Odell 5 Barrel Pale Ale

Brewed by Odell Brewing Company
Style: English Pale Ale
Fort Collins, Colorado USA

Looks and smells great. This is a really well done pale ale, esp. for an English one. Seems almost like an APA, sierra or something. Good stuff.

Pours with a frothy, slightly creamy consistency, initially two-finger thick, tan colored head. The beer is a lightly hazy, red tinted, full amber color. The aroma is nice and hoppy up front, about what one would expect for a hoppy pale ale. The hops are clearly American with citrus notes of grapefruit, sweet orange peel and even a touch of apricot. There are some chewy malt aromatics towards the end that remind me of caramelized crystal malts and some dry, toasty, biscuit malt character.

The taste is lightly sweet up front, more so from the citrus-like hop notes than from an overabundance of unfermented malt though. Notes of grapefruit and tangerine define the citrus components but there is a touch of herbaceous pine as well as a hint of menthol in the finish. This has a nice medium bitterness to it that causes my tongue to buzz a bit after the beer has left my mouth. The malt plays a supporting role here, but there are some noticeable toffee notes as well as a generally caramelized malt character & even some biscuit like toasted malt notes peek out from time to time.

This beer is quite light and easy drinking. I could definitely see myself knocking back a few of these during a session. Of course it is light and interesting enough to be used as that beer that one starts out the night with, before moving on to more powerful beers.

Clear amber color. Pretty big white head. Crisp hop aroma and flavor, but very simple and one-dimensional. My second beer from O’dell and both have been very average.

Pours dark straw-golden with frothy offwhite head. Hint of sedement in bottle, but stayed very clear in the glass. Tangy grass and musty mulch aromas through sweet malt. Almost chewy grassy hops fade to citrus over well balanced malt that leans slightly to bitter. Finish leaves the impression of grapefruit, light and fizzy. Excellent mouthfeel. Kinda like the 60 Minute’s kid brother.

Hazy amber appearance in the glass with a copper tint. Nice head not a pure white more of an eggshell. Lots of hops in the nose, sharp. Strong hops flavor with a hint of dark fruit and malt.

(Bottle, Stockholm Beer Festival, 6 Oct) Pale amber colour with small beige head. Fruity nose with notes of citrus (grapefruit) and pine needles. Fruity, slightly nutty, taste with grapefruit notes. Rather dry finish with a balanced hop character. Nice beer.

Pours copper with a moderate sized off-white head. The aroma is quite clean and has caramel malt and earthy / spicy hops. Medium / light body with a small amount of soft carbonation. It would have helped to have more assertive carbonation. The taste starts with dusty caramel malt and a light sourness. The finish has some spice / woody hops that are nice, but then a watery feel tarnishes the good aspects. An okay pale ale.

Pour is clear amber with a thin tan head...smell is grainy with some pine...taste is slightly hoppy and grainy with a weak bitter finish...