Lakefront Brewery Week: Organic ESB

Lakefront Brewery WeekLakefront’s Organic ESB is a USDA-certified organic ale, one of their better-known beers.

I actually don’t have much in the way of history or witty anecdotes or factoids for this beer like I did for the previous ones, other than to point out that this was the first certified organic beer in the U.S., introduced in 1996.

And, it’s a good beer.

Lakefront Organic ESBAppearance: Very clear nutty brown color with a tan head.

Smell: Buttery, toffee, English bitter style… Ringwood yeast? Fruity notes… green apple, berries, moderately tart.

Taste: Nutty and bitter, but not too bitter… toasty, biscuity malt with a hint of chocolate. Hops are English—mildly spicy and pleasantly earthy.

Mouthfeel: Firm, medium-bodied with a touch of dryness in the finish.

Overall: Very drinkable and tasty… almost a nut brown ale.

On BeerAdvocate, it scores a grade of B-. On RateBeer, it scores 2.84 out of 5, and is in their 32nd percentile. Obviously, that’s not a stunning recommendation from that site; considering the first bunch of reviews on the page are positive, I’m not sure what to make of that.