Miasmatic Review

O'Hara's Irish Stout

Tonight we hit one more beer towards Petey reaching the mythical Full Enabler status. For tonight we review O’Hara’s Irish Stout by the Carlow Brewing Company, Stanton Road, Carlow, Ireland.

The delivery method was an 11.2 fl. Oz./330 ml brown bottle. The label is black with golden Celtic designs on the edge of the labels. The name of the beer is in a Celtic style font in the middle. Under the name it states, “A full bodied and luxuriously smooth stout with a discernible roast bite.” Across the top it proudly proclaims “imported from Ireland.”

It is black, like a dark coffee. Light barely passes through the beer, and when it does there is a crimson tint to it. A thick tan head forms when the beer is poured. It fades slowly to a film on the top of the beer. There is some lacing on the side of the glass.

The smell is a rich blend of a dark roasted coffee with cream. There is a touch of a chocolate undertone to it. The scent reminded me of a Starbuck’s Frapuccino. The scent was so inviting I could hardly wait to taste it. When I took my first sip, I was kind of disappointed. It didn’t live up to the smell. The taste was a dry mixture of roasted coffee and chocolate malts. There is a mild bitterness to the finish. As the beer warms closer to room temperature the flavors open up even more.

In contrast to what the label claims, this is a medium bodied beer. There is barely any creaminess to it that is normally associated with stouts.

When I took my first smell of this beer, I was greeted with such a phenomenal scent that I was sure this was going to be one of the best stouts I’ve had in a long, long time. However, the taste did not match the scent and I was disappointed. There is a good taste to it, but it just didn’t live up to the smell. With a 4.3% ABV, I could see sitting with friends and drinking this in an evening at the pub. I give it 6.5 out of 10.