Elland Back
Elland Brewery

Presentation: The Friday of my last weekend in England during my Easter trip back to the homeland was spent with work colleagues in and around Wakefield. The Six Chimneys (see BeerFly); the local J.D. Wetherspoon’s stunned with not one, nor even two….but no less than three Eastwood & Sanders brews.

The first of these was the 'Elland Back', a play of the name of the home town of Eastwood & Sanders, and advertised at 4.6% on the Pumpclip.

Appearance: Pulled through a tight sparkler, it has an effervescent pale straw color, exceptionally clear; the milky agitation caused by the sparkler eventually induced a soft yet firm ¼” uniform white head. Looks like a weak Euro lager at first, and in this case, looks are most certainly deceptive.

Nose: Earthy yet aromatic – but utterly and repugnantly bitter without any apologies. Sharp hoppy nose with a biting grapefruit bitterness that tugs at the nasal hairs – shocking at times, is this from England?? Shurely not.

Taste: Centennial hops rip through the mid-alcohol English body. Brutally raped by acerbic bitterness, the grapefruit and light citric elements are back stage here. Some fruity dimensions fight through. But this is ‘Out-&-Out’ Bitterness at surprisingly extreme levels in an English Bitter…..that erm…..really is!!

Mouthfeel: Sharp cutting rasping floral Centennial hops smatter the cheeks…seemingly forever. Has a raw naked lingering astringent bitterness.

Drinkability: I loved it, if it wasn’t for the other two E&S beers, Fireball & CalderdAle then I would have drunk this one all night. Superb!

Overall: I will freely admit that I knew Dave Sanders when I lived in England, in fact, along with Kevin Gameson, Dave Sanders was my Obi-Wan Kenobi when it came to learning Cask Real Ale 101 and being a Bar Manager at Beer Festivals, including the fledgling Wakefield Beer Festival back in 1991. With his understanding of Cask Ale he was born to be a brewer for sure, and sure enough, the E&S brews are highly accomplished ales, but the Elland Back is quite the detour from the norm, even for UK Real Ales. BITTER, in more than the traditional ‘beery’ sense of the word.

I’m sure my US brethren will enjoy this one, but don’t bother with the bottle; you really must have it from Cask to appreciate it properly.

NERAX 2005

Clear, light gold, with a low white head that dies down.

Tangy, tingling lemony scent so good I want to savor it.

Wow! Bitter! Bitter! Bitter! Bitter! Bitter! mmmm

Intense lemon--juice, rind, zest--the whole shebang sliced up and sprinkled with just enough malt sweetness to support it. Light sparkle on the tongue. Resiny finish that leaves lemon oil on the lips.

Hell yeah! Did I mention that it's bitter?

Sampled at NERAX.

This bitter poured a hazy amber color with off-white foam. The smell was slightly fruity with a bit of hops. The taste was malty with fruity hops followed by dry, "chalky" hop flavors. The mouthfeel was dry and smooth and hoppy with medium body. The fruity hop flavors lingered nicely. This was a nice cask bitter.