Flat Branch Hudsons E.S.B.

Pint poured from beer engine. Low carbonation with a thin beige head. Aroma of flowery hops. Taste is hoppy and easy to drink.

Cask at brewpub. Orangy hue with an off-white head. Malt and hops in the nose. A treat, as I wasn’t expecting a cask-conditioned ale in the middle of Missouri.

cask at brewpub. pours hazy slightly chunky oragne with a mall fizzy off-white head. earthy, highly resiniy hop aroma with some malt sweetness and toasted bread qualities. sharp dry hop EKG notes in the flavors. maybe some fuggles in there as well. i like the fresh hop flavors here-must have been a dry hopped cask. a perfect rendition of this style if you ask me. This brewer nails styles like nobody’s business.

On the hand-pulled cask at the brewpub. Orange brown in color. Off white long lasting head. Smooth. Roasted toffee aroma. Served at room temperature. A hint of cantelope pehaps? Lacks the buttery slick mouthfeel that I associate with many ESB’s. Hoppy aftertaste, big palate, good midpalate. I can’t tell what this beer wants to be- it seems a cross between the Katy and the Red.

cask conditioned: Light copper. Fine, suspended bubbles slowly rise to form a dense cap. Clean and delicate floral hop and nutty malt aromatics. Fruity with berrylike whispers. Soft and spaciously creamy texture. Lightly malty with chalky-tinged toasty malts and a soft floral hop base. Touch of apple acidity is present, but the rich nuttiness lessens its effect and quickly progresses to soften the body and curb the firm mineral feel. Somewhat chalky and dry finish shows highlights of leafy hops and a clear-cut nuttiness fused with palate-adhering toffee coated malt husks. Belches reveal trace amounts of phenolic esters. A wonderfully conditioned, straightforward example with a very clean/focused aroma (although a touch more dry-hopping would have been nice).