Puddlers Row ESB
Conshohocken Brewing Company

Puddlers Row ESBPuddlers Row ESB
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From:
Conshohocken Brewing Company
 
Pennsylvania, United States
Style:
Extra Special / Strong Bitter (ESB)
Ranked #70
ABV:
5.4%
Score:
84
Ranked #22,231
Avg:
3.72 | pDev: 9.14%
Reviews:
27
Ratings:
86
Status:
Active
Rated:
Mar 13, 2024
Added:
Jun 27, 2014
Wants:
  2
Gots:
  23
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Profchaos20:
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Rated by Profchaos20 from Pennsylvania

3.82/5  rDev +2.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

Jun 24, 2015
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.75 by eluvah from New York

Mar 13, 2024
 
Rated: 3.4 by sbradley41 from Pennsylvania

Jan 13, 2024
 
Rated: 3.73 by sentrytec from Pennsylvania

May 04, 2023
Photo of Steve_Studnuts
Reviewed by Steve_Studnuts from Pennsylvania

3.47/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5
A nice fluffy head develops over a clear reddish brown ale. Smells clean and malt-forward; caramel, toffee, light toasty qualities. More bitter on the tongue than the nose, but by no means overpowering or out-of-balance. Tasty, but light. Missing something for me, but I can't quite put my finger on what. It has no significant flaws; it's perfectly fine (and I could probably down a six pack, truth be told) just a little underwhelming. Maybe I'm just not in the mood for a session beer tonight.
May 15, 2022
Photo of 2beerdogs
Reviewed by 2beerdogs from California

3.75/5  rDev +0.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Thanks to Roy_Hobbs for this one. Unknown canning date to to being smudged.
A classy amber hue. Firm sandy head fluffs up north of a finger in height but settles to a consistent 1/4 inch cap.
Decent retention with very slight lacing.
Nose is bready with hints of caramel, toffee, and gentle roast notes.
Flavor starts off slightly sweet: caramel, brown bread, toffee, and a subtle fruity note akin to raisin or dates. Some toasty notes again begins in a bread direction but hints at char, slightly earthy. A slight nuttiness comes through for a bit and surrenders to a mild, bitter finish.
Mouthfeel is really nice. Smooth, slightly lighter than medium in feel, mild carbonation, and a very balanced finish: slightly sweet at first with a gentle bitterness.
Pub time. I could hit this one all day.
Apr 21, 2022
Photo of BBThunderbolt
Reviewed by BBThunderbolt from Kiribati

3.43/5  rDev -7.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Thanks to Roy_Hobbs for this one from his blasts during NBS BIF #15. 16oz can (date 12/19/21, I think. The date was blurred) poured into 14oz teku. Poured a very dark, cloudy, and slightly muddy brown color with less than a quarter-inch of light tan head that had low retention and lacing.

The aroma was the expected soft malts and floral/earthy hops of the style. Just a bit of hop bite appeared as well.

Pretty similar on the tongue, with the slight bit of hop bitterness showing through a bit more.

The body was light of medium, smooth, and had a medium finish that leaned a bit sweet.

Drinkability was very good, a nicely easy quaff.

Overall, a pretty good take on the style. Worth a shot if you see it.
Apr 17, 2022
Photo of philbe311
Reviewed by philbe311 from Pennsylvania

3.68/5  rDev -1.1%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
A finger's worth of light khaki colored froth with modest retention... Color is a deep rich caramel bronze... Huge malty nose of biscuit and the expected sweetness in the form of toffee and honey... A subtle layer of hops lingers beneath the surface... Some of the sweetness disappears on the palate and thereafter malts dominate... Limited hops... Flavors are pretty much spot on for the style, but lacks a bit of the depth or complexity I was hoping for... Dense and slightly sticky with brisk carbonation... It's hard to find new interpretations of the style... While this one certainly satisfied the craving it left a bit to be desired...
Apr 16, 2022
Photo of Roy_Hobbs
Reviewed by Roy_Hobbs from Connecticut

3.86/5  rDev +3.8%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 4
Pours a bright, translucent (borderline clear) burnt sienna. Medium head production and retention. Aroma is bready malts. Taste is a nice blend of roasted malts, light caramel and toffee. Very clean and easy to drink. I'm a sucker for the classic styles, and this one is hitting the spot.
Apr 12, 2022
Photo of jonphisher
Reviewed by jonphisher from New Jersey

3.85/5  rDev +3.5%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
Pours cloudy and a dirty orangey brown, off white head. It settles to a nice beautiful layer of creamy froth. Some very good lacing too.

Nose has a sweet and fresh baked bread like aroma, I keep noticing the smallest hint of fruitiness.

Taste is very pleasant; good combination baked goods, little bit of light breakfast tea, and again a subtle sweet fruit like note and some hops on the finish.

Light side of medium on the body, but it drinks very smooth and creamy. A nice subtle hoppy finish.
Apr 06, 2022
 
Rated: 3.94 by Taenim from Maine

Feb 07, 2022
Photo of dano213
Reviewed by dano213 from Pennsylvania

4/5  rDev +7.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
16oz can purchased from the fridge as a single for $3.49. Canned on 1/11/21, so this is just over 5 months old.

Look: Nice amber color without any haze to speak of. A barely clinging tan head on the edge of the glass. Some haze after pouring the bottom of the can probably due to sediment.

Smell: Nice aromas of caramel, maltiness, and earthy hops. The nose has a bit of fruitiness up front - sweet cherry, raisin, and amaretto. Faint roasted malt / chocolate aroma on the finish that is quite pleasant. Buttery notes after pouring the bottom of the can, diacetyl perhaps?

Taste: This is quite tasty, very drinkable, and nicely balanced. Up front, The finish has a very mild bitterness, roasty and nutty notes.

Feel: Medium bodied. Perfectly carbonated.

Overall: It's been super long since I've had an ESB; when I used to frequent British pubs, it was one of my favorite styles to order (Fuller's ESB was my go-to at the Americanized British pubs). This is a very pleasant, nice beer. I think that the malt bill on this ESB is a bit darker than typical, but it certainly works. It's not my favorite ESB, but I would have no problem drinking this again.

Product Details (from website)
Puddlers Row Extra Special Bitter is a classic English-style ale with a mellow roasted flavor that's rounded out by a toffee-like caramel sweetness. Puddlers Row is well balanced between English malts and European hops.
Jun 20, 2021
Photo of JohnniEMc
Reviewed by JohnniEMc from Pennsylvania

4.2/5  rDev +12.9%
look: 5 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25
An Imperial pint from a hand drawn cask. It's a beautiful pour, rich copper in color and an almost pure white head. There's a strong aroma of malts and yeast. The glass lacing is abundant. The taste is mild, mostly of malt, with hints of yeast and hops. This is close to a good traditional English Bitter, so if you like them, you'll like this. The style itself is a subdued one, so don't expect fireworks in the mouth. This makes a good session beer. There's enough depth to the taste, with a bit of dryness to the finish, to enjoy a reduced bitterly hopped beer.
Aug 28, 2020
 
Rated: 3.75 by cjohns73 from Delaware

Nov 11, 2019
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Reviewed by vette2006c5r from Minnesota

3.47/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 4 | smell: 3.25 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Puddlers Row pours a dark amber color, with a nice large head. Weak aroma, some hop notes. Flavor is a bit bitter, some hop flavors, but pretty weak. Weaker flavors. Overall, decent ESB, hop forward, weaker on the bitterness.
Jul 14, 2019
Photo of Buck89
Reviewed by Buck89 from Tennessee

4.1/5  rDev +10.2%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.25 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
On tap at PHL. A slightly hazy amber color with a medium sized white head. Nice lacing in the glass. A sweet malty aroma with caramel and faint floral notes. The taste followed with a rich blend of caramel, toffee, dark bread, and a balancing floral bitterness. Clean and medium bodied. Overall a very tasty beer.
May 20, 2019
 
Rated: 4.23 by dflo32 from North Carolina

Apr 15, 2019
Photo of HardCider
Reviewed by HardCider from Pennsylvania

3.47/5  rDev -6.7%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Orangish copper color with a moderate head and moderate lacing. Very mild aroma which made it hard to identify. A good amount of bitterness. My first time trying this style of beer. I thoroughly enjoyed it.
Feb 14, 2019
 
Rated: 3.75 by 6thstreetbrewpub from District of Columbia

Nov 25, 2018
Photo of DavetotheB
Reviewed by DavetotheB from Pennsylvania

3.76/5  rDev +1.1%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.75
Reviewed 4/10/22.
From 16oz can into a pint glass. Date illegible.

Translucent orangish brown. Maybe half finger of off white head. Pretty terrible retention and lacing.

Floral, earthy smell.

Slight bready taste. Grainy.

This drinks great. Very smooth. Very low carbonation.

Not a style I'm familiar with but this is enjoyable.
Nov 24, 2018