Brakspear Bitter (Bottle)

Brewed by Brakspear (Refresh UK - Marstons plc)
Style: Bitter
Witney, England

Serve in English pint

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[Cask conditioned] Quite hoppy and smooth. A well crafted and pleasant English bitter.

500ml bottle. Clear amber colour with small frothy white head. Slightly sweet caramel malty aroma. Taste starts minerally, a grainy note comes in, prickling finish.

The Henley brewery is now closed. This brown 500ml bottle claims to be brewed in ’England for Tillverkare The Brakspear brewing Co’. Best before April 2008, drank on a wet cold July 2007 evening in my front room. I poured the bottle into one of my Duvel glasses. It looked great, a good solid foaming head, slightly off white. The beer was a lovely deep terracotta red. The aroma was of hops, malts and some barley tones too, a typical English bitter smell. Nothing very strong, but there if you search for it. Considering the 3.4 ABV, this is a very good beer, the soft roundness often found in English bitters is here in an abundance. A kind of understated fruitiness is also to be found. This is a well balanced beer, not sweet or sour, just a pleasant session beer, ideal for an afternoon in a beergarden on one of those rare sunny days we have during an English summer.

Copper coloured with a frothy off off-white head that quickly dissipates but not completely leaving a thin, almost creamy layer. Aroma of caramel, biscuits and dried apricots. The taste is well balanced, medium bitterness backed up by a robust malt sweetness. Relatively long lasting slightly bitter after-taste. Low carbonation with small bubbles. A classic bitter, perfect with a packet of Salt & Vinegar crisps.

I think the best with this beer is the bottle, not that that is that great. Lots of bitterness and not much else. Booring orangey color too. Aroma is not bad: fresh with candy and notes of malt. I have dificulties finding much else then bitterness in the taste. Should work with Swedish style crayfish.

31/III/2012 - 50cl bottle @ Klaas’ place - BB: n/a (2012-301)

Clear copper red beer, small off-white head, irregular bubbles, unstable. Aroma: nutty, caramel, bready, some mocha. MF: soft carbon, medium body. Taste: bready malts, nuts, chestnuts, toast, some caramel, bitter hops. Aftertaste: little yeasty, toast, bitter hops. Typically English, but good in it’s style. Definitely for this amount of alcohol!

Bottle. Has a clear pale bronze colour with a frothy small off-white head. The aroma is dominated by sweet malt and something that reminds me of british fudge. At first the flavours is also of sweet malt, but then some hops and hint of leather. A bit dry. Medium bitterness in the end. Soft and smooth mouthfeel. A decent british bitter, nothing more nothing less.

Bottle from ICA Maxi Lindhagen. Pours redish brown with a firm off white head. Heavy grass aroma. Taste of caramell, honney bitterness and some lemon. Smooth and medium bodied.

nose: appetizing, malty with a bit of honey. mouthfeel: Full, smooth, oily. taste: Bitter, very pleasing, with grassy notes. finish: Long lasting, dry and increasingly bitter, moreish. Not very complex but quite satisfying

Bottle. A clear copper colour with a medium high, off-white head. An aroma of malt, caramel and hops. The taste is medium sweet and medium bitter. A medium body, oily texture, soft carbonation and a medium long medium bitter duration.

Bottle from ICA Maxi, at home. Helsingborg, March 2011.
Pours golden brown with a light airy head. Aromas of bitter spicy hops and some light honey and sweet malts. Soft taste with gently carbonated medium body. Malt forwarded flavours with a light bitterness. Quite rich and full flavours, definitely one of the better low abv. beers readily available in Sweden.