Cumberland Pale Ale
Barrel House Brewing Company

Cumberland Pale AleCumberland Pale Ale
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From:
Barrel House Brewing Company
 
Ohio, United States
Style:
American Pale Ale
ABV:
4.7%
Score:
84
Avg:
3.67 | pDev: 13.9%
Reviews:
61
Ratings:
62
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Jun 21, 2012
Added:
Sep 30, 2002
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by beerman207:
Photo of beerman207
Reviewed by beerman207 from Kentucky

3.72/5  rDev +1.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Review is from notes

A- Orange with a decent head and some Heavy lacing down the glass.

S- Citrus coming through as well as orange and lemon.

T- This has a great taste to it in my opinion with some nice citrus tones coming through. I'm keeping in mind that this is a $2.99 bomber.

M- Very crisp. Carbonation is decent.

D - The drinkability is high based on price/quality. I wouldn't say it's the best APA by a long shot but if you're desperate this one can do the trick and for a low price.
Sep 03, 2009
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.25 by ortie from Kentucky

Jun 21, 2012
Photo of morimech
Reviewed by morimech from Minnesota

3.38/5  rDev -7.9%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
A little bit darker than most APAs. Amber color with two fingers of head that slowly settles to a thick cap. Just a little spotty lacing is left on the glass. The aroma is dominated by the malt. Smells more Marzen than APA with its strong caramel malt aroma. Some grapefruit from the hops as well. The taste has too much caramel malt. This malt dominates the Cascade hops. Bitterness is there so you know the hops got added to this beer but they are just not making their presence known in the flavor. The body is a little bigger than most and is nicely carbonated. A decent brew and I would try again if I knew it was really fresh.
Aug 26, 2010
Photo of Beejay
Reviewed by Beejay from Virginia

3.65/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
A: Straw in color, like apple juice. Not a whole lot of head here, but what was there was white. This beer is crystal clear.. Beautiful.

S: A good bit of malt, some caramel, and then the hops.. Not overpowering at all... This one is a close sniffer.. gotta get close to really pick out the nuances of it.

T: A nice caramel note as well as some malty goodness sets a very nice backbone for the hops. Hops come in the middle to the finish and I taste a lot of grapefruit and citrus. Overall it is clean and refreshing, but there is something about the hops that I am not in love with, which is odd, since I have recently become a big fan of Cascade in general.

M: Very clean finish, maybe a tad high on the carbonation. but overall pretty good.

D: One of the local brews I can be proud of. Unfortunately still not widely distributed, but sure tastes good.
Dec 02, 2009
Photo of currysage1
Reviewed by currysage1 from Maine

2.8/5  rDev -23.7%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Bottle received as part of the Little Guy BIF, thanks nlmartin!

Look is a hazy burnt orange, topped with a non stop flow of volcanic slight off white head, takes forever to sink, so long I had to start in a Harpoon Leviathan snifter and had to also use a imperial pint to help finish the pour.

Smell is of orange kool-aid, dried grass, not much else going on here to be mentioned.

Taste is defintely grassy, almost hay-like, I have to say it reminds me of one of my first extract beers, not that great but drinkable. Unfortunately it seems unbalanced with not much to offer but one dimensional flavors, on the up side this on is much better than the Hefe I've had from them.
Jul 27, 2009
Photo of jsh420
Reviewed by jsh420 from Illinois

3.65/5  rDev -0.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
after drinking the dortmunder for barrel house i thought i try more since they dont distribute in IL. anymore and whats on the self is it

pours copper with a huge head (so pour slowly)- also poured out some yeast that was in the bottle that left floaties

smell/taste - was much like their dortmunder spiced apples with a decents malts and light grasy hops

mouthfeel/drinkability is very light and refreshing good carbonation that leaves a dry crisp finish

overall - this beer is not really a pale ale but still it is very tasty and will buy more of these while supplies last
May 17, 2009
Photo of dakid618
Reviewed by dakid618 from Illinois

2.26/5  rDev -38.4%
look: 3 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
Poured from 22oz bottle into pint glass. Tons of soapy head, took me ten minutes to fill my glass. Hazy amber color with some sediment in the bottom of the glass. Smells like a skunked adjunct beer. Taste is way malt heavy and bitter. Medium waxy mouthfeel. Drinkabilty is lacking also. I split this beer with someone and I don't even want to finish my half. Overall a complete letdown.
Mar 06, 2009
Photo of MuchoCerveza
Reviewed by MuchoCerveza from Ohio

3.28/5  rDev -10.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
I didn't know what to expect from this pale ale going into it, and overall it was average. At first smell you can tell that this is not going to be a real strong ale. Even from the smell you could tell it was going to have a somewhat watered down taste.

Taking a big swig and exhaling you could really taste the hops but as soon as you swallow the swig the flavor is gone. I was expecting some aftertaste and lingering flavor, but got none. The watered down taste was definitely there.

The best thing this pale ale had going for it was the fact that it was pretty easy to drink. It went down like a regular light beer but with a bigger kick.

If there are other options to be drank I recommend one of the other options.
Feb 07, 2009
Photo of Goliath
Reviewed by Goliath from Illinois

2.98/5  rDev -18.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
Pours a clear copper color with a one inch off white head. Decent retention and some nice lacing.

The aroma is decent. A nice citrusy hop with a malty backbone.

The taste is ok. A decent hop presence giving mostly pine notes followed by a bit of caramel. It tastes watered down and soapy. A decent bitterness is also available on the finish.

Mouthfeel is medium bodied and moderately carbonated.

Drinkability is moderate. It's certainly a sessionable beer, however the flavor profile seems a bit boring and has some sizeable flaws.
Jan 08, 2009
Photo of FtownThrowDown
Reviewed by FtownThrowDown from Ohio

3.9/5  rDev +6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
Pours amber in color with a nice fluffy inch of head. Smell is bittering hops. Taste is bittering hops and a bit of a butterscotch flavor. The hops have more of a bittering mouthfeel than a bitter flavor. You can feel it more than you can taste it. Plenty of nice webbing on the glass. This a full bodied and incredibly creamy, smooth pale ale. That is its best quality. The hopping could be more flavorful, but it's nice to see Barrel House back to putting out decent beer.
Sep 20, 2008
Photo of beerkittycat
Reviewed by beerkittycat from Minnesota

3.2/5  rDev -12.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
Appearance is amber-orange with a frothy off-white head. Good lacing. Noticeably cloudy. Aroma has some faint citrus and grassy hops plus malt notes of toffee, caramel and graham cracker. Malt takes center stage in the taste here and it's quite heavy on the toffee flavor with notes of chocolate, and graham cracker. Medium-low hop flavors of grass and citrus as well as medium low hop bitterness, too. Finish is a bit on the sweet side but very drinkable. Overall, a decent beer but this tasted much more like an English Pale.
Sep 13, 2008
Photo of ballewblake
Reviewed by ballewblake from New Jersey

3.41/5  rDev -7.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3
poured into a pint glass from bottle.

Two finger head on pour. Tanish head in color, spongy on retreat, sea water lacing on the glass. Copper in color, transparent with good carbonation and a few floaters in there. Got some pine in the aroma and yeasty esters. Clean and carbonated on the tongue, with primarily earthy hops, sweet malts barred in there. Easy on the palette, more drinkable as it warms up.
Aug 14, 2008
Photo of beachbum1975
Reviewed by beachbum1975 from Ohio

3.03/5  rDev -17.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 2.5
Got this puppy at Jungle Jim's in Fairfield on a beerrun some time in June. No freshness date on the 22 oz bomber.

A: This guy about exploded into my traditional pint glass after a normal pour. I let it sit out about 10 mins after getting it out of the beer fridge. The head on this guy initially poured at about 5 fingers! Fizz bomb. After about a minute, the suds died down leaving an offwhite receeding head that looked like a bubbling pancake - right before you flip it over. After the suds died down a nice ½ chunky off-white head remained, sitting atop a dull yellowish/dark amber brew... Spotty lacing hung from the walls of the glass as well -looks nice now that it's calmed down.

S: Smells of a moderately caramelized malts mixed with a mild and fruity hops trail. A bit of light yeast (like bleached white bread yeast), as well.

T/M: Onto the fun part... Much like the nose - caramel, light molasses and bready yeasts followed by a light and sour hop dribble to finish it off. The aftertaste, like many of this brewer's beers have a lingering copper or metallic aftertaste to me.

I have had this on draught and feel the metallic-notes are less in the bottle format. With the metallic ending, I also pick up on a mild pine pitch lingering that's odd and drying - almost like the taste that lingers in your mouth after you rub up and or lick your spouse's armpit in the heat of the moment. (he he, sorry - couldn't think of a better example - couldn't resist!!!).

Overall, this is a nice light-bodied example of a pale ale with ample carbonation. The dryness factor in the aftertaste kinda turned me off, but it made me crave more of the beer, as I felt very thirsty. Ok, overall.
Aug 07, 2008
Photo of MuenchenerKindl
Reviewed by MuenchenerKindl from Germany

4.18/5  rDev +13.9%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Poured from a bomber to a pint glass the liquid is a brownish copper with great carbonation. The head is huge 3 fingers, off white and leaves exceptional lace.

The smell is quite hoppy its big earthy tones could pass for a DIPA.

The taste is very nice, big hoppy taste earthy notes as well as a slight nuttiness. Quite a flavorful brew and a surprise at under 5%.

The mouthfeel is big and thick, drinkable note sticky with excellent carbonation.

The drinkability of this brew is outstanding one might think it is a much bigger brew. Prosit und Zum Wohl. MK
Aug 04, 2008
Photo of Spidey13
Reviewed by Spidey13 from Kentucky

4.1/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Cumberland Pale Ale pours a clear, light bronze-amber with a nice, pillowy off-white head that sticks around and leaves lots of nice lacing on the glass. Spicy and citrussy hops show up on the nose. The taste starts with some nice sweetness and fruitiness, followed by spicy hoppiness and a mild bitterness that sticks around long enough to be interesting but not so long that it gets annoying. The mouthfeel is a bit fuller than what I expected with a medium/high amount of carbonation.

I really liked this beer, and the low ABV makes it very sessionable. I could have drank a few more.
Jun 26, 2008
Photo of gford217
Reviewed by gford217 from Georgia

3.36/5  rDev -8.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
22oz bomber courtesy of SixPackSunday poured into a snifter

Pours a hazy golden orange with a big three finger head that shows strong retention as some minimal lacing. It smells very light and fruity, like applesauce, with a good bit of light grains. Taste is also very light with grains and a very faint hop presence dominated by light fruits. Mouthfeel is very light with heavy carbonation - crisp and clean. This beer is fairly drinkable despite being relatively nondescript in terms of taste and mouthfeel.
May 25, 2008
Photo of Shiredave
Reviewed by Shiredave from New York

4.02/5  rDev +9.5%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4.5
Nice big bottle with lots of info about the beer and brewery - and a story about how Ohio brewers ceated the Tennessee Pale Ale with lots of hops as preservative for the long trip along the Cumberland Gap...not sure if its a joke or they are really serious. Im pretty sure cascade hops werent available back then but maybe imported Fuggles or the local wild hops were good... but i digress.
This one gushed straight from the fridge - should have let it warm a bit before poppin that cap I guess as evidently this is at least somewhat bottle conditioned - or overconditioned / primed in this bottles case. A tall, 3/4 pint head resulted over a pale amber, slightly hazed beer. The dense foam was ooey gooey that it created a volcano as I topped the glass off - with more foam and a little beer.
Big blast of hop - Cascade according to the bottle and very typical - but good in an ordinary, "Iv'e smelled this before" kind of way. The hop nose disappears rather quickly replaced by faint sweet honey and grass notes.
Flavors are nearly absent at first - very English Bitter-like in its watery mouth feel. As it sits on the tongue, a soft toasted malt character comes through with softer fruit notes of melon and apple. Bittering kicks in at the back end with a nice grassy hop bite and lingering bitterness at the back of the troat.
A very British type experience despite the overcarbonation ( which blew off quickly) and very quaffable being under 5%.
May 25, 2008
Photo of dmamiano
Reviewed by dmamiano from West Virginia

3.81/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4
This was an amazing beer at the start..biggest head I have seen to date. It was thick, actually chunky as it sat on the beer. It actually heald to the sides of the glass in chunks as I drank the beer.
Color was a clear, goled color. Well carbonated.
Grainy malts came through in the nose, some hoppyness, although not as much as I expected and hints of metallic.
Initial taste was of "rounded" malty smoothness, smooth on the tongue and a bitter finish. A bit of cidery aftertaste noted too.
Good beer in my opinion.
Mar 09, 2008
Photo of ZimZamZoom
Reviewed by ZimZamZoom from West Virginia

3.82/5  rDev +4.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pretty bronze color, with a head that comes rushing up the glass like a runaway science experiment. Literally 6 inches of head in the pint glass. The head holds on to the rim of the glass as it shoots an inch above. Big and rocky, nothing is lost down the outside.

Aroma is fruity, not the citrus variety. Almost a strawberry quality to it. Some earthy malt in the background but this is all about the hops. Taste is fruity again, with a bit of hop bitterness upfront that brings you into a quick finish. I do get some lingering bitterness and also some of the fruitiness lingers on.

Medium bodied, nicely carbonated, despite the huge head. This is an easy drinker.
Mar 09, 2008
Photo of becktone
Reviewed by becktone from Ohio

4.1/5  rDev +11.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
Eye: This is one great looking beer. Cumberland pours a very nice and clear orange gold in color and presents an extremely creamy head with some great lacing and good retention.

Nose: Good hop aroma backed by a strong malt backbone in this APA. Citrusy aromas from cascade hops are apparent. Malt aroma is a bit grainy, with hints of some caramel sweetness. Smell reminds me a lot of just plain two row malt before it has been crushed. Very clean and all in all pretty good, wish it were(as a whole)a bit more potent though.

Tongue: Very clean taste. Malt flavor is there in just enough amounts to give support to the hops. Hop flavor and bitterness is right on-citrus. The malt character is a bit different than I've ever tasted in an APA, and I do like its unique quality that it brings to the table. The flavor is a subdued sweetness, that's not quite all that sweet. Grain flavor would be a much more accurate description. It almost tastes like I've put pale ale malt into my mouth and chewed it up(I often do this when brewing to help me to learn the various malts a bit better). There is also a woody aspect to the flavor of this brew. Finally a malt sweetness, very short lived but it is there and then gone again before the grain-like flavors take over. This is a unique beer, that I find very enjoyable.

Mouthfeel and Drinkability: This brew is medium in body and is accordingly carbonated. The mouthfeel is nicely balanced with the flavor, each complimenting the other. Nothing really special though, just what one would expect. This is a beer I think I'll definitely be coming back to. This is a very good APA, and I'm always up for supporting local brewers.
Mar 06, 2008
Cumberland Pale Ale from Barrel House Brewing Company
Beer rating: 84 out of 100 with 62 ratings