O'Hara's Irish Red - This Drinking Life

O’Hara’s Irish Red Traditional Ale

http://www.carlowbrewing.com

Brewed by Carlow Brewing Company
Style: Traditional Red Ale
Bagenalstown, Co. Carlow, Ireland

Located in Bagenalstown, County Carlow, in the south-east of Ireland, the Carlow Brewing Company, founded by the O’Hara family in 1996, is one of the largest and most successful craft breweries in Ireland. It is more popularly known as O’Hara’s Brewing Company after the family name that still runs the business today.

After seeing the wide success of the craft beer revolution in the United States and Continental Europe, Seamus O’Hara, along with his brother Eamon, decided to produce Irish craft beers, at first to export, and later, to Ireland after it took the natives to come round to the idea of anything but macro beers.

They produce a wide variety of exciting and adventurous beers. From the regular Red Ales, IPA’s, Stouts, to beers that perhaps are a bit of a rarity to Irish drinkers……Smoked Ales, Golden Ales, and Celtic versions of Wheat Beers!!

Review: 50cl bottle of O’Hara’s Irish Red Traditional Ale: 4.3% vol.

One of the 1001 beers you must taste before you die, according to a well known Beer rating site. Ok, lets see about that then……

Nice swanky logo with Irish symbols and squiggles in a lovely styled bottle, looks the part on the shelf.

Aroma was very light, a bit malty, got some apples and other subtle fruity aromas, an ok smell overall, but very light on the nose.

Colour is a beer with a dark ruby red appearance and a smallish white head, not a bad look, albeit the head isn’t great, a bit flat.

Dark and deep reddish colour, white head that dissipates fast.

Wasn’t impressed with the taste at all, felt a bit like washing up liquid, but with hops!

Roasted barley and malts and hints of caramel, but struggling under the intensity of the hops that linger.

Very, very hoppy, and far too strong to enjoy. The aftertaste is killing this beer.

Bit flat in the overall taste too.

Not really enjoyable at all, not smooth and far too bitter. All hoppy but with little else. Disappointing considering all the rage about this brewery. And definitely not like a traditional red ale, they can fuck off with that, lol!!!