbonation,
smooth, and finishing lightly dry.
A classic ale indeed
Cheers
Reviewed by LanceBiggums from Canada (AB)
3.18/5 rDev -13.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
3.18/5 rDev -13.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Pours a dark cloudy brown amber with only a hint of ruby, and two fingers of tan head. The aroma is somewhat muted, mostly just musty, with a bit of dark fruit and maybe a hint of caramel. The taste is a bit fruitier, but also not very flavourful. Again the predominant characteristic is a peculiar mustiness that is not necessarily unpleasant, but does not contribute much to the flavour. At least the mouthfeel is smooth and drinkable. Overall, a forgettable ruby ale. Also not sure why it's classed as a bitter.
Feb 03, 2022Reviewed by tone77 from Pennsylvania
3.49/5 rDev -4.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.49/5 rDev -4.9%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured from a 16.9 oz. can. Has a pretty dark chestnut color with a 1 inch head. Smell is very mild, hints of malts. Taste is of bready malts and dark fruits, easy drinking. Feels medium bodied in the mouth and overall is a decent beer.
May 10, 2021Reviewed by BPVandenbroek from Canada (AB)
3.8/5 rDev +3.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
3.8/5 rDev +3.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Hobgoblin Ruby Ale is a deep, reddish colored ale. It’s crystal clear with a dense, cream colored head.
Hobgoblin’s aroma is malty, with pleasant fruit esters leading the charge. Those fruit esters smell like ripe red fruit; cherries and other sorts of berries. Hints of fresh rising bread dough and caramel come through, lending depth to the initial aroma. My overall impression of Hobgoblin’s aroma is that of a fruit tart fresh from the oven. The only difference being the beer’s malt adds a decent amount of balance to the beer’s fruit esters.
As I take a sip, I find the flavors follow the nose nicely. Hobgoblin Ruby Ale is medium bodied and smooth with mild carbonation. I taste those fruit notes first, ripe cherry and a melange of general berry flavors. Flavors of caramel and fresh baked bread give depth and support to those initial flavors of fruit. Carbonation carries these flavors into a dry, slightly bitter finish.
It’s smooth, malty, and full of flavor. Fruit esters help give the beer added character and drinkability. The bitter finish comes in just hard enough to remind you what style of beer you’re drinking without overpowering your palate. If you’re in the mood for a traditional English bitter, this is well worth a visit.
Mar 31, 2021Hobgoblin’s aroma is malty, with pleasant fruit esters leading the charge. Those fruit esters smell like ripe red fruit; cherries and other sorts of berries. Hints of fresh rising bread dough and caramel come through, lending depth to the initial aroma. My overall impression of Hobgoblin’s aroma is that of a fruit tart fresh from the oven. The only difference being the beer’s malt adds a decent amount of balance to the beer’s fruit esters.
As I take a sip, I find the flavors follow the nose nicely. Hobgoblin Ruby Ale is medium bodied and smooth with mild carbonation. I taste those fruit notes first, ripe cherry and a melange of general berry flavors. Flavors of caramel and fresh baked bread give depth and support to those initial flavors of fruit. Carbonation carries these flavors into a dry, slightly bitter finish.
It’s smooth, malty, and full of flavor. Fruit esters help give the beer added character and drinkability. The bitter finish comes in just hard enough to remind you what style of beer you’re drinking without overpowering your palate. If you’re in the mood for a traditional English bitter, this is well worth a visit.
Hobgoblin Ruby 4.5% from Wychwood Brewery Company Ltd
Beer rating:
84 out of
100 with
49 ratings
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