Style: Irish Red Ale
All StylesStyle Profile based on 2,202 recipes
BU:GU
0.45
Hops
3.0 g/L
Mash pH
5.50
Description
An easy-drinking pint, often with subtle flavors. Slightly malty in the balance sometimes with an initial soft toffee/caramel sweetness, a slightly grainy-biscuity palate, and a touch of roasted dryness in the finish. Some versions can emphasize the caramel and sweetness more, while others will favor the grainy palate and roasted dryness. History: While Ireland has a long ale brewing heritage, the modern Irish Red Ale style is essentially an adaptation or interpretation of the popular English Bitter style with less hopping and a bit of roast to add color and dryness. Rediscovered as a craft beer style in Ireland, today it is an essential part of most brewery lineups, along with a pale ale and a stout. Style Comparison: A less-bitter and hoppy Irish equivalent to an English Bitter, with a dryish finish due to roasted barley. More attenuated with less caramel flavor and body than equivalent-strength Scottish ales.
Examples: Caffrey’s Irish Ale, Franciscan Well Rebel Red, Kilkenny Irish Beer, O’Hara’s Irish Red Ale, Porterhouse Red Ale, Samuel Adams Irish Red, Smithwick’s Irish Ale
- 90% Pale (85%)
- 82% Crystal (10%)
- 58% Roast (2%)
- 41% Toast (11%)
% of Irish Red Ale recipes using each malt category (addition % in brackets)
g/L · median with IQR range
- 36% East Kent Goldings
- 23% Fuggles
- 11% Willamette
- 11% Cascade
- 5% Magnum (GR)
- 5% Southern Brewer
- 5% Northern Brewer (GR)
- 4% Challenger
- 3% Columbus
- 3% Centennial
% of Irish Red Ale recipes using each hop
g/L · median with IQR range
dated Irish Red Ale recipes with at least one dry-hop addition
- 14% Roasted Barley
- 10% Pale Malt, Maris Otter
- 9% American - Roasted Barley
- 9% United Kingdom - Maris Otter Pale
- 9% Pale Malt (2 Row) US
- 7% Caramel/Crystal Malt -120L
- 6% American - Caramel / Crystal 120L
- 6% Caramel/Crystal Malt - 40L
- 6% Caramel/Crystal Malt - 60L
- 5% Chocolate Malt
Colour = malt category · bar = % of recipes
- 16% SafAle English Ale (S-04) Fermentis
- 12% Safale American (US-05) Fermentis
- 12% Irish Ale (1084) Wyeast Labs
- 11% British Ale Yeast (WLP005) White Labs
- 5% LalBrew Nottingham Lallemand
- 2% California Ale Yeast (WLP001) White Labs
- 1% Irish Ale (OYL-005) Omega
- 1% American Ale (1056) Wyeast Labs
- 1% Darkness (A10) Imperial Yeast
- 1% Liberty Bell Ale (M36) Mangrove Jack
% of Irish Red Ale recipes using each strain
- 77% Single Infusion
- 20% Step Mash
- 3% Decoction
331 recipes with mash data
- 80 ppm Ca²⁺
- 5 ppm Mg²⁺
- 20 ppm Na⁺
- 75 ppm Cl⁻
- 80 ppm SO₄²⁻
- 100 ppm HCO₃⁻
median across recipes with a declared water profile
Similar Styles
Ranked by similarity across OG, IBU, ABV, hop rate, and grist composition.