Ridgeway Bitter
Tasted by half-pint at the Pembury Tavern, Hackney, North London on the Easter Day (16/04/06). Served by a hand-pump. A: dark but bright amber hue, coming with a nice fluffy beer head with good retention. S: very intense flowery hops, raw pears, followed closely by sharp hop resins and hints of deeper, earthy/muddy note... honeyish sweet maltiness lies underneath... moments later the intense aroma described above dissipates fast and gives way to a citrus-dominated fruity hop aroma. T: sour-sweet nutty malts upfront, supported by a good backbone of tea-ish hoppyness, turning dryish and more hoppy in the finish, with a little bitter-sweet finish. M&D: light-bodied and thin-ish on the mouthfeel, quite unexpected from the aroma really... Overall this is a balanced bitter, but the palate doesn't quite live up to the complex aroma.