Rogue Brutal Bitter

Brewed by Rogue Ales
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Newport, Oregon USA

This beer is phenominal. Best bitter I’ve had yet. Perfect hop balance in the taste and aroma. This beer just comes together like they all should. If you like bitters, this is one you cant go without trying.

On Tap at Kahootz: This was awesome! It poured a dark copper color and modeled a strong hoppy presence. It made my friend Sharad cringe, but that’s because he likes Heineken!

Cloudy amber color. Impressive carbonating bubbles racing to the top of the beer. Long lasting white head with excellent lacing. Aroma is nice and hoppy. Grapefruit/citrus notes. My type of beer. Hoppy but very smooth finish; not brutal, as the title suggests. Solid beer! Another Rogue winner.

22 ounce bottle with a yellow, purple and black painted on label. There is a picture of a rogue on the label holding a full mug. The label lists the 6 ingredients in this beer (nice) plus stats on the brew. If you pour carefully out of the 22 oz bottle you can get a crystal clear orange colored beer. Let the yeast pour in and of course it gets cloudy, but still inviting. The head was white and chunky and rose to about 3/4 of an inch in my pint glass. It lasted for a couple of minutes settling into a small ring around the glass and light foam across the top. The brew leaves some nice lacing on the glass as you drink it. This Rouge has a very nice citrus/piney hop aroma with a hint of malt. The taste is Hops, Hops and more HOPS and then a little sweet malt washes over your palate. This is a brew that is showing its balance and fits its style well. It has a light to medium body with just enough carbonation to keep it honest. Very easy for a hop head like me to consume. The color is nice, the aroma is great, and it taste very good.

Fantastic american bitter. Dry without being overwhelmingly so, and very well balanced with an ample mouth feel. Perhaps a bit of citrus as would be expected with the hops. Great ESB.

Bottle This is simply a well balanced hoppy beer. If you want hops, this is good. Not nearly as challenging as the Arrogant Bastard, which is right up there with the killer hops. It’s a bitter, but from the west coast, so it’s got that character. It’s got the Rogue nose and palate. Very floral nose, a real bouquet of hops. Tight small bubbles, with limited lacing (though I just rinsed my glass so it may be a little slippery), smooth on the tongue, and nice lingering finish. I remember it being more brutal at the Rogue pub in San Francisco. In a bottle, it’s my comfort food

From the bottle into my own Rogue pint glass - Loved the hoppiness of this beer as well as the bitter (but not too bitter) finish. Something of a citrus hint in there somewhere too. Great with steak or just about any hearty meal. One of my favorites...

Finally got some of this in at the LCBO in Ontario. Amazing. Nice copper-orangy colour, hoppy citris aroma. Bitter fruity tatse, some hops. Love it.