Rogue Brewery Feature - June 2011

cannondale · Post by **cannondale** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 11:02 am

I bought the chipotle figuring I'd drink a couple ounces for shits & giggles, and the rest would go in the steak chili I was making. Well I was pleasantly surprised at the balance of this beer, and the 'just enough' chipotle flavour. In the end, the chili and I split it 50/50.

TheSevenDuffs · Post by **TheSevenDuffs** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 11:59 am

cannondale wrote:I bought the chipotle figuring I'd drink a couple ounces for shits & giggles, and the rest would go in the steak chili I was making. Well I was pleasantly surprised at the balance of this beer, and the 'just enough' chipotle flavour. In the end, the chili and I split it 50/50.

What a great idea! I might buy a bottle to make chili with!

JesseM · Post by **JesseM** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 3:56 pm

Enjoying the Northwestern Ale right now. Damn, this is my kind of beer. I really love that in this release we get two completely different variations of an IPA. I think I actually prefer this one to the Brutal IPA.

tyler90 · Post by **tyler90** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 4:22 pm

DDG just turned up in Westboro in Ottawa, I picked up 1 bottle, pretty sure they were all spoken for since they were all sitting at the customer service booth. They also had Brutal IPA and Northwestern Ale.

midlife crisis · Post by **midlife crisis** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 8:20 pm

So is that it -- has Double Dead Guy come and gone? If so, I missed it. Damn!

icemachine · Post by **icemachine** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 10:01 pm

midlife crisis wrote:So is that it -- has Double Dead Guy come and gone? If so, I missed it. Damn!

Yeah unless you had the inside scoop or happened to notice that certain LCBO's were stocking it on a Friday afternoon, you were pretty much SOL

mintjellie · Post by **mintjellie** » Wed Jun 08, 2011 11:25 pm

Chipotle ale is deeply disappointing. Decent smoke, but where's the spice? There's no intensity to it at all.

My 70 year old grandmother would barely notice what little warmth there is here. WTF? It's like someones brain got pregnant with an awesome idea, then had it aborted.

Maybe I just had the wrong expectations for this.

jprime · Post by **jprime** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 8:11 am

I've had this before and it had a decent spice to it, really good and interesting. I had another one the other night from the LCBO release and it was very disappointing. No spice at all....weaksauce.

cannondale · Post by **cannondale** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 9:43 am

mintjellie wrote:Chipotle ale is deeply disappointing. Decent smoke, but where's the spice? There's no intensity to it at all.

My 70 year old grandmother would barely notice what little warmth there is here. WTF? It's like someones brain got pregnant with an awesome idea, then had it aborted.

Maybe I just had the wrong expectations for this.

I'd read a few reviews and was expecting heat, and a much more pronounced smokey flavour. But based on the commercial description, perhaps that should not be the expectation:

Dedicated to Spanish author Juan de la Cueva, who, in 1575, wrote of a Mexican dish that combined seedless chipotles with beer: Chipotle Ale is based on Rogue’s Oregon Golden Ale, but delicately spiced with smoked chipotle chile peppers. Deep golden in color with a tight head, rich malty aroma, delicately smooth and crisp flavor, and subtle chipotle chili finish. Formerly known and packages as Mexicali Rogue, Chipotle Ale is created from Northwest Harrington, Klages, and Maier Munich Malts; Willamette and Cascade hops; and Smoked Jalapeno (Chipolte) Peppers. Chipotle Ale is targeted for spring release and available in a 22-ounce bottle and on draft. Blend it with Rogue Chocolate Stout and create a Mole’ black and tan!

Measurements: 12 degrees Plato, IBU 35, Apparent attenuation 82, Lovibond 23

Gedge · Post by **Gedge** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 10:30 am

I liked that the Chipotle was smokey, but not too spicy. To each his own as they say.

For those lamenting the lack of DDG. You are not missing much (IMHO). I remember bringing this over from the States (paid $16) and thinking "this isn't a $16 beer, maybe it's off or past its sell-by date." Thought a fresh one from the LCBO might be an improvement. It wasn't. I think it is a decent beer, but not even close to touching greatness. Just kind of sweet, a little syrupy but... indistinct.

I think the Northwestern is the winner in this bunch.

GregClow · Post by **GregClow** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 1:06 pm

Gedge wrote:I liked that the Chipotle was smokey, but not too spicy. To each his own as they say.

Agreed. Chipotle peppers are generally more about the smoke than the heat, so it makes sense that a beer made with them would be the same. I like it.

Here are my thoughts on the whole release, for those who might be interested: http://www.beerboozebites.com/2011/06/0 ... y-feature/

Gedge · Post by **Gedge** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 1:19 pm

Greg - disappointed to hear that you were underwhelmed by the Morimoto. I was hoping that when (if?) it turned up it'd be on par with some of the better Rogue offerings.

mintjellie · Post by **mintjellie** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 1:20 pm

They may be more about smoke than heat, but they still have heat.

Streets · Post by **Streets** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 1:53 pm

SteelbackGuy wrote: You snooze, you lose, man. Any customer, including yourself, can call up and if product is in stock, we reserve it for you.

Thanks for the tip. It made me feel like a bit of an asshole, but I just did this to secure myself some ST 2XIPA. I'm assuming this will see wider distribution soon enough, but as of today there is only one store in my area that seems to have received any stock.

Oh, and I did get my call from Dundurn regarding availability of the Rogue beers. I'm just not sure why they didn't call me on Saturday when the extra Brutal IPA from the special order was finally released to the public.

zane9 · Post by **zane9** » Thu Jun 09, 2011 6:29 pm

At 6:00pm today, lcbo King and Spadina had Rogue Northwestern, and Double Dead Guy. Also had ST 2XIPA. Everything was still on carts in boxes, not on shelves. I grabbed a few.