Rogue Charlie 1981
Originally brewed and bottled for the 2001 National Craft Brewers Conference-a private bottling & release with no distribution. A second batch, Charlie Redux was brewed with very limited distribution. 2005 is the hat-trick batch, Charlie 1981 returns for a third time as part of John's Locker Stock!
Charlie 1981 is an unfiltered strong ale, it exhibits massive bitterness and a firm malt backbone. Hedonistic! Brewed using Pale Malt, Munich and Crystal 40 malts, Horizon, Sterling and Amarillo Hops. Estimated measurements are: 18.2 degrees Plato (OG), 3.5 Degrees Plato (TG), 75 IBU's, 8.5% ABV. Prost!
Charlie 1981 is named in honor of Charlie Papazian, president of the Association of Brewers, founder of the American Homebrewers Association and homebrewing guru. John Maier, Brewmaster for Rogue Ales, made his first batch of beer in 1981 using Papazian's influential book "The New Complete Joy of Homebrewing."
Charlie 1981 is an unfiltered strong ale, it exhibits massive bitterness and a firm malt backbone. Hedonistic! Brewed using Pale Malt, Munich and Crystal 40 malts, Horizon, Sterling and Amarillo Hops. Estimated measurements are: 18.2 degrees Plato (OG), 3.5 Degrees Plato (TG), 75 IBU's, 8.5% ABV. Prost!
Charlie 1981 is named in honor of Charlie Papazian, president of the Association of Brewers, founder of the American Homebrewers Association and homebrewing guru. John Maier, Brewmaster for Rogue Ales, made his first batch of beer in 1981 using Papazian's influential book "The New Complete Joy of Homebrewing."
3.7
207 reviews
Newport, United States
Community reviews
Sample at Buckeye Beer Engine. Pours a slightly cloudy orange color with a medium thin off-white head that dissipates steadily. Short strings of lacing on the glass. Aroma of bready malt and citrus. Light, clean body with flavors of citrus, mild hops and sweet toasted malt. The finish is sweet and citrusy with a short hoppy aftertaste. Decent overall.
on tap. Pours a brown orange withwhite head. The aroma is of hops and citrus. hoppy upront which is sweet and then ends slightly bitter. Good beer and good ob hiding the alcohol taste.
Draft at J Clyde Birmingham AL 3/2/11. Hazy dark yellow. Very yeasty, tangy, sharp, lots of carbonation, fluffy. Does not stand out- a bit of a mixup beer but not awful.
Draft at RnH with Linh. Pours a deep, hazy amber with no head and slight lacing. Aroma is indecipherable out of the sample glass. Mouthfeel is medium with notes of bitter pale malts, and hops.
this is an assertive, mean beer .. . pours a dark brown, some spotty lacing .. . mainly bread grain, toffee, nutshell, and kickintheballs .. . quite a dry beer, and it stings the tongue, big .. . an ok beer but a bit messy and a dry harsh finish .. . Do you mind taking your free hand off the doorbell..
On tap at Capones. Pours an amber orange color with a white foam head. Sweet caramel flavor with a nice bitter layer. Tasty.
Tap at rnh. Pours gold. Aroma is Hoppy, light butter, fruit. Taste is also fairly Hoppy but not really bitter at all, kind of strange. Light sweetness, a bot of a metallic taste. Definitely unique but not really in a good way.
Draft. Slightly hazy gold, frothy white head. Aroma of floral and citrus hop, malt. Taste has lots of hop flavor, citrus, herb, grass, good malt balance but definitely hoppier than I though it would be. Good stuff.
Draft @ Sunset Grill and Tap. Deep amber body. Small, off-white head. Hops dominate the aroma with notes of orange peel, and pine. A bi of toasted grain and sweet toffee. The flavor is moderately sweet and lightly to moderately bitter. It finishes lightly to moderately sweet and moderately bitter. Medium to full body, creamy texture, moderate carbonation. The hops come through BIG time as it warms. Not a bad brew, just not my type of thing.
My Bottom Line:
Honeyed cereals and their caramelized edges envelop resinous hops in this harmonious, but perhaps generic American Strong Ale.
Further Personal Perceptions:
-A ring of foam crowns the hazy amber.
-This doesn’t drink like a very strong brew.
-The nose is rather unexpressive.
-Mouthfeel is not too heavy.
On tap at Naked City.
On tap at The Petrol Station. Pours a cloudy orange with a small quickly diminishing white head. The aroma is a floral hops and grapefruit. Medium mouthfeel with a sweet wet hop upront and a nice lingering light bitter finish. Easy to drink hiding the alcohol very well, a very good American strong ale from Rogue.
Tap at Naked City. Strong malt and hop scent. Flavour is cool. Hop on light sugary malt.
tap at proof. orange-brown pour w/ tan head and spotty stick. flower and caramel aroma. flower and grapefruit bitter taste. medium to light sticky texture. mostly all about the bitter.
Tap at Redlight. Hazy gold pour. Big citrus hop nose with some grassy notes in the aroma. Chewy malt, resiny citrus hop taste. Nice hoppy bitterness, pretty good.
Clear orange with a fizzy head. Sweet citrus and caramel aroma and taste with decent hop bitterness balanced by candy sugar tastes.
Hazy orange amber color with a soapy white head. Aroma of hops, pine, toffee, and bread. Sweet toffee flavor with citrus, and slight hop bite. Well-balanced with a strong malt backbone with hops bitterness around the edges. Nicely done.
draft @ redlight redlight. Grassy hoppy nose with citrus notes with hints of bread. Pours slightly hazy golden blonde with a dense white head. Earthy bitterness upfront with solid malt backbone, not a lot of hop flavor but very bitter with a hint of sweetness in the middle. Not bad!
Must, earthy hops start the aroma fading into a graininess. A hazy golden amber with a white head. Clean hop bit to start with bitterness creating a clean finish. Light body but easy to enjoy. A refreshing beer that does not exhibit the alcohol one would expect with a beer this big.
Light hazy orange-yellow, thin white cover. The aroma is odd, mixed hard candies, celery, not unpleasant, but not interesting. The taste is an improvement, a dry herbal bitter over sweet caramel the hops and astringent malt characteristics combine for a fairly dry finish.
Draft. Deep amber body. Rocky, off-white head. Hops dominate the aroma with notes of orange peel, pine and sap. While the malts take a backseat in the nose, there are notes of toasted grain and sweet toffee. Hints of earthiness and spice. The flavor is moderately sweet and lightly to moderately bitter. It finishes lightly to moderately sweet and moderately bitter. Medium to full body, creamy texture, moderate carbonation. Nicely balanced strong ale. It avoids the thick, grainy texture and flavor of so many other beers in this catch-all style. Piney, citrus hop flavor folds eaasily into the caramel, toffee malts, but emerge in a bitter finish.
Thanks to chuck for sharing. Amber pour with a thin off white head. Aroma is piney. Grapefruit, resiinous hops, with a nice malty backbone
For a strong ale, I was impressed with the bitterness and general hoppiness that offset the sweetness I was expecting for the style. Head was thin (on draft) and general palate was thick and meaty for the style. Enjoyed it.
On draft at Rich O’s. Pours amber with slight haze. Head thin, though easily replenished. Aroma rather attenuated, mostly of citrus and piney hops. Taste much like an IPA, hop forward, with a pleasant background of caramel maltiness. Finishes with rather strong bitter that lingers nicely. Some alcohol shows through, but this is not unpleasant. As the pour is quaffed, the maltiness seems to excess itself more, perhaps partially due to the moderate cloy. Overall, a pleasant beer, although not spectacular.
Served on draft at Beer Run in Charlottesville, VA, which is appropriate as CVille is where Charlie Papazian made his first homebrew. Thomas Jefferson, James Monroe, Charlie Papazian? Maybe not quite... but close. He’s certainly cooler than that other local celeb Dave Matthews. Too bad this beer isn’t worthy of the name. Pours a hazy amber color with a medium frothy offwhite head. Good head retention and lacing. Aroma of citrus hops and some kind of wet animal. I thought it was more wet cat, but my friend thought it was more wet dog. Anyway, you get the point. The taste is a bit better... toffee, bitter earthy and citrus hop notes. Medium bodied. Blah.
Draft. A hazy amber beer with a thin orangey head. The aroma has strong notes of hops, grass, and grapefruits. The flavor is sweet with notes of alcohol, caramel, hops, grapefruits, and grass, as well as a light note of metal from the alcohol, leading to a dry, bitter, and grapefruity finish.
Draft @ Issaquah Brew House, Issaquah, WA. Pours a hazy pale orange color with a small off-white head. Has a fruity malty spicy hoppy aroma. Malty spicy dry hoppy bitter flavor with hints of grapefruit. Has a dry malty spicy hoppy bitter finish.
On draft at Capones. Pours a hazy amber with a thick and creamy light beige head. Aroma of caramel, light apricot, toffee, citrus, and candied sugar. Taste of tangy caramel citrus, light apricot, toffee and malt.
Had this w/Dhrjericho at the Freakin’ Frog in Las Vegas. Draft. Pours a nice murky amber color. Aromas of HOPS, and some other hints. Flavor is a bittersweet, malty, and hoppy as hell. God I love this beer.
On tap at Flying Saucer KC. Poured a murky brown with an off white head. Aroma was some sweet caramel malt and lots of piney hops. Flavor is loads of hop with just enough malt to hold things together. Lots of pine and citrus with a long bitter finish.
Pours copper w small head. Aroma is pine and caramel. Mouthful is bold with pine and BIG hops. Finish lingers with yummy.