Isolation Ale

Still slowly but surely making my way through my Christmas hamper of beer. Next on the list is a seasonal offering from Odell Brewing, Isolation Ale.

Described as a traditional winter ale, Isolation Ale pours a light Amber colour with a thin off white creamy head. Nice combination of malt and hops on the nose. The malt is to the fore with a nice hint of spicy and fruity hops. On the light side of medium bodied with a creamy mouthfeel. The taste is more hop forward than I would have expected from a winter beer, the hops are a nice balance of spicy and piney, with the merest hint of citrus. The finish has a very subtle bitterness.

Not what I would consider a traditional winter ale, for that I would have expected a very malty beer with a spicy hop profile, the malts in this beer are quite understated with the hops taking the driving seat. However as the beer warms up you get the malts more and more. Hints of chocolate and caramel raise their head and give this beer an altogether more wintry profile. Altogether this is a very nice beer and at 6.1% and not too heavy, I could see myself having a few of these. Definitely worth picking up a bottle or two.

An Evening of Amber Ale

It could have been an amber ale shootout, but it was a lot calmer than that. I nice relaxing night with three amber ales lined up; Boont Amber Ale from Anderson Valley, 5 AM Saint from Brew Dog and Levity Amber Ale from ODell's. On hand was a keg of my own amber ale (Red Hopper), should the need arise.

First up was Boont Amber Ale, the beer pours a lovely amber colour with a thin but lasting off-white head. Very floral aroma with hints of pine and citrus. Quite a thin body, I would have expected something a little more chewy. The caramel and toffee flavours of this beer are quite strong, followed by a lasting strong bitterness. I have to say that this beer is nothing out of the ordinary and unfortunatley as it warms up it doesn't improve. An ok beer but I have had far nicer amber ales than this.

Next up was Brew Dog 5AM Saint. I have to admit that I had heard a lot of good things about this beer and so I was looking forward to something good. It pours a nice red colour with a thick off-white head. Aroma is dominated by citrus hops with a nice sharp quality. Medium bodied with a nice mouthfeel. I have to say I found this to be a fantastically flavoursome beer, citrus and pine up front, caramel malt in the middle, finished off with a nice strong level of bitterness. A truly great beer, however, the flavour is so heavy and intense, I am not sure if I could drink more than a couple of these! Definitely worth picking up a few bottles.

Last, but not least, was Levity Amber Ale from O'Dell's, a brewery I really like. The beer pours a light amber colour with a thick cream head. Lovely marmalade and citrus aroma. Light bodied and immensely drinkable, but a little too light for me. I am a big fan of O'Dell's but this is just a little too lightweight for me.

I think the key to brewing a good amber ale is balance, you need to balance a strong caramel and toffee malt base with a big hit of hops up front and a nice strong level of bitterness at the end. I think the beer that comes closest to this out of the three I tried was 5AM Saint. Boont Amber was ok, while Levity was very dissapointing. This is still one of my favourite styles of beer, however out of these three, probably 5AM Saint is the only one I will be buying again.

PS, I did finish out the night with a few glasses of my own Red Hopper, and while it was not as good as the Brew Dog (although more drinkable), I thought it was easily the superior of the other two!

Ahhhh....IPA

American IPA's are one of my favourite beers and Odell Brewing Company is fast becoming on of my favourite American breweries. I have sampled, and thoroughly enjoyed their; 5 Barrell Pale Ale, 90 Shilling Ale, Cutthroat Porter and  St Lupulin Extra Pale Ale. So no pressure then when I cracked open a bottle of their IPA.



A lovely, full-on American IPA

 The beer pours an unusual orange colour and the appearance is quite cloudy. A thick creamy white head settles quickly into a thin creamy line. Lovely aroma of sharp citrus hops with lemon and grapefruit dominating. Medium bodied with a low level of carbonation, clean smooth taste with a slightly syrupy characteristic. This is a lovely, full-on American IPA. The high hop profile is balanced by an assertive medium body that provides the perfect platform for those hops to shine. The bitterness on the end is strong but very smooth.

You can definitely taste the strength of this beer (7%) but it is still immensely drinkable. Very highly recommended.

Beer Review: 5 Barrell Pale Ale

I have really enjoyed the beers from Odell Brewing that I have sampled over the last few months (St Lupulin Pale Ale, Cutthroat Porter and 90 Shilling Ale) and last night was the turn of their 5 Barrell Pale Ale. On the label for this beer Odell focuses on the part that hops play in the beer, they use four kettle additions, a hopback as well as dry hopping.

The beer pours a lovely amber colour with a small thin white head. There is a very sweet citrus aroma of lemon with a hint of orange on the nose, as it warms up you get a slight minty note from the aroma. Light to medium bodied with a very smooth finish. Lemon flavour carries through to the taste giving an immensely refreshing feel. Quite hoppy but the hop profile is very smooth.

Would make a lovely summer beer. Highly recommended.

Beer Review: 90 Shilling Ale

ODell's 90 Shilling Ale was my beer of choice during the week. The name comes from the fact that in years gone past a tax of 90 shilling was placed on the highest quality barrel of beer and it is with such expectations that I opened the bottle. The beer is based on a light version of a Scottich Ale and was the first beer to be brewed by ODell Brewing Company back in 1989, it has also won a number of awards over the years:

• Bronze, British Style Ale, 2009 Stockholm Beer & Whisky Festival
• Bronze, English-Style Brown, 2006 Los Angeles County Fair
• Bronze, American Amber Ale, 1991 Great American Beer Festival

The beer pours a deep, rich red colour, with a small white head. Aroma is of grapefruit backed up by a sweet malt profile. Medium bodied with a low level of carbonation and a lovely creamy mouthfeel. The finish is very clean with little or no hop bitterness. Hop flavour is subdued (only 27 IBU's) and the taste is dominated by the malt bill. There is no dominant malt flavour but there are subtle hints of toffee and caramel, all of this backed up by the merest hint of citrus hops.

A pleasure to drink and would make a fabulous session beer (5.3%), it is unfortunate that it is pretty rare to come across American Amber Ales (or is it an American/Scottish Amber Ale?) in Ireland as this is a beer style I really like. Highly recommended.

Beer Review: Cutthroat Porter

I was browsing through my beer fridge last week looking for something to accompany a nice fillet steak I was having for dinner and decided that a nice porter would fit the bill. Not sure if it is from reading Zak Avery's blog but I am getting more interested in pairing beer and food and seeing how they can accompany each other.

Cutthroat Porter, a lovely balance
of dark malts and earthy hops

Cuttthroat Porter from Odell Brewing pours a lovely jet black with a creamy tan head. Lovely smooth mouthfeel and nice low level of carbonation that fizzes slightly on the back of your throat. The aroma is nicely balanced between the dark malts (choclate and roasted malt) and the earthy hops. The taste highlughts the dark malts once again with the chocolate less apparent than in other porters I have tried. There is also a very slight astringency on the end. Overall, like the aroma, the flavour is very well balanced. Smooth and creamy like a stout but with the flavour complexity you would expect from a good porter.

This is a very good beer. A perfect beer to enjoy with a nice steak, or at 4.8% it would also make a great session beer. I have really enjoyed the two Odell beers I have tried so far, this and the St Lupulin Extra Pale Ale, thankfully I have a few more in the fridge to try.

Beer Review - St Lupulin Extra Pale Ale

Walk on the hoppier side of
life with St Lupulin

Todays beer review comes from a recommendation by the Stout Fellow. St Lupulin Extra Pale Ale from Odell Brewing is a Summer seasonal beer that is available from May through to September.

It pours a pale golden colour, a nice level of carbonation produces a small creamy white head. The aroma is very strong, with citrus and honey fighting for dominance, a lovely enticing aroma that screams 'hop monster!'. Medium bodied with a honey like texture. The floral characterisitics of the hops come through very strongly in the flavour, their prominance probably due to the dry-hopping that this beer experienced. The carbonation is nicely subdued which allows the flavour and aroma to combine beautifully, all of this is followed by a warming alcohol sensation from the 6.5% ABV.

This is my first experience of Odell's beers and I am happy to say that I have three more of their offerings waiting for me in my beer fridge. For those who like the hoppier side of life, this beer is highly recommended.