Solaris
Baerlic Beer Company

 

A rye beer? A simple pale ale? Why can't there be more of these? Thanks to Phil for this one.
The body is a nice golden bronze, clear and with a nice white two finger sudsy head that sticks around.
The aroma is delightful. Toasted malts, a bit of spice from the ample rye, grapefruit and sappy pine from the hops.
The taste is delightful and more balanced than the aroma would suggest. Spicy, peppery rye, a bit beady. Classic northwest hop profile. Citrus and pine. A touch earthy.
Medium body with active carbonation. Feels like a beer. Wonderfully dry finish.

Thanks again, Phil.

From a 16oz can courtesy of the one they call Lingenfrau.

It is a bronzed gold and slightly cloudy. Big dish soap like white suds on top.

It is earthy/musty and spicy smelling and tasting. Not a pepper spice, rye and citrusy hops spicy. Pithy grapefruit and a subtle bitterness. Nice bite from the rye. Nice rich rye grain and peppery aftertaste too.

Body is enough that it doesn’t come across like a lot of pales do, but is insanely drinkable. It goes down fast. I would drink this routinely.

16oz Can

Yet another big ol' thanks to Phil for sending this one around the way! Solaris is a handsome beverage. The body takes on the color of slightly tarnished bonze, darker golden with a bit of haze throughout. It glows a bit murkily when backlit and you can discern each and every bubble rushing to the surface. A finger plus of linen white foam forms easily on the pour. It's a bit bubbly yet remains silky at its core and leaves chunky lines as it settles.

The nose is rich on the rye spice off the bat and I can get behind that. There's actually an ample amount of rye in this beer, it seems. The hop profile moves in and naturally compliments that spiciness with notes of brown sugar broiled grapefruit, orange marmalade, and sandalwood. The sandalwood may be from the rye as opposed to the hop profile but whatever. Each swirl brings about some candied citrus peel and quick flash of Bazooka Joe. These things all fit together exceptionally well.

This beer is snappy off the bat. The rye kicks in immediately with a rather cutting spiciness that lays beautiful groundwork. Those more savory citric aspects that I mentioned above make up the middle with that rich, comforting brown sugar broiled grapefruit up first.orange marmalade and orange oils follow close behind. A touch of candied orange and grapefruit peel follows that. That sandalwood rounds out the backend and brings another layer of spice to the already potent rye.

The body sits right at moderate in weight. It's got a soft carbonation that brings about an enjoyable roundness, plush. My favorite part though, it's the rye spice and hop bitterness combination. That bit of spiciness lingers and accentuates the assertive building bitterness. Each drink layers that spice and bitter upon the last and what accentuates that... a crisp dryness. This beer drinks like a champ but it will put a hurting on your tastebuds with that bitterness.

Solaris is delicious. There aren't a lot of rye pale ales in distribution. It's great to see one of this quality out and about. This thing has fistfuls of rye along with a really well done hop profile, a good spice & bitterness, and a good body. Red's Rye from Founders has always been my favorite rye pale ale, Solaris has just given it the boot.

A-Pours a hazy light amber color with a nice head and lacing
A-Aroma has spicy, rye bready and citrus hints
T-The taste follows the nose with a nicely balanced spicy, rye greasy and citrus flavor
M-A light bodied very well carbonated beer
O-A very well done rye IPA

Solaris glows light orange from the center, slightly clouded but sunbursts an aura of light yellow from within. A thin lightly tanned foam puts up no fight to stick around, but still manages to cover most of the surface and leave little spots of lacing.

Classic notes of citrus fruits have a difficult time masking the intense spicy grain. Pine sap oozes on the end along with a white pepper spice. Somehow these typically intense aromas are well managed and evenly displaced.

Well now isn't this just magical. The rye is the clear standout here. Spicy, grainy, and bready. Grapefruit plays the only sweet roll (in the only way citrus can), and even the expected pine takes a back seat to a woody and serious peppery spiced finish.

The bready malt beginning leads slowly into the spicy and appropriately bittered finish. It's smooth and slightly slick at first, but a good pop of carbonation let's this finish nice and dry.

This is a real Pale Ale right here. Good and sturdy malt body balanced with the spicy elements with just the right amount of bitter bite. Plenty of rye, plenty of flavor. Suits me very, very well. Cheers.

Can dated 11/12:
Don’t get to try many rye ales, this is listed as a “rye pale ale” on the can. The rye is strong in this one, and it’s quite refreshing.

Pours amber from the can, clear initially but the bottom of the can deposits a light haze. The end result is a lemonade-heavy Arnold Palmer. A fair head doesn’t feel the need to stay long, but a medium ring does. No lacing.

Nose is initially just a grain bread with a hint of rye. As the room imposes its temperature on the beer, though, the rye jumps into both nostrils with the grace of a fat man doing a cannonball. And I love a good cannonball.

The taste isn’t as coy as the nose, with a slightly dark rye bread hitting my palate from sip one. As I dive in each time, I savor the light bite of the added from the highlighted ingredient - a bite that easily replaces a hop presence. There are hops here (they’re listed on the can), but they support the main flavor with a little bit of citrus and even smaller amount of woodiness. A fairly dry beer (again seems the rye influence) that easily entices another sip.

If you’re not a fan of rye or don’t like it being a primary component of a beer, start with a sample pour of this one. The hops probably bring some neutral bitterness to this beer, but the rye supplies a lot more of the non-sweet flavors in this beer. I really enjoyed it.