Middle Ages Beast Bitter

Brewed by Middle Ages Brewing
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Syracuse, New York USA

This beer is a beast, but no, its not Milwaukee’s Best, commonly know as THE BEAST among college co-eds. This special beer is an ESB(Extra Special Bitter) by style, and comes from the Middle Ages Brewing Company, of Syracuse, NY. Middle Ages is know as a Ringwood brewery, and specializes in British beer styles. They use a very unique strain of yeast called ringwood, that oringinated in England, and use a Peter Austin designed brewing system. Ringwood is a unique strain in that when fermenting, it produces a by product called diacetal. Diacetal gives the beer an earthy aroma and "butter" like flavors. Some beer drinkers can not detect this, some can and find it off putting. Others, myself included, enjoy hints of diacetal in British ales, where proper amounts of it, are appropriate. Middle Ages does a wonderful job with this unique strain, all the beers that I have sampled from this brewery have been delicious. I’ll be visiting the brewery in Syracuse next month, and will be sure to stock up on Beat Bitter and all other Middle Ages offerings. Beast Bitter pours to a deep copper color, with a firm white head, and a good bit of carbonation. The nose on this beer is very fragrant. Vibrant hop aromas pair with that distinctive "earthy" ringwood yeast aroma. The palate is firm, good pale and caramel malt notes waltz on the tongue. There is also a slight touch of butter scotch flavor and "buttery" mouth feel, again a result from the ringwood yeast strain. This beer finishes malty at first, a touch earthy, mushroom like, but then ends with a long, dry, bitter hop bite. This is a really well done ESB, from a really great micro brewery. I would pair this with red meats such as beef, lamb, or even venison.

Bottle (12oz). Poured hazy amber with an average lasting foamy-rocky off-white head. Dry, resiny malt aroma with plenty of yeast and dry floral hops. Taste - well hello! - really does taste like an ESB - dry, astringent funky UK hops with an admixture of floral NorAm hops, somewhat light malt backing - quite herbally bitter. Mouthfeel is astringent, fairly lively, average body - pretty nice drinkin’ brew.

Courtesy of DDocLock. <P> Aroma is fresh and shower clean. Pale gold with a nice two finger thick head. Fore is fairly hoppy. Mostly a golden ale with a shit ass load of hops piled on. But it’s quaffable as hell.

(12oz bottle) Enormous off-white head atop a clear apple juice body. Aroma is medium sweet, inviting orange/floral, light bread, herb. Taste is medium sweet, bread, orange/floral, light caramel, astringency. Watery, undercarbonated light-medium body.

Pours clear dark straw/caramel copper colored, with a 2-finger, fizzy white head. Aromas of honey malt, slight winey vinegar, floral spices, brown sugar. Very unique aroma. The taste was bready honey malt with some hopcit at mid-palate. Nicely balanced with a nice palate liveliness. Gets more hoppy as it warms with hints of that hoppy element found in Wailing Wench.

Pours out hazzy copperish. Aroma of easy hopage, malt, flower, caramel. Flavor is similar but very bland, goes down easy though. Overall a nice stand by drink if you can acquire it.

Strong grapefruit, floral hop nose with some solventy phenols and plenty of butterscotch. Hazy, deep golden-tan body is topped by an immense, fluffy, off white head that laces the glass. Grapefruit, floral, orange hops are up front with some sweet caramel malt character and assertive finishing bitterness. Tangy butterscotch character is pervasive. Very dry and rather slick in texture. Medium light body with very low carbonation that just doesn’t last despite (because of) that huge head. Tulip glass. Allowed to warm from fridge temperature. Bottle (trade, May-05). Thanks, jah noth!

(12 oz bottle: Obtained in trade with jah noth, thanks Dan!) The sweet and very fruity nose also shows a bit of soapiness, but it’s minor enough to not ruin the olfactory delectation. A similar profile characterizes the flavor; it’s sweet and very fruity, with a modest soapiness, but it also tastes mildly hoppy and bitter, though not enough for a fully balanced brew. But the dominating sweet fruitiness isn’t grabbing me, and doesn’t really fit what I expect from an ESB. It’s also tiring out my palate. Light-medium bodied with good carbonation. Slightly hazy and light amber in color, the body has an off-white crown that rises to the very top of my pint glass, and maintains a thin but complete layer for the entire session. Lacing is minimal, except for a large patch near the top of the glass. It’s an okay beer, but not quite a flavor profile I normally enjoy, and not a beer I’d want to drink again.