Full Sail Nugget Special Red Ale

Brewed by Full Sail Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
Hood River, Oregon USA

Sampled Spring 2007 from Bomber bottle. Pours a deep amber with off-white head. Generous head, retains nice and thick for the first 10 minutes or so but then dissipates into a thin glazed layer. Aroma is very fresh. I detect bread bakery aromas, clean citrusy hops, and some toasted nuts... maybe almond. On the palate is initially a pleasant toasted caramel malt sweetness but is quickly overcome by assertive hop bitterness. Malt and hop mingle nicely with an overbaked biscuit sweetness and hop tang on the finish. Mouthfeel is medium to full and the beer is very appetizing for the next sip - very drinkable. I’m having trouble getting past the bread and biscuit components because I love them so much in a beer.

Red-amber in color with a tan head. This almost looks like a brown ale. The smell is faint. The taste is unoffensive and kind of bland, some bitterness. I was hoping for something like Nugget Nectar (greatest “amber” ale ever) or the Lagunitas Lucky 13 red ale. Full Sail is kind of hit or miss in my book but the hits keep me coming back. I am still looking forward to the next brewmaster reserve series. Serving type: bottle Reviewed on: 06-11-2007 21:47:14

750ml brown bottle from Kokoman in Pojoaque, New Mexico. Pours a dense dark amber with a thick tan head. Nice rich malty and hoppy aromas. Medium body with a full mouhtfeel Even malty/hop flavor balance, with big hop bitterness into the finish.Subdued carmel character, borderline coarseness with the hops but overall, very flavorfull.

Mostly amber with some reddish highlights and a thin dissipative tan head Nose of caramel. berry like fruit notes. Palate: Slight thin bodied with longish dry and earthy finish Flavor: Short malt note with muddied base malt and some candy/caramel notes - followed by fruity notes (berries, some caramelized apple) with just enough earthy hop flavor. Overall: While a little thin bodied, a really nicely done amber with nice residual sweetness. For a brew master’s reserve - nothing outstanding and I am not sure if it is a "RED" ale. A little more hop-flavor (not just )

Has kind of a dark amberish pour, with a small frothy head. Has a toffee and caramel malt type thing mixed with a bit of fruit bread, some sweet figs and prunes, perhaps some apple skins as well. Not really enough of a push by the hops, it could be a little more assertive. Still enjoyable and easy to drink, just a slight bit unbalanced. Not really sure where they were going with this one.

Full Sail is one of those brewers who are just so hard to nail down. Sometimes their brews aren’t all that good, other times they are a total suprise. This beer kinda falls there in the middle. Even though it’s in the middle, it was still enjoyable.

The beer pours out a medium copper/reddish color with a nice sized white foam head. Aroma was spicy/herbal apple cider, caramel, with a touch of breadyness. Flavors had notes of some sweet fruits, piney hops, grains, alcohol and herbs. Easy to drink a pint or two. Not sure how much easier a 3rd pint would go down.

22 oz. bomber courtesy of Nate. Pours amber red with touch of brown. Small, rimming beige head. Nose is huge caramel with chocolate and toffee, slight butter nose. Tast is caramel and butterscotch candies, bleeding into a hop-centric bitter middle and end. Good earthy hop flavor that lingers well into the after. Nice full mouthfee and tasty. Good red.

Courtesy of Nate. Pours a hazy burnt cider amber color with a small foamy off-white head. Nose of sweet malted caramel, fermented apples, some prune, and a mild earthy hop character. Taste lacks some of the malt character in the aroma. A really nice crisp hop edge with some caramel and fruit undertones. A nice thickish mouthfeel but not a lot of carbonation.