Emmetts McCarthy American Red

Brewed by Emmetts Tavern and Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
West Dundee, Illinois USA

Serve in English pint, Shaker

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Tap in Palatine. Pours clear tawny with a medium, fizzy white head, medium retention with good lacing. Aroma is average malt (caramel, toast, bread), medium hops (citrus, pine, floral), and light fruity esters. Flavor is malt with moderate hop flavor, finishes bitter. Medium body and carbonation, low warmth and a dry finish.

Sample at the Palatine brewpub. The beer pours a hazy reddish-brown color with a medium thin beige head that dissipates steadily. Clingy patches of lacing. Sweet caramel malt aroma with a bit of hops. Light body with flavors of bready malt, caramel and citrusy hops. The finish is sweet malt and does not last long. Slightly above average overall.

This poured a hazy reddish amber with big beige bubbles for a head. The aroma was a juicy caramel with a restrained pine & floral hoppiness. The hops were stronger in the flavor, adding a crisp bitterness to balance the caramel and orchard fruit sweetness. Not too bad.

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Had on cask at Firkin in Libertyville, IL. Big hop aroma, mostly citrus, which goes into the flavor along with some cream and big malt.

This draft brew from the brew pub poured a small sized head of foamy finely sized tan colored bubbles that were mostly lasting and left behind a transparent uncarbonated red brown colored body and a fair lacing. The aroma was hoppy and mild fruit. The crisp mouth feel was tingly at the start and at the finish. The flavor contained notes of medium strength hops and red malt. A decent one that I would consider buying again.

Paddle sampler on tap at the brewpub (Downers Grove, IL). My first visit to Emmett’s. Pours a rich copper pour, a bit darker with a reddish glow. No haze and moderate offwhite head sits atop. A thicker ring sits around and laces ok. Aromas are biscuity and toasty off the bat, some mellow sweet bread, faint caramel, and a distinct nuttiness grow with some decent American floral, grass, and mellow touches of citrusy hops worked into the fold. Grows on me. Initial is medium bodied, offering some toastiness, caramel, and biscuits. Toast moves into a healthy earthy hopping in the middle, offering healthy florals and earth, weeds and some touches of grapefruit. Not lively but a sufficient bitterness grows into the finish. More earthiness, peanuts, and dry floral hops mix with lingering toastiness, faint sweetness into the finish. Better than I though it would be, staying away from the sweeter side of the style.

Tap at Emmett’s in Downers Grove on Dec. 27, 2011. Clear reddish pour. Aroma and taste of caramel malt and mild floral elements. Smooth palate. Decent amber.

Sample at the Downer’s Grove location. Pours clear red with a medium beige head. Floral and grassy hop nose that leans toward Cascade (or something similar) with some malt for balance. Caramel and bready malt flavor with a crisp and grassy hop finish.

12oz bottle from Armanetti’s. Pours a cloudy, red-amber colored body with an inch thick, dense and foamy, off-white head that dissipates slowly and leaves a moderate lacing. Aroma has a bit of a spiced caramel maltiness with some crystal sweetness and a touch of toast. Floral hops with a light citrus. Flavor is similar. Floral citrus up front before some crystal malt sweetness and a bit of a bready caramel comes in. A touch of toast towards the end along with a slightly increased toffee malt and a solid herbal hopping that dries this with a medium-light bitterness. Fairly lengthy aftertaste following a medium-light body and soft, moderately foamy carbonation. Overall, not a bad beer. The dry finish is nice and the slightly toasty, crystal sweet maltiness is balanced well with a somewhat citrusy, floral and herbal hopping.

Aroma is malts and light but crisp hops. The flavor is fruit, mildly sweet malts, light citrus and a bitter finish.