Saranac ESB Extra Special Bitter Ale

Tonight I grabbed a Saranac from the fridge - their ESB - which was part of their 12 Beers of Winter assortment. I recently found out that Whole Foods has their 12 Beers of Summer in stock now, so I'm 2 seasons behind! So many beers, so little time... I think this might have sat in the fridge a little too long, because it displayed some of the same flavor characteristics as the Alligator Drool I reviewed a few days ago. It definitely had a sour character to it, which I wasn't expecting. Not as bad as the "Drool", but there none the less. It poured a little darker than I expected from an ESB, and had very little head. The nose had some hints of caramel, which was good, and was also present in the flavor. I hope I got a bad bottle, because it definitely had potential, if it weren't for the sourness.

Left Hand Brewing's Sawtooth Ale

Here's another offering from Left Hand Brewing of Longmont, CO. It's their Sawtooth Ale, which the brewer describes as an ESB. When I poured this beer, the head filled the glass, and I had to wait a long time for it to subside enough to pour some more in. The photo shows the beer when only about 2/3 of the bottle has been poured. I've had this happen with a few of my homebrews, but usually I have the opposite situation with commercial beers - no head at all. So, I patiently waited, sipped some of the head to try to make some room, and finally got the beer poured. It's a nice pale amber, a little cloudy because it must be bottle conditioned. There was a fair amount of yeast residue in the bottle. This is a very flavorful beer, full of hops and malt. This is an American style ESB, since it's made with Cascade hops, along with English Fuggles. It has a slighty metallic taste in the finish. This was more obvious when I was sipping at the head only. Left Hand Brewing is another strong brewer, and this is a good example of their craft.

Sierra Nevada ESB (Early Spring Beer)

When I see "ESB", I normally think of Extra Special Bitter - the "normal" translation of that acronym. So, I was a little reluctant to buy this when I saw "ESB" translated as Early Spring Beer - but at the time, this was the only beer at the supermarket that I hadn't tried yet. My concern was unfounded. This really is an Extra Special Bitter; or at least Sierra Nevada's Americanized version of one. It uses Maris Otter, a British malt, as well as some British and American hops. This is a very tasty brew. It has a nice malt flavor, and a hop finish that I have come to expect from Sierra Nevada. It's labeled with the year 2008, so I don't know if this will become a standard offering. Get some while you can!