Red - Odell Brewing Company

argock

Virginia

3.54/5  rDev -13%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12 oz brown bottle into a straight-sided clear glass 16oz mug/stein. Best by 05/15/13 on label. Single purchased by my brother Greg from a Minneapolis area bottle shop for $1.99.

A: Very deep almost plummy red with 1-2 fingers of soft beige big-bubbled head with average retention and a couple of good lines of lacing.

S: Heavy pine hops aroma with some grapefruit, floral, and resin qualities. The malt contribution is pretty heavy on the burnt caramel aroma. There is not a lot of yeast character.

T: The flavor is too sweet and caramel malt heavy for me, and I wish they had substituted some of the dark 80-120L caramel malt for 40L as the plum and burnt, buttery caramel flavors are not a great match for the piney, resiney, citrus hoppiness. There is a roasted maltiness aspect in there as well. The beer is certainly drinkable but has a bit too much caramel malt for my taste for this style. I know it is striving to be a West Coast style red ale, but the dark malt component is too heavy-handed for me.

M: I think this beer is as drinkable as a beer with this much darker caramel malt can be. The sweetness and roastiness is not cloying but does hamper the drinkability. The body is easily medium if not a little more which is great for the style. The carbonation is lower than average as it should be.

O: Odell Red Ale is a beer tha a lot of people will love for the intense piney bitterness and roasty dark caramel maltiness. For me, it was just a bit too much plum and caramel flavor in the end and it didn't work as well with the intense pine and resin hoppiness for me.

Serving type: bottle

04-08-2013 02:52:12 | More by argock

Nerudamann

Arizona

3.53/5  rDev -13.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a bottle into a Pint glass.

Look - light, reddish brown color, fairly clear, with about two finger's worth of vanilla-colored foam that dissipates slowly.

Smell - Definitely hopy, as the label suggests. Probably Cascade hops.

Taste and Mouthfeel - Very hopy in the taste as well, but not getting bitter until the finish. Most of the flavor of the hops themselves comes in the beginning and middle. Also tastes primarily as having Cascade hops. Texture is well-balanced.

Drinkability - Good tasting, but not terribly complex, as most of the taste is just hops. Very drinkable though.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2011 03:30:44 | More by Nerudamann

jjjeremy

Minnesota

3.4/5  rDev -16.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured into a chalice
Appearance-Brilliant deep amber,thin off white head
Smell-Intence sappy pine fragrance blended with sour citrus notes and hops on the finish
Taste-As it smells,sappy,piney,sour citrus.Actually a bit thin.Doesnt seem to have much else
Mouthfeel-Average. A bit better than average,slightly thick,decent mouthfeel
Overall-Glad I tried it,I am glad there is more from them than this also

Serving type: bottle

03-27-2011 22:37:31 | More by jjjeremy

bbkd3b

Missouri

3.38/5  rDev -17%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3

Amber-as-can-be body really lights up the glass, but the main attraction here is the dark beige head. The color's perfect, and the foam leaves good amount of lacing sticking to the edges. Smell's fairly weak, though. Some lightly toasted scents, mostly. Has a caramel character, but most of the time, a surprisingly bitter amount of hops are present that covers up any other scent. Also has a scent like jazz apples.

Bitter taste on the tongue on the first few swings. The fairly light body bubbles well and gets even better as the brew warms. The grassy hops slowly pull back to reveal a sweet, bready flavor that's all-too-welcome. Heck, even a bit of alcohol seeps on to the tongue, which is surprising for a beet of this style. Finish is clean as can be, but leaves the gut quite warm.

Overall/notes - A good slow-drinking beer, if you ask me. I haven't had many ambers that have been this bitter, and while it's a nice change of pace, I'd prefer that amount of bitterness to stay in American Pales, myself. Not too bad on the whole shot.

Serving type: bottle

06-14-2011 03:05:38 | More by bbkd3b

jera1350

Minnesota

3.35/5  rDev -17.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Lovely amber/red color with a creamy tan head that leaves some nice lace.

Some spicy wintery malt with a big hop profile that is reminiscent of their ipa and pale ale.

Lots of hop bitterness and they come in the herbal and earthy forms. A solid malt backbone that has spicy notes. This reminds me of a lighter version of Isolation Ale which didn't do much for me tastewise either. It's not musty, but it has that kind of a presence.

The feel is nice and smooth. Medium bodied with a mildly dry finish.

Drinks okay. Like I said, the flavor profile, just like their Isolation, isn't working for me at all. Just too spicy and earthy and bitter. I guess they try to keep their winter brews similar. I still think it's a nice beer, just not for me.

Serving type: bottle

02-06-2011 21:00:50 | More by jera1350

mactrail

California

3.23/5  rDev -20.6%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

Big, hoppy colorful ale.

A wild red-orange color. Nice lacing and pleasant carbonation contribute to an good mouth feel. Peculiar smell of Band Aids. Seems fairly rich and malty but very sharp with a bit much of the grapefruit peel. Hops are the big story, which I guess is one option for this "anything goes" style. To me it's more of an IPA with the big resiny flavors and long, long bitter aftertaste. Hops are actually pretty good.

Candy-like flavors are balanced by the bitterness. Makes a bold statement if you want an assertive brew. Let a couple of fingers warm up and it's a good exercise in hop tasting, whatever their blend might be.

Serving type: bottle

06-05-2011 04:12:44 | More by mactrail

LeeryLeprechaun

Colorado

2.95/5  rDev -27.5%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 3

Odell's red ale came out of the bottle an awesome red color with a fluffy off white head.

The aroma was very hoppy but present were notes of caramel and maybe some toffee.

The beer starts sweet and finishes bitter but is not very memorable in either department. This is not helped by a watery mouth feel.

The beer is pretty average overall and there are many many red ales to go for if you are looking for something impressive in the style.

Serving type: bottle

05-21-2011 01:47:33 | More by LeeryLeprechaun

bobhits

Kentucky

2.88/5  rDev -29.2%
look: 4.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5

Odell Red

Perhaps a touch old, I’ll need to look up the dating here but what appears to be the best by date of 6/15/11 so a bit too close, but we shall see. Brewer says this beer is still in the best by range so lets go!

Really nice thick head a darker cream colored head, leaving wonderful lacing on top of a dark red body. Decent clarity perhaps but this beer is rather opaque and provides a deep ruby color.

Light toast, hops, I have to say this beer really is reminding me of smelling pot (for me not a good smell).

Hoppy, watery, bready, red ale at it’s finest. A red with wonderful American hop bite that dominates the red ale’s caramel malt. I certainly have had red’s with better malt profiles, a bit more toast and caramel. The malt here is a bit weak especially given the 6.5%. The English have done far more with reds with under 5% abv, but the American hop power is rather good.

Good carbonation, somewhat thin body, extremely drinkable as it should be.

I need more malt in a red and while I enjoy the hops here am not excited by this beer. I don’t like rating to style, but keeping style in mind this beer is a weird malted IPA or an over hopped and under/poorly malted red.

Serving type: bottle

05-28-2011 17:48:37 | More by bobhits

zimmerbloke

Wisconsin

2.8/5  rDev -31.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Got this as an extra from krayziejman. Thanks, man! 12oz bottle poured into a New Belgium globe glass. Drink by date of 4/26/11.

A: Mostly translucent ruby red body topped by a one-finger off white head. Head fades quickly leaving a little bit of lacing and a solid ring.

S: Very bright hop aroma. Pretty sure this bottle is nice and fresh. Malt doesn't have much to say in the aroma, but it's generally appealing. Only moderately bitter.

T: Surprisingly, there's not much of the hop presence from the nose apparent here. There's definitely an aftertaste on here that doesn't seem quite right to me... unpleasant. Makes a claim to be aggressively hopped, but I feel like it lacks a proper blending of the hop flavors and the result is less than spectacular. Malt bill is unoffensive but also unspectacular.

M: Slightly watery and very highly carbonated, but relatively refreshing. About average for the style.

D: Enh. I could drink this to drink, but I'm not a huge fan overall. The flavor isn't great, which is my main complaint.

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2011 02:51:34 | More by zimmerbloke

tr4nc3d

Kansas

2.78/5  rDev -31.7%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

12fl oz bottle poured into my tulip

Pours a vibrant ruby like color with a three inch off-white head. Great head retention with a nice layer sticking on top and the edges of the beer. Nice layers of lacing cling to the sides of my glass.

Nice aroma of citrus hops. With some grapefruit, apricots, and some passion fruit. Bread like malts.

Very little citrus flavor in the taste unlike I got in the aroma. Some bread and cracker like malts is about the only thing I can taste. This bottle must be pretty old I guess.

Mouthfeel is borderline on thin and lacking flavor(in flavor I mean hops)with high carbonation. Aftertaste is not that pleasant either.

Overall I' am disappointed with this beer, hopefully I get to try this beer when it is more fresh.

Serving type: bottle

02-11-2010 23:10:56 | More by tr4nc3d

Buebie

Minnesota

2.7/5  rDev -33.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

Paired with meatloaf and blue cheese, supreme cuisine.

A bit pricey for a 6'er, at $10
Poured from the brown bottle into pub glass producing about 2 inches of off white foamy head. Tan really. Settling after a good amount of time to leave a thick froth cap of retention. Sticky webbings of lace. Color is a red amber, transparent.
Aroma of pungent fruity hops, sweet malt and caramel, touch of nuttiness. Hops are sweet nectar like and floral with juicy sweet aroma. definatly the showcase of the aroma profile.

Taste is not carrying over the hops from aroma. It tastes a bit more sour with more of a herbal sour hop bitterness and acidic flavor. Aspirin is one flavor that comes to mind.
mid malt sweetness present. Its flavorfull, but not flavors I particularly desire.
Mouthfeel is thin and crisp.

I feel a bit robbed of my $10.

Serving type: bottle

01-25-2011 21:36:13 | More by Buebie

SamN

Colorado

2.65/5  rDev -34.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4 | taste: 2 | feel: 3 | overall: 2

A- Bubbly, rocky just-off-tan head which leaves some beautiful lacing around my pint glass. The color is a slightly hazy reddish-brown orange. Slight visible carbonation, a very nice looking brew.

S- Caramelized hops, bitter hops, lightly toasted hops-- a lot of hops in the nose, obviously. Just behind them is a sweet malty backbone-- seamless blending of the two characteristics, it's hard to tell where exactly one ends and the other begins, and that is exceptional craftsmanship in my opinion. Just a tad too much hops for me.

T- Again, a hops forward beer. Despite the inviting and complex smell, the taste is surprisingly one-dimensional; flat hops. Metallic aftertaste, where's the counter balancing malt? Just barely any sweetness. Really, there is no depth here. Wtf, Odells? No much strength of flavor either; tastes watered down. Lacking, this beer needs to be brought up to par.

M- Like water; thin, no tensile strength noticeable. Decent coating, however, and no lingering aftertaste unpleasantness.

D- Eh. This doesn't taste that good. How can I drink a beer that doesn't taste good? I didn't buy it to look at or smell. It doesn't taste bad, it's just not good. Low drinkability in that case.

Serving type: bottle

02-24-2010 21:43:53 | More by SamN