Here I am this evening enjoying a mug of Creature Comforts Reclaimed Rise, another regular offering from one of Georgia’s newest brewers, Creature Comforts in Athens, Georgia. I am a big fan of rye beers, or roggens as the Germans call them, and Reclaimed Rise is a variation on Creature Comforts tasty example of a rye ale, Reclaimed Rye. Here in Georgia, Terrapin Rye Pale Ale is perhaps the best known rye brew, but there are many others and Reclaimed Rye is a tasty new local offering in the style of rye pale ale. Reclaimed Rise is an interesting variation on that, adding the wonderful flavors of coffee.
I picked up a few crowlers of Creature Comforts Reclaimed Rise at Stout's Growlers here in Canton, one for myself and Jeff Evans to enjoy, the other to send north to friends in D.C. The flavor and aroma of freshly roasted coffee beans are unmistakable here, and Creature Comforts describes this beer as follows:
For this beer, we have a well balanced blend of our Reclaimed Rye with Fazenda Ambietal Fortaleza coffee, a direct trade organic Brazilian coffee provided by 1000 Faces of Athens, GA. We allowed the beer to rest on the dry coffee beans in the fermentors. This "cold extraction" creates an amazing coffee roast aroma, and the rye malt and French oak of our Reclaimed Rye maintains it's well-rounded body and delicate undertones of toasted bread, oak, and subtle vanilla, which intermingle with the subtle fruitiness of the Brazilian coffee blend and hints of peanut butter, dried berries, and chocolate shine through.
Creature Comforts Reclaimed Rise has an alcohol content of 5.5% by volume and I paid $8 for my crowler of Reclaimed Rise.
Creature Comforts Reclaimed Rise pours to a rustic reddish color with a medium head of creamy foam and fresh coffee grabbing you in the nose. Sipping, I get smooth malt and spicy rye then the coffee really pops with a fresh grind explosion and more spicy dry rye notes in the palate. The beer finishes smooth and coffeeish; this is an easy to drink brew infused with coffee flavor.
I've started to see more beers with coffee on a lighter base than the traditional stouts and porters and I like the way that they better present the coffee flavors. Reclaimed Rise is one of the better ones.
And remember, try a new beer today, and drink outside the box.
*Pricing data accurate at time of review or latest update. For reference only, based on actual price paid by reviewer.
(B)=Bottled
(D)=Draft