Imperial Red Ale
Kiitos Brewing

 

 

new one to me from these guys, a sturdy brick red colored malt forward brew that seems more fall than summertime, but a good recipe, well executed, and in a style that im happy to see making a bit of a comeback after seemingly going extinct for a bit there. this has a nice deep amber tone, past copper into the darker realm, frothy tan headed with great retention, and lots of visible carbonation from the can pour. the nose here is pretty bold, less sweet than expected but still with that long boiled concentrated kind of grain intensity, nutty and with a toffee hint, some lightly piney hops there too, but this isnt in the red ipa range or anything. the flavor matches the nose, bready malt layers, biscuit, honeyed almond, just a bit of maple sweetness but the hops come in early enough to tame it right away, juniper and light bitterness but actually just right, more flavorful than most but not leaning too intense in either direction, clean on the ferment and well refined as a beer overall, even to a degree than i have seen in other kiitos beers in the past, which is encouraging for an already successful company. the alcohol isnt a factor at all in this, and it ends up being kind of drier than anticipated for being this grain driven, graham cracker and brown sugar, fallen leaves, lightly woody even. very nice take on the style.

2023-04-11
16oz can served in a big snifter. Dated 10/31/22. Got it in a trade with @NorsemanOne.

Pours mostly clear, dark ruby-amber color. Head didn't want to form, with a little violence, came up soapy and pale. Smell is fairly mild, a little toffee and grapefruit rind.

Taste is surprisingly light, at first -- eventually some interesting stuff comes out, though. I got a little bit of honeysuckle sweetness and then a little bit of burnt toffee, and then a fairly strong wave of pine sap bitterness. The sweetness is more pronounced as I drink more of it, but so is the bitterness. The burnt toffee turned out to be somewhat fleeting, though.

Mouthfeel is thinnish and pretty dry. Overall, this is a pretty nice IRA.

[Original rating 2018-02-04] 16 oz, can from the brewery store. Pours clear dark red-brown with a thin a thin tan head. Aroma of caramel, wood, earth, a little alcohol and metal. Taste is malt, caramel. Watery mouth feel. A bit thin and bland for a beer that claims to be imperial.