Black Sheep Best Bitter

Brewed by Black Sheep
Style: Bitter
Ripon, England

An orange beer, slightly hazy, with a fine off-white head. It has a slight fruity aroma. The flavor is light; fruity, a little flowery, a little cask flat, and with a nice bitter end that lingers. The body is somewhat thin.

Sampled cask conditioned at Shepherd’s Inn, Melmerby, Cumbria.
Amber coloured. Light and fruity. Medium bitterness. Solid, but one-dimensional.

Cask, Handpump @ Brewery. Orange amber colour with a nice creamy head. Light aroma of caramel and toffee. Light flavour of toffee and caramel with a touch of hops.

Cask. Dark golden colour. Slightly astringent, but suting the beer. Full-bodied for its ABV. Slightly sweet. Probably a very good session beer.

Cask@The George. Ambery golden colour with mediumsized beige head. Aroma is earth, flowery hops and also some slight citrusfruity sweet notes. Flavour is earth, bready malts, caramel and it gets quite graint notes in the finish.

Sampled at the Philharmonic, Liverpool...I apparently missed out on the marble urinals at this plush and ornate historic pub. But that’s because they were charging London prices for their beer. And this was the only one there I hadn’t had before. Light amber; minerally, malty, some toast, caramel; hops keep it dry but take no role in the profile.

Cask Conditioned
Copper color. Nice grassy, earthy aroma. Smooth, salty, but maybe too simple body. The end is a bit watery.

1. Cask Handpump at the Head Of Steam, Liverpool 21/02/2002 Golden coloured pale and strong in alcohol. Slightly dry bitter finish. 2. Cask Handpump at the Taps, Lytham St Annes 16/02/2003 Amber golden coloured and malty. Slightly bitter dry finish. 3. Cask Handpump at the Coachman, Hartford 19/02/2003 Golden amber coloured bitter and malty. Lasting hop finish. 4. Cask Handpump at the White Horse, Armley 16/11/2003 Amber slightly strong in alcohol and sweet. Pleasant malt finish. 5. Cask Handpump at the King’s Arms, Llandudno 19/07/2005 Amber golden coloured and hoppy. Crisp malt finish. 6. Cask Handpump at the Hare & Hounds, Crowton 24/02/2007 Some fruit aroma. Amber coloured with orange fruit flavour. A little dryness and bitterness in a crisp malt finish. 7. Cask Handpump at the Star Inn, Statham 17/02/2008 Some malt aroma. White head. Amber coloured and a little fruity with a crisp and bitter slightly floral malt finish. 8. Cask Handpump at the Prince Of Wales, Llangollen 23/04/2008 Fruity aroma. Thick white head. Golden coloured fruity and slightly acidic tasting with a little dryness in a crisp malt finish. 9. Cask Handpump at the Red Lion, Winsford 17/10/2009 Fruity aroma. White head. Golden coloured smooth on the palate and fruity with a little dryness in a full malt finish.