Just How Special Is Extra Special Bitter?
Written: Jul 09 '01 (Updated Jul 10 '01)
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Easy to drink, masks its bitterness well, balanced without being boring.
Cons: Not overly exciting for all that, and it's not Fuller's.
The Bottom Line: Good, though perhaps the weakest of Flying Fish's beers. XPA is hoppier, Porter is fuller, Abbey Double more complex.
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| beerfly's Full Review: Flying Fish ESB Ale |
American brewers think they know what an ESB is.
They blithely brew up these ESBs with the guidance of one of two things; a bottle of Fuller's ESB or the style guidelines promulgated by the Institute of Brewing Studies, a group of small brewers and admin geeks. The admin geeks mostly write the guidelines. Catch my drift?
Of the two, the bottle of Fuller's is probably the more valuable. Fuller's ESB pretty much is ESB, a name noting more strength than that in the brewery's bitter or 'best bitter.' Americans should note that none of these types of beer are particularly bitter. They are called 'bitter' to differentiate them from 'mild,' which is decidedly not bitter.
So when the great guys at the Flying Fish brewery in beautiful Cherry Hill, NJ, decided to make an ESB, they more than likely popped open quite a few Fuller's. Unfortunately, like most American brewers, they apparently felt they could improve upon it. As with so many other American brewers, the answer was to hop it.
My lord, why? Fuller's ESB is dry-hopped, for aroma, but FFESB has a crunchy 40 IBU of bittering, and that just doesn't feel right in a beer like this.
What does the beer feel like? Here's the notes:
FFESB pours a nice dark copper color, with some tenacious light beige foam. The aroma is clean and biscuity, with the tiniest bit of roasted malt, and a restrained grassiness. There's a nice medium body, a very drinkable beer, smooth and somewhat creamy. In the mouth it is mostly a malt and caramel flavor, but with a perky hop note and finishing bitterness. There is a somewhat clinging note in the back as the finish resides.
It's not a bad beer, so I'm recommending it. It's not Flying Fish's best beer by any measure (though that's hardly damning criticism of such a good brewery), so I'm not rating it terribly high. I'm not well-pleased by it, but it's hardly offensive.
I guess it's just not Extra Special.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
beerfly
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Member: Lew Bryson
Location: Philadelphia, PA
Reviews written: 88
Trusted by: 82 members
About Me:
One bourbon, one Scotch, one beer, eh? I'll take Kentucky Spirit, Scapa, and HopDevil.
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