Olivers Best Bitter

Brewed by Pratt Street Ale House
Style: Bitter
Baltimore, Maryland USA

Sampled from a small keg at the Real Ale festival in Bel Air. Aroma was fairly thin but a bit hoppy. The flavor was watery but not terrible. Had a lot of potential. I might want to try this again on tap.

on hand pump-pours a retaining rich white head that laces and slightly hazy gold color. Aroma is grainy/light malt-earthy/slight caramel, slight lemon. Taste is light side of medium body, grainy/light malt-earthy/slight caramel, lemon-hops. Minimum carbonation.

The pour was light copper, leaning towards tan with a thick white head that sat atop the brew and produced good lacing. The aroma was herbal, floral and tea leaves. Light, biscuity sweetness and faint citrus. The flavor followed suit. The mouthfeel was nice and the finish clean. A nice little session style beer that doesn’t get in the way.

On-tap at the downtown brewpub, enjoyed with Todd1. A bit cheesy aroma. Grapefruit colour with a lot of white head. Clean taste, British bitterness and it is significant. Medium mouthfeel.Smooth drinker, with understated carbonation, and served at appropriate temperature despite the heat of the outside.

Handpulled at the Wharf Rat. Amber body with fluffy white webbing. Pear, pineapple, butterscotch aroma; fruity and full, if a bit tangy and overcoming in sweetness. Malt notes of apple and wet white toast. A bit of diacetyl has crept in.

Grassy bitterness, some caramel and pear sweetness in the flavor; certainly a bit heavy on plain residual sugar and lacking a sound center of malt. Honey, almond, vanilla; a mite syrupy in sweetness.

Smooth, light, watery mouthfeel; doughy malt lingers in slowly, while a pleasant bittering of herbal hop and fruit characters tempers the initial sugariness. Strawlike english hop finish with drawn out wooden texture. Those moments where the sweetness seems too chemical and clangy are resolved nicely by the simple accompaniment of beer food.

Clear, apple juice body with a small white head. The nose is cotton candy, herbs and bread. The flavor is dough, herbs, apple juice and honey. Medium/light body is soft with very light carbonation.

draught wharf rat @camden yards: pours a very light clear golden hay colour, starts with a small white head and fades into a thin white line. aroma is citrus and fresh fruit almost pineapple like. behind the fruit is a nice sweet caramel malt and biscuit. flavour is thin but very appealing nice front and back palate bitter with soft fruit and sweet malt in the middle. very good session beer.

Cask, Frisco Grille. Pours a clean, bright amber color; white, web-like head with solid lacing. Reserved aroma, showing a biscuity base and earthy / spicy hops; very mild. Light carbonation in a medium mouthfeel: biscuity / toasty malt character at the core of things, with a chewy malty, dried fruit note emerging at mid-palate; surrounded by a pleasant English-style hoppiness without the typical dryness. Very well balanced and sessionable. Medium, bready and mildly bitter finish.