Barley's Droughtfire IPA
Smokehouse Brewing Co.

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From:
Smokehouse Brewing Co.
 
Ohio, United States
Style:
American IPA
ABV:
7%
Score:
88
Avg:
3.98 | pDev: 7.79%
Reviews:
10
Ratings:
10
Status:
Retired
Rated:
May 15, 2011
Added:
Jan 28, 2008
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by leftmindedrighty:
Photo of leftmindedrighty
Reviewed by leftmindedrighty from New Jersey

3.53/5  rDev -11.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Enjoyed on cask at Barley's Smokehouse and Brewpub

Smell, bit citrus, leaning on grapefruit. Noticeable phenols.

Taste, bit of oxidation showing. Hops are quite forthcoming as to be expected. They go back and forth between the citrus hops and light malts. The malt body is thin, and pushed to the side though. Partially unbalanced, but the cask conditioning helped with that.

Overall, a good IPA, but the cask helped this beer a lot. And this cask show obvious signs of oxidation, which lowered its score a bit. I would love to try this beer fresh.
Jun 24, 2008
More User Ratings:
Photo of soughtbygod
Reviewed by soughtbygod from California

3.91/5  rDev -1.8%
look: 2 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
. Hard pour left barely a quarter finger of quickly dissipating head, then a thin broken layer on top of reddish medium amber cloudy body, no visible carbonatioon, flat as a pancake. Crystal malt, sweetish almost candi sugar, dominates the nose, some tropical notes, but alcohol is noticeable in the nose. Taste mirrors nose, very noticeable alcohol heat, not much bitterness on back end, once again ABV too noticeable. Mouthfeel much too light, little if effervescence with some cardboard notes. I'm gonna have a hard time finishing this bottle. Pass.
May 15, 2011
Photo of blakesell
Reviewed by blakesell from Ohio

3.85/5  rDev -3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Poured from the tap into a standard pint glass.

Appearance- Beer pours hazy and dark orange like my urine after a night smoking the dank nuggets. Head is thin and amberish with light lacing.

Smell- Hops are strong on the scent with Simcoe and I think Amarillo. Seems like some piny Cascades as well but I could be wrong. Strong malted notes on the aroma, I would assume pale malts but it smells to have wheat as well.

Taste- Fruity and light upfront with a mild hop burn quick to follow. Malts are strong and I do believe wheat is in the grist as well. Hops are the overall power and they achieve their IBU laden purpose.

Mouthfeel- A bit spicey, creamy, well carbonated and medium full bodied.

Drinkability- Much better than the cask, I could try a growler out on this one. Some things were just not meant for the cask?
Oct 06, 2008
Photo of BuckeyeNation
Reviewed by BuckeyeNation from Iowa

4.03/5  rDev +1.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Orange iced tea that lightened to clover honey amber along the bottom of the pint glass. The smoky haziness of the beer added to its attractiveness. Up top was a slim one finger of beige colored froth that lasted several minutes and left a respectable amount of spider web-like lace.

The mango fruitiness of the nose was impressive... until I realized that I was smelling the soap from my recently washed hand as I held it over the glass in a misguided attempt to concentrate the aroma. The actual nose was nothing special: modestly toasted bread with a generic fruitiness. Decent, but certainly nothing special.

The server didn't know what type(s) of hops were used, but told me she'd try to find out. As we were getting ready to go, the brewer approached the table with note pad in hand and proceeded to talk at length about this ale. Pretty cool! Magnum and Vanguard were used for bittering, Cascade was used in the late boil and it was dry-hopped with Summit and Simcoe. Equal parts American and French oak.

The flavor profile was distinctive and it took several sips to even begin to appreciate what was going on. The uniqueness of this offering was due to the oak. It didn't give the beer a woodiness, but rather a toasted and vanilla-like character that was delicious. I seriously considered the next highest flavor score.

Droughtfire IPA was nicely balanced between modestly sweet malt and modestly bitter hops. In terms of overall hoppiness, I'd put it roughly midway between a standard pale ale and a standard IPA. The orange and white grapefruitiness of Cascade were most noticeable, although the hop flavor was much more complex than a Cascade-only ale.

The mouthfeel was fantastic. It was medium-full for the style, with a luscious creaminess that hung on all the way to (and through) the longish finish. As always, a perfect amount of lively, soft-edged carbonation helped turn a good mouthfeel into an outstanding one.

It's too bad there was a long drive ahead because I could have enjoyed several more pints of Droughtfire. It may lack tongue shredding hoppiness, but it makes up for it by being one of the most original takes on the style that I've had in many, many moons. These guys should seriously think about bottling their beer.
Jun 13, 2008
Photo of genog
Reviewed by genog from Ohio

3.75/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
poured a orange/amber color with a very fluffy/sudsy white head that layered and then slowly fizzled away. Smell is very earthy, and citrusy with a slight maltiness and some faint floral notes. Taste is very similar to the aroma but not as powerful. I wish that it would have been more citrus, but caramel malt came through. Moutfeel was a little watery, and this growler went down easy.
Jun 06, 2008
Photo of prototypic
Reviewed by prototypic from Ohio

4.15/5  rDev +4.3%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Appearance: It's hazy and a really nice looking bronze/amber color. Head is vanilla colored and is about two fingers deep. It stuck around quite a while and left layered sheets of lace down the glass. Very enticing.

Smell: Initially it has a very earthy and grainy smell to it. Some citrus grapefruit and mango liven it up a bit and give it a sweet smell. There's a nice balance between malt and hops (at least it smells that way). There's a mix of sweet caramel and pale malts. Hops are citric and a little piney, but possess some floral characteristics, as well. There's an interesting, faint spicy scent that emerges late. Smells like very light clove.

Taste: The grainy and earthy characteristic makes its presence known early. Citrus grapefruit, pineapple, and mango flavors are sweet, but not very strong. They play a more complementary role and do it well. It's less fruity than most IPAs out there, but the overall flavor isn't diminished in any way. It's pretty well balanced. Caramel and pale malts seem to be pretty even. Hops are a little piney and bitter, but don't have a strong resiny taste. They definitely have a floral quality to them as well. The spicy flavor is very faint and tough to recognize. Doesn't quite taste like clove as I initially anticipated. It finishes a little dry and sweet.

Mouthfeel/Drinkability: This one lies somewhere between light and medium bodied. Carbonation feels perfect. It's certainly got a nice, smooth feel. Drinkability is very high. I'm tackling a growler alone and not having much difficulty. Good thing it's Saturday night and I've got time on my hands.

Droughtfire's a very good IPA. It doesn't have any glaring flaws to point out. I prefer IPAs to be a little more bitter, but that's just my taste. It's still a very solid that IPA that I have no reservation recommending.
Jun 01, 2008
Photo of tgbljb
Reviewed by tgbljb from Pennsylvania

4.7/5  rDev +18.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
I enjoyed this beer at the brewpub.

To me, nothing is better than a good cask-conditioned ale, and this it one of the best I have ever had. Maybe it was the result of a long day of driving, but when I had the first taste of this beer, I knew it would be a winner.

Served as a cloudy deep amber colored beer with moderate off-white head. Served at the perfect temperature.

The smell demonstrates the perfect blending of caramel, toffee, and hops.

I don't know if I ever gave an exceptional for the taste of a beer, but this one deserves it. The perfect maltiness, great caramel tastes, nice complimenting hops all combine perfectly.

Left a nice taste sensation, with enough dryness to call for another taste.

I was sorry to see the glass empty. I a, also soory I don't live closer to enjoy this beer on a more regular basis. But then, maybe this beer tasted so good because it was the first, and probably the last. time I will ever have it.
May 04, 2008
Photo of Dogbrick
Reviewed by Dogbrick from Ohio

3.68/5  rDev -7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On draught at the Smokehouse. This beer pours a lightly murky golden amber color with a medium and foamy off-white head that has decent retention. Patchy lacing on the glass. The aroma is moderately hoppy with notes of citrus and sweet fruit. Medium-bodied and zesty with hops and citrus flavors backed by a sweet malt base. The finish is clean and alternatively fruity and hoppy. The mildly bitter hops aftertaste sticks around for awhile as well. Above average all around, although of the 2 beers so far that are thumbing their noses at the hops shortage, I liked the Hop Envy a little better.
Apr 01, 2008
Photo of Osiris9588
Reviewed by Osiris9588 from Ohio

4.17/5  rDev +4.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Pours a hazy, bronze-orange. The head is somewhat slight, yet quite creamy--not much retention, and very slight lacing.

The aroma is dominated by hops and citrus, strong orange peel, with a hint of sugar and caramel, a note of ginger. The flavor follows. The hops ignite everything on the tongue, then it grows mildly sugary and sticky on the finish. It medium-bodied and very drinkable. Though quite hoppy, it definitely ain't overkill. Very fine ale.
Mar 22, 2008
Photo of jdoncbus
Reviewed by jdoncbus from Ohio

4/5  rDev +0.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Brewer's FAQ: http://barleysbrewing.com/smokehouse/beer_droughtfire_ipa.htm

Hazy gold with a two-finger head.

Nose consists of grapefruit and orange rine & lemon pepper with some carmel malt.

An almost bubble gum taste on the palate followed by a pleasing hop jab. Somewhat crisp with an oily and creamy mouthfeel that leaves a dry aftertaste.

A very enjoyable brew and look forward to having another as soon as I can get down there.
Jan 28, 2008
Barley's Droughtfire IPA from Smokehouse Brewing Co.
Beer rating: 88 out of 100 with 10 ratings