Brews and Blues Beer and Smokin’ Blues

O’Hara’s Irish Red

I grabbed a 4-banger of O'Hara's Irish Red at Gail's Hops and Grapes the other day so I could give it a try. They had some O'Hara's Irish Stout as well, so I'll probably give it a go next time around.  This offering comes from Carlow Brewing Company in Carlow, Ireland.  Even though it says "Imported from Ireland" on the bottle, this beer doesn't fall into that 'import' category of sales that I have mentioned in previous posts.  This beer isn't really targeted at the "I only drink yellow fizzy imports" crowd. 

O'Hara's Irish Red poured with an excellent foamy head and a darker reddish-brown color in the glass.  The bottle lists this beer as a full-bodied irish red, but in my humble opinion, the body is a little lighter than what I'm used to in the realm of full-bodied brews.  The beer has a rather crisp mouth feel and a nice presence of hops.  It's not quite as malty sweet as some other Irish Reds I have had in the past, but all-in-all, this is an excellent beer. 

I went to the Carlow Brewing Company website (see above link) to see what information was available on this brew, and couldn't find it.  I'm not sure if this brew is discontinued or if the website just isn't up to date.  It's hard to tell sometimes, but I'm thinking that the website must me a little out of date.  They only list three beers coming from this brewery, and the comment listed on their Red Ale is from 2000...

Anyway... if you enjoy this style of beer, definitely give this one a try.  At 4.3% ABV, it won't hurt you much :)