Buy This Beer: Elevation Downpour Imperial Red Ale

I remember a couple months ago I picked up a pint of Elevation Beer Co.'s Downpour at the local pub. The beer is an Imperial Red Ale, which is basically an IPA but you can perhaps expect nuttier and earthier malt profiles. I'm attracted to the letters IRA because my favorite beer back in Oregon has long been the Double Mountain IRA. As I mentioned in a recent post though, my interest in hops has only recently resurfaced after years of a hop-fatigued palate. But at the pub, on this particular night, I remember being impressed with Downpour and I remember ordering more than one pint of the beer.

So, it's no surprise that when I saw the beer at my local bottle shop I decided to pick up a bottle. It's hard not to buy a bottle of Elevation's beer in the first place, the elegant design on the bottle always calls my name, and I've yet to have a bad experience with any of their beers.

The second I cracked the bottle I could smell massive amounts of clean, crisp pineapple and tropical fruit forward hops with some grassy character too. As you can see in the photo the beer is a really pretty red color with an off-white, thick head that sticks around. The hop aroma translates almost directly in the taste, but with an addition of some danker and earthier hops and a clean lemony bitterness. The malt character is a welcome balance and hides nicely in the background, rounding out the hops with some caramel character and a good texture. The beer weighs in at 7.5% and it feels like it too, I do wish it was a smaller bottle as I'm drinking alone this evening, but I'll still finish it off ;) This one is another enjoyable offering from Elevation. I hope to see Downpour around more often, and especially at the pub where it feels like a fantastic go-to hop-forward beer when I want to grab a pint or two.

- - -
Stay up to date with Focus on the Beer. You can receive email updates and join us on our Facebook page.