Red Tail Ale | Mendocino Brewing Company

3.05/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 2.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

So, I bought this on sale not knowing this brewery is defunct and Red Tail hasn’t been brewed for over a year.

A: a hazy reddish-brown with a strong thick foamy head

S: malt with a touch of pine

T: caramel, malt, and faint apple cider vinegar

F: medium bodied

O: A nicely flavored amber ale. Too bad I didn’t discover it while it was in production. I saw the store had a few cases left. I may buy a case for far less than a twenty.

 444 characters

3.59/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5

From May 2015,

Poured red, clear, plenty of foam.

Smells hoppy, malty sweet, bit of grain, very amber like.

Taste is malty and hoppy, pretty good balance. Light grain.

Light body with medium carbonation.

Good.

 218 characters

3.51/5  rDev +1.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

355ml bottle poured into a pint glass.

Hazy copper amber color, it tops with one and a half finger of frothy off-white head that stays for a while with short retention before sinking to some bubble sheet on the surface and leaving minimal lacing.

Caramel, candy, roasted, toasted bread, biscuit, lots of soft yet creamy malt aroma, hop with a subtle fruity touch undertone.

The taste is displayed like the aroma with notes of caramel, candy, roasted, toasted bread, biscuit, and subtle fruity hop as well as moderate bitterness from both hop and roasted profile.

Medium body with good crisp and moderate lively carbonation through the palate, quite smooth mouthfeel, very dry finish.

This one contains lots of malty goodness packing inside, pretty good drinkable.

 768 characters

3.72/5  rDev +7.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

My first craft beer from 90s, when I lived and raced in SF.

A: Amber with a hint of haze. Off white head is sticky.

S: Balanced but too faint. Sweet pale malt, esters and herbal hops.

T: Smooth, malty, crisp with caramel and toasted malt, that finish in mild hop spiciness. A bit of lemon and hop oil.

F: Medium with chewy upfront mouthfeel.

O: One of the originals and and best red ales.

 396 characters

3.71/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

Got as a gift! 12oz bottle served at 8deg C in a draught glass

A- Opens well and pours a 1" high white head that films out within two minutes or so. Very dark gold colour and unfiltered

S- Not a lot here. Touch metallic

T- Light and sweet. Burnt flavor at the end. Not a bad amber. Not a great amber. Roasted malt is present, sugar present but big gap in the flavor profile

M- Dry and tart

O- Not a bad brew but not my style. Will not buy if I see but it's a nice to try brew

Food Pairing

This not bad brew went well with...... BBQ hamburgers with some fries on the side. Top 'em the way you like 'em as this brew will cut through a lot changing from sweet to bitter

Enjoy

 680 characters

3.22/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.25

Comes in amber and auburn, replete with a full 1" of off white head. Aroma almost made me think it was wood aged, has that vibe to it and some Cascade hop impression.

Taste was malty, crystal like malts, red malts, amber malts. Again, some bitterness from the what is perceived as Cascade hops. Good stuff, been around forever, been drinking these for 20 years. Almost a relic.

 382 characters

3.13/5  rDev -9.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

12 ounce bottle to wine glass
App: dark amber, light brown, clear, minimal tan foam
Aoma: grains
Taste: medium bitterness
MF: lively carbonation, long nice finish
Overall: good beer, ok to repeat, not to look for
Drank: April 25, 2016

 236 characters

2.13/5  rDev -38.3%
look: 2 | smell: 2 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 2.25 | overall: 2

**
02/06/2013
LOOK: Slightly Cloudy Orange Color.
AROMA: light barley and hops, lighter wood and citrus.
TASTE: light barley and hops, lighter wood and citrus. A touch of staleness. Hay.

Nothing to write home about

**

 227 characters

3.6/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Carmel colour with a off white head. Smell is of slight hops with a bready undercurrent. Tastes very lightly malted. Very smooth. Not the best, but not bad either, goes down smooth and well do quite well in a pinch.

 215 characters

3.53/5  rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a brown 12 oz. bottle. Has an amber/orange color with a 1/2 inch head. Smell is of malts, some caramel, a bit of hops. Taste is well balanced hops and malts, light caramel, very easy drinking. Feels medium bodied in the mouth and overall is a solid beer.

 266 characters

3.78/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12 ounce bottle into pint glass, no bottle dating. Pours slightly hazy reddish copper color with a 1-2 finger dense light khaki head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. Spotty soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the head. Aromas of caramel, brown sugar, toast, biscuit, light nuttiness/toffee, pear, apple, herbal, grass, light pepper, and herbal/yeast earthiness. Nice and pleasant aromas with good balance and complexity of dark/bready malt, fruity yeast, and earthy hop notes; with solid strength. Taste of caramel, brown sugar, toast, biscuit, light nuttiness/toffee, pear, apple, herbal, grass, light pepper, and herbal/yeast earthiness. Fair amount of earthy/spicy bitterness on the finish; with lingering notes of caramel, brown sugar, toast, biscuit, light nuttiness/toffee, light pepper, and herbal/yeast earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt, fruity yeast, and earthy hop flavors; with a great malt/bitterness balance and zero cloying flavors after the finish. Medium carbonation and body; with a smooth, fairly creamy/bready, and slightly sticky mouthfeel that is nice. Alcohol is very well hidden with minimal warming present after the finish. Overall this a very good English style amber ale. All around good complexity, robustness, and balance of dark/bready malt, fruity yeast, and earthy hop flavors; and very smooth and easy to drink. A nicely enjoyable offering.

 1,532 characters

4.23/5  rDev +22.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.25

I really like this Ale. Very rich and tastes great. Just the right balance of carbonation and bitterness, with a great after taste. Hey I will not pretend I know how to describe beer with words like Hops and IPAs, with hints of this or that. I just know this Ale rocks.

 269 characters

2.75/5  rDev -20.3%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.75 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 2.75

Pours a clear amber in the glass. Minimal head with pour retention. No lacing observed.

Smell is butter and stale malt/hops. I'm not sure if I've ever had fresh beer from this brewery; pretty sure all they put out is shelf turds.

Taste isn't surprising. A decent malt flavor along with some stale bitter hops. The finish is what kills it; plenty of butter and even a bit of a sour funk (the bad kind).

Would try again if I could find it fresher though I doubt it would be that much better. A very mediocre red.

 514 characters

3.47/5  rDev +0.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Amber copper color with a thick one finger head with medium retention and leaving some laces.
Aroma with notes of caramels, mint, melon and oranges.
Flavor with notes of toasted and caramel malts, a bit of hay, mild pine, spices from American yeast, grapefruit, tea leaves and American yeast. Dry aftertaste with a medium bitterness.
Medium light feeling body with appropriate carbonation.
Pleasant and balanced American Amber Ale, no extreme flavors, still not dull. Huge drinkability and reference for the style.

 514 characters

4.19/5  rDev +21.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

L: Pours dark amber with a slight haze under a frothy 2” cream colored foam collar that grips the side of the glass.
S: A hint mint on popping the cap but not a lot of aroma, some dried fruit and caramel from the malt.
T: Fruit, biscuit, malt and hops, a light chocolate note, caramel, faint fruit and roast.
F: Very creamy, medium to medium light body, medium carbonation.
O: A well flavored mild beer that is easy to drink.

 433 characters

3.89/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75

12 bottle

Pours a light brown copper body with a creamy 1/2 inch off white head. Some lacing

A faint smell of malt

Starts out a malt taste that leads into a mix of sweet and a bitter. Nice finish .

Feel is crisp and a bit prickly

Overall It was like a lager but with a slight hop bitterness that just seems to work!

 325 characters

3.46/5  rDev +0.3%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Pours a clear deep amber/pale brown with a reddish hue producing 2+ fingers of somewhat lasting, pale tan, foamy/frothy head that leaves a minor level of streaky, webby lacing. Aroma is toffee, caramel & earthy hops. Taste is dark bread, roast and nutty notes, more intense earthy hops with hints of yeasty fruity esters. The sip finishes with caramel, roast & nuts, fruit, some pepper & a light hop bitterness. Afrertaste is a dry, astringent & slightly bitter. Mouthfeel is medium bodied with medium carbonation, wet but slightly dry, silky with a little prickle & a pleasant astringency.

 590 characters

4.26/5  rDev +23.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

Appearance:
Copper color, clear. Lots of thin bubbles rising. Off white color head, very creamy.

Aroma:
Very faint aroma, I could smell some bready, toffee, some herbal hops.

Taste/Finish/Body:
Bready malt, biscuit, some toffee, a little toast. Some fruitiness, pear. Spicy, herbal, a little leafy hop bitterness towards the end. Finish is dry, very crisp. Body is medium, very smooth, dry, crisp, refreshing.

Overall:
It's an outstanding beer.

 453 characters

3.5/5  rDev +1.4%

This is a light-bodied beer with a nice amber hew. It drinks much lighter than I would expect by looking at the color. The beer has no discernible hop aroma, and the finish is very short. I think it's just an easy-to-drink, everyday type of beer. I have had pilsner with more body, but hey...you can get this pretty inexpensively. I paid $12.99 for a 12-pack.

 359 characters

3.25/5  rDev -5.8%

Pours from the bottle a reddish amber with just the slightest hint of haze. Caramel malts and leather are present in the aroma. It tastes almost exactly as it smells; sweetness and spice, followed by a touch of bitterness. Medium mouth with a bit of oil. A decent enough brew, but nothing remarkable.

 301 characters

3.35/5  rDev -2.9%

Pours a slightly clouded ruddy amber with a creamy white head. The head dissipates quickly and leaves no lacing. The aroma starts to develop a bit as it warms, with light sweet malt aspects. Unfortunately, the taste remains pretty lackluster with just some nondescript sweetness and a little earthy quality. The body does have a nice weight and feeling to it on the palate, (lighter and smooth). This was one of the first craft beers I ever tried back in early 2000s and unfortunately, it hasn't held up in comparison.

 519 characters

3.87/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer itself is a lighter shade of red, darker than amber but just. The head is off-white in color, frothy and churning up to almost 3/4 of a finger. It recedes neither quickly nor slowly, leaving a craggy, thin ring followed by a spattering of lace.
A more traditional brew in the aroma, the focus is more on sweetness with just a little hops to balance. Herb and citrus do come out, though, along with caramel and grains in a pale malt sort of base.
Malt-forward in the flavor, of course, it's very toasty with lots of caramel to complement. hops are stronger, though, lots of citrus coming through with a bite to it before going more herbal. A bit of zest comes through before finishing with lingering herb and caramel notes.
A medium-bodied beer with a bit of dryness to it, the feel is nicely balanced as just enough is taken from the sweetness. It's plenty crisp and it's clean, getting pretty smooth from middle to finish.

 932 characters

3.66/5  rDev +6.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Drank from one pint lager glass at about 60F

Malt, brown sugar, molasses, and caramelized red meat juices are abundant and well balanced. Sounds heavy but it is not at all. Does have a booze taste, but it matches the flavor profile and is very faint...I like it.

Immensely drinkable and refreshing. I do tend towards this brew during the winter months though. This is not a heavy hop American ale.

The price is what is greatest. Between Obama's America and his hidden inflation and the current trend of craft brews escalating in price, this is a much welcomed sensibility priced every day bargain pearl of a brew.

 617 characters

4.01/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4

Had this on cask at the local pub. It was the 2nd day of the cask, had a nice head to it the aroma was slight caramel and oats. The oatmeal taste was fantastic. Cask is the best way to enjoy this stout, it really brings out the taste. Had this on bottle once and thought it was just a middle of the road beer. Cask makes all the difference.

 340 characters

3.88/5  rDev +12.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

I picked up a growler of Red Tail Ale from Minogue's Beverage in Queensbury, NY. This is a very good ale with a bold taste. Unforunately the keg kicked as my growler was being filled. It definately tasted better at Mendocino's tasting room in Saratoga Springs ,NY. I highly reccomend a trip there. Still it was a good beer at a very good price.

 344 characters