Magic Rock Brewing Rapture (4.6%)

Another brewer really going out of their way to have products that look fantastic as well as tasting fantastic.

I've been hearing quite a bit about Magic Rock and so when I saw them on the shelf in The Offie yesterday I just had to pick up a couple.
Rapture is, and I quote, a "Red Hop Ale".
I opened the bottle and out popped a big fat smell of Vimto - All sweet and sticky, it made my mouth water.

The beer sits in the glass all ruby red, looking rich and thick.
But on taking a sip this beer is not the beast you expect.
You are given the floral fizzy pop smell but only just before you have your palate raked with lime juice.
There are hints at red berries that lead you to think the red ale roundness is coming but it's another evil ruse to lure you into a false sense of security before the enormous, fat, brutal hops rips out your tongue and smacks you round the chops with it.
This beer is what red ale is when it's reinvented by the hard case in the pub who nudges you as a "joke" while you're having a wee but always wins you over with a bastard charm.
Truly wonderful beer, though I'm unsure whether I'm excited or terrified at the prospect of my next bottle.

Visit them.