Deranged Red
Southern Range Brewing Co.

I am trying a can of this beer at my bestie's house in Charlotte, NC. It poured a clear amber with thin white head that is not leaving any lace. The scent had caramel malt notes. The taste was nicely balanced and easy to drink with bold sweet malt presence. The mouthfeel was medium in body and had good carbonation. Overall it is a good beer.

16 fl oz pull-tab can:

5.8% ABV. "Amber ale."

Ordered from their website. The lack of a canned on/best before/born on date doesn't exactly inspire confidence.

Caramel. Heavy toasted amber malt flavour. Molasses. Bread crust bitterness.

Very toasty and the interplay between burnt notes and sweeter caramelized malt flavours is nice, but ultimately it's no better than, say, Alaskan Amber.

Why can this in 16 fl oz cans, except to fuck over consumers on a price per oz basis?

C / AVERAGE

A: Pours a very slightly hazy but almost opaque very dark reddish brown/mahogany in color with moderate amounts of active visible carbonation rising along the edges of the glass and moderate dark garnet red + ruby red + chestnut brown colored highlights. The beer has a three finger tall dense sudsy foamy beige head that reduces to a medium sized patch of thin film covering approximately 50% of the surface of the beer and a medium thick ring at the edges of the glass. Light amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Moderate aromas of toasted, bready, roasted, chocolate, and caramel malts with a light to moderate amount of caramel + dark fruit (plum) sweetness and light aromas of spicy + earthy + citrus/grapefruit pith hops.

T: Upfront there are slightly stronger than moderate flavors of toasted, bready, roasted, chocolate, and caramel malts with a light to moderate amount of caramel + dark fruit (plum) sweetness. That is followed by light to moderate flavors of
spicy + earthy + citrus/grapefruit pith hops which impart a light amount of lingering bitterness.

M: Medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation.

O: Easy to drink with well hidden alcohol. A nice complex malty flavor and aroma with just enough hoppiness/bitterness towards the finish. Not a sexy/trendy style but this is a well done example that send me back in time. I could easily have a few of these.

 

Look: It pours dark amber towards brown in color. It has a tan head with moderate head retention.

Smell: It has a caramel aroma with a bit of chocolate. There are hints of dark fruits (plums) in the background.

Taste: The flavors are more balance in the malt between caramel and chocolate with moderately low fruity esters between cherry and plum. There is a light citrus and herbal quality in the background.

Feel: It has a medium body that is quite smooth.

Overall, a malt forward beer with complementary esters and hops in the background. It really straddles a brown ale with the chocolate and even a bit of slight roast.