Its time for another #Beersaturday review. This week I drank two beers, a golden yellow Pilsner and a ruby red Extra Special Bitters (or ESB for short). Let's see how they faired.
Ace Hill Pilsner
Brewery: Ace Hill Beer Co
Origin: Toronto ON Canada
Style: American Pilsner
Abv: 5.0%
IBU: Unknown (I wish all of the Beers listed this detail).
Marketing: Simple and classy design, I would even go as far as saying that it's elegant looking. This beer looks like it could be served in a fancy restaurant and charged a top dollar and no one would question it. Color scheme is white and a regal navy blue with some copper accents thrown in for pop. Large "A" image acts as the Brewery's branding logo. I quite like the can and as you can see I had some fun taking the photos. I found a spot in the house with some great, late afternoon lighting. My one criticism of the design is that it would have been nice to get some more info about the beer listed on there, otherwise top notch marketing in my opinion.
Color: True to the Pilsner style, this beer poured as pale a yellow as you can get in a beer. When placed in the sunlight though, the color popped nice and bright. The foam on top was billowy and extended above rim of the glass a fair ways, like delicious aroma clouds.
Nose: Grain forward aroma with cereals, grass and lemon notes coming through for me. Malty smelling.
Taste: Very subtle sweetness in the begining with a good amount of tang in the middle and nice amount of bitterness in the finish to balance everything out. Some grassy flavors coming through for me, fresh hay and lemon. Taste was quite pleasant.
Texture: Low carbonation but not flat, sharp bubbles and a light bodied mouthfeel. Nice texture overall.
Impression: Quite a bit of flavor and aroma for a Pilsner. Refreshing. A Very good beer overall. I would definitely buy this one again.
Hendersons Best: Amber Ale
Brewery: Henderson Brewing Co
Origin: Toronto ON Canada
Style: ESB
Abv: 5.5%
IBU: Unknown
Marketing: A white, Blue and orange colored can. Henderson Brewery branding logo front and center with no other imagery present. The can reminds me of a baseball jersey. Simple and effective. I like it.
Color: The beer poured a deep ruby red, "like rich mahogany" *said in Ron Burgandy's "Anchor Man's" voice. A decent head on this beer with a very frothy foam that left some nice lacing down the glass.
Nose: Sweet malty aroma of candied fruit, plum, and some citrusy hops notes in the background. As the beer warmed a little I began to notice some chocolate and roasted notes coming through. Maybe some subtle smokey leather?
Taste: At first I thought that this was a very sweet beer but it had a strong punchy bitterness to cut through it and balance it out. After a few sips I didn't find it to be sweet at all but more on the bitter side. I noticed some bread flavors as well.
Texture: Nice carbonation of sharp bubbles overtop a silky mouthfeel. Medium bodied.
Impression: This was a very good beer to me. It was a pretty complex in its taste and smell and I enjoyed how it shifted and changed as I drank it. I may add this one to my list of go to beers.
I drank this as an aperitif before supper. That night I ate a beef and beet stew served over mashed potatoes.
