on cask-pours an off white head that bubbles and gold color. Aroma is mild sweet light malt. Taste is mild sweet light malt, secondary herbal hops. Close to a bitter.

So I bought this knowing it was past its prime, because the last Mcneill’s brew I had past its prime was pretty freakin’ good (God bless the funk!) - the cap less popped off than it did tear off, leaving some interesting crud around the lip of the bottle (oh yea!) - cloudy orange pour, with small ring of lace - aroma of biscuity british malt, highly floral hops, apricot, and some slight musty, earthy, almost barnyardy qualities (there’s some of that funk starting to form in this one) - citrusy palate up front, but a lot of the malt flavor seems to have become stale, making room for some oxidation and a tiny bit of sourness that combines well with the hop bitterness and herbal flavors - apricots and peaches arrive late - lingering hops - fresh this is probably awesome, and with a little more time in the bottle to let those micro-organisms work their magic will probably make it awesome in a different way - for now it’s just pretty good.

Ruby amber ale with a big bubbled off white head. Classy british hops and caramel malt aroma. Restrained malts and lightlly pungeant hops in mouth, with good citrus notes. Very classy. On tap Feb. 10, 2006.

Reddish amber, good foaming head. Strong herbal hop aroma, and a definite British influence with a fairly sweet malt profile and well developed light-fruit esters. Hop flavors are low, but a strong finishing bitterness sets this apart. Medium bodied.

[Cask at GBBF 2004] An amber beer with no head. The aroma is very grassy and the so is the flavor - it tastes like eating fresh hops - too much for me. The hops dries out the mouth.

2004 bottle. Color: Bottle conditionied. Light reddish-brown. Light golds and yellows mixed in with a creamy, off-white mocha colored head. Aroma of extra-fruity hops, tons of ripe red and yellow fruits; very fragrant. Flavor: Begins quite dry and bitter, with some light fruit making itself known (strawberries, tart cherries). The hops seem very strong and bitter however, though it’s an ESB, I prefer a more traditional, more malty/earthy rendition. The flavor was certainly there, just too in your face bitter for my likes. Palate showed a creamy, lightly bubbly, medium bodied ale. Dry on the finish, peppery almost with hints of grapefruit.