Barrio ESB

Aroma: 8 | Appearance: 7 | Mouthfeel: 6 | Flavor: 7 | Overall: 7

Sampled at Barrio Brewing, November 2008
This arrives with a nice, clear, amber color that is topped by a thin, pale tan colored head that doesn't quite cover the top of the beer, but does manage to form some light lacing on the sides of my glass. The aroma has a toasty grain note to it up front, with a bit of spicy hop character in the middle and a light berry note to it as well. The toasty / bread-like malt notes become more noticeable as the beer warms, but somehow it can seem a bit stale at times.

The beer has a nice, biting bitterness to it and there is also a touch of a herbal component. The beer is too cold to get a good sense of the malt character, but it is light and quaffable. It is not thin though as it has some malt-induced body to it. The caramel malt notes become a touch more noticeable over time along with some toasted grain flavors. This is fairly well carbonated, which provides a bit of a peppery bite in the finish. After a bit I am able to notice a hint of toffee and a malt sweetness. This is definitely hop dominated with notes that are definitely herbal, some slight sharp floral notes (makes me think of wild flowers and weeds), and some light citrus and berry character becomes a bit more noticeable as this warms.

This really would have benefited from a cask serving (warmer would have been nice too), this would have softened up the hops and the body would have been much better as well. It is still pretty good and it likely had a more interesting hop character when it was fresher. It is a bit too focused on the sharp, herbal and bitter hop notes, which aren't bad, but a touch too aggressive.