Opinions on Redhook?

Harpoon > RedHook. Not a good comparision. Just for example. Redhook doesnt have anything that could match Harpoon's Leviathan IPA. Id say Redhook compared to Saranac is more favorable.

 

I would agree...they are perfectly average and you could certainly do a lot worse. ESB and Longhammer were two of the beers I cut my craft teeth on

 

To me, mediocre is Leinenkugel or Yuengling. Redhook is in a category a few steps higher. But again, I'm speaking from an experience when mediocre was more norm than not.

 

Leinenkugel is medicore I can agree 100% with that. People will say their Big Eddy series is much better but they dont sell those here. Yuengling I never had. Saranac for the most part is mediocre but they have been getting better lately and they always give you new beers in each seasonal variety pack which is always a plus.

 

They have one of the best tours, but some of the most mediocre beers. It is a shame to be honest. You always wonder what goes through the heads of some of these companies...get with the program!

 

Everything in life doesn't have to "wow" me, but if I have a choice I always pick something I like better. In my opinion, Redhook brews just middle of the road beers. Better than a lot of the typical Bud Light stuff you see on tap but given other options, I typically go with the other options.

 

To me they seemed way better about 18 years ago. Every once in a while I'll try on of their new ones. Seems to be zero malt depth or hoppyness in most of their beers, wasn't always the case. I think they could take a look at Kona, most of their bottled stuff still tastes just about the same as back in the day ( pretty good to good ). Red Hook did a pretty nice Coffee Beer long before I remember one else, but wasn't near Founders at the time ( Late 90s ).

 

Redhook was a lot more impressive when I was getting more interested in craft beers, circa early 90s. Now, not so much. Not because of a decrease in quality on their part, but because there is so much better beer available now.

These days the only times I'll have a Redhook is when I'm at a venue which is exclusive to AB and they are the only craft option, which happens.

I will say that back in those early 90s, long before they signed up with AB, they had some of the best looking booths, hand outs and swag at beer fests,

 

Having invested in the company (original symbol - HOOK, now BREW) at $7.25/share, I love these guys!

On the beer side, it's funny, I'm not a huge fan of their regular distro stuff - ESB, Longhammer, etc., but I really enjoy some of the pilot small batch stuff they have at the brewery.

 

Redhook ESB is one of the first beers I really, really enjoyed. I don't buy their beers all that much, but at places that only carry their beers (or the big lights) I've never been disappointed by them either.
The real catch is that for the same price I can usually get something brewed locally that I'd typically support ahead of them...like Fat Tire or Lucky U.

 

LongHammer IPA is about the only beer they make that I go back to every few months. Other than that it's a bunch of decent but forgettable beers. I've never had a Red Hook beer that didn't taste good, at the same time none that made me say, "Wow!" If I see them at the store, there's usually always something better than them to choose from in every one of their beer categories. If you haven't tried them before, they're worth a try, but they probably won't end up in your regular rotation.

 

ESB was my top tailgate beer in college at under 6 bucks a sixer at Rite Aid. Their pilsner ain't half bad.

 

Here is my opinion, echoing most others: Average/good beers, good price, but just not outstanding enough to be included in regular purchasing. There is so much outstanding beer out there, it is hard to want to spend nearly the same coin on an average brew. My eyes pass right over it in the beer aisle every single time, and seek out SN, Lagunitas, Deschutes, etc.

 

If I want to get a handle on a brewery I go to its list of offerings on BA and scroll down the ratings to see how often they crack the 4 barrier, and how many reviews they get. Red Hook doesn't cut it on these criteria. I did not see Pyramid in the thread but it is on my mediocre list. Nothing north of 4 for them but a strong ale with only 19 reviews. About selling to Bud I found a single of a Goose Island IPA for a buck sixty and it was a waste of money.

 

ESB was the only thing I drank regularley in college because it was cheap and available at the gas station next store. I also enjoyed the Pumpkin Stout they made this year. Great easy drinking Fall beer.

 

Using that metric you must avoid some styles as a whole.

 

Just out of curiosity, do you like poi???

 

I think Redhook beers are quite consistently very good. Nothing amazing, but still well produced, well crafted beer. My favorite thing about Redhook are the people. Some truly world class brewers work in that facility. To me, that says a lot about a place… the people. And at Redhook, they rock!