Wychwood Fiddlers Elbow (Pasteurised)

Brewed by Wychwood (Refresh UK - Marstons plc)
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Witney, England

500mL bottle from the LCBO. Pours your typical nice amber ESB colour with a large off-white head. Aroma is really nice, better than I was expecting, full of piney Styrians hops. I like British hops. Some caramalt under there too. None of the back-of-a-garbage-truck aspects I get with some really bad British Imports. Flavour is decent, much better than I expected. Lots of British hops upfront, making way for some tasty caramalt, and finishing sweet with some sweet fruity esters. Very moderate carbonation which tends to be a good thing by my tastes. Nothing out of this world, just a good, well brewed ESB. A style that more often than not fails to impress me, but in this example I found a good one. Not much wheat malt to speak of, but that’s not typically something I look for in non-wheat beers anyways. Solid brew all-around.

Bottle. Poured the whole thing into a Sam Adams O’fest glass. The head settles into a 1/2" of foam atop a burnt orange body. Aroma is light with the malts and has a bit of caramel. Flavor starts with some mellow spices (cinnamon, green pepper) then goes on with more sweet malts and a decent hop bite. Mellow earthy-ness to it, which I found common in these Wychwood beers. Some cardboard but not from a fresh bottle. Nothing special here.

Aroma is a balance of medium malts, and some nice hops. It’s appearance is darker red, with a nice fluffy head, long trails of lacing down the glass. It’s flavor is a good balance of more hops to malt, a little fruit possible, but light. It’s smooth, with a nice little bite.

Bottle 0,5l. Golden colored. A shortlived fluffy head clinging to the glass. Fruity aroma dominated by raisins. Sweet fruity flavor with a developing fruity bitterness.

500ml bottle, BB 29 April ’08...whoops. Hazy pale amber body, small white foam atop. Toasty/biscuity malt in the background, touch of caramel sweetness, earthy spice, citrus and vanilla from the hops. Medium-to-full body, relatively lively carbonation, chewy texture taking a bit away from the hop bitterness. Sweet malt body, biscuity with bit of toffee, grassy hops, bitter orange, vanilla and spice. Finishes with lingering citrus note, moderate bitterness. Not a bad bitter, probably need a fresher bottle.

Clear amber with white head. Weak hoppy notes of grapefruit and some spices. Flavour is dominantly bitter but with some sweetness as well. Bitter finsh.

Bottle. Pours dark amber with a medium head. Grassy and sugary nose. A bit too sweet though some fruity hops are there to support. Characterless.

Appearance: Pours a clear, dark copper body with a thin, wispy, white head. Smell: Malty nose smelling of toffee and oven-toasted biscuits with a background of spicy hops and a minor note of fruit. Taste: Sweet-tasting, biscuity maltiness with a touch of toasted wheat and a decent dose of flaked toffee candy. Light apple fruitiness. Spicy hops with a medium bitterness. A last taste of malts before the crispy, drying finish. Mouthfeel: Medium-thin body. Medium-high carbonation. Drinkability: Not bad! A pleasant, highly drinkable brew, if unremarkable.