Burton Bridge Empire Ale

Brewed by Burton Bridge
Style: English Strong Ale
Burton-on-Trent, England

I was looking for a nice smooth buttery tasting English ale, instead I got an astringent, yeasty one that tasted like a Belgian. Lingering flavor of green apples. Makes a better Belgian than an IPA. Tiny head and dull appearance detract from the overall feeling.

Pours gold amber with a slight haze. Gigantic rocky white head with piles of lace and lasted forever (I think it’s still around). Aroma of light hops and toasted malts, yeast and caramel. Earthy and herbal. Medium bitter. Toffee, chocolate, licorice. Sweet warming finish. Terrific.

poured a tangerine-orange color with a 4 inch head of yellow tint...the aroma opened with creamy butterscotch, then showing slight hints of orange-like hops drizzled with caramel...all remaining quite buttery...somewhat straight forward burton bridge ale, but full bodied for sure, with nice spiced citrus hop flavors, some wood accents, slight burton bridge yeast notes...very dry..quite fizzy...pretty damn hoppy for an english IPA, id say. Quite nice..alcohol is felt by not tasted. Is this Englands only Imperial IPA? I love burton bridge, they remain my favorite English brewery.

[At Fete de la Biere 2004, Lausanne] An orange beer with absolutely no head. The aroma is of oranges and hops. The flavor is strong of oranges and with very distinct notes of alcohol, that gives the warmth on an already hot day.

This beer was quite interesting. Each sip encouraged another sip in order to try and sort through everything presented in the glass. Cloudy, and light yellow in color , with a white, foamy head. A hoppy aroma which faded in the glass The characteristic Burton mineral profile was present. Hop flavor was present with some pine and spice flavors. I detected a bit of honey and fruitiness in the flavor as well. There was some warmth from the 7.5% alcohol. Overall, a different IPA than the Americans I have been drinking

Bottled. Golden body, slightly fine head. Large hoppy aroma launchers from the bottle at the start, then fades away after 10 or so minutes, leaving just brutal ethanol to deal with. Packs a large punch which is taking its total as I try to finish it.

Wow a ton of carbonation, pouring forth from the bottle, followed by huge aromas fo grapefruit pulp. Bitter pine on the palate with a drying finish. Very enjoable on a hot day, I guess I just got caught up in the huge grapefruit nose...loving grapefruit I thus loved this beer...

Bottled.This was a strange brew indeed. I started out not liking it very much but enjoyed it quite a bit towards the end. Upon opening it was extremely carbonated and slowly gushed for 3 minutes before I decided to pour it. The flavor, aroma, and texture were quite harsh and not at all pleasant (smelled like a dirty dishrag for one thing). However once it warmed up and lost some carbonation its character changed and became quite pleasing, almost like a very mild and sweet lambic. The following then is what I experienced and rated when the beer de-gassed for a bit and warmed up to 60F: No head and no lacing at all; nice hazy med-gold color.Aroma was sweet and fruity layered with a hint of bubblegum, a subtle oaky "brettiness", and a very present alcohol character. Off-dry, malty start; fruity mid-palate with some oakiness; finish was also off-dry with an assertive bitterness that carried into the aftertaste. The aftertaste had an interesting dry, husky malt character, akin to having chewed on a few grains of barley malt. Palate was med-full with a creamy, almost oily texture. So, to fully enjoy this beer I recommend letting it de-gas and warm up before drinking it.