500ml bottle from Ashton McCobb. Pours hazy amber, thin white head. Aromas of citrus, fresh orange. Taste is more orange. One-dimensional. Smells better than it tastes.

Bottle at appellation. Pours hazy amber, nose is pithy orange, sweet toffee, taste is orange juice, dry, sweet.

Cask at The Moon in the Square, Bournemouth. Pours clear dark brown with a light tan head. Aroma of malt, caramel, some dark fruit, light licorice and spice. Flavour is moderate sweet and bitter. Medium bodied with soft carbonation.

500ml bottle from Saucy Pears, worcester. Cloudy mid brown colour with a foamy tan head. Aroma has plenty of plenty of hops. The taste has a deep maltiness, but the citrus comes in the finish.

Cask at the Old Manor (JDW), Bracknell. Chestnut with a loose cream head; cirtus aroma; soft sweet grapefruit taste with a grainy body; and a pleasantly sharp and dry finish. Rather good.

Cask at JDW Charlie Hall; clear dark chestnut brown pour with a frothy beige head, dark fruit aroma, taste has caramel, some dark fruits, and a hint of spice.

Cask gravity at White Cliffs BF 2014. Dark ruby colour lasting ring of beige bubbles. Quite hoppy. Some fruit. Lots of pink grapefruit. Almost perfumed. Esb meets West coast apa. Nice though. Bit piney and out of balance

Cask at the Susses Arms, Twickenham Green, 28/12/13. Mahogony brown with a good sized light beige head that retains well. Nose is biscuit malt, caramel, brown sugars, dark fruit medley. Taste comprises earthy hops, biscuit crumble, toffee, light pine notes. Medium bodied, fine carbonation, dry closure. Decent hopped up ESB.

Cask at the Sussex arms. Aroma is sweet berry and chestnut with a a little spice. Chestnut brown pour with a loose cream head. Flavour is berry hedgerow hop and vrowm malt.

The brewery posted this on facebook: We have brewed Hollybush a few times in the past but this year (2013) the recipe has had a tweak or two. The aim is to have a beautiful red yuletide hue and a pronounced hop profile, we’re using Brewers Gold & Centennial hops.

My thoughts are here:

Hand-pulled half-pint in the excellent ’White Hart’ in Shifnal, Shropshire during a CAMRA pub crawl on 14th Dec 13.
Poured a dark reddy brown with an off-white head. The nose was hop led with a malty undertone, nice. The Brewers Gold and Centennial hops giving a floral feel (not Centennials usual citrus notes).
Taste wise it changed somewhat with the malts asserting themselves more although the hops did give a dry and semi-bitter finish with just a trace of citrus within the flavour.
Good body depth and an almost rich texture on the palate, a pleasant winter ale and one I’d happily try again.