Fuller’s ESB (Bottle/Keg)

Brewed by Fuller’s
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
London, England

Serve in English pint

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I’m stunned by the ratings for this one. It’s a pretty boring and dare I say too bitter ESB. The malt flavor is very mellow up front but finishes abruptly with a big bitter finish that comes out of nowhere. Not well balanced! It has a pretty nice aroma and pour but it’s not very drinkable. Ok at best for me!

(Bottle): Dark clear amber in colour with a small off white head. Lots of caramel malt on the aroma with a good hop character, hints of nuts in there too. Very nice bitter-sweet taste dominated by fruits, maltiness, citrus and hops in a perfect balance. Has a bit of bitterness on the finish, not too much it’d be unpleasant and not too little to be pointless. Just right.

Bottle 0,50L. Copper brown ale with weak carbonation and small beige head. Strong aroma of caramel, orange, biscuits and floral hops. Full bodied, smooth, almost creamy, moderate bitter. Excellent!

Colour reddish copper, at colder temperatures a small top that does not last. Nectarines on the nose, sweet, hops. Taste is well balanced, sweet with enough bitter to accommodate. On the palate hops dominate and last for some time. I prefer this to London Pride because of the empty space the latter leave’s between tasting

Bottle. Nutty, toffee malts dominate the aroma. Some clean citrus fruits coupled with peppery hops complement the ever present maltiness.

50 cl. bottle @ home, bought online @ Mitra.nl. Copper colour with a white head. Malty bready aroma with caramel. Good bitter taste with roasted malts and hops. Long bitter aftertaste. Great beer.

500ml bottle bought at CitySuper in New Town Plaza, Shatin.

Clear amber colour; Two finger head and crumpety off-white foam which last for 1 minutes; Small but sticky lacing with notable carbonation; Aroma of sweet malt, red fruit, orange, light caramel, herbs and grass; Mild and light sweet taste of malt, with bread, biscuits, plus light dose of toffee, grapefruit and orange, and grassy hops; Medium body, slick and quite oily palate; Hoppiness, be that aroma or taste, is really light, not expressive at all. You can taste the grapefruit and FEEL the bitterness, but it’s in such a light dose it’s nowhere near the potency and freshness of American craft brew. Hoppy finish is underwhelming; Pretty dry after taste, very easy to mouth.

Comments: This beer may be the pioneer of Bitter style back then, but compare to other good Bitters, Blonde Ale, or even other Fuller’s standout lineups, this one is flat and uninspiring, with taste and feel like a very average Bitter. Way overhyped. I wouldn’t bother to look back at this sad old dinosaur again, as there are many exciting stuffs worth tasting out there.

Draft to taster. Looks solid; a transparent gold with foamy (almost creamy) head that dissipates into lacing. Smells and tastes bittersweet with notes of dough and hops. Average on the palate. Meh; kind of bland for my liking.

Pours an average creamy head that mostly diminishes. Body is clear amber, sparkles are visible. Aroma contains light bread, hay, roasted malts, molasses, citrus fruits, banana, grape, raisin, plum, toffee and spices. Flavor is light acidic going to sweet and bitter with a malty finish. Body is medium, texture oily and carbonation soft. It tastes allright in the beginning, the malty finish is not my thing.

Lite rödaktig med minimalt skum. Hade inga höga förväntningar och kanske hade jag dömt ut ölen på förhand, men den var inte bra.