River Rat Red
Riverport Brewing Company

this is the local staple, but its just another red, somewhat amateur to me, which was surprising in the context of their other beers, which all seemed a little more refined than this one. its not quite all the way clear, soapy white headed, and a shade darker than anticipated, mahogany toned and richer looking. it smells a bit sweet, long boiled and caramelized to me, brown sugar character to it, some lightly bready yeast but not quite clean on the ferment, no real hops standing out at all, pretty much all grain here. the flavor is a little off on the fermentation side, and i dont just mean its sweet and there is residual sugar, i mean the yeast seems to have produced a funny sharpness that runs through the whole drink, maybe done too warm, it makes this seems a little homebrewy to me. the malt flavors are rich and good, even impressively deep and full for such a low alcohol take on the style, but the beer overall us a little raw and unrefined. a fine pint with a chicken sandwich, but not something i want to session, maybe my least favorite of the beers i had from these guy while i was in town.

Served on tap. Pale red that is clear with good head. Slight aroma of grain. Taste is bitter with some grain, bitterness is slightly overpowering. Average mouthfeel. Enjoyable beer overall.

 

 

 

Wretched excuse for a beer. It's their most popular brew around the L-C valley, because it's a lowest denominator-type beer. The beer has minimal hop presence (which it understandable per style), a off-putting funk/grain aroma mix, and a heavy diacetyl presence. There is much batch variation, and since it's the only almost mediocre brewery (the only other in the valley is the inexcusably bad MJ Barleyhoppers) they have a faithful legion of townies. Bring up clear flaws in their beer, and be prepared to come under attack.

At this early junction, River Rat Red is Riverport's most popular beer among their draught account customers, or as the brewer told me, "It's one of our number-one beers." It's not a bold or challenging ale by any means, though that may be its intent. But I'd call it too timid to appreciate. It boasts the cheerful color of warm honey water but is ultimately headless, laceless, and undercarbonated. A light flavor of Ceylon tea with sugar momentarily pervades. But ambivalence is its bane.

Based on a Scottish design.