Burton Bridge Empire Ale

Brewed by Burton Bridge
Style: English Strong Ale
Burton-on-Trent, England

Serve in English pint, Trappist glass

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This dingy golden beer has a small layer of off white suds. Some nice cinnamon spice in the aroma. A bit of yeast. That spice also comes out in the taste with nice gentle fruit and light bitterness. Hops are complex and delightful. Some alcohol warming. A well brewed beer that was enjoyed.

Light amber pour in the glass with a very thick head. Nose and taste is bitter hops. Rated 9/28/2000

Bottle conditioned, 500ml from the Real Ale Shop, Wells next the Sea, Norfolk. Orange amber with white head. Plenty of beery aroma on opening which then goes into a particularly drying bitterness with lots of hop character, well defined for a beer aged by 4 years. Spiciness in the hop, full enough without dominating. Really quite decent.

(19 oz bottle). Pours orange with a massive of-white head. Hazy. Initial aroma was sour, but now getting some spice and floral notes along with some caramel. Nice balance of bitter and malt sweetness. There is a hint of sourness which is unexpected and the alcohol is not well hidden.

Cloudy orage pour with light tan head that was monsterous. Aroma was funky sour? Spicy flavor, a bit sour. Hop flavor comes out in aftertaste. A little dry in the finish. Mild carbonation. I saw on the label it said IPA, read on this site it was a Strong, tated to me like a sour. It was good and that is what matters the most to me.

Hazy orange. Small head leaves little lace. Nose is funky and a bit sour--an interesting surprise. I could imagine the original IPAs, after taking the journey around Africa, would pick up some extra microflora. Very nice actually, citric and complex. Body is light and carbonation mild. Earthy bitterness in the finish doesn’t quite work w/ the sour sort of saison character this beer has over all but the hop aroma does. A slight miscue maybe but a nice beer regardless.

An interesting beer. Very bitter and sour and spicey. Quite a cloudy ale. Poured from bottle into a CAMRA pint glass. I find this is an odd style. Sour meets bitter. Hmm. I guess it could work. The spices are a bit too much for me but this is a good beer. Thoroughly interesting beer but not my kind. Not too sure on how old this style is as it tastes very much different to both Crown and Calcutta IPA’s I’ve consumed last year. It tastes more like an old ale than an IPA. Wondering if mine is off.

Thanks to my parents for giving me this beer, among others, for Christmas. I honestly can’t tell if this is infected or there is an intended funk in this brew. It isn’t bad, though, but doesn’t seem like the intended flavor and aroma. Aroma is grazzy, with some funky yeast notes similar to something from Jolly Pumpkin. Hops have mellowed in the flavor, likely from sitting on a shelf too long. Slight tangyness is imparted by the funky yeast noted in the aroma. Really reminds me of something from Jolly Pumpkin. Intended or not, it was first offputting, but after a few sips I am enjoying it. Just not what I expected.

I’m afraid I got a bad bottle on this one... It poured with absolutely no carbonation! It just sat there like off-colored water in my pint glass... I was disappointed to say the least, but I drank it anyways. Aside from the aforementioned defect, this was a pretty decent beer. it was a nice clear, amber color. The aroma was was toasty malts, but with plenty of earthy hoppiness, and while the taste led and finished with hops prominent, the mouth seemed to dominated by a big, malty backbone that upstaged the hops. I would like to try this one again; maybe a better bottle would prompt a better rating.

500 ml Bottle from Biererei via armando629. Pours hazy orange color with lively, huge head that diminishes quite quickly, but leaves some lace. Moderate aroma of citrusy hop resin with slight sulphurous and earthy feel. Massive loads of floral hop resin oils. Taste like mellow pears and fermented apples blended with spicey herbs and roots with a distinct hop bite. It has a dry hoppy feel at the finish. I don’t get the Brett yeasty statements, but it’s very earthy in the yeast profile indeed. The body is medium to full with oily, resinous texture with slightly acid mouthfeel and mild carbonation. It’s a tricky, spicy, dry and sweet fruity complex brew. Feels like it’s somewhere between a good european pilsener and an american IPA.