“It’s an ESB (Extra Special Bitter) made by Dan (the barman) and a beer that captures the essence of the man himself. Some sweetness (from the malt), a touch fruity (from the yeast esters) but mostly dry and bitter. To be any more like Dan this ESB would need to have tattoos and stay away from social media.”
Served in an English pint. Amber in appearance with a modest finger of head that takes its time to dissipate to a ring. It laced extremely well for the lack of head.
Very interesting aroma. There’s one certain element that lifts out and smacks us in the face and that is peanuts. Almost every variation of the nut is here. Be it husk, salted or crushed. It’s very prominent. The downfall would be that it almost prevents anything else from coming through. Alas, we do pick up suggestions of toasty malt, dried apricot, white bread and spicy hops, albeit conservatively. A little unbalanced but certainly appealing.
The mouth feel is dry and somewhat frothy in texture. The body is on the fuller side of medium while the 34 IBU carves out an assertive bitterness upfront. Good Co2.
The flavour combines a mix of nutty, bready and sweet malts with a touch of tangy orange citrus initially. Hints of light floral hops jag in and transition through the mid. Quite earthy as it moves forward towards a toasty/nutty finish which offers good length.
Our first crack at this breweries range. Quite a solid offering for the most part but a little lacking in others. The aroma was nice but unbalanced and the mouth feel and flavour although enjoyable, just didn’t hit home for us. Maybe a bit of a tough review but we’ll definitely be keen on trying the rest of their range.