Best Rye beers

boulevard rye on rye
or
the bruery sour in the rye.

 

Green Flash Road Warrior

 

Summit Frostline Rye is pretty damn good.

 

Founders Red Rye IPA

 

Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA

 

Never had rye of the tiger, but I don't believe you can taste the rye in Sucks. Not trying to call you a liar or anything like that, just that you aren't sure of what you're tasting. There is almost no rye in Sucks as you can tell just from color alone. Rye beers are dark. And from what I've seen, Rye of the Tiger isn't far from the color of Sucks, so I doubt it's very different.

Towards the end of my glass, I can smell the rye in the lacing (rye is very sticky and leaves a lot more residue/lace than the other malts). It smells adjunct lager-like, fusely and spicy. The only Rye-IPA's I've been able to taste the rye up front were (IMO) bad IPA's from local brewers where nowhere near enough hops were used, both bittering and aroma wise. And even then, it was still very faint.

Two last things-
1. "I'll have to make sure I try Red's Rye fresh next time" If anything, the rye will be more present in older Rye-IPA's as the aroma hops disappear
2. "I want to try Boulevard's Rye-on-Rye.. sounds amazing" Keep in mind it will be nothing like Sucks or RotT; that Boulevard tastes mostly like rye whiskey. Very sweet and strong vanilla flavor. Some fruity vinousness from the base ryewine, too, which Sucks definitely doesn't have and I assume the same for RotT.

IPA's are very popular, and the dark color yet mild, not roasty at all flavor of rye makes it a perfect addition to hoppy black ales. Most new beers period are IPA's, and hoppy blacks aren't far behind.

I'm sure you could find some beers in different styles that use rye. One local brewer here brews a ryewine year-round, another brews a seasonal smoked rye porter.

 

My 3 fave are:
Founders Red's Rye PA
He'Brew Bittersweet Lenny's RIPA
Two Brothers Cane & Ebel

 

It definitely is sticky, or at least the rye-IPAs I've had have been more sticky than usual for the style. But that seems to coincide with the flavor profile I enjoy more about these guys.

I think we're going to have to chalk our misunderstanding up to different senses of smell and different palates. I imagine the flavor imparted to the IPAs I referenced must be subtle, but it definitely in no way smelled "adjunct lager-like." It smelled sweet and spicy like a good Belgian blonde but with less upfront yeasty-ness.

To clarify, I'm not saying I could pick out a distinct "rye-ness" separate from the rest of the beer, I'm just saying I could tell that Sucks was brewed with rye. That the sum of its parts, with the rye added, was significantly changed from the taste of other IPAs that I was pretty sure (and later confirmed correct) Sucks had a rye in it. And that that difference was, for me, a very enjoyable one.

Am I not allowed to enjoy how the fresh hops interact and mingle with the rye malts to create a flavor profile that works together? I would like to try some fresh Red's Rye to see what the difference is. Maybe you're right and I don't actually like rye malts, but then, if I don't have at least some basis of comparison I might never know.

Yes, I realize it will not be very much like Sucks or Rye of the Tiger. The styles of beer are nothing alike. I'm not a complete beer novice. However, I do also enjoy rye whiskey, and big, dark, strong ales. So, yeah, despite very much enjoying Rye of the Tiger and Lagunitas Sucks, and knowing that they are IPAs brewed with a little rye, I would still very much like to try Rye on Rye.

 

I'm quite fond of Ruthless. I just put a 12 pack into my fridge ('cause I couldn't justify a 4-pack of Ten FIDY for three bucks more with the wife when it's not a payday week.)

 

Of course you are, but when you mention "I'm not sure I've ever had Red's Rye fresh" in a paragraph about being able to taste the rye in rye-IPA's, you should expect some confusion

And sorry for restating that Rye-on-Rye will be different, I don't mean to sound condescending, just double-checking since your first reply only mentioned Sucks and RotT. Cheers

 

Boulevard Rye-on-Rye and The Bruery Rugrod. Seems like the rest of Rye beers are either Pale Ales or IPAs.

 

Sorry if I came off a bit hostile, but I couldn't tell if you were trying to sound patronizing or not. Cheers!

 

No it doesn't. It's aged in Rye Whiskey barrels, but it not made with rye.

 

I agree with you about not being able to taste rye in Sucks and that rye becomes more prominent in IPAs as they get older. I wouldn't have known there was any rye in Sucks if not for looking at a list of the ingredients.

Rye is very noticeably present in Rye of the Tiger though. Its the most rye-forward rye IPA I've had. Absolutely loved it last year, still tasty but not digging it as much this year.

 

Founders Red's Rye
And a little local brewery called Hairless Hare Brewery in Vandalia, OH makes a rye that is excellent.

 

I'm another IPA fan, but Founders Red's Rye is my favorite beer of any type (just ahead of PtE and Hopslam). Fresh it's amazing, not fresh it is still excellent. I don't have a good "descriptive palate" so can't explain the difference as it ages -- it definitely changes but is still good. I'd also recommend Sierra Nevada Ruthless Rye, Harpoon's Rich & Dan's Rye IPA, and Bear Republic Hop Rod Rye. And Long Trail's Farmhouse Series Black Rye IPA is pretty unique, but probably hard to find.

 

Love sucks and ruthless, but honestly I was not a big fan of Rye of the Tiger (great tap sticker tho). I've passed on wookey a few times but maybe I'll grab one next time I see it since it seems to be well liked.

 

I'll keep that in mind next time I'm in GLBC distro, I bet it's an interesting combo. Although I think using rye with a spicy hop like chinook (a la Arrogant Bastard) would probably be better, I won't know until I try it!

Definitely try Wookey and Stone Sublimely Self-righteous at some point! Hoppy blacks done well are great, incredibly easy-drinking despite the usual higher (8-9%) ABV

 

OP needs to try Founders Reds Rye. Its seasonal in bottles and approaching (if not past) the best before date, but year round on draft. Red's Rye is more grapefruit and tropical than ROTT, but not as rye-forward. They are my two favorite rye IPAs. Both much better than Hop Rod Rye.

Definitely looking forward to tasting some Alpine Nelson when I go to San Diego in a few months.

 

See, now you're making me want to try some fresh Red's Rye again!