Carlow OHaras Irish Red

Good mahogony body with a medium volume white head. Very thin aroma, sweet malts are evident. Watery body, hops do balence the caramel malts, but the overall taste is thin. Cool ending with caramel aftertones.

Cask Stillage at the Memorial Hall, Northwich 22/09/2001 Dark red / amber coloured and smooth on the palate. Malt flavours. Hop finish.

12 oz bottle from Julios Liquors in Westboro, MA (Feb 2006), sampled at cellar temperature from a Samuel Smith (is this a faux pas, this being Irish and all?) pint glass. Murky dark amber-bronze with a largish quick-diminishing cream-colored head....rather faint, lightly grassy aroma with subtle hints of caramel and milk chocolate....body is a touch sour even from the first, growing as it warms, vaguely fruity (blueberry, apple) with a decent pale malt background and just a touch of grassy hops....but the finishing lactic/sour qualities don’t work in this simple rather lightly carbonated ale’s favor and leave one with a somewhat unpleasant, metallic-mineral cheesy aftertaste. I guess it’s drinkable if you do so quickly without thinking too much about it.

Pour is a nice looking red with a white head. Aroma is also nice mix of malts and a bit of fruityness in there. Flavor though is a bit weak and watery. Some malts and biterness show up but nothing to put this over the top. Looks and smells good but that’s about it.

Dark, redish, translucent with a good sized off-white head. Nice malty aroma. Slightly bitter. A bit thin. Not much aftertaste.

2/6/06 (bottle, labeled Moling’s Traditional Celtic, purchased at the Shannon Airport duty free): Rusty red with a massive boiling head. Sugary malt nose. Disappointingly watery. Pronounced bitterness overpowers everything else ... like a really bitter piece of fruit. Disappointing.

nice white head. Beery chease aroma. Some chocolate malt and molasses in here, along with pronounced bitterness, some roast was nice carmel at end. Astringent medium mouthfeel. Overall doesn’t work but a meal would make the bottle finishable.

Well done example of Irish Red Ale from an Irish brewery. This beer pours to a beautiful, bright, deep ruby color, with a creamy white head, and a moderate amount of carbonation. The nose on this beer is very inviting ,with some good sweet malty aroma paired with some estery fruit aromas. The palate on this beer is firm, with notes of sweet and caramel malts, paired with light touches of butter, and juicy fruit. It finishes with more malt and fruit character up front, then ends slightly cloying. Hops are present in this beer, but just to balance. A very well done, malt accented and fruity brew, a great beer to match with red meats such as beef or lamb.