Thirsty Bear Meyer ESB

Brewed by Thirsty Bear Brewing Company
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
San Francisco, California USA

Serve in English pint

On tap at Thirsty Bear. Pours dark reddish brown with light tan head. Aromas of caramel, some dark malts, orange, and light citrus. Flavors of orange, bready malts, and some light spices. Thin body.

Sampler at the brewpub. Copper colour. Crystal clear. Medium-sized off-white head that clings to the glass. Gentle biscuit nose. Very clean beer. Body is fairly light. Easy drinking.

On tap at the brewpub. Creamy tan head, copper colour. Caramel aroma. Citrussy caramel flavours. Drinkable.

At the brewpub in San Francisco, on April 22, 2011
As part of a sample plate
Clear deep copper color, pretty (as in rather, not as in describing something handsome) big off-white head. Fruity, malty, alcohol, caramel taste, soem minerals. Medium to smooth mouthfeel, medium bitterness. Slight bit acidic scent. Also some hops and malt. Some red berries.
OK, drainkable and nice.

Draft. An amber beer with a thin beige head. The aroma has notes of malt and spices as well as light notes of chlorine. The flavor is sweet with notes of malt and caramel, leading to a dry and lightly bitter finish. Boring.

Geogeous copper beer with great mouth feel and decent bitterness. It really just lacked depth and complexity.

From notes compiled on a recent trip to northern California: This is a beer of extremes. On the one hand, it poured on tap a gorgeous mahogany color in an English pint, and the nitrogen tap made it deliciously smooth to drink. On the other hand, the mildly sweet caramel flavor and almost nonexistent hop profile meant that the flavor didn’t come close to the appetizing appearance and pleasing palate. I’m glad I tried it, especially at the reasonable price for the generous portion, but I won’t seek it out on future trips to SF.

Amber clear with a creamy head. Aroma is citrus, resin and caramel. Flavor is caramel, nuts, malt. No hop bitterness.