Cambridge House Clifford The Big Red Ale
The Cambridge House Brewpub

 

 

On tap at the Cambridge House in Granby

A - Dark Red - A little darker than the dog in the book I used to read as a kid.

S - Toasted malts, some grassy hops, alcohol.

T - This is a very big beer. Toasted malts, hops, and a bit nutty. The alcohol really adds nicely to the fullness of the body. This beer is almost too big for me.

M - Pretty well balanced for 9.8 percent. Warm, nice carbonation.

D - Solid Red Ale. Went very big for the style. I respect that. Well done, very drinkable for a 9.8 percent kick in the ass.

On-tap. Pours a one finger cream head that fades quickly leaving no lace. Deep clear mahogany color. Hoppy grapefruit nose. Medium carbonation and medium bodied. Flavor is crisp but malty, balanced. Not the usual red. Higher ABV hidden. $5.00 for a wussy 10oz glass at The Cambridge House Granby, CT.

Reviewed on 06/22/2009. I had this on draft. This beer pours brown with a small head. The aroma is of grassy hops and super sweet malt. The flavor is of sweet malt with some bitter hops in the finish. Overall, it isn't bad, but is definitely quite sweet so I wasn't quite a huge fan.

Draught in Granby: This one pours a very dark red color. There was a fairly decent tan head on it that leaves some lacing. The aroma is good. Lots of pine, but not overly so. A fairly good amount of malt sweetness coming through below the hops. The taste is good. It is definitely full bodied. Piney hops up front, but not overly bitter. A big slug of malts underneath, but not overly sweet. There are 8 different malts in this one, and the balance is excellent. They all work well together without anyone being overly evident. There are flavors of caramel, coffee, smokiness and roastiness bubbling to the surface. Very Nice!

Just had a half-pint of this beer tonight at CBH. Wow, what a great beer. I must say, red ales are my favorite style, and imperial reds are just exclamation points so I'm a bit biased but damn... how can anyone not like this. The pure hoppiness and caramel sweetness in the aroma and taste is ecstasy for me. Goes down way too easy for 10% and I had to slow my self down drinking this one... I have to agree with a past reviewer and say their IPA still holds a place as the best beer I've ever had but this is definitely in the top 5.

Poured into a half nonic pint, there is a dark amber color with a great red hue. Good head, good lacing, slight cloudiness when held high up to the light. Nothing out of this world.

This was a great smelling beer. But, and this might be because I just had the excellent, days old IPA....I didn't find the extreme, fresh hop aroma I was expecting. If you have imperial in the name, make it extremely aromatic. Be reckless with dry hopping.

Taste is loaded with bitterness, appropriate for a beer with imperial in the name. Also found was black, charred flavor and compex maltiness that I enjoy in a hoppy brew. But combined with the bitterness, this is a bit confused.

Mouthfeel is thick, and a palate assault with the bitterness. Drinkability is good as a sipper but doesn't all come together to make me want another.

Good beer, but the CBH IPA is the best I've ever had so I'll stick with that next time.

A - this heart amber ale is a dark ruddy, red, rusty colored ale with a thin frothy head and no visible carbonation

S - roasted malts are of course huge, as you would expect in a red ale of this ABV. Nice basic hop profile as a background, and some subtle fruity sweetness, almost like strawberry

T - the toasted malts are supremely dominant, big and nutty up front, after a minute balanced by the extant but smaller hop

M&D - amazing, easily dirnkable, especially for such a high ABV, a full flavor, well layered and blended, several complimenting notes of the malts and hops. CBH continues to impress