Real Ale Phoenixx Double ESB

Brewed by Real Ale Brewing Company
Style: English Strong Ale
Blanco, Texas USA

Serve in English pint, Snifter

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Dark hazy copper color. Smells of very clean, floral hops, and a rich sweetness. Hop bitterness is dominant in the flavor, but there is some roastyness and a bit of chocolate flavor. Mouthfeel was rich and satisfying. The cask version of this was bad ass, but im just rating the standard version here. Overall, a great beer that I will drink much more of.

Bottle from secret santa. Thanks! Pours a dark, slightly hazy amber with a finger of tan head, decent lacing. Aroma is quite spicy, cinnamon and vanilla comes to mind. A lot of toffee here, some citrus, chocolate cookies, cocoa, herbal notes. Some alcohol too. Complex nose. The flavour is a bit less exciting. More roasty. Quite a bit of sweetness, but it finishes pretty damn bitter. Almost harsh. Sticks with you for a long time too. Wierdly enough floral hops in the flavour, didn’t pick this up in the aroma at all. Creamy carbonation, good, medium to full mouthfeel. All in all, this is pretty good.

Pours a very hazy dark amber orange with an off-white head. Aroma is surprisingly hoppy with pine and grass notes and an nice undertone of grainy malts. Flavor begins malty with grain and bread notes and become hoppy throughout with a pine note.

Dark amber with a decent off white head with some lacing. Pine aroma with some fruitiness. A good amount of hop bitterness and malty taste. Nice filling and somewhat dry finish.

Another seasonal I enjoy from Real Ale. Deep transparent brown in the glass. Dry roasted coffee malt notes with a nice bitterness. Pretty generous length on the finish. Very nice.

UPDATED: MAR 30, 2012 Toffee, an almost muted whisper of chocolate truffles, a bit of dark fruity esters, roasted malts, old bread, a splash of citrus, a bit of funk, and of course, the main attraction: big, floral hops. The taste is hops-and-citrus bitter, with a hoppy aftertaste balanced by a bit of malty sweetness. The palate is medium to thin, with natural effervescence and a dry finish. Yummy.

I expected much more of a traditional ESB flavor, but this is really just an IPA, tastes very much like a hoppy IPA, with just a hint of english bitters.

Tap at Rudyardz. Reddish brown with small head that disappears. Good hopped nose with baked malts. Good malt flavor with well integrated hops and a great bitter finish. Nice.

On tap at the Dig Pub in Cedar Park TX. As is far too common, this beer was way too cold. Thus the nose was not evident in the pour. Dark brown almost opaque with a small white head. Taste of burnt malt, a bit sweet and tart/bitter (can this be?) with a mild hop profile. The alcohol is well hidden. Mouth has a thickish feel with good flavoring on the finish. A very smooth, easy drinking beer-could be a mini-session beer if they bottled it. Good job and one of Real Ale’s better efforts.

Draught at the Alamo Drafthouse - Village, Austin, Oct. 19. Pours a deep amber with an average size long-lasting foamy off-white head. Lots of lacing on the glass. Aroma has a good amount of fruity and spicy hops along with some fruit, caramel malt and a hint of spice. Flavour is fruity, hoppy and quite spicy and has a good bitter finish. Medium bodied. Not sure what style this is supposed to be but it’s pretty darn good.