Dirty Helen Brown Ale
Barley Island Brewing in Noblesville, Indiana, United States 🇺🇸
Brown Ale Regular Out of Production|
Score
6.22
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Sweet tasting malty brew, medium hop bitterness. Dirty Helen, legendary tavern owner, supposedly could outswear anybody in town. An American original, just like our tavern style brown ale.
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5.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 5.5
12oz bottle. Unfiltered deep brown body. Big, foamy off-white/beige head. Has the same overcarbonated, potentially infected taste and mouthfeel their other bottles have had. Tastes like it would have been a decent beer. If you can’t bottle without infection maybe you shouldn’t bottle.
Tried
from Bottle
on 06 Oct 2013
at 18:52
6.9/10
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Appearance 10
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
12 oz. bottle, $9.50/6pack at Binny’s. Popped when the Colts drew first score. Pours a big tan head over a brown body what shows light though as ruby highlights. Hell, as fine-looking a beer in this style as I know. Smell is mostly brown malts, a bit of Crystal, and this is a new enough bottle that I get some nice grassy fresh hops smell. Taste is lighter than the Newcastle minikeg I’ve been draining; a bit more caramel with a hint of coffee. No distractions in this beer travels from my lips to my throat. Just a darn fine brown ale.
Tried
from Bottle
on 07 Feb 2010
at 19:50
6.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 8
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
On tap at the Bloomington Beer Festival. Poured chestnut with a light brown head. Aroma was malty with a bit of an acidic coffee bite. Flavor was well balanced with malty flavor that dominates a lesser bitter hop flavor.
Tried
from Draft
on 26 Oct 2009
at 17:52
6.3/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6
Bottled at Monk’s Café Wallingatan, Stockholm. Clear reddish brown, small head. Roasty, dusty and nutty, Dry with slim, rounded body. Mild roasty maltiness. Pleasant but inexciting brown ales without any real discerning features.
Tried
from Bottle
on 07 Sep 2009
at 11:24
5.5/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 5
Texture 6
Overall 5
Bottle. Dirty brown pours with a substantial, but diminishing tan head. The aroma is malty with notes of roasted malts, chocolate and nuts. Hint of metal. The flavor is moderately sweet, lightly bitter and lightly acidic. The finish remains sweet with a slight tartness and only a hint of bitterness. Medium body with a lively carbonation and watery texture. Off flavors of butterscotch and metal.
Tried
from Bottle
on 20 Nov 2008
at 21:32
6.4/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 5
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 6.5
Typical brown ale aromas. Dark brown color with a beige ring for head. Medium to full body with fizzy/creamy carbonation. Flavor is roasted caramel with a good amount of non-descript bitter. It’s "sweet", but not very. The bitter tends to balance it out. More like an APA where the malt got a little too intense. It does seem a tad floral, so that may suggest English similarities. It’s a damn good drink, and I suggest it is somewhat underrated.
Tried
on 01 Mar 2008
at 20:27