Hook & Ladder Pipe & Drum Irish Ale - Hook & Ladder Brewing Company (No. 2)

sraimondi

Connecticut

3.8/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

A-Poured into a pint glass with a quickly dissipating off-white head. A very nice deep amber bordering on red color; very attractive.

S-Not much aroma here, but definitely devoid of any hops smell.

T-A bit sweet at the start, but evens out with some minor hops in the very back of the finish. I like it better than Killian's. Balance is a big positive.

MF-Very smooth with low carbonation and a soft mouthfeel. Nicely drying finish.

D-This is definitely sessionable. I really liked this offering from H&L. This one is brewed in Rochester, NY; so must be at High Falls (Dundee). Good job overall.

Serving type: bottle

11-27-2008 19:27:31 | More by sraimondi

dalepryor

Kentucky

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

05-07-2013 22:24:23 | More by dalepryor

iemailjack

Florida

3.5/5  rDev -4.1%

01-08-2013 03:40:30 | More by iemailjack

Thorpe429

Illinois

3.55/5  rDev -2.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from notes.

Served in a tulip glass. Pours a reddish-amber color with a nice off-white head. Not much lacing and the retention is a bit weak. The nose is caramel, toffee, and some light bread. The taste is bready with a touch of caramel and sweetness. Nice body to support the flavors. Drinks well enough, but not terribly interesting.

Serving type: bottle

11-14-2010 00:06:09 | More by Thorpe429

HalfFull

California

3.45/5  rDev -5.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

From a 12 oz. twist off bottle, this brew pours a clear golden amber with a half inch of soapy off white foam. Reducing to a surface cap in a couple minutes, the pour yields some light lacing and keeps a light surface ring.

Nose is somewhat light all around, with some clean caramel malt notes, lightly toasted, and a touch of earthy hops. Somewhat light in color and depth for the style.

Taste follows the nose with a light caramel sense. Clean and crisp with a moderate level of carbonation but a bit light in flavor for the style, though not quite watery in nature. Bit of brown sugar/peppery spice/toasted grain on the finish. Rather drinkable for the style given the moderately light body, though carbonation loss might be a concern if you're in no hurry to finish the glass.

Note: 5.1% ABV and viewed as an Irish Red Ale in style.

Serving type: bottle

12-17-2009 04:34:56 | More by HalfFull

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

3.28/5  rDev -10.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a Sierra Nevada Imperial Pint. 19009 printed on the neck with some other numbers. Possible date? No other info.

A - Clear light amber-orange with a big two-finger bone-colored head. Moderate-low retention but it left some nice, dainty lace behind.

S - Light hops on the nose gracefully blended with sweet malts. The malts have a touch of butterscotch to them while the hops are a bit herbal.

T - A tiny kiss of the butterscotch comes through with the malts but the hops are much larger in the flavor. Floral and dry with a crisp finish and light bitterness.

M - A lingering sweetness gives the beer a bit of body despite it being light. It also resides behind the crisp, dry feel of the hops. It's somewhat soft on the tongue as well.

D - Pipe & Drum is definitely one of the better beers to come out of Hook & Ladder. It's got more flavor and balance than all of their others but is still around mediocre. A great session beer though. Grab a six-er for St. Patty's Day and it'll be gone before you can even attempt a bad Irish accent.

Serving type: bottle

11-25-2009 04:24:33 | More by BeerFMAndy

flexabull

California

3.6/5  rDev -1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Part of a mixed 12er for $7.97 at World Market, figured at that price it was worth a try.

Pours a bright and clear amber color with a pretty faint off white head.

Aromas are faint, light brewed tea, and some toffee like sweetness.

Taste is similar to the nose, light brewed tea like malts, some subtle sweetness, toffee, caramel, nuts and biscuits. Finish is dry, with some earthy hops flavors. Decent tasting beer.

Mouthfeel is not bad, decent carbonation, but an overall thinness that sets it back a bit.

Drinkabilty is good. If the rest of the box is full of beers like this, then the money will be well spent. This is a pretty decent sessionable Irish Red Style beer.

Serving type: bottle

11-21-2009 00:31:00 | More by flexabull

beergod1

Ohio

4.43/5  rDev +21.4%
look: 4 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Had it on tap at upick6 in Erie P.A. I was surprised with the malty taste and mouth feel, almost like an American Brown, but was a good beer none the less. Some sweetness and a light nutty/hoppy finish, not quite a typical Irish, Caramel, roasted notes. I need to find more of this so I can figure out what some of these flavours are. Can't find 6 packs or cases, just available in the sampler with the Light, Golden, Backdraft Brown. Im thinking it must be better on-tap, from looking at some of these other reviews, because this was a good beer.

Serving type: on-tap

11-16-2009 01:06:33 | More by beergod1

Offa

California

3.1/5  rDev -15.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

This is a pleasant, decent beer, but very simple, rather sweet, and quite vague in character.

Copper, it has a medium off-white head quickly thinning to a thin foamy ring that continues to leave brief wisps of foam on the glass.

Aroma is caramelly grain, bread crust, leaf. It's thin, very light, simple.

Taste is light toastiness, vague fruitiness with light caramelly sweetness and grain hint. It's light, simple.

Serving type: bottle

10-14-2009 22:57:25 | More by Offa

Schwab

Florida

3.05/5  rDev -16.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

I had this beer tonight at a place that has a firehouse theme going. I had never heard of it before but I thought why not.

A - appeared to be flat, no head. (wasn't flat but still)

S - I was unable to detect anything. Nothing really.

T - Decent amber ale taste. Seemed decent but not great.

M - Somewhat dry but not very much at all. I'm sure you can quite a few of these and everything will be fine.

D - Goes down ok. Not that great of a beer but it was nice to my steak.

Why the label says Irish Ale is not clear to me. It is more of an American amber ale than anything. I guess it may sell better as long as you add some foreign name/description.

Serving type: bottle

08-22-2009 04:26:53 | More by Schwab

tatoodkelt

Maryland

4/5  rDev +9.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5

Bottle poured into a shaker glass. 7/2/09 from notes.

A- Very deep amber with dark red highlights. About a one finger off-white head that left great lacing throught the glass. Very tiny carbination bubbles present.

S- Pretty mild caramel malty aroma.

T- Litle hints of caramel and almost roasted leafy veggies.

M- Medium bodied, stickier than I expected.

D- Very sessionable. Picked this up as a single but I'll definitely be getting more!

Serving type: bottle

07-05-2009 16:06:16 | More by tatoodkelt

Risser09

Pennsylvania

4.5/5  rDev +23.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5

12 oz bottle poured into a pilsner - fridge - 2009

Appearance: Pours a transparent copper, caramel colored ale with ruby and orange highlights. The head rises 2.5" tall with it's ivory color. Great retention is shown and lots of foamy lace coats the glass. Superb.

Smell: Caramel is the strongest aroma, and is noticeable once the cap is popped. Nougat, almond and butter pecan swirl around with strong sweetness. All malt, with little hop aroma.

Taste: Just as the nose indicated, a malt presence jumps out with caramel and nougat. Very Milky-Way-Esque. Almond, granola, raisin and toffee make up a stellar malt taste. A small bite of hop bitterness balances (somewhat) the brew. A touch of alcohol in the finish. Excellent flavor.

Mouthfeel: Sweet, succulent, smooth and satisfying. Complex in aroma and taste. A buttery finish mingles with a dry hop bite.

Drinkability: More than I could have expected from an Irish Ale and an unknown brewery. Superb.

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2009 12:23:48 | More by Risser09

dmamiano

West Virginia

3.75/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Thick, amost white head after an aggressive pour. Amost rockey, leaving some thick lacing behind. Copper in hue and clear, clean looking.
Nose is heavy in caramel sweetness, husky and grainy. Taste is sweet and somewhat heavy, but not as thick as I would have expected in a Read Ale.
Nice, medium mouthfeel.
A good, drinkable beer.

Serving type: bottle

06-30-2009 23:18:00 | More by dmamiano

MLasoski

New Jersey

3.85/5  rDev +5.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

This is my first beer from the Hook and Ladder Brewery and I have little qualms with this one. I poured it into a pint glass, the head didn't stick around more than five seconds. I can definitely taste the malts, with a hint of caramel as I gulp it down. Very smoothe red ale. I am looking forward to trying the rest of my variety pack after having this one to start things off.

Serving type: bottle

05-07-2009 05:33:54 | More by MLasoski

generallee

New York

3.63/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Presentation: It was poured from a brown 12oz bottle into a pint glass.

Appearance: It has a deep dark amber colored body with good clarity. The head is small and fades out quickly leaving no lacing behind.

Smell: The aroma is light with some light hints of sweet caramel malts.

Taste/Mouth feel: The overall flavor has a mild sweet malty character with a touch of caramel and some light spicy/leafy hops for balance. The hops come in more towards the finish of this medium bodied brew. The mouth feel is well rounded, smooth with a light balance of carbonation.

Notes: Overall this is a nice average beer.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2009 23:07:14 | More by generallee

number1bum

Pennsylvania

3.15/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a clear reddish copper color with about two fingers of creamy light beige head. Head is pretty dense and retention is decent; it keeps a very thin but mostly full lace, but also leaves some very nice rings of stick as it falls.

Smells of some sweet caramel malt and toasted grain, with a bit of grassy hops as well. Clean and straightforward, if slightly weak.

Taste is primarily grainy, slightly toasty but lacking a bit in terms of sweetness. The graininess is a bit too much, making it slightly astringent and harsh. I'd like a bit more caramel which would provide some much needed balance. There is some grassy, bitter hops here as well but what is really needed is some caramel malt sweetness.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied with a good level of carbonation. It's lacking in smoothness owing to the grainy, astringent bite, however.

This is a pretty mediocre beer. Just too grainy and in need of some more malt sweetness to provide some balance. Not something I'll be coming back to.

Serving type: bottle

04-20-2009 21:15:18 | More by number1bum

drtth

Pennsylvania

3.2/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Lighly chilled and pourned into a pint glass. Glass of cold water on the side to sip from periodically.

Appearance: Pours reddish brown with ¼" light tan head that fades quickly. Sipping leaves spotty lacing.

Smell: Aroma is mild malt with faint hint of hops.

Taste: Lightly roasted sweet caramel malt but very one dimensional.

Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with light carbonation and slightly creamy carbonation. The finish is medium long with traces of malt and hops.

Drinkability: This was nothing special in the way of drinkability, which in this case means I could have had more or I could have switched and not been unhappy either way.

Serving type: bottle

03-28-2009 18:26:42 | More by drtth

Gambrinus1184

Connecticut

3.9/5  rDev +6.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Poured from a 12-ounce bottle into a SA pint glass.

A: Poured a deep copper color with reddish highlights and a sticky head of white foam which left a decent ring of lace.

S: Smell is sweet and malty, with a bit of a buttery aroma over some sweet roasted caramel malts and a slightly herbal/floral hop bitterness.

T: Taste is a bit more mute than the smell, but it's a slightly bitterwseet and fruity ale with deep roasted malts which lend a bit of sweet smokiness to the brew. Hop bittering is mild and more fruity than anything else. All the flavors are slightly more watery than expected, but still pretty good.

M: Mouthfeel is slightly sticky and medium bodied but still rather palatable.

D: A decent brew and not that bad of a red ale. A session brew for sure that tasted good on its own as well as a pairing to my fried turkey.

This isn't the greatest Irish red you'll get your hands on, but it is quite tasty. Not too flashy in any given area, but it went down very smooth and was gone before I knew it. Definitely worth a shot.

Serving type: bottle

03-08-2009 21:36:00 | More by Gambrinus1184

SurlyDuff

Oregon

3.53/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4

Another HooknLadder from the variety pack.

Pours a rich wood brown, with a thin little head.

Very much malt forward aroma. Goetting some roasty dry peat and woody aromas.

Taste is definilty malt forward with a bit of a burnt/caramelized sugar in there. I am however getting some metallic twang that isn't too enjoyable. Mouthfeel is a tad thin and watery, especially for a beer of this color. It had a lot of promise.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2009 02:51:08 | More by SurlyDuff

confer

Pennsylvania

3.35/5  rDev -8.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

A- Orange-brown with an light brown one finger head that leaves quite quickly.

S- Fruity or nutty

T- I really didn't find much flavor, only a faint alcohol taste with a smooth texture

D- This beer is ok and easy to drink, I just wasn't that thrilled with it.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2009 04:46:22 | More by confer

Pleepleus

New York

3.2/5  rDev -12.3%
look: 4 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5

Bought the 12 pack sampler of Hook and Ladder at Seibert's in Yonkers. This is the first of the bunch that I tried. Poured from bottle into SA pint glass(I love the way this glass holds a head) a clear reddish brown with a solid inch of cream colored head that settled to a solid sheen with spotty lacing. Smell is very mild with just a trace of caramel malts. Taste is a bit disapointing. Since I am an Irish Fireman I was hoping this would be a new favorite for me, it is not. It is not bad don't get me wrong but I was let down with how watery it was. It goes down smooth enough to drink a dozen of them. Would I try it on tap? Definately. Drink it again? For sure. Maybe I am being super hard on it since I have been drinking Nugget Nectar from Troegs the last few days and EVERYTHING else pales in comparison. Worth a shot if you are having a session.

Serving type: bottle

01-31-2009 02:43:49 | More by Pleepleus

argock

Virginia

3.68/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

Poured from 12oz brown bottle into a clear pint glass. No frehsness date. Purchased as part of H&L sampler 12-pack for $12.99 at Harris Teeter (Charlottesville, VA).

A: Crisp-looking amber-red with foamy light beige, 1-1.5 finger head with a nice crown of lace at the top of the glass.

S: Very sweet caramel and pale malts with a dash of noble hops

T: Malty and sweet with dominant caramel and lightly roasted pale and Munich malt flavor. Noble hops produce a light but crisp finish.

M: Unfortunately is a bit thin but not watery. Carbonation needs to be idled down somewhat. Aftertaste is sweet toffee and caramel.

D: A good brew at a good price. Nothing exceptional, but solid and a good alternative to serve BMC friends who could use some horizon broadening.

Serving type: bottle

01-20-2009 04:01:18 | More by argock

Rootdog316

Virginia

3.98/5  rDev +9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

Hook & Ladder Pipe & Drum Irish Ale is a well-rounded red ale with a pleasant toasted malt character and slight sweetness. Has some quality head and lacing, and it pours with a reddish hue and a lot of carbonation. As the name implies, this beer is great with anything Irish like hearty stews, sausages, shepard's pie, and potatoes. Definitely another good brew from Hook & Ladder.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2009 23:06:27 | More by Rootdog316

Minkybut

Virginia

3.68/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

I poured this beer into my tumbler at 50 degrees. The beer was a redish pink color and had a decent head. Lacing was fair. The beer smelled like all the rest of the sample pack, kinda sweet/malty. The taste was nothing fancy which is what makes this a good beer. It is clean tasty and you want another easily. I will buy again.

Serving type: bottle

01-06-2009 17:43:57 | More by Minkybut

BEERchitect

Kentucky

3.48/5  rDev -4.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

It appears that I've saved the best Hood and Ladder beer for last. This is the fifth of five that I have tried and this one has fewer flaws and higher drinkablity than the others.

As all these beers did, this one has a very nice appearance with brilliant clarity, sturdy head formation, and long-lasting. Certainly inviting at the onset.

Aromas of firm maltiness take the lead with a light toffee, caramel note. Mild floral hop additions give a bit of complexity to the nose, but the beer remains very straight forward yet solid.

The malt sturdiness continue into the flavor profile. Again, light floral hops help to decorate the barley but is careful not to conflict with the malt forward taste. A grainy flavored note comes in late and begins to affect the mouthfeel.

Textures start of with the malty firmness expected from the aroma and taste; but leads to a mild astringent (over sparged grains) texture in the back of the throat, but it is quite moderate and happens late in the sip.

This beer doesn't exibit some of the vegital, sulfery, or buttery notes that I found in most of their other beers, making it cleaner than expected. If they could increase the malty textures to compare with the flavors and aromas it would help. Also a bit more toffee flavor could help fit the style closer.

Serving type: bottle

12-18-2008 04:09:45 | More by BEERchitect