Samuel Smiths Old Brewery Pale Ale

Brewed by Samuel Smith
Style: Premium Bitter/ESB
Tadcaster, England

I pretty much agree with Victory (having split the beer and all). Sam Smith’s is a great brewery- this beer may suffer a bit by comparison because I’m too used to their incredible Oatmeal Stout.

The only let down of this beer was the lack of aroma, but smells can be deceiving. This, like most everything else i have tried from sam smith was an excellent beer. It has a rich taste and a wonderful color. As i write this i’m still enjoying the lingering hops.

Bottle. A nice bitter aroma. Typical brown bitter look with thin head that stays. Flavor is a nice mixture of bitterness and maltiness. Goes down smooth and is very drinkable. A nice bitter palate stays on the tongue and goes great with hot food. I had this with thai.

Nice copper pour, thick head, nice lacing. The aroma was fairly weak though, with some mild hops and malt, but not all that much. Hits sweet and malty, with some green grapes, then get the hops on the finish. Somewhat medium body.

Bottle - Poured a darkish amber in color with a fine white head that disappeared slowly. Aroma was of some yeasiness and some noble hops. Flavor was slight of early malt and then strong of nice round hoppy goodness. Finish is hoppy and a mild lingering bitterness. Excellent beer...

Pours a clear orange color with decent carbonation and a small cream head. Has the characteristic Samuel Smith yeast smell along with some skunkiness from the clear bottle. This beer is very easy to drink with earthy hop flavor throughout. There is some sweet caramel malt flavor but this beer is dominated by earthy hops and Sam Smith yeast.

Clear true copper color with small white-ish head. Aroma on the weak side. Barely a smell to be had. I think I get a bit of malt and maybe a dash of hops. I hope the flavor isn’t as timid as the aroma. Initially I get a flat, one dimensional, malt sweetness. I’ve let it warm up to near room temp. Still very mild in sweetness of the malts and a hint of hops. This beer makes me wonder if my taste buds have failed. Not a whole lot of flavor here. Nothing objectionable, just a little too subtle for my taste.

Bottled. Pours a clear brown with a tan head (good head retention). The aroma is somewhat skunky and a little nutty to me. The palette is smooth and medium bodied, while the flavor is a combination of malt, caramel, and a slight hint of nuts with a slightly bitter finish. Good, but not great.