Deschutes Cinder Cone Red Ale

Brewed by Deschutes Brewery
Style: Amber Ale
Bend, Oregon USA

Rerate with with all the same scores. My only real complaint is that Deschutes makes this brew so damn scarce! For crying out loud, when I can drown in their Pale Ale, Stout, and (thoroughly crappy) IPA, how about throwing a case or two of this out there on a timely basis as well? Which further begs the question, why in the heck is this merely a seasonal brew anyway? Better Red indeed!

On tap at Boise Front Door Pours out a light amber topped with a off white head. Light hops on this amber. A nice sweet tast to go with the light hops. WOW I don’t know why i did try this easy to get brew before. Very nice amber.

Bottle. Poured deep red with a lasting thick white head. Floral hoppy aroma, with a touch of banana. Nice flavour, with toffee notes among the hoppiness. Lasting hop finish.

From notes 12/29/2006. Pours a dark orange brown with a tan head. Heavy on the hops on the nose. Sweet, citrusy, and a slight touch of smoke. Also smells like chewed bubble gum. Flavor is heavy with hops, but lacking in elegance. Probably pushed just a bit too far I’d say. You get a slight punch in the mouth from the expected hop influece, but it isn’t rounded out at all. Feel is decent. Nice level of carbonation, but there is so much put into this one, that it makes it heavy and thick on the tongue. Drinkable, sure. It’s a pretty good brew (that is actually better when it is not cold).

Pours a slightly hazed medium-copper color with a rich, creamy, light-tan head that leaves nice solid films of lacing. Aroma is smooth sweet citrus an pineapple hops balanced evenly with a solid caramel malt character. Flavor is identical to the aroma. Excellent balance and a dry, lightly bitter finish. Smooth and tasty. Pretty much a quintessential west coast amber.

Best by date: 6/20/08. Pours reddish brown from the bottle with an off-white good amount of head. Lots of lacings. Aroma is piney resinous and sweet. Flavor is bitter hops with a very sweet maltiness. Nicely balanced not quite crisp but close. Medium dry finish. Exceptional brew. If you could only have one micro--brew a day this would be a good choice. Highly recommended.

Appearance – Pours a dark amber color with light orange edges. When held up to the light it brightens up to a light reddish orange. The small ¼ finger off-white head emerges from the lava red brew below and leaves some straggly lace behind. This looks like a malty IPA. Smell – The Amarillo hops really come through with the first whiff. Everything is a bit muted, but there is some caramel and mostly floral hops coming through. Taste – A lot maltier than expected from the nose. The hops are a lot muted in the taste than I expected as well. It is funny, this beer is flip-flopped when it comes to taste and smell. This does taste very well balanced with the caramel malts and the choice hops; very well balanced. The caramel taste is a lighter taste, not too in your face. Mouthfeel – Nice and light. This beer is here is quench your thirst on a hot (somewhat, it is a spring seasonal after all) day. The carbonation is prickly and satisfying. Drinkability – This is a damn good amber ale. I know it is not the same “style,” but I would take this over nugget nectar any day of the week.

Bottle as shown. Pours a clear dark amber with a medium frothy light tan head that leaves behind good sticky lacing along the glass. The aroma is a light floral hops with some roast and nuts. Thin mouthfeel with a bitter hops with a nice citrus finish. Easy to drink, a very good amber ale from Deschutes.