Mendocino Red Tail Ale

Brewed by Mendocino Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
Hopland, California USA

12oz bottle served in a stem glass. Copper body topped by a thin layer of foam. Smells like grape jelly, odd. Grape carries into the flavor along with some doughy malt and fruitiness. Metallic taste in the finish. I don’t know if someone at the brewery played a prank but if not this is some odd stuff.

Bottle. Pours amber-orange with a moderate, foamy white head. Aroma is citrus and earthy hops and somewhat sweet and bready malt. Flavor is moderately hoppy, with sweet caramel malt, plus some light fruits and nuttiness. The finish is rather hoppy, though without any particular character (just bitterness). Not going to blow away the craft-beer connoisseur, but with a balance of moderate hopping and sweet malt, it’s a solid amber ale, certainly above par for the style.

12oz bottle at The Brickskeller, D.C. Pretty nicely hopped for an amber, perhaps one of the early craft brew antecedents to something like Green Flash’s Hop Head Red. At any rate, clear reddish color with a pleasantly sweet nose, not over the top. Mild hops and bitter notes balance it out a bit, although the finish is still somewhat too sweet. Decent.

(Bottle) An impressive beer and hands down the best beer I’ve ever had that has been labeled as an "Amber Ale". This brew is very balanced. Aroma strong and hoppy. Hops have some complexity, with some citrus tones and some caraway, a little like some IPA’s but not as strong. Crisp. A fair amount of bitterness, and a pleasant metallic aftertaste reminiscent of some of the better German pilseners. A lot of rich malt too. My only complaint is that it is perhaps a tad too sweet and rich. But only a tad. This is an excellent beer.

12oz bottle. pours hazed chestnut with white head. nose is a bit oxidized doughy malts. flavor is same. pretty bad.

Tasted somewhere along my trip through the States.
Decent, but not very special amber.

Amber/red color with almost no head. Slightly fruity aroma with some slightly grainy notes. Bitter hops are apparent in the taste which also includes sweet fruity notes mingled with a slight citrus sourness. Hoppy, moderately bitter finish. Drinks easy. Overall a decent beer, but not a standout.

It is more golden in color than amber with a full white head. Hops and fruit in the aroma. Taste a little caramel as well. Thought it would be a little darker, fuller beer, but drinks nice and will have again!