One New York Life

Name: Extra Special Bitter
Brewed By: Matt Brewing Company
Brewed In: Utica, NY
Type: Bitter Ale
ABV: 5.3%

What They Say: Bitters are popular pub beers in England and are closely related to the more well know Pale Ales. Saranac Extra Special Bitter has a rich, malty taste balanced by the pleasant bitterness of Williamette hops. The finish is dry with a hint of the floral English Fuggle and spicy Saaz hop. Enjoy!

Website: Saranac passes my muster for a good website. Navigation on top, everything easily noticeable and findable without much work. Well done, guys.

Why I Picked It: Part 5 of The 12 Beers Of Winter. The ESB has been in the 12 Beers as long as I can remember. I can’t remember ever seeing it in something other than this 12 pack. It’s actually one of the first “English Style” ales I ever sampled. Remember, up until the 12 Beers, my definition of “getting something good” was Killian’s instead of Busch. I’m going to go ahead and assume I didn’t like this 2000.

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Presentation: They must switch up the label on this beer every few years. The Beerlabels.com version has a red label with a white logo. The presentation link above sports a pale green label with a red logo. Mine sports a more foresty green with a red logo. They all share the same watercolor — a river log cabin with an attached boat garage actually IN the water. This house exists in my life goals. Extra point. 4

Originality: While it’s a beefed up version of their Pale Ale, it comes across as a Fuller’s Lite. Oddly, it works. Where the Belgian that appears in this pack seems like a knock-off of better Belgians — this seems more like a distinct recipe styled after British pub beers made a little more gentle for the American palette. 4

Taste: I probably didn’t like this beer in 2000, but I love it now. It has a mild, fruity flavor that seamlessly blends in to a spicy hoppy aftertaste. I’m discovering that I find Saaz hops the least offensive in my beers. Some reviews I’ve looked at for this beer claim a chocolate or caramel flavor. I don’t get that at all. I get a light, tasty beer without the heartiness boasted by the bigger English beers. 8

Body: Deep orange pour with a thick, creamy head. The head persists in the glass for most of the beer’s life. I love the level of carbonation here — it plays right on the border of too much and not enough and manages to hit it perfectly. While the flavor is light and refreshing, the body is hearty but not too much to be cloying. It’s bold in the mouth and strong on the tongue but not so much that you can’t enjoy whatever you’re pairing it with. 10

Efficiency: This beer lends itself to quick drinking. I finished the entire bottle before I got to this paragraph. It goes down incredibly smooth. The 5.3% ABV keeps me from calling it “dangerously” smooth. Great beer with a safe alcohol content. You don’t get full points for “safe” but you can at least get an honorable mention. 9

Versatility: Huge hit here. As I mentioned, I don’t think I’ve ever seen this beer outside the 12 Beers. Up until 2006, that meant one per year. Now it means two per year. As delicious as it is, you can’t get it on draft, in six-pack, or by itself in anyway. That itself is crime enough.4

The Beer Snob Says: It’s disappointing this beer doesn’t have a wider availability. I never would have guessed this beer as my home run winner in the 12 Beers, but there you have it. Wider availability and this beer cracks my top ten.

Final Grade: 39 (of 50) – Really good beer.