Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery - Sampler

What: Rock Bottom Brewery's Sampler
Vessel: Shot Glasses
Price: $6.79
Where: Rock Bottom Restaurant and Brewery
When: April 25, 2008
Comments: A good friend and I had a guy's night on the town and decided to hit the downtown Rock Bottom for dinner. Of course, for blogging purposes, we had to get the sampler plus a sample of the cask conditioned beer. Below are our thoughts - My comments are the Brew Bits comments (easy enough). His comments are the ones under Brewer McDuff.


Hefeweizen - Bavarian Wheat

Brew Bits says - This was a darn good beer. It didn't have too much floral or citrus aroma or flavor, but it was very nicely balanced

Rating = 2

Brewer McDuff says - There are two types of beer that I am especially partial to - wheat and IPA. Apparently the Hefeweisen beer was the seasonal beer and I'm glad it was. This was a very good hefe with a nice tart surprise at the end.

Rating = 4

Brickway Brown

Brew Bits says - Man this beer tastes like coffee. That's not a good thing in this case. I agree with A-dog - very much like a porter or a mocha latte with hoppy booze.

Rating = 5

Brewer McDuff says - I enjoy a good brown ale every now and again, but I wouldn't classify this beer as a brown. The beer board said that this beer was like a mocha latte with hops. This is a very apt descripton - much more like a porter than a brown.

Rating = 5

Circle City Light

Brew Bits says - This is what you would expect for a light beer from a micro brewer. It wasn't bad - true to the style, but with more flavor than the macro lights. A good intro to flavorful beer for those who aren't used to it.

Rating = 4

Brewer McDuff says - Not much to say about this beer. It tastes a lot like other light lagers, with a little more flavor, as Brew Bits stated. It's probably on the menu just for those who like to debate whether Bud Light or Miller Lite is the best tasting beer you can buy.

Rating = 5

Sugar Creek American Pale Ale

Brew Bits says - I'm a fan of Pale Ales. This is a pretty average pale ale. Not bad, not great.

Rating = 4

Brewer McDuff says - This is a pretty fair beer and I would drink a full glass of it, but only if they were out of the Hefe, or another cast ale.

Rating = 4

Racoon Red

Brew Bits says - I wasn't really sure what to think of this beer. It had the malt flavor of a darker beer - maybe a brown? It started off feeling and tasting like a red, but mid-sip it morphed into a brown. Not bad, just a mind fuck.

Rating = 4

Brewer McDuff says - Ditto, but I didn't like it as much.

Rating = 5

Hoosier Ma Stout Dry Irish Stout

Brew Bits says - For a stout this had a very light mouth feel. I'm used to (and enjoy) thicker stouts. It was pretty good and had a nice hop flavor in the middle.

Rating = 3

Brewer McDuff says - An average stout, but I agree, it could be thicker.

Rating = 4

Catcher in Rye - American IPA with Rye

Brew Bits says - This was my first rye beer. I'm not sure what I expected, but I enjoyed this. I'm sure the fact that it was an IPA helped my satisfaction level. It had a nice hop profile. Unfortunately it was a bit too carbonated for me, and the carbonation overwhelmed the flavor.

Rating = 4

Brewer McDuff says - This was my first rye beer as well. For some reason, I had always imagined that a rye beer would be very heavy with a bourbon taste to it, but this beer surprised me. If it's still there next time I hit the Bottom, I would order a pint.

Rating = 4

Altbier North German Ale

Brew Bits says - Another new experience for me. I had never had an Altbier before. I enjoyed this one much more than my friend did. It was lighter than a brown and it had a light coffee / caramel finish. It had a decent hop flavor and it was a little buttery. Every sip I had I thought of being on the deck grilling up some good BBQ. A good summer beer.

Rating = 3


Brewer McDuff says - I am not an altbier fan, so I won't bias your opinion by rating this beer.

Red Ale Dry Hopped with Simcoes - Cask Conditioned

Brew Bits says - This beer and the Bavarian wheat were my two favorite beers at Rock Bottom. I wasn't sure which to order a full mug of, and I decided on the Red Ale. It was smooth with a nice floral, hoppy flavor. It seemed to be very well balanced. A very good beer.

Rating = 2

Brewer McDuff says - This was the best beer of the evening. Of course, I'm a sucker for anything cask conditioned. The British have got it right by serving their beer "luke cold". This had plenty of flavor, but it wasn't overpowering. You could definitely have it with a meal, which I did.

Rating = 2