Manor Ale No. 1 (Severn Valley Railway)
Hobsons Brewery

Manor Ale No. 1 (Severn Valley Railway)Manor Ale No. 1 (Severn Valley Railway)
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From:
Hobsons Brewery
 
England, United Kingdom
Style:
English Bitter
ABV:
5.5%
Score:
86
Avg:
3.82 | pDev: 10.21%
Reviews:
8
Ratings:
16
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 12, 2017
Added:
Sep 06, 2006
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  3
No description / notes.
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Ratings by chinchill:
Photo of chinchill
Reviewed by chinchill from South Carolina

3.6/5  rDev -5.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
From a cask at the 2015 Atlanta Cask Ale Tasting.
Pours hazy yellow amber with a durable but very bubbly head.
Strange spicy biscuit aroma.
The flavor is more as expected with a dominant light toasted grain component and light spicing. The 'spice' [yeast] is still strange but works well.

Fine soft feel with a medium body.
Jan 24, 2015
More User Ratings:
Photo of woodychandler
Reviewed by woodychandler from Pennsylvania

4.31/5  rDev +12.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
I am VERY excited to be drinking this one at last! I had purchased it (& No. 3) at Hunger-n-Thirst's bottle shop here in Lancaster, PA a while back & relegated it to the Bottle Backlog at Chez Woody until today. It was not out of malice aforethought, but when I was in Springfield, VA recently & I saw a bottle of No. 2 on the shelf at Total Wine & More, I snapped it up for today's horizontal. As a rail buff, I love that this beer commemorates a train! Many of us early craft beer people were/are rail fans & traveling by train for beer is a double-plus bonus.

From the bottle: "No. 1 - Series 1"; "BEER THAT'S JUST THE TICKET"; "Brewed to celebrate Severn Valley Railway's Manor Class steam engines. Severn Valley, one of Britain's finest Heritage Railways, chose Hobsons for its integrity and commitment to its roots in the heart of England."; "Naturally conditioned[,] contains sediment"; "Style[:] Bitter[;] See[:] Golden[;] Smell[:] Citrus[;] Taste[:] Zesty[;] Bitter[:] 3.5/5[;] Sweet[:] 3/5".

The bottle came with a beautiful foil wrapper around both the neck & cap, so I carefully removed it to preserve it for a local artist who specializes in bottle cap art. After Pop!ping the cap, I was equally gentle in my pour since the label clearly showed the presence of sediment. Once sufficiently decanted, I gave it a vigorous in-glass swirl to raise just over a finger of foamy, tawny head that quickly reduced back to wisps. Color was solid Amber (SRM = > 7, < 9) with NE-quality clarity, testament to my skill as a pourer. Nose had a grassy, hay-like bitterness along with a biscuity maltiness and the sharp, metallic twang that I often get in Samuel Smith's beers. Mouthfeel was medium, but very soft, as though the bottle conditioning had really allowed it to mature into a lightly carbonated, but still slightly effervescent, beer. The taste had the evocative quality of freshly-mown grass and/or hay with a biscuitiness that puts me in mind of summers on my maternal grandparents' upper lot, on the edge of a working farm, when my grandmother would put fresh-baked biscuits on the windowsill to cool while I read comic books. I do not really miss my childhood as I was often the target of ridicule at school, but the summers were a welcome respite. Finish was semi-dry, but quite pleasant in the main, as an author with whom I am currently immersed might say. Nostalgia goes a long way for me & coupled with its association with rail travel, I am a) giving this one high marks & b) saving the bottle to gaze at longingly.
Mar 12, 2017
Photo of kitschiguy
Reviewed by kitschiguy from Hong Kong

4.25/5  rDev +11.3%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
500ml bottle into 350ml beer glass.

Pours a cloudy deep yellow - looks nice. A little bit of head which died to leave a few patchy areas of film. Some lacing.

Nose is nice with some spicy orange, biscuit and bread. More hoppy aromas coing through as it warms - slightly fruity.

Palate is nice with lots of malty, quite earthy flavour balanced by a good hop bitterness.

Mouthfeel is really nice - quite full.

Bottle conditioned beers always do it for me - so much flavour and complexity. This is a feally good, weel-balanced beer.

Highly recommended.
Jun 11, 2016
 
Rated: 3.65 by Seanem44 from Virginia

Dec 12, 2015
 
Rated: 3.65 by hdtrice from England

Aug 05, 2015
 
Rated: 3.56 by WillieThreebiers from Connecticut

Jun 04, 2015
Photo of Zach136
Reviewed by Zach136 from Georgia

3.99/5  rDev +4.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
500ml bottle says its 5.5% ABV and has Amber Ale written on the bottle. Struck me as a pretty poor rendition of Amber Ale, and bitter fits better so I’m reviewing as the latter.


A - Clear yellow, virtually no head, but some what of a lasting collar. (3.75)

S - Light toasty character with a touch of earthy hop (4.00)

T - Light grainy malt, signature English hard water hop and malt astringency. Little to no specialty malt character. (4.00)

M - Light bodied, lingering bitter finish. (4.00)
Nov 05, 2014
 
Rated: 4.25 by RochefortChris from North Carolina

Sep 24, 2014
 
Rated: 4 by mrighelli from Italy

Apr 24, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by harpus from Alabama

Dec 20, 2013
Photo of gutbucket2
Reviewed by gutbucket2 from England

3.31/5  rDev -13.4%
look: 3 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
500ml bottle. Bottle-conditioned. appearance: light amber/gold with thin head. smell: spicy hop. taste: spicy hop. mouthfeel: fairly thin. overall: zesty bitter, English hops. Good to taste a bitter that doesn't taste of grapefruit. Cyclops description: Style: bitter, See: golden, Smell: citrus, Taste: zesty.
Oct 04, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by Robert-Simmonds from England

Jun 12, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by vinicole from England

Mar 26, 2013
Photo of StJamesGate
Reviewed by StJamesGate from New York

3.58/5  rDev -6.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pale gold with crusty white film. Oddly barrel-like nose: smoke and iodine.
Toasted hazelnut, waxberry and cocoa nibs with mulchy autumn leaves hops plus some grass and lemon rind.
Long bitter linger. Light, crisp, soft, oily.

An oddly smoky start opens up into a strange mix of flavors that is aggressively oily and bitter overall. I've yet to taste a Hobsons beer that is to style, with mixed results. This one is interesting and innovative again but ultimately doesn't work for me.
Sep 05, 2011
Photo of YankChef
Reviewed by YankChef from Louisiana

4.65/5  rDev +21.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 5
500ml bottle poured into american pint glass, brought from england to me by the ole lady

appearance: very pale and golden, very high clarity with a nice sticky foamy white head

smell: mild aroma, some sort of hay or barn sort of aromas, musty touch of pine and really subtle toffee

taste: Surprising!!! Has some sweet roasted flavors up front like caramel even a little toffee, maybe some diacetyl in there too... hops are nice and crisp without being overwhelming to bring some balance and make this brew refreshing, carbonation is surprisingly low which adds to the drinkability to me

Overall: Give me more of this stuff!!! One of the most flavorful sub 5% beers i have ever had and i would drink this a hell of a lot if i could get it regularly, if you ever have the chance to get this stuff consider it a treat
Aug 26, 2009
Photo of BlackHaddock
Reviewed by BlackHaddock from England

4.13/5  rDev +8.1%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4.5
This beer was brewed for the Severn Valley Railway beer festival. It is named after one of their refurbished steam trains.

It became so popular (and the brewery were looking for a summer brew), that it is now to be brewed every summer to replace the winter brew Old Henry (which I will review when it re-appears in October).

I have drank this beer in Shrewsbury and at the brewery, enjoying it very much.

It is a dark redish brown with a loose creamy head which stays on the side of the glass.

At first I thought of burnt caramel and chocolate malt, but it is a coffee aroma which comes through really. Amber malt has been used, not chocolate malt, the headbrewer informs me. Fuggles hops (amongst others) also add to the aroma. This brewery still uses whole hops and mills its own malts, almost all of which is locally sourced.

Again the burnt caramel comes to mind in the first mouthful, but coffee overtones soon take over.

This is not a sicky, thick, over heavy beer, but its mouthfeel is one of strenght and goodness.

Very, very drinkable. I would call it a Bar-B-Q Beer!
Sep 06, 2006
Manor Ale No. 1 (Severn Valley Railway) from Hobsons Brewery
Beer rating: 86 out of 100 with 16 ratings