Red duck ‘Tiger Mountain’ Limited release espresso ESB

Rating:

imageWe bought this beer because 1. Red duck are bloody awesome and 2. We have never before tried or even heard of an espresso ESB. Don’t you just love craft beer? So, the Tiger Mountain name comes about by the addition of “a lot of Single Estate, Tiger Mountain coffee” which is all locally sourced and roasted then delivered to the boys at Red Duck on the day of the brew. Nice!

Now let’s get stuck in, we served this in a pint glass. Very deep, tawny appearance which reveals a gorgeous ruby red hue when held against the light. Compact head, reducing almost instantly to a fine dusting on top. Laces poorly. The espresso features firmly on the nose with its big, rich bitterness. Underneath the immense espresso aromas quietly and patiently sit roasty wafts of dark malts, charred wood, honeycomb, dark chocolate and cocoa. There’s also quite a prominent malt sweetness in here too. Nice depth and complexity. The mouth feel is creamy with a light tickling carbonation. Mild-medium body. As to be expected, espresso dominates the front-palate. Some nice roasty and earthy flavours begin to open up through the mid-palate which in turn delivers a roasted finish with a delicious espresso bitterness on the back end. Coffee flavours hang on for a while displaying lengthy duration. 5.2% ABV. Essentially, a pretty good brew. Espresso is front and centre, backed up by a good balance of roasty malts and earthy hops. Another fine addition to this breweries mammoth range of beers.