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Frozen Tail Ale
Fire Island Beer Company
- From:
- Fire Island Beer Company
- New York, United States
- Style:
- Winter Warmer
- ABV:
- 6.5%
- Score:
- 80
- Avg:
- 3.42 | pDev: 17.84%
- Reviews:
- 12
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Active
- Rated:
- Nov 05, 2014
- Added:
- Dec 14, 2010
- Wants:
- 2
- Gots:
- 1
A festive layered blend of five different American and British hops, balanced nicely with four specialty malts that impart delicious roasted caramel and toffee flavors. Frozen Tail Ale is a medium bodied mahogany-colored beer that is intricately balanced to be clean, smooth, and flavorful.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Reviewed by illpass78 from Maine
3.14/5 rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
3.14/5 rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
12 oz. bottle poured into a nonic.
Appearance: Pours a dark reddish brown with a minimal white head that recedes quickly. Lacing is moderate to minimal. Carbonation less than I expected.
Aromas: Smells like a glass full of liquified pine cones. The nose gives me pine, hops and booze. Really, really heavy with piny hops. Smells like an IPA almost.
Taste: This is a lot more bitter than I expected. The taste has notes of pine, grapefruit, and raisins. Those flavors are kind of dominated by a heavy, biting hop bitterness. Maybe it's just my lack of familiarity with winter warmers, but I was expecting malts and sweetness more than hop bitterness. There's some sweetness here, but the bitter bite dominates, especially on the finish. Gets boozier and more bitter as it warms. I can't find the IBU for this anywhere, but it must be a lot. It's not bad, but it's not what I expected.
Mouthfeel: The body is pretty decent. Not watery, not sludgy thick. In terms of thickness it's a nice alternative to the heavy stouts that dominate winter seasonals.
Overall: Decent winter beer. I'm not surprised they don't market this as specific style, because it's kind of a hybrid. The ad copy hints at it being a winter warmer, but it also has characteristics of strong ales and hoppy ales. All in all, it's very OK.
Feb 28, 2014Appearance: Pours a dark reddish brown with a minimal white head that recedes quickly. Lacing is moderate to minimal. Carbonation less than I expected.
Aromas: Smells like a glass full of liquified pine cones. The nose gives me pine, hops and booze. Really, really heavy with piny hops. Smells like an IPA almost.
Taste: This is a lot more bitter than I expected. The taste has notes of pine, grapefruit, and raisins. Those flavors are kind of dominated by a heavy, biting hop bitterness. Maybe it's just my lack of familiarity with winter warmers, but I was expecting malts and sweetness more than hop bitterness. There's some sweetness here, but the bitter bite dominates, especially on the finish. Gets boozier and more bitter as it warms. I can't find the IBU for this anywhere, but it must be a lot. It's not bad, but it's not what I expected.
Mouthfeel: The body is pretty decent. Not watery, not sludgy thick. In terms of thickness it's a nice alternative to the heavy stouts that dominate winter seasonals.
Overall: Decent winter beer. I'm not surprised they don't market this as specific style, because it's kind of a hybrid. The ad copy hints at it being a winter warmer, but it also has characteristics of strong ales and hoppy ales. All in all, it's very OK.
Reviewed by dirtylou from Oklahoma
3.5/5 rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
3.5/5 rDev +2.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
12oz single
Served in a new holland pint - garnet mahogany body, smells of buttery toffee, caramel, grains, herbal hops. Some bitterness, dry herbal finish.
Drinkable winter seasonal but not particularly memorable - time to move forward to spring.
Feb 14, 2013Served in a new holland pint - garnet mahogany body, smells of buttery toffee, caramel, grains, herbal hops. Some bitterness, dry herbal finish.
Drinkable winter seasonal but not particularly memorable - time to move forward to spring.
Reviewed by GPHarris from Alabama
3.87/5 rDev +13.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
3.87/5 rDev +13.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
a - poured a one finger thick light tan and bubbly head into a snifter that dissipated quickly. the body was dark brown with purple highlights.
s - dark cherries and some spice.
t - grainy, dark fruits, grapes, a hint of piney hops, spice.
m - medium thickness that was bubbly and crisp but as it warmed it became more slick.
o - solid sipper and complex, i wish it had more carbonation though.
Dec 03, 2012s - dark cherries and some spice.
t - grainy, dark fruits, grapes, a hint of piney hops, spice.
m - medium thickness that was bubbly and crisp but as it warmed it became more slick.
o - solid sipper and complex, i wish it had more carbonation though.
Reviewed by DrDemento456 from Pennsylvania
3.9/5 rDev +14%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
3.9/5 rDev +14%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
A - color is a nice ruby brown color, clear with a 1/2 inch of tan colored head.
S - English malts and sweet caramel malts are the first thing I notice. Mild herbal hops and spices second.
T - Well it's not a very spicy beer and it drinks well. Taste of English herbal hops mixing well with sweet malts and a mild twang of what I can assume is cinnamon. Not bad.
M - Light to medium could use more body to be a "warmer"
Overall for what it was it was good. Similar to the Red Wagon IPA it's just another beer that was good just not distributed to me so hurts a re-visit quite a bit. COME ON PA!
Mar 28, 2012S - English malts and sweet caramel malts are the first thing I notice. Mild herbal hops and spices second.
T - Well it's not a very spicy beer and it drinks well. Taste of English herbal hops mixing well with sweet malts and a mild twang of what I can assume is cinnamon. Not bad.
M - Light to medium could use more body to be a "warmer"
Overall for what it was it was good. Similar to the Red Wagon IPA it's just another beer that was good just not distributed to me so hurts a re-visit quite a bit. COME ON PA!
Frozen Tail Ale from Fire Island Beer Company
Beer rating:
80 out of
100 with
28 ratings
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