ESB
Redhook Brewery in Seattle, Washington, United States 🇺🇸
Bitter - ESB / Strong Bitter Regular|
Score
6.08
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Redhook’s flagship beer got its start as a winter seasonal recipe in the mid 80’s. In the early years, Extra Special Bitter earned a reputation as ‘banana beer’ and has been brewed continuously since 1987. ESB’s caramel malt sweetness and subtle spice and fruit hop flavors, quickly defined the style, becoming Seattle’s definitive craft beer and inspiring a new wave of craft beers across the country.
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6.9/10
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Appearance 8
Aroma 7
Flavor 6
Texture 8
Overall 6.5
Bottled. A clear, golden beer with some beige head. Hops, malt, more hops, beef-stock and some alcohol makes the aroma. The flavor is quite hoppy and piney, but is too short on malt to make it a balanced beer. It’s not bad though. It is full-bodied, and with a piney finish followed up by malt and stock. A nice beer, but a bit on the hoppy side, definately not the average English ESB. (070119)
Tried
from Bottle
on 19 Feb 2007
at 15:20
6/10
—
Appearance 6
Aroma 4
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 7
355ml bottle. Pale copper body with a white head. Light aroma, some caramel malt, citrus, hoppy. The flavor has a pleasant malt profile with a balanced hop level. OK bitter finish. A decent bitter that not would offend anyone.
Tried
from Bottle
on 16 Feb 2007
at 11:02
3.6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 2
Flavor 4
Texture 4
Overall 3.5
My second Red Hook. Very fresh, brewed on 12/19/06. Label is a little boring not like the one pictured here. Pours lighter brownish orange with a froth on top, no head. Smells a little sweet. Taste is like a cross between a lager and an ale. Starts off pretty gentleman-like then proceeds to give you a little bitter bite on the back of the throat. Creamy carbonation is present but much below average. Bitterness is medium strong and hangs for a while. Not as good as yards extra special but it is on par or better than ol speckled hen, #6, bass ale and Whitbread. I also had this on tap at the Coney Island in Slippery Rock lately.
Tried
from Draft
on 01 Feb 2007
at 18:51
5.8/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 4
Overall 6
tap - Pours light brown with a thin head or maybe the bartender just poured it that way. It has a light hoppy aroma. The flavor has mild caramel malts and moderate hops. It goes down easy and doesn’t linger. I’d prefer a more noticeable finish. The body is too thin. Overall it’s a decent beer but was rather boring.
Tried
from Draft
on 21 Jun 2006
at 18:37
5.9/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 5.5
Bottle. Hazy orange amber, low off-white head. Light cracker malt, ok undelying bitterness. Medium to light body. Tapers off quite fast. Fresh but not remarkable.
Tried
from Bottle
on 04 Jun 2006
at 08:12
5.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 4
Texture 6
Overall 5.5
Taster at Binny’s, Orland Park. So in three years on RB, I’ve managed to miss Redhook’s flagship brand. Just happens, I guess. A rather standard beer. Decent copper color. decently roasted. But I keep waiting for something in the hops that never arrives. Since this was being handed out from a table of AB products, patrons were asking if this was just Bud under another name. I butted in to explain that Redhook was in a distribution agreement, blah blah blah.
Tried
on 18 May 2006
at 10:04
6.1/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 5
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
A hazy orange beer with a thin lazing beige head. The aroma is slightly dusty hoppy combined with light notes of citrus and caramel. The flavor is sweet and rather hoppy, leading to a nicely bitter and dry end. I remember it as better than this from my prior RB times 4 years ago.
Tried
on 16 May 2006
at 13:36
6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 6
Texture 6
Overall 6
(Bottle 35,5 cl) Pours a clear amber with a small, off-white head. Light aroma of caramel. Medium-bodied with some sweet caramel and some vaguely citrusy underlying aroma hops. Dry finish. 150506
Tried
from Bottle
on 16 May 2006
at 11:08
6.6/10
—
Appearance 8
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 6.5
Rusty orange pour with an ample white head. Smells of citrus and hops, tastes similar with the addition of a malty sweetness. Finish is nice and clean with crisp hop taste. Pretty standard offering for a micro ESB, but pleasant to drink for sure.
Tried
on 09 May 2006
at 10:17
6/10
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Appearance 6
Aroma 6
Flavor 7
Texture 6
Overall 5
Bottle. Amber brown color, with a small white head. Caramel aroma, with a hoppy side. Eh, plain flavor, with some hop and caramel.
Tried
from Bottle
on 07 Apr 2006
at 21:34