I've finally found an ale that just screams Halloween, and it's this blood-red offering from Alesmith Brewing Company: the Evil Dead Red Ale. I love the rhyme in the name, and the printed-on label is just great. And the gimmick to this beer? It has an ABV of 6.66%. The percentage of the beast!
Oh, and before I begin, I want to announce a change in format. Due to recent deliberating on Reddit, I've adopted a new rating system. Instead of giving each factor of the beer (appearance, nose, taste, etc.), I will be doing a percentage-based rating system from this point forward. Don't worry, the helpful scores out of 5 will still be there, but there will be a whole new system working behind the scenes, so don't get confused if the final score seems off. The appearance, mouthfeel, and finish of each beer I review will be weighted with a lower percentage so as to get an accurate rating of how each beer holds up, giving more weight to the nose and taste of them. To break it down, the appearance will be 5% of the total, the nose 25%, the taste 50%, and the mouthfeel and finish will each be 10%. And then the scores will be added up to a weighted score out of 100. All of my previous reviews' final scores will be recalculated to fit this model of scoring, as well.
So, I'll jump right into this Halloween-themed review!
Appearance: 4.5/5
As far as red ales go, Evil Dead is a very deep red color. In fact, it's so deeply amber that it nearly looks like blood, just with less opacity. The carbonation is rather minimal, but the head is great. It's about a finger's worth of rich, creamy white head that sticks around extremely well!
Nose: 3/5
The biggest notes in this beer's aroma are those of pine and some citrusy grapefruit, brought on by the hops. I like that this red ale smells so much of the hops, rather than malts. It's always 50/50 with red ales in that regard. There's a little bit of toffee or caramel in the background, as well.
Taste: 4/5
Evil dead is sweet, yet hoppy. The balance makes it thoroughly enjoyable. Nice pine and grapefruit notes create a good hoppy base while sweet caramel and even some berry flavor that I can't quite place. The hop flavors don't make this ale overly bitter, though, which in nice. It's a smooth, sweet, yet moderately malty drinking experience.
Mouthfeel: 4/5
This ale has a medium body and a nice smooth feel. It's quite enjoyable, and not overly intrusive.
Finish: 4/5
The sweetness of the berries and the tanginess of the grapefruit stick around long after each sip. This ale has a wonderful finish, and a long one at that.
Total Score: 19/25
I really enjoyed the balance in this beer's flavor. Sweetness and some hop flavor. The head is amazingly resilient, too. Overall, a very solid red that I'd recommend you picking up a bomber of. Treat yourself to something fun for Halloween, beer drinkers!
Until next time, cheers!
-Blake
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