Tap Handle #68: Rattlesnake Mountain - Rattlesnake Pale

Another incredibly rare tap from a small brewery. I was going to take the photo from the side, but then the sign wouldn't have been visible.

Click through to read more about Rattlesnake Mountain Brewing and their Rattlesnake Pale Ale...


Rattlesnake Mountain Brewing was founded in Richland, Washington, in 1997 by Steve and Renea Metzger. The brewpub, which overlooks the Columbia River and Bateman Island, quickly became a local favorite for its beer, food, and live music. Steve took another job in 2002 and sold the business to Kimo von Oelhoffen, a player for the Pittsburgh Steelers. In 2005 the owners decided an upgrade to the brewpub was necessary and closed the doors for 4 months of remodeling. After reopening as "Kimo's" it was as popular as ever, despite the fact that the owner won a Superbowl ring playing against the local favorite Seattle Seahawks. The same brewer that worked with the original owners is still brewing at Rattlesnake Mountain.

Rattlesnake Pale is described as a light-colored ale with a full hop finish. It appears to be seasonal or retired. Weighted average on ratebeer.com is 2.89 out of 5. Strangely enough, ratebeer.com calls it "Mr. Pale Ale", despite a label next to the description that clearly says Rattlesnake Pale Ale.

Finding information on this brewery was a challenge. Rattlesnake Mountain Brewing has a blog-style site, but it has not been updated since 2007 and has some display problems. Yelp and Google both say Kimo is closed. However, Kimo has an active website, with current events, and I did find a review posted in December that says the brewpub is indeed open. Since it's only about 3.5 hours from my house, I'll have to check it out someday.

Kimo's Official Website (the Rattlesnake Mountain site no longer exists)