BridgePort ESB

Brewed by BridgePort Brewing (Gambrinus Company)
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Portland, Oregon USA

Serve in English pint

A road soda in Montana after buying this at Topper’s. A well done ESB and would love to have this on tap one day. Page 80 of Michael Jackson’s Great Beer Guide and only 454 of his 500 Classic Brews to go.

UPDATED: OCT 14, 2007 I can’t really understand my notes for this beer. My guess is that it was so bad that I lost the capability to write in a coherent manner, as if the sudden shock had dislodged some component in my brain necessary to basic English. Here’s how the note begins: “Workshop cellar tan”, somehow scribbled to deny the plurality of workshops, or under the belief that some law had mandated a single decorative color for all workshops, assuming we could even define a workshop. My own personal image puts it like as a brick building somewhere near the North Pole filled with pygmies armed with hammers and screwdrivers. Why this meant brown to me at some time is completely baffling. It goes on “Head is abandoned farm tool brown” suggesting that the moment a plough is dropped from a farmer’s hand it takes on a unique hue particular only to those farm tools tossed aside by negligence or forgetfulness, or the sad story of the past bowing to modernity. A blue malaise of depression I can see, but a shade of brown does not make sense. I think at the time I meant “rust”, but apparently that was too clear and to the point. The scribbling continues with a long list of adjectives that really mean nothing. Sudsy, hoppy, malty, chalky, simple. Fine, that’s all I need. This beer was so unremarkable that my mind drifted into some kind of arcane cloud. The taste was bitter, flat, sterile and even “apertured”. I guess there was no way I could end the review on a logical note with such a strong start. Anything that could send me careening into such a hazy daze was probably not very good, nor worthy of any merit. Maybe it’s the style, but other Bitters I had tended to at least hit with a “twang” that caught my attention. But this? This was like a municipal neighborhood meeting – devoid of meaning, made entirely of formality and precedent, and brewed with a touch of pettiness. Blech.

Poured from a bottle. Poured an amber color. There was a nice bitter taste in the finish. A good, solid ESB.

Clear amber wtih short, off-white head. Malty aroma with notes of caramel and toast and some ripe apple. The flavor, too, is malty sweet, moderately so hinting at apples. Bitter finish, again moderately so. Medium body with smooth texture and lively carbonation. Bitter aftertaste. The flavors are more forward than other ESBs and the apple tartness and bitter hops clash in the finish.

Bottle. Pours clear copper with a foamy off-white head. Aroma is malty, slightly grassy, slightly spicy, and noticeable English-style hops. Flavor is English-style hops at the front, with a robust malty backbone, and a moderately bitter finish. Understated and sessionable yet complex. Probably tied with Fullers ESB for my favorite ESB; in comparison, this one is less sweet and more hoppy. Recommended.

Beer has a really good taste. Good balance of flavors, not too hoppy or malty.

Overrated. I love BridgePort, but this did not sit well at our table. I think it’s a bit too Red Hook-ish.

Pours a rich, red-brown with a thick beige head; good lacing. Aromas of malt, nuts, and grass with a bit a spice; noticeable hop bouquet. Flavor of hops at front balanced with a bit of malty sweetness. Could stand to have more body and/or a more complex palate. Finishes very clean. Pretty good but I think I’ll stick with Fuller’s ESB in the future.