Homestead Red
Raccoon River Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

Found this review written on a piece of paper in a sweatshirt pocket, guess I forgot to put it on-line. Oh well, for once my handwriting is totally legible.

A: More Amber than red, with a thinnish white head and cloudy body.

S: Really nothing going on here, maybe a little malt. Very boring, but in no way is it faulty.

T: Malty, no hops at all. An almost banana quality to the taste, like a hefe. Not exactly what I wanted, but good.

M: Very full and nice, really exactly what I'm going for in a red.

Red notes throughout the amber brew, head is rather small and quick to dissipate; beige color. Nose is a typical melange of dark fruit, sweet malt, and a light hop presence.

Caramel malt is mostly what it has to go on, most of this is toasted and not too sweet. Plenty of fruits, with apple leading the way along with raisin and maybe some citrus. Not much bitterness, only a touch more sweetness. Really not much to go on.

Medium-thin body, ordinary finish. I was a little tired while drinking this one and the beer did nothing to wake me up.

Iced tea tawny with generous hints of red that became softly glowing candy apple accents when the glass was held up to the lights behind the bar. Up top was a typical bar pour cap that I get tired of describing. Yet again... small, medium beige and fleeting, with thin, smeary lace. Same old, same old. Points for multiple, sunset-like colors.

There was very little to go on with regard to the nose. It was lightly malty, fruity and low on hops. It was hard to appreciate its red aleness since it was hard to appreciate much at all. At least there were no off-aromas.

Homestead Red was lightly toasted caramel malty, although without much caramel flavor and without much malt. There was a near equal mix of sweet and bitter; more the former early, more the latter late. Its appealing fruitiness is what saved it from mediocrity: red-skinned apples primarily, oranges secondarily. The biggest problem was that there was very little depth of flavor, very little to keep me interested.

The mouthfeel was midway between light and medium. I did like the light stickiness of the finish, but more heft prior to that would have been welcome. In fact, it inspires me to relate, yet again, a perennial plea of mine when it comes to Des Moines brewpub beer: 'more malt please, I beg you, more malt'.

Even though it's without major faults, at no point during the pint was I the least bit impressed with Homestead Red. If I ever drink it again, it'll be alongside a cheeseburger and fries. For that purpose at least, it should be well-suited.

This beer was poured with just a touch of a head and there really is not all that much to say here. It was a very pretty red color. The aroma was rather sweet and pleasant. It was not overall a really outstanding tasting beer to me, however, this is one to suggest to people who want to explore the world of micros but are really afraid of anything extreme. There was some sweetness in the taste due to the malty character, but not overwhelming. It was easy to drink, no complaints at all.

Light amber in color with reddish accents, forming a thin, off beige head with minimal retention and lacing. Medium light in body with mild to moderate carbonation. Husky with a nice touch of roasted barley contributing to the balanced, delicate malts. The mouthfeel is smooth and mellow, with a perceptable alcohol tang in the finish.