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Thunder Trail
Arcadia Brewing Company
- From:
- Arcadia Brewing Company
- Michigan, United States
- Style:
- Extra Special / Strong Bitter (ESB)
- ABV:
- 6%
- Score:
- 78
- Avg:
- 3.41 | pDev: 11.73%
- Reviews:
- 27
- Ratings:
- Status:
- Retired
- Rated:
- Jun 05, 2017
- Added:
- Apr 19, 2013
- Wants:
- 2
- Gots:
- 19
Formerly called Arcadia Lake Superior ESB.
Thunder Trail stays true to our English brewing heritage. With a strong backbone of Maris Otter and Crystal malts, this Extra Special Bitter is balanced by earthy, spicy, English hops Our Ringwood yeast strain imparts a distinctly fruity character that is accented by dry-hopping with a modest amount of palisade hops. We hope you enjoy this quality session ale - wherever the trail may take you.
Thunder Trail stays true to our English brewing heritage. With a strong backbone of Maris Otter and Crystal malts, this Extra Special Bitter is balanced by earthy, spicy, English hops Our Ringwood yeast strain imparts a distinctly fruity character that is accented by dry-hopping with a modest amount of palisade hops. We hope you enjoy this quality session ale - wherever the trail may take you.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by BierStein711:
Reviewed by BierStein711 from Illinois
4.63/5 rDev +35.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
4.63/5 rDev +35.8%
look: 4.75 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.75 | feel: 4.75 | overall: 4.75
Bottle poured into shaker pint.
Dark brownish amber body, with standard off-white head, moderate carbonation.
The mouthfeel is perfect, you are drinking a beer here.
Smells of minerals and dark fruit.
Taste: raisins, chalk, and a mineral finish. This is a blanced ESB!!
Overall, this is an American version of a classic English beer style. I'd buy a sixer. Perfect drink for a colder winter day.
Dec 14, 2013Dark brownish amber body, with standard off-white head, moderate carbonation.
The mouthfeel is perfect, you are drinking a beer here.
Smells of minerals and dark fruit.
Taste: raisins, chalk, and a mineral finish. This is a blanced ESB!!
Overall, this is an American version of a classic English beer style. I'd buy a sixer. Perfect drink for a colder winter day.
More User Ratings:
Rated by JDoHo from Michigan
3.81/5 rDev +11.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
3.81/5 rDev +11.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75
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Oct 28, 2016Reviewed by Tripel_Threat from Michigan
3.56/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
3.56/5 rDev +4.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.5
Pour is a light brown in color, somewhat clear, with a millimeter of thick, off white foam on top. Aroma and flavor is toasty bread, biscuit, and caramel malts, with a slightly peppery hoppy zing. Earthy. Clean finish.
Aug 10, 2016Reviewed by WesMantooth from Ohio
3.73/5 rDev +9.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
3.73/5 rDev +9.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75
On tap at the brew pub. A beautiful copper pour with a large light beige foamy head.
Really nice, clean toasted malts with a touch of caramel sweetness. A slight hop bitterness. The fruit notes may be lacking a tad, but this beer is pretty much on point. Very drinkable.
Mar 13, 2016Really nice, clean toasted malts with a touch of caramel sweetness. A slight hop bitterness. The fruit notes may be lacking a tad, but this beer is pretty much on point. Very drinkable.
Reviewed by schnjac from Michigan
3.48/5 rDev +2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
3.48/5 rDev +2.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 3.5
It's not quite as hoppy as some of the other ESBs that I've tried. I guess that is a matter of personal preference. It is certainly balanced and contains some nice flavor profiles. I agree with metter98 that it would pair well with a meal.
Jan 14, 2016Reviewed by uccle81 from Michigan
2.96/5 rDev -13.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 2 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.25
2.96/5 rDev -13.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 2 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 3.25
So, this beer just wasn't right. I love ESB's, probably my favorite type. And this wasn't it. There's nothing wrong with it, but it's not an ESB. I think it's because the type of yeast used is more appropriate for a Saison or a sour beer. I'd LOVE to see Arcadia give this same recipe another shot, but with different yeast and more malt. An ESB is supposed to be more "Extra Special" due to the malt used, which I didn't particularly notice.
So the sub-standard rating is primarily because the beer does not properly reflect the style that it claims to represent. Also, the carbonation was pretty bad.
Dec 05, 2015So the sub-standard rating is primarily because the beer does not properly reflect the style that it claims to represent. Also, the carbonation was pretty bad.
Rated by coffeegsp from Illinois
4.65/5 rDev +36.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
4.65/5 rDev +36.4%
look: 5 | smell: 5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.5 | overall: 4.5
Appley (tart), hops with nice bitter aftertaste. Sweet, carbonated and full. Surprisingly rich in the beginning, weak hops at the end.
Oct 19, 2015
Thunder Trail from Arcadia Brewing Company
Beer rating:
78 out of
100 with
122 ratings
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