One New York Life

Sixpoint Redd

Brewed By: Sixpoint Craft Ales
Brewed In: Brooklyn, NY
ABV: 5.0%
Type: Red Ale

What They Say: Nothing. This beer was brewed specifically for the Whole Foods Beer Room, launched at the Bowery store and eventually included in the new Tribeca Beer Room. Which, hey, I get Sixpoint’s weird desire to be Whole Foods pet beer (and, why not?).

Website: I really hate Sixpoint’s website. I hate their cutesy newspaper motif. I hate that their “types” section is called “Creations”. I hate that it was “temporarily disabled” when I was there (there is never an excuse for that. It’s called a “staging server”. If it’s a company doing it for you, fire them). I hate their font. I hate the newspaper motif with no explanation to why they use it. I love their logo, but wish that the brewer/nautical hybrid symbol fit the site’s motif. Did I mention I dislike their newspaper motif?

Why I Picked It: I bought this growler back around New Year’s because, website motif aside, I saw a new Sixpoint at Whole Foods and couldn’t turn it down.

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Presentation (5): Nothing to rate here. It’s a Whole Foods only, growler only offering. So, their only presentation ideas is the name and the logo which, while good, isn’t really enough for a fair rating. N/A

Originality (5): There are a couple of different things going on. First, I have to give them credit for the Whole Foods only growler idea. I don’t know why, but it strikes me as a good idea for both parties. Otherwise, it’s a less malty, more hoppy twist on a red ale. 3

Body (10): It pours exactly like iced tea, with about the same head and lacing. The lack of head led me to assume the carbonation-level would be much higher. It’s a totally unexpected and strange body and not one expected in a beer. If not for the carbonation and huge blast of hops, it’s barely beer-flavored. 5

Taste (10): I was out recently with PLR (and, in fairness, I’m writing this in early February and it might not go live until April) at the awesome Rattle n’ Hum bar in New York City where I sampled Sixpoint’s Oktoberfest (why they had it in February, not sure). The semi-hazy notes in my Blackberry say “Pretty tasty Oktober. Hoppier then a normal Oktober. Not like Germany. Resample Redd — very similar.” As is usually the case with me, I can really only smell hops off the rip but with further searching can pick up the slight odor of caramel malts. Maybe. This obviously isn’t hopped like some of the absurdly overhopped offerings out there but it’s not a flavor I’d go out of my way for. It’s tasty enough, vaguely sessiony, and inoffensive. Just not for me. 6

Efficiency (10): Here’s the weird thing. I can’t say that I love the taste of this beer (and I don’t hate it either) but I quite like drinking it. I like how it finishes and I can kinda/sorta chug it. It’s a relatively low ABV at just 5.0% but I can’t stop drinking it. Maybe that’s a crazy session? I don’t know. 6

Versatility (10): There’s no pairing suggestions that I can find, but a hopped like this I would assume is good for the pizza and beer combo. That said, there’s a small market for this. You’re not going to convert anyone to a sixpoint fan with it and you’re certainly not going to use it as the prototype red ale. Perfectly inoffensive and tasty, but nothing earth-shattering. 4

The Snob Sez: The score is low but it’s OK. I don’t know if I’d buy it again, but it’s not bad.

Final Score: 24 (of 45) = 26 (of 50) – Good beer