Bass Pale Ale

Brewed by Samlesbury (InBev UK - InBev)
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Preston, England

Just a solid easy to drink Ale - nice amber color and a great taste and aftertaste. Might become my "old trusty"

12 oz bottle, Pours a clear copper with a moderate off white head that doesn’t persist. Very lightly carbonated. Almost no aroma, maybe a touch of carmel maltyness. Very clean light malt flavor with a touch of hop bitterness. Clean dry finish.

Light iced tea colored pour with a small white head. Nutty, bready aroma with a balance of caramel and slight spicy hops. Flavor is toasted almond, biscuit, and mild spicy hops. Medium body.

Draft beer in a pint glass. A small head which struck me as odd because I seem to remember a much larger one of these. This was an old bar standby when nothing else was on the menu. A great drinker but not much there and a bit watery. Malty and a little roasty. A good drinker when in need.

Poured draft at Mickey’s (Iowa City, IA). Pours a nice dark honey maybe orangish hue with a very nice head that sticks around. Aromas are light, with a decent caramel malt waft and some notes of a light hop character. Initial taste is underwhelming but sessionable. Medium bodied malty body that gives way to a decent hop balancing and dry bitter-esque finish. Very smooth, but dissappointing in the flavor department, especially considering it is listed as an ESB. Ok, will probably have to drink again someday.

Bottled. Not much of an aroma, maybe detected a little hops. Looks great in the glass, with a burnt orange color and strong, persistance head. Tastes of highly camelized malt, almost a burnt taste, with some faint sweetness, and a fair amount of ordinary tasting hops. A little watery and the carbination is a tad high. Used to be a favorite of mine, sorry to give it such a low score now. Better than average mass market beer, which isn’t saying much.

Copper with decent, fizzy off-white head / Simple nose of corn and caramel / Light to medium body, not much malt character, with faint, dry finish / Simple, bland flavor of grain with a faint caramel note and nothing on the dry finish / Eyes closed I’d guess it was a mass market pilsner.

Sweet and grassy hops dominate the aroma as well as the flavor. I like that the flavor of this brew so closely resembles the aroma. Nice flavor, surprisingly sweet sometimes, especially for a premium bitter. Overall a fantastic beer, surprised it’s percentile is so low.