New Belgium Ranger IPA - Not a fan

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QuercusMax

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We just got New Belgium here in Ohio, so I picked up a few bombers. I cracked open the Ranger IPA, and while it has a lovely hop aroma, the flavor is disgusting. I'm not even sure how to describe it - sort of a soapy rotten oniony vegetable flavor.

I have experienced this same flavor much less intensely once in a Cascade / Maris Otter / S04 SMaSH, but it's so strong in the Ranger that I can't finish a half pint, much less the full bottle.

Won't be buying this one again, that's for sure.
 
You must have gotten a bad bottle. I'm not a huge fan of Ranger either, but it's because I'm not into IPAs in general. I've had Ranger a few times, both from bottles and on tap at the brewery, and I've never detected anything close to "soapy rotten oniony vegetable flavor."
 
I love IPA's, and that was one of the first I had. While not my favorite by any means I do like it.

The flavor I mostly get is grapefruit, which I hate, but it's fairly good to me in this beer. I think it's just that this rendition is more bitter, maybe a more balanced hopping approach?

Too bad I don't live by you as I'd take them off of your hands for you! :D
 
I'm wondering if maybe they are having consistency problems due to increased production? I'd really enjoy it if it weren't for this horrible flavor.

Possibly over-dry hopping or something? The beer I had this same flavor in was double dry hopped with cascades.
 
The IPA's that you do like, were they West Coast style? Loads of late hops? I'd almost bet that's what it is. I prefer those myself, and they are much different, and just not bitter.
 
Seems they are hit or miss. I greatly dislike their Belgian's other than Belgo. But I notice most breweries are like this. A stellar beer or three with plenty of just OK and something nasty or strange. It seems to define my home brewery. Most are average examples of what you find on the shelf. Every now and then I get a stellar example, and every now and again I get a great disappointment. Sometimes I get lucky and 6-9 months might fix it to fair.
 
The last (black) IPA I made had 1 oz Columbus@60 and 6 oz of west coast hops (mixture of Cascade, Columbus, Centennial, Chinook, and Amarillo) in the last 10 minutes plus an additional half oz each of Cascade and Centennial dry hop in the keg. So it's safe to say I enjoy lots of late hops. :rockin:
 
Wow! Mind sharing the recipe? I'm curious about your IBU's and ABV, but mostly the grains to achieve your color and taste.

I'm working on my second try, and wanted to drop so many hops into it that it became an Imperial just to keep up, but then I decided to back it down again.
 
Certainly! It's very tasty. It's based on my take of Jamil's IPA, which I liked so much I decided to turn into a Black IPA.

OG 1.060, FG 1.014 (I think).

10lb 2-row
3lb Maris Otter (that's what I had left of these base malts first time around; it made a nice mix so I stuck with it)
.5lb Caramunich
.5lb dehusked carafa Ii
.25lb Midnight Wheat

Mash at 150.

1 oz Columbus @60
.4oz ea. Cascade, Centennial, Columbus, chinook @10,5,0
.5 Amarillo @10,0
Dry hop .5oz each Centennial, Cascade
74 IBU

US05 yeast.
 
I'm not familiar with midnight wheat. What does it offer?

I'm also curious how you use those weights of hops. It's not by the ounce (pack)? Do you by bulk?
 
All of New Belgium beers taste the same to me. I live 10 minutes from there Fort Collins brewery and they just all have the same flavor profile, some just have more hops than the others.
 
I was at Lake Placid Brewery a few years back and had a glass of a just-tapped Ubu. Fantastic! That night at a restaurant down the road I had another that was pretty damn good. I brought home a sixer that was pretty good. I found a sixer at a local liquor store recently that was awful! Im sure this happens a lot.
 
I pickup Ranger every now and then, never tasted any of the flavors your describing? I had a horrible beer from surly recently, but the other 3 in the package were fantastic. Maybe you got a bad bottle
 
I don't notice the flavors you mentioned in Ranger, and I actually enjoy it. I do, however, get exactly the same flavors you described in Rampant. I can't stand that stuff. I dumped the first one I opened, and I gave the other 5 from a 6 pack to a friend. Is it possible they gave you Rampant instead of Ranger?
 
I doubt I got Rampant, which appears to be an IIPA. What I tasted in the Ranger was definitely Cascade, Chinook, and Simcoe, and it tasted like a 6.5% IPA, not an 8.5% IIPA.

Maybe this is just an occasional inconsistency they have in their brews?
 
I drink both ranger and rampant on a very regular basis but I live minutes from the brewery so I know they're always fresh. I've never experienced those sorts of flavors (though I definitely know people who aren't huge fans of the beers). My guess is you got some old/poorly stored bottles. I have definitely experienced what I would describe as a harsh soapy flavor in beers before in a couple of the hoppy Bridgeports, but my guess is the bottles were old and not as fresh as the stuff from around here.
 
QuercusMax said:
We just got New Belgium here in Ohio, so I picked up a few bombers. I cracked open the Ranger IPA, and while it has a lovely hop aroma, the flavor is disgusting. I'm not even sure how to describe it - sort of a soapy rotten oniony vegetable flavor.



I have experienced this same flavor much less intensely once in a Cascade / Maris Otter / S04 SMaSH, but it's so strong in the Ranger that I can't finish a half pint, much less the full bottle.



Won't be buying this one again, that's for sure.
Click to expand...


I live in Ohio too and had the exact same experience. The drink by date was March 14 I don't know how old that makes it.
 
Ranger is a clean,tastey,highly drinkable hoppy ass ipa, not my favorate but up there for me so much that I brewed it. Havent had it in a while maybe there was a bad hop year?? I don't understand. I think I actually liked it more than rampant, which was a bit too-earthy/grassy for me but not by much I still kinda liked it a lot. Just more of an earthy/grassy edge. Not really a lot of hatin going on in this thread. And this thread will never change my mind.
 
I like rampant, but like ranger more and hopslam more. But am not heavy on hopslam. Not a particular double ipa fan either though for the most part.
 
I've though NB has done a good job in making Ranger taste the same from each bottle… Maybe it's just been a while.
 
Ive never had a bad glass or pour of Ranger....or NB for that matter. One of the most consistent breweries IMO.
 
So, a follow up: i just bought a single 12-oz bottle of Ranger, and it's pretty good! Not the absolute best IPA I've ever had, but completely acceptable.

Definitely a bad bottle the first time around.
 
It seems less bitter to me now that they've changed the packaging. I like it more now...
 
Sounds like it could have been a problem during shipping. If a trucker doesn't believe the temperature of his refer is really that important some of them will switch off the refer for the duration of the trip, turning it back on just in time to get to temp. New systems always come with new problems. That being said I'm not a big fan of ranger, kind of taste like cascade with no beer. I enjoy an IPA but there balance seems to be off. I feel like I'm chewing on hop flower and chasing it with a Weak pale ale. I wish they weren't so locked in to all there recipes as I think they could tweak it into being quite good.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew
 
fletchergsmith said:
... kind of taste like cascade with no beer...

Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew
Click to expand...

I get that sometimes, too. It's a little thin on body, but I do enjoy the beer. It's nice that I can get a 12pk of cans for $11.98 and take it camping or mountain biking.

Plus, I used to be a park ranger, and I love their Beer Ranger ad campaign.
 
It's a good IPA, I like it. A lot of the east coast guys I was hanging out with earlier this month liked it too, which kind of surprised me.
 

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