Bass Pale Ale
Bass Brewers Limited

Bass Pale Ale is neither pale in the conventional sense nor is it the deeply coppered amber colour it would have been around the time of its conception. It has a more golden tinge shaded by only the lightest brush of amber. The clarity is immaculate but its head, disappointingly, is non-existent.

The smell is not exactly hoppy nor does it really showcase much of the hard, mineral-rich water that Burton-on-Trent is so famous for. What is most noted, I'm sorry to say, is a cloying hint of corn syrup. It possesses the same kind of high fructose odour one can usually lift from soft drinks. Apart from that, there is really only a smidgen of amber malts.

Bass became famous for two main reasons: its exceeding hop bitterness and the harsh, clipping mineral rich water of the Burton-on-Trent. Fast forward to the twenty-first century and forget all that. Forget bitter, forget crisp - this is borderline cloying with hints of corn syrup landing way ahead of any earthy hops or rich caramelized malts.

It could just be me, but I find all of these British macro canned offerings to posses the same taste of artificially induced nitrogen (even in the samples, like this one, that are not the nitro-cans.) It has a very gassy texture that far exceeds any maltiness or bitterness.

The original pale ales made for export, Bass is surely included in this, were massively hopped at anywhere from 6 to 8 pounds per barrel! (The average beer will use a couple ounces, most IPA's around 1 or 2 lbs and most DIPA's still falling short at maybe 4lbs or so per barrel.) Of course, this has no impression of hops in taste, aroma, or mouthfeel.

Which really is no surprise, English breweries like Bass were, as far as I can tell, the first macro breweries, meaning the first to start compromising on quality and tradition in the name of efficiency and profit margins. (Bass production had already reached 56,000 barrels a year, 12% of which was exported, by 1849. They would open two more massive breweries in the decades that followed.)*

Bottles of Bass can be seen in many paintings by Picasso and most famously in Edouard Manet's 1882 painting "Bar at the Folies-Bergère." I'm inclined to believe the product has changed much since those times, however. Bass has a rich history no doubt. It is ashamed the company seems so unconcerned and indifferent to abandon it, the beer I mean.

*All information taken from Martyn Cornell's "Beer: The Story of the Pint", an excellent read for anyone interested in the subject.

 

 

Decent brew. Amber color, nice head. Malt, bread and hint of caramel in aroma. Malty, earthy character in taste, pleasant hoppy bitterness in the aftertaste. Very good, as for mass-product, even though it doesn't taste like true English bitter.

 

 

From notes.
Poured from a 500ml bottle. 4.4% abv.
Look - Clear amber , finger thick off white head, tiny bubbled vigorous carbonation and lacing for days.
Smell- Slightly happy, slightly musty and a little bit of malt. Low on aroma.
Taste- Malty and sweet, full flavours of biscuit with hints of dried fruit. A very light bitterness late on.
Mouth feel - Almost creamy with carbonation, full bodied.
Overall - Bass is a malty treat , could use a touch more bitterness but it's full flavoured and easy drinking .

 

Smooth with a surprisingly strong bitter finish. This was draught bass 4.4% in a pub near its homeland of Burton-on-Trent. Incredibly satisfying to look at in a glass, with the iconic logo. May be a shadow of its former-great status but it's still a lovely drop in a cozy pub in the early evening. Just needs managing better.

 

 

 

 

Cask at the Roebuck. Light amber pour, creamy off-white head. Bready, caramelly malty aroma. Taste follows, sweet and smooth, malty, caramel. Creamy, mouthfeel. Wow!

 

Looks better than it taste. Quite a watery brew. Nothing special here. Move along.

Easy drinking sessionable beer that has a Secret Identity as the bottom layer of a Black & Tan, with fresh Guinness on top. It’s a classic combo that really works.
Bass on its own is OK too.,.