Bell Springs Extra Special Bitter

A couple of weeks ago when my wife and i spent a day and night out in the Central Texas Hill Country to celebrate our anniversary, one of the places we visited was the Bell Springs Winery in Dripping Springs, as it was next door to where we were staying AND they had recently added a brewery to their business as well.  And so i spent a lot of that Saturday with their Extra Special Bitter in hand.  Pouring a nice brown with a white, quickly dissipating head, the 6.16% ABV brew smells of malts, grains, and notes of chocolate and caramel.  The flavor is a wonderfully balanced mix of said malt and chocolate notes, light bodied and easy to drink, perfect for a weekend jaunt into the country.

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Acopon Old Pounder

Over the weekend, my wife and i celebrated 11 years of marriage by ditching the kids with their grandparents and venturing out into the Central Texas hill country to take in some breweries we'd not been to before.  Out of the bunch, my favorite was the relatively new (2 years old) Acopon Brewing in Dripping Springs.  Country meets goth in the best way possible.  I enjoyed everything i tried, but the brew that hit me in all the right spots was the Old Pounder, a 5.4% ABV old style ale and variation of an ESB.  Pouring a copperish brown with a white head, the beer smells of malts and notes of toffee and chocolate.  The flavor combines said malt with some biscuit notes and some subtle chocolate vibes.  Delicious.  I'm going to have make the drive back out there again and soon.

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Family Business King Biscuit ESB

Yesterday, before my Saints lost in spectacular and heart wrenching fashion, my wife and the kids and i ventured into the Central Texas hill country to check out a brand new brewery that just opened this week, Family Business Beer Co.  Out in the hilly, shady ranch land of Dripping Springs, the set up is pretty cool, a big open taproom with some killer woodwork on the walls and ceiling of the bar, and spacious grounds with plenty of picnic tables, games, an on-sight food truck, and an enclosed playground.  With the kids set with slides and rock walls and such, my wife and i sampled the wares.  Everything was good, but my favorite of the day was the King Biscuit ESB, a 5% ABV English style bitter that poured a nice brown hue with a frothy, white head.  Aromas of malt, caramel, and spice were prevalent with some floral hints, and the flavor was a nice mix of sweet and bitter, caramel and toffee notes combined with some subtle earthiness that really rounded the whole thing out.  A great beer for a cool and sunny day around Austin.  Give it a shot.  We want these kinds of things to stay in business.

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Note: That is my child in the orange laying on the ground with a bunch of rocks on stomach.  He's cool.

Real Ale Phoenixx Double ESB

Real Ale never fails to impress and delight with pretty much every beer they put out on the market, be it their mainstays, seasonals, or more limited, experimental offerings.  As part of the brewery's rotating bomber series, the Phoenixx Double ESB is a fantastic English Style Bitter, and a perfect way to end a day.  I snagged this tasty guy at the grocery store yesterday for a post dinner libation, and it was wonderful.  The 7.6% ABV brew pours a dark amber with a foamy, white head and smells of malt and toffee with a general earthiness abounding.  The flavor is slightly sweet at first, the combo of toffee and caramel hitting the tongue before settling back and letting the hops finish it off with some spice and bitter notes.  It's delicious.  I may be going back to the store today.

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Real Ale Phoenixx Winter Ale

I am a fan of winter ales, the blend of malts, hops, and spices the perfect libation for a chilly day.  Real Ale's Phoenixx Winter Ale is a spicier, seasonal take on a tradition ESB (English Strong Bitter), and it is a tasty concoction indeed.  Pouring a reddish amber, the beer smells of hops with some notes of toffee in the mix.  The flavor is a swirl of toffee, caramel, malt, spice, and hops set to 7.2% ABV, but pretty smooth nonetheless.  This was a great beer to sip on all day at Christmas, and i expect it to endure the rest of the winter.

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Iron Maiden Trooper

I honestly don't know why i haven't written about this beer yet.  It combines two awesome and amazing things...beer and Iron Maiden.  Trooper is an ESB, a nice strong bitter with a copper color and good lacing on the glass.  Hailing from Robinson's Family Brewery out of the UK, the beer has a malty, sugary aroma that pairs pretty well with the light caramel flavors, easy hops, and mild carbonation.  It's a pretty easy beer to drink with a nice, hoppy sting at the end, and the bottle is just amazing.  Seriously.  Dig on that Eddie art.

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Go ahead and watch the video for Iron Maiden's "The Trooper" below.