Beer #42 ESB
Galaxy Brewing Company

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

On cask at The Old Toad for their cask fest.

Pours a clear copper color, with no head or lacing.

Doesn't smell like a whole lot, some toasted malts and fruity aromas.

The taste is similar. Mildly bitter, with good toasted malt flavor, and some citrus hop flavors. Doesn't taste much like an actual ESB, and unfortunately, the taste is kind of muddled, with too sweet malt flavors.

Medium bodied, typical cask mouthfeel. Despite the weaker, watery flavor, this one's still fairly drinkable.

Not horrible, but ultimately fairly unmemorable.

an odd americanized take on esb, not real classic english stuff i dont think here. amber to brown in color, it looks the part, if a bit darker, with a nice foaming khaki head on it with fine retention. the nose is a little too sweet for the style, extract almost, but overly malty without the nuttiness i usually get from this style. the flavor i think is overly hopped just a bit, a tad bitter on the finish, and it doesnt go super well with all the density and residual sugar from the malt. the middle is strange too, a flavor i dont really recognize in beer, like baked apples or something. its pleasant, but again, doesnt really fit with esb as a style. i like this better as a pale ale honestly, as i dont get much englsih yeast character either. not a bad beer by any stretch of the imagination, and actually tastes pretty yummy, but as an esb i think its a total miss. first beer from galaxy though, so i will keep them on the radar.

edit: this beer has been radically improved over time, and now i reckon its one of the best they make in here, totally different experience than my original review. so smooth and creamy, nutty and refined, substantial even for the style, and with a ton of depth and a clean english ale yeast ferment, i think its really dialed in, and its nice to see a brewery improve over time. i think this beer is awesome now, and i am going to bump up some scores from the original review to reflect how much better this has gotten!

 

 

Grumbler pour into a snifter. Sold under the name Dont Panic but appears to be this beer.

A: Pours a clear copper amber with an off white head on top. Average amount of visible carbonation. Leaves some nice lacing on the sides of the glass.

S: Mild aroma with a blend of banana yeastiness, grain and sweet carmely malts. Some roastiness gives is a slight smokey aroma.

T: Nice mix of malty grains and hops. Has a light bitterness that is absorbed into the fresh grain flavor. Lingering carmel adds some sweetness to the mix.

M: Medium body with a smooth creamy body. Carbonation is appropriate for the style. A bit sticky on the palate from the malts.

Overall this is quite enjoyable. I really enjoy the belgian yeast qualities in a style that is normally much more bland.