Clarkvv (16523) reviewed Porter from Ipswich Ale Brewery 22 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 8
2003 bottle. Light barley malt aroma. Maybe a little chocolate, dry and bitter though if it is. Deep chocolate color. Small burnt umber head. When I poured it it had that black chalky color similar to youngs chocolate stout, so I was expecting chocolate. I wasnt disappointed. Nice even roasty malt flavor. Ends with a chocolate flavor that lingers. Didnt see as much caramel flavor, but the mocha/espresso flavor more than made up for it. At first I was a bit disappointed by the only medium body, but after drinking more, I think I am beginning to get a taste for these more traditional porters (ligher body). A good beer, and probably one that will grow on me. Rerate. It’s growing on me! Still love the smooth even understated yet sensual chocolate malt flavor that is apparent throughout. Beer just comes together so nicely. Didnt have problems with the body this time. Still a lighter bodied porter, but just tastes incredible.
2004 bottle The level of filtration and bottle conditioning seems to be decreasing, or maybe my six pack just didnt have as much in it. Anyways, still has plenty of sweet chocolate malt, good brown malts and a touch of sweet mocha, but everything seems a little too sweet and simple to be truly top notch. Ends with some decent bitterness, but nothing like the Dark Ale. Low hops profile is a major plus though.
Clarkvv (16523) reviewed Dark Ale from Ipswich Ale Brewery 22 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
2002 growler. Dark Brown with some reddish golden hues. Slightly cloudy, as this is unfiltered and, to my delight, unpasteurized. Had out of a growler. Nice straw, malt aroma. Some dark dark, full berry aroma on the end. But mostly an earthy almost root taste coming from the barley. Nice grainy/malt character. Wonderful velvety taste. Great natural carbonation. Soft but yet has an appropriate amount of burnt flavor from the roasted malt. As it warmed to room temperature, there were some even caramel tending towards toffee notes. Very balanced ale with a full, malty body. What I enjoyed most was that it was complex and seemed to offer a bit of everything, malt, roast, caramel/toffee flavor, good body, good carb level, even had a bit of hops to it that is apparent right upon sipping it. Could be a little less sweet, as that tends to prevent from drinking much of this at one time. 2004 bottle. Still incredible. Great color, same light dark fruits in the aroma with plenty of lightly bitter, juicy hops, dominated mostly by caramel and chocolate malt. Tastes wonderful even after it has warmed. Less sweet than I rememeber, maybe a bit more bitter. I think if they lowered the alpha acids/took out some hops, this would be even better. As it is, this is one of my favorite brown ales and just a tasty, drinkable beer.
Clarkvv (16523) reviewed Original Ale from Ipswich Ale Brewery 23 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7.5
Rapidly decreasing white foamy head. The bottle I had was highly carbonated. I tried it at about 50-53 degrees. It reminded me of a lighter version of the IPA. Still a good deal of bitterness. Had the characteristic peachy-malt taste of Ipswich brews. Very nice, dry aftertaste. I thought this beer was very well balanced, maybe could use a bit of a caramel malt. Seemed halfway between an APA and an EPA. Still a great beer.
On cask at NERAX 4/29/2005 as "Ipsich Pale Ale"
Hazy red-gold, well-retained white head. Nose has yeast, pale malt, light flowers. Flavor is malty sweet, cream, honey with some grassy-herbal hops. Good medium-full body. A bit bland on the finish.
Clarkvv (16523) reviewed India Pale Ale from Ipswich Ale Brewery 23 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 6.5
2002 and 2003 bottle. You are hit with a malt and the hops immediately and then there is that peachy, fuzzy note that is customary of this brewery. Not an incredibly strong IPA, but I enjoy that, as it provides a little more complexity and dosent kill you with hops. Ends with a lovely combination of bitter hops and yeast. 2004 bottle. Just not as complex as I remember. Too much boring hops, hops, and more hops. It’s not terrible, I can just think of plenty others I’d much rather have. Seems like they really need to add much more malt depth to this one. What you would expect to be an English IPA from these guys, is in fact a a strange mixture of high alpha hops and too little malt. Boring.
Clarkvv (16523) reviewed Extra Special Bitter from Ipswich Ale Brewery 23 years ago
Appearance - 10 | Aroma - 9 | Flavor - 9 | Texture - 10 | Overall - 9.5
This may be my favorite beer. Didnt take any tasting notes when i had it a year ago, but i had a 6 pack of it and it was incredible. Perfect red amber hue, great bitter notes, with some subtle apricot/peach tones. Please do your self a favor and try this beer. I can not even imagine what this tastes like on tap. I am going to Ipswich in a month and will be purchasing as much of this as I can find. Hopefully then I can rerate and get some more specs.
Thanks to the very generous OldGrowth, I was able to try an old bottle on 5/27/2005. I can’t believe how well this aged. Tons of oxidation, and sherry notes, but I can’t find fault with that, this is a 5% abv ESB brewed around 5 years ago. Still fruity, caramelly and malty. Poured a head, with light lacing and of course, plenty of sediment. Tons of fruity yeast esters, bready and malty. Fantastic! But upon further thought, it isnt a 5, I would like to be nostalgic and give it one, but no, it aint. Damn near close though, this is still a fantastic beer.
fiulijn (28382) reviewed 1084 Barley Wine from Ipswich Ale Brewery 24 years ago
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 4 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 6.5
[This bottle was stored in my cellar for 3 1/2 years] We expected more from this very strong ale; they should improve the malt flavor and reduce the unusual aromas and uneven flavors. Copper amber colour, a bit cloudy (there's a lot of yeast in the bottle). Strong aroma, of malt and tar (?). Little carbonation. Rich, medium-dry; it lacks of true malt and hop flavors; a hint of liquorice. Strong and bitter final, quite long.
NotABeerProfessor (3575) reviewed Porter from Ipswich Ale Brewery 24 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 8 | Flavor - 8 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 8.5
Nice and mild roasted aroma - not overdone. Very black in color, with medium carbonation and head. Outstandingly smooth and creamy mouthfeel - very Guinness like without the artificial nitro'd flavor-stripping effect. Sweeter than Guinness though, with a mild roasted flavor and full bodied maltiness, esp as it warms up.
Oakes (33493) reviewed 1084 Barley Wine from Ipswich Ale Brewery 25 years ago
Appearance - 4 | Aroma - 5 | Flavor - 6 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 4.5
Raw malty flavours. Some astringency. Not up to this brewer's normally fine standards. One the other hand, it does boast some of the year's best packaging.
Oakes (33493) reviewed Oatmeal Stout from Ipswich Ale Brewery 25 years ago
Appearance - 8 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 8 | Overall - 7
Heavy, roasty, complex. Large roast malt, and a touch of hop in the finish.
Oakes (33493) reviewed India Pale Ale from Ipswich Ale Brewery 25 years ago
Appearance - 6 | Aroma - 7 | Flavor - 7 | Texture - 6 | Overall - 7
Richly earthy, woody note...................................................