Puddlers Row ESB (Extra Special Bitter) Conshohocken Brewing Company
Tonight I am trying a brew near the area I went to college. They opened up shop in April 2014 and now are adding a new brewpub, in Bridgeport, PA. A former sports radio personality is a part owner and he is Glen Macnow. They brought in Andrew Horne, who started at yards and later ran Avery Brewing Company, to be the brewmaster. Shows they are serious about making some serious brews and they did not mess around with just bringing anyone to be the brewmaster. I am curious to see how this brew tonight plays out and the backbone of the beer. If you are curious Conshohocken Brewing Company is located in Conshohocken, Pennsylvania, for anyone not familiar with the area it is right outside Plymouth Meeting and Norristown. It is a thirty to forty minute drive outside of Philadelphia depending on traffic on Interstate 76, West. The brew I am trying tonight recently won a Silver Award at the 2016 World Cup of Beer.
Tonight's brew is Conshohocken Brewing Company's Puddlers Row Extra Special Bitter (ESB). An Extra Special Bitter are an aggressive balanced between hop bitterness and malt characteristics. A beer drinker starting out might think this beer style is going to have a strong bitter taste, when in fact they are not usually bitter at all. To find a great ESB is to find a brew that has a perfect balance hops to malt notes. Puddlers Row ESB has an alcohol by volume or ABV of 5.4%. An Extra Special Bitter is an English Style Ale. If you examine the can you notice the Phrase at the top of the can, "Go Where the Path Takes You." So, let's go where this brew takes us.
Appearance of Puddlers Row ESB
Appearance of this Extra Special Bitter is on that looks like an Amber Ale. The Puddlers Row has a deep amber hue to it. It still gives you a pale ale appearance as well. What I mean in that sense is that it is not cloudy and not too dark to see through the beer. It has a pale amber hue to it. There is some carbonation in the beer flowing to the top. At the top of the beer there is a quarter inch of foam or head at the top of the glass. The head or foam is white and is almost translucent. Not really a thick foam at the top of this brew. The head also does not linger around for a long period of time. After I poured the beer into the glass, I noticed the foam and how quickly it dispersed. The aroma of this brew is what the style tends to be. I notice both hop bitterness in the aroma and malt aroma. Almost like a blend of the two. Another note that I picked up on is a caramel aroma, which blends into the two other aromas.
Puddlers Row has taken me through the aroma backbone now let's figure out the taste and body of this brew. I took my first sip and noticed the roasted malt backbone of the beer. Then after the first sip I notice the subtle hop note on the back of the tongue. The caramel taste note is noticeable and so far, I think the blend that was apparent in the aroma is not coming through in the taste. I think there is a little more bitter bite than a malt forward bite. This beer almost drinks more like a session beer in my opinion. Puddlers Row has a medium to light body. You get a heavy mouth feel at first then it smoothes out as you finish your sip.
Puddlers Row ESB by Conshohocken Brewing Company
As a fan of Extra Special Bitter style brews, I think it gives the drinker a glimpse of the style. To me it goes a little too much on the bitter note for my liking. But for someone that is a bitter note fan and wants to see what this style of beer is like then this is the beer to start with. Puddlers Row ESB is a good brew and gives you some different taste notes to think about, but something I could have one or two of. If you are ever near the Plymouth Meeting, PA, area make sure you check out what Conshohocken Brewing Company has on tap. Either at their new brewpub or the original tasting room in Conshohocken.
Check out Conshohocken Brewing Company out on their website and their Social Media:
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