REVIEW: Oaken Barrel Brewing Company Gnaw Bone

TL;DR summary: No.

Beer style: Pale Ale

ABV 5.8%

What I paid: It was a gift

How it came (packaging): 1 x 12oz

Brewery link: http://www.oakenbarrel.com/

About the Beer:

This one came to me as a part of a gift from the homeland. I don’t know too much about Oaken Barrel Brewing, other than they’re a smaller brewpub in a suburb of Indianapolis. Their website is sparse, and you have to look at the PDF of their menu or crawl through Untappd (linked from their site) if you want information about the beer. The sparse description on the menu  lists Gnaw Bone as a Hophead’s delight. So I’m expecting a hoppy APA.

Color/appearance: orange gold, slightly cloudy, thin white head, disspated quickly

Aroma: sweet citrus, orange, bread

Mouth feel: light bodied

Flavor: immediate hop blast. Tea, buried malt notes, smoky finish. A little soapy.

Notes: It seriously tastes like unsweetened tea, only bitter. It’s kind of like a an IPA gone bad I guess. It smells good.  It’s like they tried so hard to jump on the extreme hop wagon that they forgot that beer should actually taste good.

Summary: I don’t know what’s happening here. Gnaw Bone smells wonderful, with lots of citrusy goodness. When I took my first taste I was kicked in the face with hop bitterness, but the flavor just dies out and winds up tasting like unsweetened iced tea. I feel like maybe they were so concerned about the hop profile that they forgot to make the rest of the beer. This is a pretty big disappointment. In no way, shape or form would I recommend this beer. Go get something from one of the numerous other Indiana brewers instead.

Rating : 1.5 (it smells good at least)

1 – avoid

2 – if it’s the only choice, I guess

3 – a decent beer. Drinkable.

4 – good beer – hard to turn down

5 – great beer - One of my favorites, pour me another.

Style: 1