After a six week hiatus Unofficial Beer is finally back on your screen. And hopefully we can get you thirsty again. This week’s post is just a blue collar beer review…something simple to shake off the cobwebs. Although the beer I’m about to discuss isn’t that simple.

Tonight we drink Bear Republic’s Hop Rod Rye…which the world famous brewpub in Healdsburg, CA describes as “a high performance, turbo charged, alcohol burnin’ monster ale with dual overhead hop injection, made with 18% rye”. The perfect beer to drink post-outdoor basketball game in 96 degree stagnant heat. Yum.

Appearance: On the darker side of the spectrum but well within reason for a hop and malt loaded rye beer. Boasts a nutty brown shade. The head was a bit lackluster but nothing to complain about. Vigorous carbonation bubbling going on which I always welcome giving the overall slight haze of the beer some attitude.

Aroma: You can definitely pick out the spicy attributes of the rye malt along with some grapefruit fruity flavors. Not a ridiculous amount of hop aroma but definitely present. Most of the nose is dominated by the caramel notes of the malt. Very pleasant.

Taste: For me I get a delicious malt character highlighted by the spiciness of the rye and then the citrus punch of the hops. Normally with big IPAs I get the hops first and then the malt but not here. The reason probably attests to the more extreme flavor profile of the rye. A really, really nice blend of malt and hops though. Hops resinate nicely in the aftertaste and tastes extremely smooth for an 8% ABV.

Overall Thoughts: It seems that every beer I review on here is very good if not awesome. If you’re in the mood for this type of beer then you will absolutely love it. I didn’t think I was in the mood for it, but I ended up loving it anyways. I’ve had it before and enjoyed it then but that was on draft and I was a bit apprehensive this time around about the bottle, having travelled all the way to Massachusetts. But overall an incredible rye beer that style-wise freaks out a lot of novice beer drinkers I feel. Bear Republic makes great beer and the Hop Rod is true evidence of that.