Sierra Nevada ESB (Early Spring Beer)
A vigorous pour yields an almost four-finger thick, light tan colored head that leave only a light dusting of lacing as it subsides. The beer is a cranberry tinged, light amber color that shows a brilliantly clear, dark copper, red-stained color when held up to the light. The aroma has an interesting hop character to it, herbal, with a light, green, yet distinctly dank note of hemp oil, a touch of green onions. This earthy, herbal note is lightly accented by toasty malt notes, a touch of whole grain bread crust, and biscuit-like malt. As the other aromatics dissipate a bit a soft, berry like and citrus accented hop character starts to become noticeable, a sort of mix of lemon zest and ripe, sweet blackberries perhaps. Herbal hops and pine flavors greet my tongue at first and couple with a biting bitterness that continues on through to a lingering finish. Fizzy carbonation sees to get in the way of the balance and texture of this brew, but that is taken care of by a few quick swirls of my glass. Light bodied, yet has a certain fullness to it that adds a touch of heft, the beer now finishes with a light, zippy carbonation that adds just a touch of texture to the end of this brew. Clearly a hop dominated brew, but there is some malt character here that helps to support the leading role; light caramelized malt sugars, a touch of toasty grain, and a browned, bread crust flavor towards the finish round out some of the malt flavors. The dominant hop flavors also lend flavors of menthol towards the finish, a wisp of green, spicy, hemp / onion flavors and a light, bergamot notes in the middle. A tasty brew, it is perhaps a touch unbalanced with the sharply herbal, green hop notes, but not so much that this is not a quaffable, enjoyable brew. Purchased: Plaza Liquors, Tucson AZ