Hook Norton Brewery Old Hooky

Old Hooky

 

Hook Norton Brewery in Hook Norton, Oxfordshire, England 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿

  Bitter - ESB / Strong Bitter Regular
Score
6.44
ABV: 4.6% IBU: - Ticks: 174
A beautifully balanced beer, fruity by nature, with a well-rounded body and the suggestive echo of Crystal Malt.
 

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6.5/10
Tried from Cask on 01 Feb 2026 at 08:55

6.4/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 6.5 Flavor 6 Texture 6 Overall 6
Cask. Pours a mahogany color with moderate head. Aromas of caramel, mild red berries and bready malts. Flavors of caramel malts, a bit of grass and a little fruit. Pretty basic bitter.
Tried from Cask on 28 Oct 2025 at 21:20

6.3/10 Appearance 7 Aroma 6.5 Flavor 5.5 Texture 6 Overall 6.5
Gyllen brun med lys beige skum. Lukter karamell, urter og malt. Smaker malt, urter, smør og karamell. Lett og kort.
Tried on 05 Sep 2025 at 19:24

6.5/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 6 Flavor 6.5 Texture 8 Overall 5.5
Misted copper colour, decent head. Caramel, toast, biscuit, esters, herbal hop. Medium dry. Light to medium bitterness. Not bad.
Tried from Bottle on 04 May 2025 at 16:35

7/10 Appearance 7 Aroma 7 Flavor 7 Texture 7 Overall 7
Old rating from 2014 - 500ml bottle, pours brown with a white foamy head. Aromas & tastes of dark fruits, bread, caramel, biscuit & toasted malt. Medium body. Smooth & long mildly bitter finish
Tried from Bottle on 18 Apr 2025 at 14:20

7/10 Appearance 7 Aroma 7 Flavor 7 Texture 7 Overall 7
Cask NERAX. Orange amber some head malty nose. Tastes of caramel,earth, malt, pleather. Fluffy palate
Tried on 03 Apr 2025 at 00:23

6.9/10 Appearance 8 Aroma 7 Flavor 6.5 Texture 7 Overall 6.5
Pours a very nice looking deep amber to light red. Medium sized, relatively dense per style head, the slightest off-white. Good retention and nice lacing. Average to slightly sub-par intensity in the aroma. Less malty for the style than usual with more focus on fruitiness: moderate caramelly, slightly biscuity notes, with the slightest soft (perhaps slightly buttery) feel to them, fruity notes are orangeish with a half jam-like, half candy-like character to them, maybe a hint of apple, maybe an earthy hint. Again, average to slightly sub-par intensity in taste, notes more or less as per aroma, with earthiness showing up a bit more in finish/aftertaste and perhaps a floral hops hint. Medium sweetness, quite low bitterness, a bit too sweet for my ideal liking in both taste and aftertaste. I also think it could use at least a bit more malty depth, but still fine overall. Relatively light in body with average carbonation. Light sized but dense bubbles, resulting in a mouthfeel that feels quite softer and fuller than usual for the style; not at all unpleasant though. Overall a slightly unusual bitter; fine and enjoyable but i'm not 100% sure about the idea behind it.
Tried from Bottle on 18 Feb 2025 at 19:25

6.4/10 Appearance 6 Aroma 6 Flavor 6 Texture 7 Overall 7
Half pint from the cask at the Lamplighter, St Helier, Jersey. Pours red / brown with a small white head. Aromas & tastes of red fruits, caramel & malt. Medium body. Light bitter finish. Enjoyable
Tried from Cask on 20 Jan 2025 at 20:35

5.9/10 Appearance 7 Aroma 5 Flavor 6 Texture 6 Overall 6
Tried from Bottle on 10 Jan 2025 at 21:42

6/10 Appearance 4 Aroma 7 Flavor 6 Texture 6 Overall 6
500ml bottle from Asda, Chelmsley Wood, Birmingham. Still shocked they had a new beer stocked, even if it is an old classic! Fairly clear reddish brown pour with brief fizzy head, no lasting head which is disappointing. Aroma is malty, sweet with a lovely plum fruitiness coming through. Taste is malts, toast, caramel, plum, long bitter finish. A little on the light side so for me the flavours don't carry as well as they could. Its decent but for some reason I was expecting better.
Tried from Bottle on 31 Dec 2024 at 02:24