La P'tite Biere Brut'ale
Brasserie Des Garrigues

 

I split a 33 cl bottle into two Jester King snifters with my father.

The beer, when poured, formed a finger-thin, white head that was very light, though it stayed present throughout the whole beer with nice lacing. The beer itself is a very hazy light amber/orange. The aromas are fairly straight forward though pleasant. The primary smells are grainy malt, a hint of bitter hops, some woodiness as though the beer was barrel-aged, and a hint of grape must. The flavor of the beer follows the nose fairly closely. The big flavors are woodiness and unsweet, grainy malts and a lot of bitterness, much more than I have every had in an ESB. A small hint of hops are there, more citrus than pine, though they add more sharpness than bitterness or flavor. The light grape must in the nose is also present, almost as an afterthought. The beer has a very clean, crisp carbonation that is slightly biting, which goes perfectly the bitterness of the beer. Overall, this is a very nice beer and is easily the best ESB that I've had. That being said, I don't know how true it is to the style and may be better called an American Pale Ale.