Opinions on Redhook?

For me Red Hook falls into the Saranac/Wolaver's/Widmer/Peak's category of "there are better options in pretty much any style they make". Red Hook was a good gateway to craft beer for me and I don't care who owns them but they don't make anything special. If their niche is to be a gateway beer then I suppose they are good at it.

 

Completely agree with you... all of their beers are very mediocre... not terrible, but not good. Haven't bought their stuff in years.

 

Had a Longhammer IPA for the first time about 3 months ago and really enjoyed it! That being said, I probably wouldn't buy it with so many better choices around! And being owned by the big boys, always has a stigma to it!

 

I enjoy Redhook from time to time. I've also done the brewery tour and enjoyed it alot. I ate in the Pub there as well and they had some specialty brews from Redhook and Widmer that you aren't seeing normally that I found to be of very good quality. I like a Longhammer IPA every now and again and I'm not ashamed to admit that I like audible ale and the ESB. There are a couple Kona and Widmer brews I enjoy the hell out of as well.

I don't much care who owns what percentage of their business.

 

That's not a fair statement.

 

I drink their stuff and am a fan but am under no illusions its top of the line beer. ESB was one of my first few crafts and help get me hooked. Cant say Ive had one of their beers that was either terrible or great. Its just good or decent stuff. The Longhammer IPA is ok for someone like me who isnt an IPA fanatic but of course I would prefer a better IPA. Btw Widmer beers seem to be a step above RedHook and Kona, they have better imperial/higher abv lines.

 

Some companies do very well making mediocre beers, they just aren't for me.

 

Pretty sure it's been a good length of time that A-B has had a share of Redhook -- probably over 10 years.

It's for this reason that I still enjoy a Redhook label (can't recall the last time I had a Widmer & probably never had a Kona) now and again -- along with price point to quality.

 

If everything in life has to wow you, you're going to be sorely disappointed as time goes on. I wouldn't place Redhook into a "mediocre" category myself, but I was around when there was nothing, but, mediocre to poor beer available.

 

Btw I totally missed the Wise Cracker Wit this year which is their summer seasonal I think. By the time I saw it in a store summer was long over so I passed. Kicking myself for missing that one.

 

They made a beer called "Gamechanger" for Buffalo Wild Wings that I will never forgive them for.

 

Yea. Had that last week. It was bad....at best

 

I'll admit, I've got a soft spot for Redhook. Not too far from the neighborhood where I used to live is the old, one-story, brick Redhook brewery. They started in 1981 here in Seattle, making them older than Boston Beer Company and almost as old as Sierra Nevada. For the better part of two decades I drank Redhook ESB almost exclusively—not because it's a great beer, but because it was readily available, relatively cheap, and a decent alternative to much of what else was available. I also considered it local. Their much larger facility over in Woodinville is a nice place to stop in during a bike ride or for a break between all the wineries over there.

Yes, they're pretty middle-of-the-road and conservative by the standards of today's craft beer enthusiasts. But given their relatively long history, they're one of the breweries that paved the way for all the newer ones doing more creative things now.

 

I used to like the ESB, but now its a bit tame for my tastes, however when in the Portsmouth area, I do enjoy having one on draft, probably wouldn't buy a six pack though.

 

Redhook makes solid beers. True, nothing they make is off the hook (pardon the pun), but I do not feel that every beer I drink needs to be a 15% bourbon barrel stout or a 200 IBU DIPA.

 

I drink their beer and I wouldnt be offended if someone thinks they belong in the medicore category. I would understand why they felt that way. They would probably be higher rated if they had better or more limited releases or higher abv/imperial lines. They are pretty weak in those categories.

 

I'd compare it to a brewery like Harpoon in Boston. There are better beers out there, but there selections are solid and the environment is fun and adds to the drinking experience. Redhook on the couch at home... eh... Redhook at the Brewery... Yes!