He'Brew Bittersweet Lenny's R.I.P.A. On Rye
Shmaltz Brewing Company

He'Brew Bittersweet Lenny's R.I.P.A. On RyeHe'Brew Bittersweet Lenny's R.I.P.A. On Rye
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From:
Shmaltz Brewing Company
 
New York, United States
Style:
Imperial IPA
ABV:
10%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.93 | pDev: 13.49%
Reviews:
153
Ratings:
384
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Apr 22, 2020
Added:
Dec 20, 2007
Wants:
  14
Gots:
  31
Imperial Rye IPA aged in a Rittenhouse 100 Rye Barrel.
The 2013 batch was aged in Willett Rye Whiskey barrels. 2016 batch aged in Jim Bean Rye Whiskey barrels.
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Ratings by BigBossMan:
Photo of BigBossMan
Reviewed by BigBossMan from Iowa

4.39/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
This really is a completely different beer than the original. The hops are still evident but in more of a supporting role - similar to how hops are present in some hoppy imperial stouts but somewhat masked by the malts. In this beer, the hops are masked by the forward flavors of bourbon and smoke.

The appearance is lighter than I would have expected, while the head is more than I would have guessed - good lacing. The smell is of bourbon, but sweet caramel is present. The flavor is bourbon and hops - very smooth and drinkable for what it is.
Jan 04, 2011
More User Ratings:
Photo of Tony210
Reviewed by Tony210 from New Jersey

4.4/5  rDev +12%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
Pours a dark reddish brown, minimal head. Big boozy, malty aroma, caramel, burnt brown sugar. Flavor is liquid caramel, brown sugar, but aged hops bitterness balances out any sweetness very nicely. Thick and syrupy, medium bodied. Overall this was one of my favorite beers back in 2014/2015. Well past it’s prime, but it aged very nicely.

4/21/20
Bomber dated 1/4/14
4.5 rating
Apr 22, 2020
 
Rated: 3.5 by RiceOwls27 from Texas

Apr 07, 2020
Photo of jmdrpi
Reviewed by jmdrpi from Pennsylvania

3.89/5  rDev -1%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
2016 edition, 22 oz bottle

Pours a cloudy brown with rust colored highlights. White head, good head retention. Boozy caramel and vanilla aroma with mild underlying piney hops in both the aroma and flavor. Lingering finish. Medium bodied, coats the tongue.
Apr 05, 2020
Photo of stortore
Reviewed by stortore from Illinois

4.35/5  rDev +10.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5
22 ounce bottle into a tulip snifter. 2016 edition aged in Jim Beam barrels. Bottled 2/18/16, had 7/30/18.

Pours a medium amber, cloudy, with a half inch foamy head and spotty lacing. Aromas of rye, rye whiskey, caramel, oak, malt, dates, pine and lightly dank hops, some figs and brown sugar, light vanilla, light tobacco when warm. The flavor leads with the rye whiskey, then caramel, oak, malt, vanilla, rye, figs, dates, brown sugar, a good amount of pine. Some bitterness on the finish. Smooth, a little creamy, a very good medium body, well carbonated.

Found this bottle three days before having it, wish they had one more. The Jim Beam barrels are great, don’t think I’ve had them in a beer before. The whiskey is prominent, but the hops have held up really well for 30 months in the bottle, and the RIPA base retains it’s identity. Well developed aromas and flavors. Really enjoyed this one.
Mar 12, 2019
Photo of MonDak_Joe1953
Reviewed by MonDak_Joe1953 from Minnesota

4.49/5  rDev +14.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Poured from 22oz bottle into glass. Neck of bottle is stamped '1048A6 09:38'. Label identifies the beer as '2016 Edition' (Aged in Jim Beam Rye Whiskey Barrels).
Cloudy, amber brown colored body. Color is close to whiskey. Off white head settles to persistent cap. Ring is fed by big bubbles. Some lines and lacing left behind with each sip.
Aroma is very much from a whiskey barrel, in this case a Jim Beam rye whiskey barrel. Lots of oak and vanilla from the barrel. There is some rye spiciness on the nose.
Taste is heavily influenced by the whiskey barrel, with its alcohol, vanilla and oak notes. Spicy rye notes and still present hop notes contribute considerably. Slightly sweet overall, with alcohol burn and slight hop bitterness.
Medium to coating mouth feel. Smooth but boozy.
A beer that has fully embraced its time in the barrel. This is a sipper, both because of the alcohol component and for the savoring of the tastes. When each sip is done, it is so close in aftertaste to a real whiskey sip. This means the beer has captured the whiskey essence but at a much lower ABV.
This is an example of when a beer can be enhanced by aging in a whiskey barrel and allowing the bottled beer to age.
Apr 18, 2018
 
Rated: 2.75 by Dface from Texas

Sep 29, 2017
 
Rated: 4.47 by gobuccos from Ohio

Jun 19, 2017
 
Rated: 3.97 by BeerBeast from Florida

May 17, 2017
 
Rated: 3.5 by bigred89 from Maryland

Apr 14, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by brittanylicious from Indiana

Mar 26, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by heysuz from Indiana

Mar 26, 2017
 
Rated: 4.25 by paulish from New York

Mar 05, 2017
Photo of TBoneJones
Reviewed by TBoneJones from Texas

4.62/5  rDev +17.6%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Pour is copper/ near-amber, low head. Some lacing sticks.
Smell is malts and molasses, with hints of sweet bourbon barrel. Nice here!
The taste follows the nose with sweet malts, some caramel and some tasty orange-citrus from the hops, but then pops through that barrel! Tasty Jim Beam barrel: I know this is just 10% abv., but after each sip I feel like booze-dragon-breath as if I had actually sipped whisky. Not that the alcohol ruins a BIT of it. It's just that good of a barrel effect. The malts leading up to this are tasty, almost honey-like, nearing medicinal but then the Jim Beam rounds it out with that flavored heat.
Feels smooth, medium-chewy and low-carbonated just right.
So much good flavor, so much rich barrel, I feel this remains underrated. A high-top among rye DIPA's. I recall having a version of this a couple years back, but this one strikes me as superior to it, and to many others.
Feb 09, 2017
 
Rated: 4 by Magery from Kentucky

Feb 05, 2017
Photo of T-34-85
Reviewed by T-34-85 from New York

4.36/5  rDev +10.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
Consumed on tap.

This is an excellent beer.

Good hefty old school DIPA with lots of rich malt sweetness, providing an excellent pairing with the flavors contributed by the rye whiskey barrel aging.

Much more used to having barrel aged dark beers (stouts, porters, etc.), but this style IPA surprised me by pairing so well with the strong depths of flavor from the barrel aging.
Jan 22, 2017
 
Rated: 3.96 by zotzot from Vermont

Dec 21, 2016
 
Rated: 3.5 by Scott17Taylor from Iowa

Nov 03, 2016
Photo of ichorNet
Reviewed by ichorNet from Massachusetts

4.23/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4.25
I feel like I've had very few Shmaltz beers that I'd take seriously enough to review, but R.I.P.A. on Rye is a brew that should give anyone pause... a 10% double IPA aged in rye whiskey barrels (in this case, those belonging to the Beam distillery). This is certainly nothing to mess around with!

Pours a deep brown-ish color with some copper highlights and ruby overtones if held up to light. A tight, khaki-colored head that leaves behind intense tiers of lacing that seem entirely defined by each sip I take. Damn, this is sticky. The color may not be "pale" whatsoever, but this is a rule-breaking beer and I'll give it very high marks for its beautiful pour and the intense way it sits in my glass.

Nose is heavy rye, earthy hops, pine, caramel, toffee, whiskey, oaken tannins and baking spice (nutmeg/cinnamon/vanilla). This is 100% upfront with everything it's about and for that I'm grateful... this hides nothing because it doesn't have to. Reminds me a lot of Boulevard's Rye-on-Rye in both recipe and intensity, though this is certainly hoppier.

Flavor is earthy and spicy with toffee, tobacco, rye and pine resin/pine needles headed off by a slight woody smokiness. As the nose seems to have indicated, this has a lot of stiff, woody notes and lightly-sweet milky caramel on the tongue crossed with a bitter and somewhat harsh tone of whiskey/booziness that comes out towards the finish. The forward flavor of ethanol is the thing that most hurts this for me, putting it pretty decently below Rye-on-Rye in the "American strong rye ale aged in rye barrels" category. Not a lot in that category, honestly, but this is like a less refined version of Boulevard's masterwork. It's still really good, and I like the complex flavors, but this is a bit brutal to be honest. It loses some points for its harsh and semi-acidic feel, though this could definitely improve a bit with age as far as I can tell... the hops are already buried by the barrel-aging and, although this is about 8 months old already, I feel it would only smooth out over, say, another 6 or 7. Perhaps I'll buy another one and lay it down now that I know it to be worth its salt.
Oct 04, 2016
Photo of efrankmcguire
Reviewed by efrankmcguire from Virginia

4.06/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
This is the 2010 vintage. The age has definitely silenced the hops. However, that is not the case for the Rye Whiskey...smells, tastes, and warms like you were sipping on a Whiskey and water. Overall, this exceeded my expectations.
Sep 18, 2016
He'Brew Bittersweet Lenny's R.I.P.A. On Rye from Shmaltz Brewing Company
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 384 ratings