Branthill Pioneer
Fox Brewery Ltd

Bottle-conditioned, 500ml brown glass bottle. The beer features Maris Otter barley grown on the Branthill Farm, Wells-Next-The-Sea, Norfolk, hence the name.
BB Oct. 2006, served cool in a straight imperial-pint glass.

A: nice and bright amber hue, coming with a hissing and fluffy off-white head which dissipates slowly; medium carbonation with very big bubbles in action~~
S: in a distance I could smell some similarities with Sauvignon Blanc?! Taking a closer sniff, there're citrus fruits, piney and flowery perfume, semi-sweet nutty malts, and a slightly sour, damp leafy note due to yeasts I presume. Very refreshing and enjoyable, but not quite complex as I'd like it to be.
T: quite "big" and fizzy on the mouthfeel upfront, but it doesn't block the way for a mildly sour-sweet, berry-fruit+citrus like fruity flavour and a deeper flow of nutty and slightly biscuity maltiness to come through... At each sip, a thin and sweetish texture, like aspartame, follows closely and wanes fast as well, while a yeasty hint--musty, woody and piney--lingers quietly at the back. Quite clean finish, not as bitter nor hoppy as a premium bitter could get--rather malt-dominated I think.
M&D: medium-bodied and reasonably flavoursome for a premium bitter. The mouthfeel is not bad, quite lively, though it's still too fizzy to my liking. Overall this bottle-conditioned ale is another proof that the Fox Brewery knows how to keep up the quality of its bottle-conditioned lines. Well worth a try!