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Saranac Seasonals - Saranac E.S.B. (17:21)

Saranac ESB is a seasonal offering from Saranac, in their "Brewer's Choice" offering line.

Initial pour

I poured this at 55°F into the usual cool hand washed clear mug. The color was a nice red, very clear, and with a smooth head which covered the brew to about 8mm (1/2 inch). The aroma was malty, rich and pleasant.

The taste

Was very good. Complex and balanced between malt and hops, not overly smoky or overly anything else. I've had ESB and bitter style brews in various parts of the world, and I don't believe that any bottled beer is going to match cask conditioned draft bitter. Having said that, the head lasted, and the flavor didn't become boring, this could be a session beer if you like to drink a single style all evening.

A bit of history

My first really good bitter was in Thursk England, in about 1983. It was in a small pub and sold with only the S.G. (specific gravity) listed. It was identified only as the "Publican's Choice." And believe it or not, I didn't have another bitter good enough to remember until 2002 (or so), when we were attending a 50th anniversary party in the VanDyke in Schenectady NY, a place we had visited for decades under various owners. The recent addition of on-site brewing led us (wife Pat and I) to try the bitter, which we proceeded to enjoy as you can with friends and within walking distance of home. Alas, the brewer changed, the brews changed, and the owner was good at finding investors but not customers, and it eventually closed.

The final memorable bitter was at Four Peaks Brewing a few blocks from Sun Devil Stadium in Tempe Arizona. They had a sampler with not a single bad brew in the rack, and some better than average food to go with it. That was about 2005, on one of our trips back to the land of my wife's childhood. I strongly suggest a visit there if you are anywhere in the Phoenix or Tempe area, you will thank me for it.

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