Review: Devil's Tail Amber Ale by Funky Skunk Brewing

Funky Skunk Brewing is a Pensacola nano-brewery in planning we first covered back in January. With a view that "Every Ounce Counts" they're allowing a lucky few to taste their beer, and we were fortunate enough to get our hands on a couple bottles of Devil's Tail Amber Ale (formerly Red Dawn Amber Ale).

In brewing Devil's Tail Amber Ale owner and brew master Eddie Garrison tells us he's aiming to keep the hoppiness in check while giving the beer a nice clean finish without sacrificing aroma and flavor.

Sounds like a winner, so onto the review. As usual we're using the Beer Advocate Ratings System, and the girlfriend is half of our reviewing team.

Funky Skunk Brewing's Devil's Tail Amber Ale

Appearance: Poured a dark amber with a fingers worth of head that dissipated quickly as the beer warmed. Owner Eddie Garrison said it would be slightly darker that most amber ales, and we found that to be true. Despite the dark color the beer was clear with good carbonation. Inviting.
4.0

Smell: Slightly floral, but overall earthy with some spiciness. Difficult to pin down, but we'd go with hints of sweet basil.
3.0

Taste: Again, earthy. A little piney. Very little hoppiness, alcohol barely noticeable. Nice long finish.
4.0

Mouth Feel: Light body with moderate carbonation.
4.0

Overall Impression: This is very easy drinking beer. We opened the first bottle the night before our tasting, and it took very little time to empty our glasses (and we tend to savor our beer).

The aromas and flavors are mild, but intensify once the beer is allowed to warm. If you're taking this beer straight from the fridge to your mouth, you're not doing this beer justice.

For craft beer drinkers that complain of high alcohol content being the norm, you're in luck. Devil's Tail Amber Ale comes in at 3.9% ABV. That along with the mild flavors makes this a great session beer.
3.75

Final Score: 3.75

Comments: Right up front, this isn't our favorite style of beer. And yet we came away impressed. A refreshing, easy to drink beer that made us want to order a pizza to go along with it.

While not overly impressive at first (typical of milder beers), the more you drank, the better it got. And with low ABV, you should be able to drink quite a few.

You can follow Funky Skunk Brewing on Twitter as well as Facebook. We love good beer, and good beer brewed locally is even better.