Sunday, May 26, 2013

McNeill's Brewery's Ruby Extra Amber Ale


McNeill's Brewery is located in Brattleboro, VT. They have been around since 1992 and have about 17 different types of beer, 10 regular and 7 seasonal. Brewmaster Ray McNeill has won countless awards for this brews, none of which I really give a rat's ass about; I'm only concerned about my tastes. Available in New England, you can find their beers in New York, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, and Vermont. They do have a pub that has a food menu however, rumor has it its better to just bring your own food in.

This beer, the Ruby Extra Amber Ale is a 5.7% ABV beauty. It has a nice thick head, especially for an ale, and an aroma and taste of caramel. The aroma is actually a little weaker than you would expect. Don't let that fool your taste buds though because this baby is full of flavor, like a slow roasted infant in a Crock Pot. You do get a small overbearing hop flavor to it, not necessarily bad, but I would not call this a smooth ale by any stretch. But don't get me wrong, this is a great beer, no arguments, I just would have used milder hops. The carbonation of this ale is typical of an amber ale, bubbling to perfection as tantalizes your tongue. This is a good BBQ beer, early summer, fall and springtime brew. It's light enough to be drank in the 70 degree heat but when you hit the 80s, its anyone's game.

The label itself is pretty bad, and I don;t like to be a hater. I mean all the references to Arabian shit is uh, a bit of a stretch to the "Ruby" reference. McNeill himself seems to dangle from the Old English, King Arthur fonts and references himself and gets a little lost on me. This microbrew has the stuff to turn some heads, but I think their marketing department could use some help. Like I wouldn't bring this beer over to a Wrestlemania party. I picked up a doubledeuce of this stuff for $4, so that isn't too bad.

Drinkability: 5/10
Taste: 6/10
Value: 6/10
Curb Appeal: 3/10

Overall: 5.0/10

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