Jolly Pumpkin E.S. Bam

Brewed by Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
Style: Bitter
Dexter, Michigan USA

Bottle at home - shared with Mette. Clear red/brown - white head. Red berries, soapy, tvål, grassy, light nutty, brett, high hoppy, dryness from the hops, caramel, citrus, light sourness. Very nice - but not as expected (A Bitter) !!!

April(?) 2008: E.S. Bam pours a deep ruby color with a frothy beige head. It has an acidic and tart aroma that is slightly funky like B.O. This beer is dry with some caramelized malt and a mild bitterness. It has a medium-full body and is smooth, complex, and well-balanced. This is a very good beer.

750 mL bottle (Batch 267/268). Rating #240 for this beer.
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8/08/2008: E. S. Bam smells of sweet and sour citrus (grapefruit) with grapes, sugar-cookie/caramel-like malt, and a tinge of the tasty trademark Jolly Pumpkin funk. This beer has a hazy amber brown (more brown than amber) appearance with a large, whipped beige-colored head that leaves dense lacing (a lot like that of a nitro-induced brew) on the glass and never fully collapses. There is a generous flurry of carbonation visible as well. The flavor is light, dry, and refreshing. It starts out much like an American or English Pale Ale with a generous showing of balanced caramel/toffee maltiness and fruity/lightly citrusy hoppiness with a mild to moderate level of bitterness. The sour and tart woody funkiness comes through about mid-palate and than fades through the finish leaving an earthy, grassy, citrusy (peel), and slightly spicy lingering hop flavor in the mouth along with some lemongrass and something that brings water chesnut to mind... Anyways, this beer has a medium to medium-full body and a fairly mellow palate like a true ESB or Bitter would have. This is a really well-crafted beer that does a very good job of balancing all the great Jolly Pumpkin characteristics with an ESB-styled beer.

750 ml. bottle (Batch 267, 268) from Jungle Jim’s International Market in Fairfield, Ohio. Rating #240 for this beer...

Dark amber with a rocky, lingering head. Great aroma is cheesy funk, dry spices, hay, and dusty malts. Lightly carbonated with a coarse mouthfeel. Good flavors are on the dry side with dusty pale malt, dry hay, grassy, spicy hops with a touch of sweetness in the middle. A complex, genious recipe here, love it !

Pours copper and thick amber with some white fizzy bubbles. Tastes dry and earthy with some underlying sourness. Aroma is of dry malt and a touch of hops. Mouthfeel is thin.

[1362-20080517] 750mL bottle. Fruity orange toasted malt bread aroma. Hazy, dark brown orange body with a long-lasting creamy off-white head. Sour sweat flavour has more yeasty malt. Medium body is a little sweaty and sour. Strange flavour, interesting aroma.
(c/o IPFreely, w/ others)
Overheard: "That’s a perfect bottle for homebrewing!" "Yeah... it’s Big."

750ml, Batch 278. When I think of the perfect looking beer, this is what I imagine. Cloudy dark brown/amber with a thick tan head and tons of lace. Aroma is mostly yeast wtih a bit of spice (corriander?). I think I should have let this one age for a while, because flavor is mostly yeast. Its bitter, but not really hoppy the way a good Bitter should. However, except for a bit of spice notes, this one seems to be missing something on the tongue. Palate is medium bodied and creamy, wtih a bit of spritz. Overall a good Bitter, that would probably be better aged for a few months.

Pours a dark amber with a thick off-white head which lasts. Aroma of yeast and more yeast. Flavor is sour and tart with hops and a bitter finish. Don’t know if this is a bad bottle or just the style. I did kind of enjoy the lively palate. This tastes like my first homebrew I made with a Mr. Beer kit. My first JP beer, not a fan so far.

There’s a great grassy hoppiness here, but there seems to be something missing in the flavor. It’s kind of like a meat dish that has a ton of spices and herbs, but no salt. There’s a great yeast funk, plenty of hops, but there’s something that leaves the beer falling flat.