Rich and viscous, they can have in their most complex manifestations winey flavor profiles, with a hint of sweetness. Some examples are vintage dated and can improve with extended bottle age. The style has become popular among US craft brewers who often produce them as winter specialties. Variations on the similar are still blended in some English pubs but in the US the term is used by a small number of brands to loosely refer to a dark amber to brown colored beer with a malt accent, relatively light in alcohol and low in hop character. They are characterized by a fruitiness, light to medium body and an accent on hop aromas more than hop bitters.
Colors range from golden to copper.
Despite the name they are not particularly bitter. These weightier versions of bitter often stand up better to the rigors of travel overseas than the lower gravity standard versions. An important element of faithful bitters are English yeast cultures used in fermentation. These impart a fruity, mildly estery character that should be noted in examples of the style. Bitters are now widely emulated in North America, sometimes with domestically grown hops imparting a rather more assertive character than seen in traditional English bitters.