Back Draft Fireman's Ale
Tall Tales Brewing Company

I am attempting to wrap up my Happy Trippin' Fishy Tall Tales on the Long Trail Sunday (Week 707) before it gets too late to do so. I attended a poorly-run brewfest in the rain on Sunday afternoon & it really took a lot of the steam out of me upon my return home. This is another in my ongoing mission to eradicate the Bottle Backlog here at Chez Woody.

From the Bottle: "A malty American Amber Ale with a sweet, fruity aroma. Hopped more than your standard American Amber, without being overly bitter."; "IBU 30".

I Pop!ped the cap & commenced a slow, gentle pour into the awaiting glass. The hour was quite late & I did not want to deal with any potential mess. An in-glass swirl raised two fingers of dense, foamy, light-tan head with very good retention that left a lot of lacing in its wake. Color was Deep Amber/Light Copper to Copper (SRM = > 13, < 17) with NE-quality clarity. Nose was quite sweet with a blend of caramel & treacle. Interesting. Mouthfeel was medium. The taste was malty, but not overly sweet, as they had alluded to on the label. I definitely stand behind mu initial mention of treacle as it had that kind of slightly sour-tartness & made me wonder what types of malts had been employed. I would wager English floor malts, but the label did not specify in this regard. The revamped Style Guide does not mention much in terms of taste, but during the advent of brewpubs, American Amber/Red Ales were the standard offering. They tended to be cloyingly sweet & malty, but as AIPAs slowly gained footing, they first went away & then reappeared in a hoppier form. This iteration fell somewhere between the two. It was neither overly sweet nor overly bitter. Finish was semi-sweet, but arguably semi-dry. YMMV.

Okay, why is this pouring with ridiculous amounts of soapy head? And why does it smell vaguely infected? The aroma has hints of what this beer should have been - caramel malts and piny hops in particular. But there are worrying notes of sour cherry and weird tartness, too. Somehow, it tastes worse: the pleasing (to an extent) Flemish red quality is replaced by buttered popcorn, copper pennies, and a wave of generic grassy bitterness. Oh yeah, and a touch of caramel malts. Yuck. Hey, at least it has a crisp, smooth mouthfeel that makes it "easy to drink".

Is this a bad bottle? I don't want to drink another to find out, that's for sure.

1.94/5: Why do beers that pay homage to firefighters always suck?

 

 

12 oz bottle, pours a brown color with off white head. Tasted malty, buttery, and smokiness. An interesting beer that plays well to it's name with the smoky flavors. Only reason I gave it a 3.25 overall is because I'm not a huge fan of malty beers, but this one is unique.

 

Color and head and lacing are good. Now the not so good. This is my fourth offering from this brewery and in my honest opinion, all of their beers, IPAS and others are too malt forward, and the malt taste old, overly sweet and stale. No more tries, not good brews

 

Pours a reddish brown color with almost two fingers of head. The nose has notes of caramel and some earthy tones as well. The flavor is malt forward but the semi-dry finish divulges the character of the hop profile.

 

 

 

Best beer from Tall Tales that I have had so far. Taste is caramel, toasted malt and light woodsy hops. Stays fairly true to the style, but makes for a nice and sessionable amber.

This beer was the best of the flight ordered from Tall Tales during a recent visit to Maryland. This Red Ale is slightly hoppy but very well balanced and smooth. Great taste overall and nice color.