Marstons Strong Pale Ale (Bottle)

Brewed by Marstons (Marstons plc)
Style: English Strong Ale
Burton-on-Trent, England

Serve in English pint, Trappist glass

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small frothy off white head. fair lacing. fully diminishing. clear thin dark yellow body. aroma: heavily hopped and resembles licorice. if: moderate sweet light bitterness. ff: light sweet moderate bitterness; average duration. palate: light medium body, watery texture, medium carbonation and metallic finish. Too sweet for a Pale Ale. Good drinkability. 25s.

Dark amber with honey and dusty metallic hops on the nose plus a touch of burton snatch. Thick bodied, sweet honey, touch of alcohol burn. Some slight metallic flavour. Crisp bitter finish. Slight acridity.

500ml bottle. Malty and herbal aromas. Pours bright gold, clea, with some white head, vanishing, some lacing. Medium body and soft carbonation.Taste is malty, some sweetness.

Clear 500ml bottle: best before 31st August 2008, drank in Feb 2008. Poured into a pint sleeve glass, it is a true Pale Ale colour, which I consider to be a light terracotta reddy orangey thingy type blend of shades. On top sat a small white foam head, sadly it left a bit quick to leave a collar and a wisp of not much. Pity because the body was as clear as a Shropshire Spring Evening. The aroma was nothing special, some hops and yeast mixed in with the normal barley smells you would expect. A little hint of toffee and caramel sweetness, but I had to sniff really deep to pick anything up. Hops dominate the taste, it is refreshing and quite sharp, the alcohol is almost too much in the taste, but it smooths out as the the beer warms up in the mouth. The beer grew on me as I drank it, maybe I started off with it to cold. Not a bad drink at all, but not something I’ll be impressing any friends with. I have a feeling the 6.2% might come back to hurt me later.

Charles Dickens Tavern - (4-May-12) - Light sweet fruit floral aroma. Light cloud and amber colour, good lacing and good head. Sweetish malt fruit floral flavour. Tangy bitter fruit floral finish and light fruit floral sweet malt aftertaste.

50cl bottle. Golden with small white head. Nose : caramel and grains. Little citrus. Wet laundry. Sip : Tingling carbonation, low density, a bit fluffy but not enough. Sweet beer with small but existing hoppiness. Nothing exciting apart that it seems to be an honest "blonde" that is pasteurized, filtered and bottled in an embarrassing white glass.

earthy, grass, resin, nuts, caramel, golden, hazy, rocky head, heavy cloying sweetness, medium bitterness, heavily sour, full body, sticky, creamy, average carbonation, bitter, long finish,

I opened this beer from the fridge and found the flavour and aromas a little disappointing, however after being left to reach room temperature it improved greatly, and while still not as big on taste as I would expect for the strength, it is a very drinkable (if rather strong) ale. Pours a light brown "bitter colour" - not that pale for a pale ale. Aromas slightly floral, vanilla, coconut and malt, alcohol comes through straight away but not in the fruity sense of some strong ales. Bitter, slightly astringent, tasty but not as full bodied as some. Overall, quite good.

50cl bottle from ABCBeers. Thick white head. Clear golden/blond pour. A little bitterness. I was expecting more from a 6.2% beer.

Bottle from El corte inglês, lisbon, Portugal. Amber/orange color. Medium to thin head. Medium carbonation. Medium bitterness and low sweetness. Herbs, caramel and wood aroma.

Bottle from Asda (clear)
Clear amber...frothy white head...some lacing
Aroma - sweet golden malts....light caramel..slight hint of alcohol....little on the nose...no skunk
Taste - Emphasis on sweet light golden malts...some honey...soft light toffee....very very slight bitter hops - almost no hop presence....alcohol quite well hidden.....simple flavour
Palate - soft carb...sweet...medium body...oily texture. Finish as main flavour - bit of soft toffee...slight bitter metallic lingering tail
Overall - Easy drinking, alcohol well hidden but very little going on here, no bad aromas or flavours - what I can taste is OK and better than a few of the Marston’s beers, but overall it’s very bland for 6.2%