Redd's Apple Ale is a beer – specifically, a fruit-flavored malt beverage brewed by MillerCoors (now part of Molson Coors) – not a cider. It pours from a grain base, fermented with brewer's yeast, and gets its apple character from added flavoring rather than fermented apple juice. If you've been wondering whether the pint in your hand is beer or something else, the short answer is: it's beer, dressed in apple's clothing.
Flavor, ABV, and Calories
The taste lands somewhere between a light lager and a candy-sweet apple juice. The apple flavoring is forward and unambiguous – ripe, slightly tart on entry, finishing clean and sweet. There's very little hop presence and minimal malt backbone; the grain base exists mostly to carry the fruit flavor and provide alcoholic fermentation. It's engineered to be approachable, and it succeeds on those terms.
On alcohol content, Redd's Apple Ale sits at around 5% ABV – check the current can or bottle for the precise figure Molson Coors publishes, as formulations can shift. That puts it squarely in the same territory as a standard American lager. It's not sessionable in the craft sense of a 3.5% table beer, but it's not punishing either.
Calorie counts are worth verifying on the brand's official site or the label itself, since figures vary by serving size and any formula changes. Broadly, a standard 12-ounce serving falls in the range typical of flavored malt beverages – more than a light lager, less than a heavy stout. If you're counting carefully, pull the current nutrition facts from Molson Coors directly rather than relying on third-party aggregators, which are often out of date.
Beer or Cider? Getting the Distinction Right
This is the question that follows Redd's Apple Ale everywhere, and it's worth answering precisely.
Cider is fermented from apple juice. The sugar comes from fruit, the fermentation produces a drink that is legally and technically classified as a wine product in the United States, and the finished flavor – even in a sweet commercial cider – carries a certain fermented-fruit depth.
Redd's Apple Ale is none of those things. It is brewed from malted barley and other grains, fermented with brewer's yeast, and then flavored with apple. The Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau (TTB) classifies it as a malt beverage, the same regulatory category as any other beer. You'll find it in the beer aisle, not the wine and cider section, and it's taxed accordingly.
The confusion is understandable. The apple flavor is prominent, the name includes the word "ale," and the packaging leans into orchard imagery. But ale, in the beer sense, refers to a family of beers fermented with top-fermenting yeast at warmer temperatures – think pale ales, IPAs, stouts, porters. Whether Redd's technically qualifies as a warm-fermented ale in the traditional sense is a question the brand sidesteps; what matters for most drinkers is that it's beer, not cider, and not a spirit-based cooler.
If you want to understand the broader landscape of how fruit works in beer – from adjuncts to lambic-style blends – our guide to fruit beers and how brewers use adjuncts goes deeper on the brewing side.
The Flavor Lineup
Redd's has extended well beyond the original apple. The lineup has included:
- Redd's Apple Ale – the flagship, sweet red apple flavor
- Redd's Blueberry Ale – blueberry flavoring over the same malt base, noticeably sweeter and darker in color
- Redd's Wicked Apple – a higher-ABV variant (check current packaging for the exact figure) with a sharper, more intensified apple character and less sweetness relative to alcohol
- Redd's Strawberry Ale and other seasonal or limited variants – availability shifts by market and season
The Wicked Apple line is worth distinguishing from the core product. It's positioned as a bolder, harder-hitting version – the "wicked" in the name is doing real work. Don't confuse it with Pete's Wicked Ale, a completely separate brand: Pete's Wicked Ale was a pioneering American craft brown ale from the 1980s, associated with Pete Slosberg and the early craft beer movement, with no connection to the Redd's family. The naming overlap is coincidental and occasionally confusing in search results.
For readers curious about the craft side of fruit-forward ales, our overview of the fruit beer category covers the difference between adjunct-flavored products and beers where fruit drives actual fermentation.
Finding Redd's Apple Ale Near You
Redd's is a national brand with wide distribution across the United States. Most grocery stores, convenience stores, and big-box retailers that carry beer will stock at least the core apple variety. The blueberry and Wicked variants have somewhat spottier distribution depending on your region.
For real-time local availability, the most reliable tools are the store locator on the Molson Coors or Redd's brand site, or retail apps like Drizly, Instacart, or your local grocery chain's own platform. "Near me" searches in Google Maps filtered to liquor stores or grocery stores will surface current stock more accurately than any static list we could publish here.
Frequently Asked Questions
Is Redd's Apple Ale a beer?
Yes. Redd's Apple Ale is a malt beverage – beer – classified and taxed as such by the TTB. It is brewed from grain and fermented with brewer's yeast, then flavored with apple. It is not cider.
Is Redd's Apple Ale gluten free?
No. Redd's Apple Ale is brewed from malted barley, which contains gluten. It is not gluten free. People with celiac disease or serious gluten sensitivity should avoid it. If you're looking for gluten-free fruit-flavored options, you'll need to seek out beers specifically brewed from gluten-free grains (sorghum, millet, rice) or certified gluten-removed products – and consult your clinician about what's appropriate for your condition.
What is the ABV of Redd's Apple Ale?
The core Redd's Apple Ale is approximately 5% ABV. The Wicked Apple variant is higher – verify the current figure on the label or the brand's site, as formulations can change.
How many calories are in Redd's Apple Ale?
Calorie counts for flavored malt beverages vary by serving size and formula. Check the current nutrition label or the Molson Coors brand page for the most accurate figure rather than relying on third-party databases.
What's the difference between Redd's Apple Ale and Redd's Wicked Apple?
Redd's Wicked Apple is a higher-ABV product with a more intense apple flavor and a drier, sharper profile compared to the sweeter, more restrained core apple ale. Think of it as the same concept, turned up.
Is Redd's Apple Ale the same as Pete's Wicked Ale?
No – these are entirely different products from different eras and brewing traditions. Pete's Wicked Ale was a craft brown ale associated with the 1980s American craft beer renaissance. Redd's is a Molson Coors flavored malt beverage. The word "wicked" in Redd's Wicked Apple is not a nod to Pete's brand.
What does Redd's Blueberry Ale taste like?
Redd's Blueberry Ale uses the same malt base as the apple variety, with blueberry flavoring added. The result is sweeter than the apple version, with a jammy, candy-blueberry character and very little tartness. It's aimed at the same audience: drinkers who want something fruit-forward and easy.
Is Redd's Apple Ale the same as hard cider?
No. Hard cider is fermented from apple juice and classified as a wine product. Redd's Apple Ale is fermented from grain and classified as a malt beverage. The apple character in Redd's comes from flavoring, not fermentation. If you're curious about how genuine hard cider is made and how it differs from fruit-flavored beers, our introduction to cider styles and production covers the ground clearly.
What Redd's Actually Represents
Redd's Apple Ale is a product of a specific moment in American drinking culture – the mid-2010s push by major brewers to capture drinkers who found beer too bitter or too heavy, and found spirits too strong. It sits in a crowded category alongside hard seltzers, flavored malt beverages, and sweeter craft styles, all competing for the same palate.
Whether that's your palate is a legitimate question. Redd's makes no pretense of being a craft product; it's a mass-market flavored beer, consistent and widely available, designed for accessibility rather than complexity. For drinkers who want genuine apple character with fermentation depth behind it, a dry English or New England-style hard cider, or a farmhouse ale brewed with real apple juice, will deliver something more interesting. For drinkers who want a cold, sweet, low-effort apple-flavored beer at a backyard cookout, Redd's does exactly what it promises.
Understanding what a product actually is – its ingredients, its classification, its honest flavor profile – is always the better starting point than marketing copy. On those terms, Redd's Apple Ale is a straightforward thing: a grain-based beer, apple-flavored, built for the broadest possible audience.
