Big Time Better Off Red Ale

Brassy red amber with okay head. Mild hop and malt medley play up to the nose. Decent mix of crystal malts and hops with some sweetness balanced well by bitterness.

Bright dark red. Big toasty caramel nose. Earthy, caramelly, toasty character. Nice balance.

On ask. Dark amber colour with minimal head. Caramel sweet malt aroma withsome light hops. A touch of spice before getting sweet and malty before drying up with the hops.

Draft at the Barking Dog. Gorgeous dark brown with a sudsy off-white head. Looks like a big heavy complex ale. The aroma is fairly common dark ale--sweet malt, some citric hop, just a hint of the nut/sour wheat. The flavor of this pour varies from the at-the-brewery notes a bit. The hops overpowered. The Northwest red style is confusing to me; too many seem to be just color variations on an IPA. Not that I would grade this any higher if it were called an IPA; the body’s a little too heavy to deliver that refreshing IPA crispness. This one’s lost in space for my money, and I can’t remember having seen that from Big Time before. Bless ’em, though, for trying new things.

On tap at the brewery.

Pours a surprisingly deep brown with red highlights and a limited head. Hints of lemony hops, lots of cola malts, turning rather malt-heavy, almost burnt, as one gets into the flavor profile of each sip. The hops never come back to hold their own, and the beer - slightly overcarbonated for my taste - disappoints given the high expectations I tend to hold for this brewery.