Samuel Smiths Old Brewery Pale Ale

Brewed by Samuel Smith
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Tadcaster, England

Bottle. Pours crystal clear deep amber brown wiith a pure white head. Floral, pine hops and oak dominate the aroma, somewhat subtle hops with a lot of wood, oak in the flavor. Really enjoyable to drink.

Great copper colour, not much head retention. Biscuity aroma with some diacetyl and some stale sherry. Light on for malt, flavour-wise, but pretty hoppy. Slight acidity and mild roastiness in the back ground. Kinda complex I guess but not that drinkable really. Bit of a disappointment.

Standard clear bottle reveals its beautiful brown color. Huge head. Smooth tasting, maybe a little too light. Still, another good beer from the fine people of Sam Smith.

Pretty amber pour. Aroma of malt and sweaty socks. Mild taste with a hint of sharpness.

Poured a clear rosy amber with only a few medium tracings of head. Tantilizing malt aroma with subdued hop undertones. At first touch to the mouth the beer gets a bit "fresh" with you and then lays off. Translated, that means the hops are at first fairly aggressive and then recede to the understated, dry, British, "Red Dwarf", quirky humor thing. Finish leaves quite a bit to desire: very not complex and astringent.

I think I have now rated all the commonly available S. Smith beers. This is not one of their best, but it is still quite good. This is called a pale ale by the brewer, but Ratebeer calls it a bitter. It looks fine - a dull, medium brown pour with a plump head. Not one of the better S. Smith labels, tho. Sweet and tangy aroma with a slightly stale scent in there too. I love those Smtih malts, which come thru nicely in the flavor. Overall it is fairly light and not very sharp or bitter. The flavor leans toward mellow malts, which makes for a very drinkable brew that would go well with a meal.

Nice to look a with lots of head and aroma. I found this a bit dull, the flavor just did not strike a chord. Wasn’t bad but I would not go out of my way to hunt it down again.

Not sure if it’s the fact this beer is imported or what, but I’ve never had very good luck with the Samuel Smith beers. Kinda blah, but with potential to be good. if that makes sence.