Reindeer's Revolt
Ridgeway Brewing

Reindeer's RevoltReindeer's Revolt
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From:
Ridgeway Brewing
 
England, United Kingdom
Style:
English Strong Ale
ABV:
6%
Score:
77
Avg:
3.37 | pDev: 14.84%
Reviews:
93
Ratings:
166
Status:
Active
Rated:
Dec 13, 2020
Added:
Nov 15, 2007
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  7
Bartender, if anyone calls, I'm not here, right? Every year, it's the same nightmare, hauling that over-sized, red-suited endomorph all over kingdom come, up to my shivering haunches in snow and muck! You call him a Saint? Slave-driver, more like. Going down in history is all well and good, but what about the here and now? My therapist says I have to start doing thing for me for a change. It's about time I had a Merry Christmas myself, don't you think?
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Ratings by Lantern:
Photo of Lantern
Rated by Lantern

3/5  rDev -11%

Dec 03, 2011
More User Ratings:
Photo of JonnoWillsteed
Reviewed by JonnoWillsteed from England

3.61/5  rDev +7.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
As the lable states this is one of a series of beers brewed for the US market, and looking at the bottle's lable, and location of reviewers below - boy does it show!
L- Very deep amber, clear, pours with 5mm dark cream fine-bubble head. [ps 10mins later - holds really well!]
S- Smells quite hoppy-bright like an English Bitter, vs a more mellow 'Christmas Ale'
T- Certainly hoppy on the front, quite zingy and aromatic. By sip#3 I'm noticing a very dry-hoppy lick across the palate into the finish.
F- Dry, I can sense some 'meat' from the ABV% (thankfully) so it doesn't end up over-dry. Is this a very contemporary (re: the hop-levels here) take on a Winter-warmer (richness/ABV/depth etc)?
O- It's something quite different, the combo of loud contemporary hops with decent ABV%+richness. It's one of the more interesting Ridgeway beers I've had. Also I started this one off pretty chilled, but as it warms it's opening up and getting better, ie feeling more balanced. Suggestion: treat like a trad Brit ale and don't served over-chilled.
500ml bottle BB: 04/09/22 £3.40 Bought from TremblingMadness/UK as part of a mixed case for home delivery to London.
Dec 13, 2020
Photo of Darkmagus82
Reviewed by Darkmagus82 from Texas

3.59/5  rDev +6.5%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Poured from a bottle into a pint glass

Appearance – The beer pours a hazy orange amber color with a one finger head of tan colored foam. The head has a fades super-fast, leaving almost no lace on the sides of the glass.

Smell – The aroma of the brew is strongest of a light caramel and rye cracker smell. Along with these aromas comes some light smells of orange and a decent bit of an herbal hop.

Taste – The taste begins with a dry bready flavor with a little bit of a caramel and light rye and orange taste. Along with these flavors comes a little bit of yeast as well as some other light fruit tastes of apple and pear. As the taste advances the breadiness decreases a bit all while the sweet increases a bit. At the same time some light spice flavors of clove and coriander come to the tongue. Toward the end some earthy and herbal hop come to the tongue. These flavors are relatively light overall, but when combined with the rest of the flavors, it nicely produces a rather easy going and sweet, dry spiced rye bread taste to linger on the tongue.

Mouthfeel – The body of the brew is medium in thickness and creaminess with a carbonation level that is rather average. Overall, the feel is pretty good for the tastes and drinkability, making for a rather easy drinker.

Overall – A rather decent, spiced and lightly sweetened English ale. While nothing super out of the ordinary, the brew is overall rather easy drinking and a nice brew to try.
Dec 08, 2020
Photo of BeerAndGasMasks
Reviewed by BeerAndGasMasks from Virginia

3.72/5  rDev +10.4%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
From the bottle, it pours a clear amber with a large thick off-white head. In the nose, it is a pleasant English ale. In the mouth, it is smooth, creamy, and very pleasantly malty - well balanced. Nice!
Mar 01, 2020
 
Rated: 3.75 by ajdemma from New York

Jan 17, 2020
Photo of scootny
Reviewed by scootny from New York

3.68/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Golden Amber with a sizable a head and decent lacing.

Toffee and slight alcohol in the nose. Toasted malty and sweet nutty caramels.

Flavor is malty with chewy caramel. Healthy hops. Dry clean finish.

Feel is moderate carbonation worth a medium body. Smooth and ready drinking.

A flavorful malty English strong ale with a hoppy flourish
Jan 01, 2020
Photo of Beginner2
Reviewed by Beginner2 from Illinois

3.83/5  rDev +13.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Not so good Christmas ale. But, a very good English ale.
Before I opened it, I'm expecting holiday spices and spruce. Instead I get a pleasantly hopped-up English ale, great to drink by itself or with some dry cheese (but would not be so great with dinner.)

Reindeer's Revolt Looks above the style's average, but could have more lace. Smells are mostly malt, but the hops seem fresh. While bready, Tastes are well-balanced with the hop resins asserting themselves in the finish. Medium body and bubbles.

I've had 4 from Ridgeway and see that no beer reviews include a brewer review. So, read their label and then went on their website and see that their sense of humor is consistent: playful, imaginative and having fun enough. Primary evidence is how they name their beers, but the general tone shows good humor. As one of the earlier crafters in the Cotswolds, I have to give them some pretty good OA Hugs.
Dec 28, 2019
Photo of VoxRationis
Reviewed by VoxRationis from New York

3.56/5  rDev +5.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Decanted from a 16.9 oz (500 ml) bottle into a custom taster pint; production stamp F15 218.
A: Pours a cloudy, amber to light copper color with maybe a slightly orange cast and ochre highlights, a less than one finger, white to off white head, but decent, if somewhat soapy, lacing.
S: Aromas of caramel more than molasses, banana, bread crust/toast, and white pepper. Inviting.
T: Remarkably dry, with flavors following the nose closely, although I swear I also detect walnut and carrot. Solid, peppery bitterness, maybe a tad too much.
M: Medium bodied, but effervescence very brief, dissipating rapidly. Can something be chewy and watery at the same time?
O: Interesting and worth a try. Certainly in the Christmas spirit, if not actually a Christmas "spirit." Not really my "cup of tea," though, and not likely to try again. Novelty and quality are not always in sync.
Dec 23, 2019
 
Rated: 3.59 by craigbelly from Iowa

Dec 19, 2019
 
Rated: 3.71 by Abstractspirit from Rhode Island

Dec 11, 2019
 
Rated: 4.38 by evanwoertz from California

Mar 08, 2019
 
Rated: 3.44 by gefinley from California

Jan 21, 2019
Photo of patre_tim
Reviewed by patre_tim from Thailand

3.94/5  rDev +16.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Copper filtered with lots of carbonation and 3 fingers of beige head.

Smells of skunk, toffee and hard water.

Tastes of hard water, iron, and Toffee.

Light body with lots of carbonation.

I got this at World Market in Redding. Drinking it January 7th, 2018. Nothing Christmas about this brew but the label, but a delicious English ale.
Jan 08, 2019
Photo of nick_perry
Reviewed by nick_perry from North Carolina

3.52/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Brown-red color. Lot of rising bubbles. Foamy, lingering two-finger white head. Aromas of berries. Slightly sour malt flavor, notes of berries and spices. Sweet finish.
Dec 25, 2018
Photo of Suds
Reviewed by Suds from Missouri

3.51/5  rDev +4.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
Clear copper color and a slim whit head. Some lace. The aroma has a little nut and underlying malt. Faint fruit. Not a lot to get excited about. The taste is balanced, with a little bitterness. Not as rich or substantial as expected. A little spicy carbonation in the mid taste and finish. A quiet beer.
Dec 20, 2018
Photo of Premo88
Reviewed by Premo88 from Texas

4.67/5  rDev +38.6%
look: 4.5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5
16.9 oz. pint bottle poured into Samuel Smith's nonic with a CO2 nucleation point
(F20 192 printed on back label)

L: clear copper/bronze ... only a bit of amber in it, lots of brown/gold; with a super soft pour, the CO2 point pushes up a thick 1/2-inch head of offwhite/beige foam that sticks a bit at the top; keeps a full cap of foam, silky and dense and sticking to the glass walls on the way down ... doesn't actually lace much, but it's a gorgeous brew that looks like a proper English ale in the glass

S: fruitcake, peach colache, maple syrup ... a work of bread-malt art

T: super fruity with a lean toward darker fruits like plum or prune but also some toasted peach and apricot or fruitcake made with a darker bread; also a distinct but light fresh cranberry flavor, not candied or canned super sweet cranberry but a bit tarter ... this note is strong enough to detect in each sip but weak enough to keep this from tasting like a "sour"; relatively sweet overall but with a huge bitter backbite of earthy hops

F: fantastic, full, holds up very well to the CO2 nucleation point

O: American drinkers must be running into old bottles of this one, because it's 3.33 rating is a full point low; this beer is a true beauty, exactly what you'd expect out of a good English strong ale with all of the good English pale ale notes in there as a base but with monument of stronger, even maltier notes on top that dominate the presentation; at times I think I'm drinking a Belgian quadrupel with a true English hop backbite; I'm going back to the getting place to get some more
Dec 03, 2018
 
Rated: 2.04 by Chilmer from Iowa

May 23, 2018
Photo of superspak
Reviewed by superspak from North Carolina

3.78/5  rDev +12.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
500 ml bottle into tulip glass, bottled on 8/29/2017. Pours fairly crystal clear deep orange amber/light copper color with a 1-2 finger dense and rocky off white head with good retention, that reduces to a small cap that lingers. nice dense soapy lacing clings on the glass, with a moderate amount of streaming carbonation retaining the cap. Aromas of raisin, plum, cherry, berry, pear, apple, caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, toasted biscuit, herbal, wood, grass, and pepper; with lighter notes of toffee, nuttiness, roast, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Some very noticeable diacetyl in the aromas that diminished as it warmed. Not too overpowering. Nice aromas with good balance and complexity of fruity yeast, dark/bready malt, and earthy hop notes; with good strength. Taste of big raisin, plum, cherry, berry, pear, apple, caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, toasted biscuit, herbal, wood, grass, and pepper; with lighter notes of toffee, nuttiness, roast, and yeast/toasted earthiness. Light-moderate herbal, woody, grassy, peppery bitterness on the finish. Lingering notes of raisin, plum, cherry, berry, pear, apple, caramel, brown sugar, brown bread, toasted biscuit, herbal, wood, grass, pepper, light toffee/nuttiness/roast, and yeast/toasted earthiness on the finish for a good bit. Very nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity yeast, dark/bready malt, and earthy hop flavors; with a nice malt/bitterness balance, and zero lingering hop astringency after the finish. Light-moderate increasing dryness from bitterness. Medium carbonation and body; with a very smooth, moderately creamy/bready/grainy, fairly sticky, and slightly resinous balanced mouthfeel that is nice. Zero warming alcohol for 6%. Overall this is a very good English strong ale. All around nice complexity, robustness, and balance of fruity yeast, dark/bready malt, and earthy hop flavors; very smooth and easy to drink, with the modestly bitter/drying finish. A bit on the buttery side, but not offensive. Really well made for the style, right on par for expectations. Perfectly balanced English yeast, malts, and hops. Most of this brewery's beers I reviewed were quite a bit old, this one was really fresh and definitely far better than the old ones. A very enjoyable offering.
Jan 20, 2018
 
Rated: 2.66 by BeerAndFilm from Oregon

Jan 16, 2018
 
Rated: 1.5 by 1971bernat from Virginia

Jan 03, 2018
Reindeer's Revolt from Ridgeway Brewing
Beer rating: 77 out of 100 with 166 ratings