Iron Hill Anvil Ale

Brewed by Iron Hill Newark
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Newark, Delaware USA

On tap at Lancaster location. The bartender told me this was an English pub style ale but it was such an estery mess. Smells and tastes of banana, clove , and caramel. Very similar to the last couple Iron Hill Lancaster beers that I have had. Is their temp control system on the fritz? I don’t know but i don’t want to drink any more of their beer until they get the problem sorted out.

Cask pour at the pub. Pours golden with a thick creamy off-white head. Mild, floral aroma. Mild taste. Easy to drink with delicate flowery flavor. A nice lingering taste and creamy feel from the cask conditioning.

Date: 07/26/2007
Mode: Draft
Source: Brewpub

clear copper, scant off white head, drops of lace, sweet crystal and caramel malt aroma, sweet malt flavor, lots of mild hop flavor provides good balance to the sweet bready malt, light bitter finish,

Aroma: 6/10; Appearance: 7/10; Flavor: 6/10; Palate: 6/10; Overall: 11/20
Rating: 3/5.0
Drinkability: 8/10
Score: *4

Yuk! This might be a true bitter in the sense theat you walk out of the place feeeling bitter and slaty for forking down 4 bucks on this crap.

This was a pretty good ale. A little lacking in the head department, but was still a good looking beer. A really nice flowery, hoppy aroma, but not overdone in the hops department made this a nice, well-rounded beer. A solid offering. I could drink these one after another.

Draft at Phoenixville location...smells sweet and malty, very mild...very little head...hops present ..nice effervescence...the bubbles disintegrate in the mouth, taste is nice...hops blended well with the malts...its more fun texture wise than taste

On tap @ Newark-Poured a cloudy copper color w/o much head. This beer seemed kind if confused, too sweet to start with, not enough malt. Than it was too bitter on the back end, not enough malt either. Seemed to be a little bit too fruity/organic. I enjoy a good ESB-this ain’t it!

This didn’t taste all that much like an English bitter...it was very malty, with a sort of planty taste, and a little bit of sourness to the malt (which, as usual, I could do without). There was none of the dry bitterness that I normally associate with this style. Besides it not matching my expectations, it was both an interesting and drinkable beer, although it was not outstanding.