Ballast Point Calico Amber Ale

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

Draft. Ginger Man, NYC. Clear amber body. think, light borwn head, mostly lasting. The aroma is malty with toasted grain, cookie and caramel. Notes of flowers and grapefruit. the flavor is moderately sweet and lightly bitter. It finishes lightly sweet, moderately acidic and moderately bitter. Tart, off flavor in the finish. Medium body with a creamy texture turning watery, lively carbonation. Nice aroma and nice flavor to start, but it heads south in the finish.

CASK at Daily Pint - the Centennial Hops version. Nose is sweet red malts, clear robust hops, light cream. Color is a pretty opaque dark red. Flavor is a sweet standard amber with a solid layer of hops. Turns out basically like a creamy sharp red ale. Snap.

Bottle Pours out a dark amber topped with a small sand head. Aroma of rich malts, light nuts, and dusty wood. Taste of bread malts, light sweetness and citrus hop bitterness on the end.

Pour is a dark brown with a small white head. Aroma is a caramel malts with a nice hoppyness to it. Flavor is even better with some bread and toasted nuts followed with a decent hop. Finish leaves some pine hops on the tounge. A very flavorful amber ale.

12 oz. bottle Aroma- Moderate maltiness, pick up some toasted caramel, citrus hop nose. Appearance- nice, clear copper color. half inch of foamy off white head. decent retention and lacing. Taste- slightly bitter up front, a bit of toasty breadiness on the sides. balanced, crisp finish. Palate- medium body, nice carbonation. Overall, a nice amber with good flavor and balance. hop profile offers a step up on the typical sweet versions of the style. Serving type: bottle

Bottle. Amber brown pour with a minimal head. The aroma is sweet with a grassy and earthy hop aspect. The tastes is fairly bitter without being overpowering and it lingers a little as it slowly dies away.

Poured a ruby-orange with thick off white head that lingered thru most of the glass and left great lacing. Nose was a pleasnt mix of malty dark fruit, toasted nuts and honey with a hint of hopy citrus fruit. Mouthfeel was full, slightly tingly and almost chewy, and the taste picked up the flavors of the nose perfectly. Rounded off to a long, pleasant finish with a great aftertaste.

355 mL. Pours a slightly hazy orangish/deep amber with a two/three finger tan head, rocky head that has excellent retention and lacing. Aroma is stale DIPA- lots of strawberry cheesecake, stale piney hops, bits of toffee. Taste is very malty but well balanced with subtle English/German hops- lots of strawberry, light fruits, light caramel. I can tell that fresh and on tap this would rock, but for now I would say it is mediocre.