Central City Brewers – Red Racer India Session Ale (ISA)

Red Racer India Session Ale ISA Review

Rating

4 out of 5
Aroma
4.2 out of 5
Appearance
4.2 out of 5
Taste
4.2 out of 5
Palate

Total

4.2
4.2 out of 5

Overview

Red Racer India Session Ale ISA ReviewThe Central City Brewers & Distillers has brewed up the somewhat rare style of an India Session Ale or ISA under the Red Racer label. This style of beer comes few and far between from BC Craft Breweries but represents a very sessionable, lightly hopped, low alcohol ale. This beer comes in 6-packs of 355ml cans and will be a great addition to your easy drinking favorites.The Red Racer ISA pours with two fingers of very loose head which leaves light lacing on the glass as it settles rather quickly. Through this head comes an aroma of mango, passion fruit, citrus and a light pine hop. While you may not guess it given the past year of BC beer examples – the source of this delicious scent is Mosaic Hops. The flavour is much like the smell with strong notes of mango and passion fruit in a fairly solid body given the low 4.0% ABV. For being a very light and sessionable ale the texture resembles something slightly bigger and the flavours are of a beer that will inhibit your senses a tad quicker. What brewmaster Gary Lohin has done here is bring the west coast flavour that we love and bring it down to a beer that can be enjoyed year round, won’t knock your socks off and is truly unique. The Mosaic hop was introduced to BC beer drinkers in a big IPA but this here is a form where it can truly shine. The Red Racer India Session Ale will surely become a summer fixture on the fridge shelves of BC Craft Beer lovers.

Alcohol – 4%
Size – 355ml cans
Price – $14.90 /6 Cans (Craft Retailer)
redracerbeer.com

Hops: Mosaic

Red Racer India Session Ale ISA Review
Red Racer India Session Ale ISA Review

Tags: isa, red racer

About Author

Dustan Sept

Dustan Sept is the founder of Beer Me BC. His passion for craft beer drove the creation of beermebc.com in 2012. To learn more about the beermebc.com editorial team visit beermebc.com/the-beer-me-bc-team/.

Comments

  1. mikescraftbeer
    mikescraftbeer 1 March, 2014, 10:41

    I still have not tried this beer. I look forward to changing that though.

    Reply this comment
  2. randombeerdrinker
    randombeerdrinker 3 May, 2014, 16:48

    not completely bad but definitely a huge compromise. the hops come though nicely but there is nothing else going on. what they call crisp and light – i call water (serious. its just hops and water). i wouldn’t buy it again.

    Reply this comment
    • mikescraftbeer
      mikescraftbeer 3 May, 2014, 16:51

      I don’t agree. There is a ton of flavour for a session ale. Yes it’s hop forward but there is malts for sure.

      Reply this comment
  3. randombeerdrinker
    randombeerdrinker 3 May, 2014, 17:05

    come on now… i CAN see a market for it. it is refreshing (like a glass of water) and the lower alcohol is nice considering most IPAs are around 6-9percent (central cities is 6.5 and is very nice). but there is very little malt coming through (i am drinking one right now – hops and water)

    if your looking for a good “hoppy” beer with lower ABV try RED RACER pale ale (5 percent, lots of hop and good body to support it)

    if you like it mike – great… but you have to admit it is missing something for-sure. central city make lots of great beers – this is definitely NOT one of them. (3 out of 10)

    Reply this comment
    • mikescraftbeer
      mikescraftbeer 3 May, 2014, 17:07

      Don’t drink a session ale if you want a full flavoured Beer. If you want that pick up an IPA. Session beer is a lot lighter. But to say no malt flavour is not correct. It’s just very light malts.

      Reply this comment
  4. randombeerdrinker
    randombeerdrinker 3 May, 2014, 17:44

    “its just very light malts” – exactly… pardon my previous hyperbole above but with such a large amount of hops the “very light malts” get drowned out.

    the beer is not terrible but definitely not what i would expect from this Brewer. with some teaks it could be a lot better. but for now DON’T waste your money.

    moreover, what exactly is a “session beer?” its not a type but just a catch all for a beer with lower alcohol and highly “drinkable” (bud light anyone…). im not asking for an imperial stout or some other heavy brew. but with such an amount of hops there is NO balance (hops and water).

    drink a well hopped pale ale at and you will be much better served.

    Reply this comment
    • mikescraftbeer
      mikescraftbeer 3 May, 2014, 20:09

      A session beer is a lighter beer that does not taste like light macro shit. Usually the guideline is 4.5% alcohol or less.

      Reply this comment
  5. dustansept - Beer Me Bc
    dustansept - Beer Me Bc 4 May, 2014, 09:13

    The ISA may not be for everyone. The body in a low alcohol beer will be less and the flavours that come through are much different than in a bigger bodied beer. Much like the Thor’s Hammer or Imperial IPA Central City has done a great job in brewing this beer but not everyone will like it.

    Thanks for the feedback – It is great to hear more people’s oppinions on the product!

    Reply this comment
  6. Terry
    Terry 22 May, 2014, 12:37

    Personally this was one of the better true session beers out there and I really don’t like session beers very much. It is hop forward for sure, I do get the malts in there but they are subdued however still just enough. Interestingly enough, if you pair this with super spicy food it really improves the beer and the food substantially. It also makes a great marinade for BBQ chicken given that it has a lot of flavour and costs a bit less. Whenever I drink it now, I pair it with spicy food.

    Reply this comment
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