Ballast Point Calico Amber Ale

Brewed by Ballast Point Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
San Diego, California USA

Bottle at EBF: Pours golden amber with a white head. Lots of chewy malts. Caramel & buiscuit. Medium & smooth body. Nice amber!

Bottle @ EBF 2008. Amber body with an off-white head. Aroma is malt, some caramel, peaches and grapefruit. Flavor is sweet malt, some caramel and a citrus fruity bitterness, exactly like the aroma. Nice, refreshing balanced, quaffable and almost to nice.

Clear amber of color with a small beige head. An aroma with notes of caramel, hops and grapefruit. A flavor quite malty, grapefruits and hops. Nice one.

Sampled at EBF2008. Pours an amber/brown beer. The aroma is malty with citrus. The flavor is hoppy (grape, most likely chinook). Leaves a good bitterness. Nice amber ale.

Clear amber with mediumm off whote head. Sweet aroma with toasted malt, caramel and hoppy notes. Sweet flavour with toasted malt, caramel, pine and hoppy notes.

Picked this up due to the cheap price and my love of amber ales. On the open and pour, dark, typical amber ale. Sexy. Medium-thin head. Leaves a medium lacing that fits the beer. Smells super bready, yeasty, like biscuits. Taste is SUPER spicey, first thing you notice is the spice. Lots of piney hops here. There’s a spice in here that I can’t quite put my finger on, but it gives the beer a dill pickle type taste to it. Almost seems like it’s coming from the hops, but something tells me it doesn’t. Maybe this is an old batch? Either way, it sounds gross, but it’s good, and it works with the piney hops extremely well. Really satisfying, incredibly drinkable. Super enjoyable beer, my love amber ale continues and I’m sure to pick up some more Ballast brews. What is it about San Diego that produces such good breweries?

On Cask at Stone World Brewing Bistro and Gardens. Aroma of roasted and carmel malts, with a balance of hops. Pours opaque and deep amber/red/brown, nice full off-white head. Retention is good. Flavor begins with nice smooth roasted malt and finishes with a nice hoppy (pine/roasted nuts) throat. Very nice lacing. Medium body. Drinkability is medium-high, every sip begs you to take another. Really nice on cask. Throughout there is a nice balance between the malt and the hops, neither is too overpowering. Very well done Amber Ale, should be rated higher!

Cask. Pours a very hazy amber copper color, with a light off white head. Smells a little hoppy with a malty and fruity nose mixed. Served almost room temp like cask ale is supposed too. Still getting used to this style. The flavor was simple, but flavorful. Light figs and grapes in there to give it some sweetness with a mild hop presence for balance. Decent.