Bishops Finger
Shepherd Neame Ltd

 

 

 

 

 

Had on cask. Clear amber brown with a light khaki head. Nose is toffee with cocoa and biscuit. Taste has big toffee, slight cocoa but not as much as nose, slight nut, grassy hop finish is welcomed and brings balance. Very malty and smooth, decently warm medium body. The wife liked it.

 

Cask at Old Doctor Butler's Head, London.
Deep reddish copper. Full off white head soon thins to thin frothy top and lace.
Aroma full brown bread and fruit, baked apples.
Taste - full firm sweetness with engaging zesty spicy bitterness. Lingers gently. Some caramelized fruits and bread. Lively and zesty. Full bodied yet engaging.

 

 

 

 

A real classic bitter.
I don't know why this isn't imported anymore.

A - Bishop's Finger pours into my glass crystal clear and a deep copper color, bordering on leathery. Head is two fingers deep and creamy in color.

S - Bishop's Finger is robust in its maltiness, reminding me of an English brown ale. Dark malts with notes of bread and crackers mix quickly and seamlessly with aromas of caramel, leather, and damp earth. somewhere in there, I think maybe I'm getting a whiff of berries but can't be sure. All of this leads into a nutty finish before fading into the peppery, earthy, aroma of European hops.

T - Bishop's finger is medium bodied and smooth, its flavors held up by pinpoint carbonation. flavors are rich in their maltiness, starting off sweet up front with its flavors of caramel. Much like the nose, caramel leads into slightly dryer flavors of leather, each one complimenting the other. this is where flavors lead into the bracing bitter finish you would expect in an English bitter.

 

Pours a clear, deep, dark amber amber coloration with a medium, fluffy head. Smells of biscuity, caramel, slightly grainy malt, toffee and herbal hops, with some dark fruit and red berry accents of fig, raisin and red currants as well. Taste follows the nose, with a good balance of biscuity, caramel, slightly grainy malt and herbal, hops, with some dark fruit and red berry notes of fig, raisin and red currant, as well as a distinct toffee presence and just a hint of pine. Finishes with a medium bitterness and some caramel malt, toffee and dark fruit lingering in the aftertaste. Smooth mouthfeel with a medium body and carbonation.

This is a pretty nice English Bitter with a good balance of sweet malts, bitter, herbal hops and distinct toffee and dark/red fruit notes, as well as just a hint of pine. Starts out a little sweet, but is being balanced nicely by a good bitterness in the finish. Quite an enjoyable, expressive and well-balanced brew.

L: Chestnut brown, lasting head, good lacing
S: Toffee, malts, vanilla, bitter orange
T: Toasty malt, background of citrus
F: Somewhat complex, a bit watery

O: 4

 

 

500ml clear bottle, couldn't see any date, poured into a tulip.
Look: A really good looking dark bronze/chestnut colour. Not too much head, slowly subsides to a thin film in the middle and around the sides of the glass. Great colour, wish it had a bit more head though.
Smell: caramel, some toasted cereally malt, something a little metallic and some slight grassy/herbal hop at the end.
Taste: a little less caramel than on the nose, some toasted malt, a little bit of dried fruit and a little more herbal/green than on the nose.
Feel: mid bodied, not super carbonated, but there's a little tingliness near the back of the palate. Bitterness comes through near the end, and I found it unexpectedly strong and with a decent length.
Overall: decent offering, but I was left a little underwhelmed.