Bear Republic Brewing Company - Hop Rod Rye

After the initial shock of finding that beeradvocate.com's Top 100 List had ballooned to 250, I began perusing through the new list. A lot of the names were expected- beers that had hovered around the top of the original list for a while or were on the list years ago, only to be replaced by newer, more exciting beers. And then there were a few on the list that shocked me. One of the beers I was really surprised to see on the new list was Bear Republic's Hop Rod Rye.

First of all, I want to make it clear that I have absolutely nothing against Bear Republic. My surprise at seeing Hop Rod Rye on the list had everything to do with it's vast availability without much public ado. Bear Republic has been making Hop Rod Rye for a long time, and in that time I've never known anyone to say, "Hell yeah! Hop Rod Rye!" when it shows up on tap somewhere. It's just one of those beers you kind of take for granted down here. That said, I decided it was time to revisit this beer and see if there was something I was missing. At #124 - Hop Rod Rye.

Hop Rod Rye pours a dark caramel color with a fluffy white head. The nose features some rye coupled with some strong citrus hops. I also got caramel, pine and a touch of grain. The smell of the rye works really well into the rest of the smells. Not easy to do with something as strong as rye.

The taste follows the smell pretty closely, with rye and some earthy hops opening things up. The middle features a lengthy pine hop bite before a finish of charred rye and some toasted malt. Overall, this is a really solid beer that I've definitely taken for granted due to its wide availability. While I'm really digging all of the elements this beer has to offer, nothing about it makes it a Top 250 Beer for me. A great beer? Yes. An exceptional beer? I would say no.

Final Grade: B+

Top 250 Beers Tasted: 110