Insanely Bad Elf
Ridgeway Brewing

Insanely Bad ElfInsanely Bad Elf
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From:
Ridgeway Brewing
 
England, United Kingdom
Style:
Imperial Red Ale
Ranked #54
ABV:
11.2%
Score:
78
Ranked #27,016
Avg:
3.39 | pDev: 19.47%
Reviews:
192
Ratings:
322
Status:
Active
Rated:
Nov 21, 2023
Added:
Nov 18, 2007
Wants:
  7
Gots:
  26
"My goodness," muttered Claus, recalling his visit to the Institute, "the restrictive outerwear, the padded room - even padded Christmas tree ornaments. Horrifying ! Yet the little chap seems happier than he's ever
been." Claus took a thoughtful sip of a most warming red ale. "Perhaps sanity is over-rated... Ho,ho,ho!"
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Ratings by huysmans:
Photo of huysmans
Rated by huysmans from New Jersey

3.94/5  rDev +16.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Dec 22, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of tradershmulie
Reviewed by tradershmulie from Connecticut

3.97/5  rDev +17.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Picked this up pretty inexpensively.

Interesting copper colored pour, plenty of carbonation, but small head that quickly disappeared.

No real smell.

Smooth, easy drinking, ABV very high and not noticeable.

This is a very fine decent beer. Worth having.
Nov 21, 2023
 
Rated: 3.7 by BeerForMuscle from New Jersey

Nov 02, 2022
 
Rated: 4.5 by 1971bernat from Virginia

Aug 11, 2022
Photo of crazyspicychef
Rated by crazyspicychef from Pennsylvania

4.47/5  rDev +31.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.5
A fairly enjoyable winter Warmer.
I'd get it again and age a few.
Jan 28, 2022
Photo of JayQue
Reviewed by JayQue from Virginia

3.28/5  rDev -3.2%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
Poured from a 33 cl bottle into a tulip glass. It features a very small fizzy white head, with almost no retention and only a bit of film on the sides of the glass as lacing. This is kind of expected in such a strong beer. Nice clear amber color though!!!! Two aspects of aroma and taste - fruit (apples and pears) and booze. As you drink it, there is some sweet malt/caramel malt detectable. Not exactly what I was expecting with a strong Red Ale! No hops that I could detect and the malt was not featured. This seemed more like a boozy, poor attempt at a Tripel. Aside from the strong alcohol presence, the taste was not that bad - drinkable - but certainly not worth the effects of 11.2% abv. Mouthfeel suffered from the harsh booziness. This beer was a bit on the sweet side but I wouldn't call it "cloying" or syrupy. In fact, it was a bit on the light side for such a strong beer. The best by date was 2029, so I imagine this beer was pretty fresh. Overall, I wouldn't say it was worth the experience and there would be no need for me to revisit it again.
Jan 08, 2022
Photo of Sigmund
Reviewed by Sigmund from Norway

3.27/5  rDev -3.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.25
330 ml bottle, vintage 2011, from Voldby Købmandsgaard. ABV is 11.2%. Reddish amber colour, moderate off-white head. Strong aroma of malt sugar, molasses, alcohol, oak and fortified wine. The flavour is sweet, malty and very alcoholic, notes of caramel, some hops in the finish. Warming mouthfeel.
Jan 07, 2022
Photo of drinkAK
Reviewed by drinkAK from Alaska

3.34/5  rDev -1.5%
look: 2.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 2.75 | overall: 3.25
Not the best elf beer. But it's drinkable and at 11% it will have you on your elf lips in no time . No head, medium clear amber colour, a little watery, smell is sweet and boozey biscuits, taste is malty sweet with a decent bitter back bone.
Jan 07, 2022
Photo of Greywulfken
Reviewed by Greywulfken from New York

4/5  rDev +18%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A bully of a beer - says "imperial red ale" on the label - pours a clear deep amber, bold and brash with chewy sweet fruits, a bit of tack, and a sweet brown bread malt back... Fairly full-bodied, smooth but dense and shellacky... Got that mildly bitter English hop profile... Carbonation is low despite a something of a persistent cap of ivory bubbles and film... Doesn't seem as well-received as I'd have thought... I think it fits the bill for the style quite well - maybe the high abv is a turn-off for some...
Nov 26, 2020
Photo of DrDemento456
Reviewed by DrDemento456 from Pennsylvania

2.37/5  rDev -30.1%
look: 2.75 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.25 | feel: 3 | overall: 2
May have made a mistake picking this beer up have no idea when it was brewed but it says on the label best before September 28th 2020 so I guess it's still... Good? For a murky Brown decent bubbles and very mild carbonation if any. was lucky to see no sediment which is always nice. Smells of ethanol mild toffee and just a hint of raisins. Taste it's pretty rough you get mild candy malt some hints of malt liquor and some stale cardboard. Body is okay for 11% it doesn't have a super strong warming feeling but that taste is pretty present of alcohol. Overall I'm pretty sure I'm going to dump this beer out it was a mistake to pick it up especially at $5 a single
Jul 06, 2020
 
Rated: 1.03 by Scottsbeer from Florida

Sep 16, 2019
Photo of Retroman40
Reviewed by Retroman40 from Florida

2.8/5  rDev -17.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.75
A clear amber/orange with a wispy but lasting head. Smell is of some malt but you can definitely sense the rather high alcohol. The taste is malty with some hop bitterness but again the alcoholic heat is quite noticeable. Mouthfeel is surprisingly thin considering the high alcohol. The finish is a little rough. Overall this is a very strong beer but at least to me it doesn't have enough flavor to back up the higher alcoholic strength.
Dec 03, 2018
 
Rated: 3.5 by PhineasMcClintock from Massachusetts

Aug 04, 2018
 
Rated: 3.25 by brittanylicious from Indiana

Jun 25, 2018
 
Rated: 3.25 by heysuz from Indiana

Jun 25, 2018
 
Rated: 4 by paulish from New York

Feb 03, 2018
 
Rated: 3.8 by TheBeerMaster1 from New York

Jan 03, 2018
 
Rated: 2.44 by antman27 from New York

Dec 28, 2017
Photo of digitalflood
Rated by digitalflood from New York

4.18/5  rDev +23.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
2016 Vintage Reserve
Aged one year
Malt cookies with boozy after taste. Very good.
Dec 14, 2017
Photo of woodychandler
Reviewed by woodychandler from Pennsylvania

3.56/5  rDev +5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
I am continuing my 2017 Christmas in July celebration, inspired by the good peeps at The FGBS who held Christmas in July on Tuesday. I had meant to drink these on Christmas day 2016, but I got rather blotto early on & set them aside as part of The Bottle Backlog at Chez Woody. Today is my series of entries for New Elf Christmas Beer in July Sunday (Week 649).

From the bottle: "One of our range of very special Christmas beers brewed in England for the USA. We all know of course, that Santa is really from Lapland!"; "'My goodness,' muttered Claus recalling his visit to the Institute, 'the restrictive outerwear, the padded room - even padded Christmas tree ornaments. Horrifying! Yet the little chap seems happier than he's ever been,' Claus took a thoughtful sip of a most warming red ale. 'Perhaps sanity is over-rated ... Ho, ho, ho!' [undersigned] Peter Scholey (Brewer)".

A Pop! of the cap and the Insanity was released & had begun! I was as gentle on my pour as Mrs. Bates was with the fly that showed up at the end of "Psycho". I am not insane, just misunderstood! My in-glass swirl raised a finger of light, foamy, tawny head that seemed to run off in fear, quickly becoming mere wisps. Color was a solid Amber (SRM = > 7, < 9) with NE-quality clarity. Ah, those visits to my beloved Midwest ... It is that intense, insane cold that gives rise to such doings as "Fargo" & my old running mate from WI, Ed Gein. What fun! Visits to Iowa farms with my "In Cold Blood" pals are the stuff of dreams. The nose on this one should have been cut off when we had the chance, I mean, smelled like ripe berries in the summertime. It was actually quite sweet with the scent of mixed berries. Mouthfeel was thin-to-medium, not watery, but not many steps above. Speaking of steps, have you ever been in Francis Dolarhyde's basement? He has it arranged so that you do not experience the deliciousness of his setup on the descent of the cellar stairs, but once down there, it is magnificent! I only wish that the taste was equally magnificent. It was sweet, but undefined, rather hot and boozy & perhaps needing additional time to smooth out like one of Hannibal Lecter's chiantis. My, but that fellow is a gourmet cook & a gourmand! On my last visit, we supped on this lovely kidney, liver & fava bean dish that he had simmered in a crock pot. He gets the freshest ingredients & I am always envious. Finish remained hot & dry, still quite boozy, lacking refinement. I think that I may try to score an extra bottle on my next opportunity to set aside for some aging. In the meantime, the lovely attendant is summoning me to don my evening apparel, a close-fitting I-Love-Me jacket with my name embroidered above the left breast. It makes for an intimate meal as I hug myself while they spoon feed me, but what can you do when you have been judged Insanely Bad? "There is a pleasure, sure, in being mad, that none but madmen know." John Dryden, The Spanish Friar (II.i). Sleep well!
Jul 31, 2017
Insanely Bad Elf from Ridgeway Brewing
Beer rating: 78 out of 100 with 322 ratings