Irish Pale Ale Challenge - QF4 - A twisted sail, full of hops

Quarter Final 4 
Hilden Brewing Co Twisted Hop 4.7% abv 50cl €3.49
Galway Bay Full Sail IPA 5.8% abv 50cl €3.29

I've had both of these before and I enjoyed both of them. The Hilden I had last summer and I liked it but I didn't love it, although it did win a big competition last year, so what do I know. The Full Sail I had recently on draught in Against the Grain, and it was a tasty drop.

Galway Bay Full Sail IPA
This is yummy, lots of hops (I guess from the dry hopping) and a lovely bitter finish. Just enough malt to give it a bit of balance.

Hilden Brewing Co Twisted Hop
Oh, this is quite different. Lighter in colour then the Full Sail, it's much more subtle. The hops are less pronounced but the malt is fuller so it's nicely balanced.

Winner - Full Sail
I like the Twisted Hop but the Full Sail is bigger and butcher and that's how I likes it.

Irish Pale Ale Challenge - QF3 - Carlow Crackers

Quarter Final 3
O'Hara's Double IPA 7.5% abv 50cl 
O'Hara's Irish Pale Ale 5.2% abv 50cl

This is going to be tough. I love the standard Irish Pale Ale. In my first (I)PA competition it was beaten in the semis by Punk from brewdog, which was a tough call at the time and probably even tougher now. I also like Pale Ale on draught on the odd occasion I can find it.

The Double IPA I know nothing about, although I do love a strong hoppy IPA so I reckon this could be close if the Double IPA is on its game.

By the way the O'Hara's website lists the IBUs of the two beers as follows: Irish Pale Ale (50 IBU), Double IPA (60 IBU).

Double IPA
Plenty of head (steady) on show, this is a slightly deeper amber colour. Oh God, this is good. Plenty of hops, a touch of balancing malty sweetness and a long dry finish. Reminds me of those strong American IPAs that have won the last two competitions.

Irish Pale Ale
Medium amber colour and another decent head. This is a very solid pale ale, some nice hops, decent balance and a lively bitter finish.

Winner  -  Double IPA
It had to be this way. As much as I like the Irish Pale Ale, the Double IPA knocks it into a cocked hat. At the moment it's a serious contender to be the big Kahuna, the way the draw is looking. That reminds me - I'd better do the draw, TTFN.

Irish Pale Ale Challenge - QF2 - From the wilds of Donegal

Quarter Final 2
Kinnegar Scraggy Bay India Pale Ale 5.3% abv 50cl €3.69
Kinnegar Limeburner Pale Ale 4.7% abv 50cl €3.69

I met the lovely people from Kinnegar at the Craft Beer fest this year and I tried their Amber and Rye Ales of which the Rye (Rustbucket) was the pick of the bunch. A while later I tried the Limeburner and it was OK. Now it's time to try the Pale Ales against each other. For a change, Herself was about so I got her reviews too.

Limeburner
Herself - She wasn't a fan - "Boring." It's certainly true that in recent years she needs a bit more oomph and complexity to satisfy her. "Vanilla" beers just don't do it...
YHB - Not bad, some subtle citrus flavours, but maybe a little underwhelming. Not a lot of hops here, but pleasant and easy drinking. 

Scraggy Bay
Herself - better. Complex, but wouldn't drink a lot of it.
YHB - Good, a little more complex but not a lot of finesse, with a decent bite of hops but not a massive offset of malt.

Winner - Scraggy Bay
Probably only because I tend to prefer a beefier ale. The Limeburner would do a lot of people well. With hindsight I should have included the Rustbucket as I'd say it might have the beating of both the ales above. 

Irish Pale Ale Challenge - QF1 - On the Mountain

Quarter Final 1*
Mountain Man Green Bullet 4.0% abv 33cl €2.69
Mountain Man Hairy Goat  4.5% abv 33cl €2.69

I reviewed the Green Bullet before and liked it although I did opine that the flavour was quite delicate and that the Hairy Goat might be a better bet for the gentleman (or lady) who prefers a bigger bolder pale ale. Let's see if I was right...

Green Bullet
This ale is quite pale in the glass, a slightly cloudy lager colour.  As before the flavour is subtle but pleasant with some gentle hoppy notes, but the finish is a touch bitter. I suppose this would be a session ale at a light 4% abv and it's probably something you could drink a lot of, if you had a mind to.

Hairy Goat
This presents with a deep amber hue in the glass and there's a lot more going on here. Bigger, hoppier and with a fuller and more integrated hoppy finish. A solid IPA from the Corkmen.

Winner - Hairy Goat
There's not much in this, I have to admit but I'm going to go for the Hairy Goat because I prefer the bigger, beefier ales.

My next task is to assemble the 16 (currently 15) beers into a draw, and attempt to seed a few of my favourites...

*Both beers purchased from Baggot St wines

Irish Pale Ale Challenge - Intro **Updated**

Hola Amigos, I know it's been a while since I rapped at ya but I'm three weeks into a new job and I'm working my ass off and traveling to the farthest reaches of the planet (well Bristol, anyway).

Anyhoo, I've been thinking about another beer competition and given the recent explosion in Irish craft beers (see posts passim), and my love of Pale Ales, it behooves me to make the next contest one for Irish Pale Ales.

I think I'm going to allow multiple entries from one brewery, so where two IPAs are available, I'm going to run them off against each other in the first round. This might mean that one of the favourites, OHara's Irish Pale Ale could be out in the first round!

Note: It's obviously impossible to choose the best Irish pale ale. What I'm really trying to do, I suppose, is to find my favourite Irish pale ale. If your tastes in Pale ales are similar to mine then you should enjoy the journey, if not, well, I don't know what to tell you.

**Update - I've found a 16th Irish Pale Ale  - Boom IPA from the Stone Barrel Brewing company

So far I've got the following, and have provisionally paired them as follows:

Smithwicks Pale Ale 4.5% abv 50cl €2.80
Galway Hooker Irish Pale Ale 4.4% abv 50cl €3.19

Kinnegar Scraggy Bay India Pale Ale 5.3% abv 50cl €3.69
Kinnegar Limeburner Pale Ale 4.7% abv 50cl €3.69

Trouble Brewing Sabotage IPA 5.5% abv 50cl €3-59
Black's Kinsale Pale Ale 5.0% abv 33cl €2.69 

O'Hara's Irish Pale Ale 5.2% abv 50cl €2.99
O'Hara's Double IPA 7.5% abv 50cl €3.89

Whitewater Brewery Hoppelhammer IPA 6% €3.47
Stone Barrel Boom IPA 5.0% abv 50cl €3.59 

Mountain Man Green Bullet 4.0% abv 33cl €2.69 
Mountain Man Hairy Goat  4.5% abv 33cl €2.69

Porterhouse Hop Head 5.0% abv 33cl €2.10
8 Degrees Brewing Howling Gale Ale 5.0% 33cl

Hilden Brewing Co Twisted Hop 4.7% abv 50cl €3.49
Galway Bay Full Sail IPA 5.8% abv 50cl €3.29


Other beers considered/discarded

Metalman Pale Ale (available in bottles?)
Galway Bay Voyager IPA (seasonal?)
Franciscan Well IPA (If I can find it)
Hilden Brewing Co Headless Dog (Is a Pale Ale?)

I'll be drinking them over the next few weeks...

The one in which I go mad for the hops

I got all  of the above in Baggot St Wines, apart from the Big Job, which I think came from Tesco, cos that's where I have previously purchased its little brother - Proper Job. The only new brewery to me here is Founders Brewery, from Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Founders All Day IPA 4.7% abv  €2.99
Pours a deep amber colour. Wow! surprisingly big and hoppy; and delicious with it. Not sure I'd drink it all day but it's a solid entry in the Pale Ale pantheon. Probably one for those who dig American style IPAs, I reckon. 

Founders Dry Hopped Pale Ale 5.4% abv  €2.99
Well this is totally different. Subtle citrus hop flavours and a little malt to balance it out. To be honest, it's not doing a lot for me. I thought dry hopping added hoppiness but this seems a bit gentle for my rough and ready palate. 

St Austell Big Job 7.2% abv  €??
I really wanted to like this; I've had their Proper Job and it's OK, nothing special. Unfortunately this tasted like a slightly stronger version of the Proper Job, which is to say it didn't taste of a whole heck of a lot. Not offensive but a bit bland. 

Mountain Man Hairy Goat  4.5% abv  €2.69
I bought this because , although I liked their Green Bullet, I found it a bit delicate. The Goat is a bit beefier, a bit more flavoursome and I liked it too. Again, not an ale if you want a hop-bomb, but perfect when you want an Irish ale that's a touch subtle. 

BrewDog Dog Wired Imperial Pilsener 6.8% abv €4.39
This was a bit of a curates egg. A strong Pilsner with lots of atypical hops (Nelson Sauvin and Montueka). It wasn't unpleasant but it didn't work for me. Your mileage may vary.

Odell St Lupulin Extra Pale Ale 6.5% abv  €4.15
Perfectly fine but nothing to write home about. Some tasty hoppiness and good mouthfeel but there wasn't enough oomph for me, which I tend to expect from strong Odell ales. I had their IPA again recently and it is just divine.

Three new Irish Pale Ales

I bought these three pretties in Baggot Street Wines last week and am only getting around to trying them now. Herself is out, the boy is in bed and Moonrise Kingdom in on the telly.

I'm starting with the weakest in strength, which seems to me to be the logical and indeed the fairest approach. I'll freely admit that for me with IPAs, stronger is better. Not by definition, but historically I tend to prefer stronger IPAs to their weaker cousins.

Mountain Man Green Bullet 4% abv €2.69
With the above admission I'm not holding out much hope for this ale. However, I'm enjoying this. It's delicate but well balanced. The blurb on the bottle mentions "subtle notes of pine and lemon", and I'll buy that. It's not a beer for those who want a big hoppy citrus bomb (see previous posts) , but could be a welcome change of pace when something lighter is required. I must try their Hairy Goat which is an English style IPA, at a decent 4.5% abv and with hindsight would have made a better match for the two ales below.  

Kinnegar Limeburner Pale Ale 4.9% abv €3.99
M'colleague and I tried a couple of Kinnegar's beers at the recent Craft Beer fest and loved their Amber and Rye ales respectively. As expected, the extra alcohol gives this a little kick. It's slightly sweet, the fruit is understated; the hops, present and correct, but not bitter. I like it, it's light and refreshing but, if I had the choice I'd go for their Rustbucket Rye ale. 

Black's Kinsale Pale Ale 5% abv €2.69
Wow, lots of tropical fruit on the nose, and not a little on the palate, unsurprisingly. I like this style of pale ale (like Thornbidge Kipling and Kona Big Wave), but it may be too fruity for some.