Emersons Bookbinder Bitter

Brewed by Emersons Brewing Company
Style: Bitter
Dunedin, New Zealand

Serve in English pint

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Boy oh boy, have I waited a long time to try this. I didn’t even know it was in the country, I just walked into Slowbeer and there it was. Sweet. Quite a lot of weirdness initially (rubber, higher alcohols??) which eventually blows off. Subtle hop in that edgy, tropical, NZ way, some blackberry esters and loads of crystal malt. Mouthfeel is simultaneously creamy and quite fizzy. Your palate eventually adjusts to the huge crystal content and then you realise there’s actually good base malt character behind it. A touch grainy and roasty, with a subtly minerally finish. Gets a whole lot more interesting as you drink it, and has bucketloads of flavour for 3.7%.

Bottled. Amber colour with thin head. Smells hops. Tastes light sweeterness, with a light bitter finish.

Scrumptious easy drinking bitter. Pours a copper brown color. The malty and caramel characters dominate. Solid beer! ---Rated via Beer Buddy for iPhone

(bottle) Poured slightly hazy copper coloured with a ridiculous amount of head (even carefully poured). Aroma is a pleasant malty caramel with orange hints. Light body, overly fizzy. Flavour is straightforward malt to hops bitter. It’s no frills, not much else going on, but decent quality. Overall a no frills basic but reasonable beer.

Deep copper color. Subtle malty backbone with some soft hoppy notes. A bit heavy for a bitter but enjoyable.

Copper-gold in colour underneath a white head that thins and subsides over time. Smells brassy and of orange peel. There’s also a cheesy note (not a bad thing. It makes this beer versatile and ideally adaptable). There’s sweet mandarin and other juicy fruits on the first impression. Then the flavours settle on the tongue and spread into a soft bitterness that is grounded mainly in sweet fruits. Becomes citrus and astringent and is quite a tasty little critter. I like that it is 3.7%. It makes it ideally suited for a session bitter (where there is no Twisted Hop Golding of course).

500ml bottle. Clear, light amber pour with an off-white head moderate lace. Light malt and citrus hop nose. Medium-light body and moderate carbonation. Caramel, almonds, pine, biscuit, with some lemon tartness near the end. Finish is short and slightly bitter. Sessionable, but a bit weak on body.

Bottled. An amber beer with a thin beige head. The aroma has notes of caramel and malt as well as a light note of hops. The flavor is sweet with notes of malt and caramel as well as a light touch of straw.

Bottle 500ml. Very nice bitter. Aromas of caramel, grain, cherries, and nuts. Taste is sweet, with light bitterness, and good length. Palate is velvety, and medium bodied. Amber, with a thin frothy head.

Jug at the Southern Cross. My go-to session ale. Rich amber-light-copper colour, small white head. Firm hop aroma of earthy, spicy, floral goodness. Biscuity, caramel malt, fruity ale flavour, balancing hop bitterness. Delightfully refreshing and drinkable.

500ml bottle. Low ABV for a bitter but it carries it well. Full creamy rich beige head with good lacing on the glass. Mild copper colour with some caramel aromas covering some grapefruit, all in all pretty good. Zingy in the mouth with a smoothness that makes it go down easy.