So there I was at Taco Mac on Sunday, October 9^th of 2016 watching my New England Patriots go at it with the Cleveland Browns. The Pats had the winless Browns on the ropes, and moving in for the kill, delivered a massive roundhouse punch that sealed Cleveland’s fate. What better beer to order up than Bell’s Roundhouse India Red Ale?

Actually, I never need much of an excuse to order a Bell’s beer. They’re always flavorful and well-made regardless of the style, but India Red Ale is a style that I don’t see nearly enough. You can call it an IPA with an extra dash of lightly kilned malt or a red ale with extra hops. Either way, they results are usually quite satisfying.

Bell’s says of the beer on their website:

Substantial amounts of late-kettle hop additions and dry-hopping yields a heady blend of fruity aromas of pineapple, peach and citrus. Those aromas continue into a crisply bitter hop presence across the tongue, but the judicious use of toasted and caramel specialty malts prevents the hop intensity from overwhelming the palate.

Locally sourced Michigan honey creates a smooth, dry finish that pulls everything together.

Bell’s Roundhouse India Red Ale has an alcohol content of 7.5% by volume. It was a very reasonable $5 for a 20-ounce mug at Taco Mac, but runs high in six-packs at $11.99 here in Georgia.

My mug of Bell’s Roundhouse India Red Ale arrived a dark reddish mahogany color with a medium sized head of creamy foam and luscious juicy berry malts in the nose. Taking a sip, I got more of those along with stewed malts and chocolate, tropical passion fruit hops, and a dry grassy bitterness in the finish.

It’s the malt that makes these beers for me, and Bell’s Roundhouse presents the malt well, balanced nicely by fruity bitter hops. Definitely a beer I’d buy again.



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