Passably abstruse ESB brings prickly piney-hopped bittering to tart fig-prune-plum souring and orange-dried apricot-grapefruit clamber. Peanut-shelled walnut astringency, dainty herbal-floral notions, and slim bread-crusted spine backup Saison-like sour ale template.

Offbeat copper-toned ‘09 Extra Special Bitter allows tannic grape acidity, moldy orange tartness, and mild nuttiness to affect honey-soured caramel-toasted malting. Citric-hopped cider sharpness gets diacetyl at tea-like tobacco-dried backend.

Tremendous full-bodied double-hopped version of bottle-conditioned bomber-bottled ‘20^th anniversary reserve’ Extra Special Bitter brings dark-spiced India Pale Ale-like fruiting to rich cocoa-chocolate malting. Orange-grapefruit peel bittering anchors brownish crimson commemoration as prune-raisin souring rises above tongue-tingling nutmeg-cinnamon spicing. Mushroom-like fungi yeast adds funky Belgian farmhouse ale underside.

On tap, traditional autumnal Extra Special Bitter brings sweet and sour dry-fruited nature to piney floral-spiced Cascade hop bittering. Grapefruit, pineapple, and apricot surge ahead of buttery caramel-roasted malts lining mild-bodied gold-hazed seasonal.

Alluring ‘Extreme’ ale with emboldened 80 IBU hop measurement, viscous saffron body, and thick yeast sediment perfect for bitter hopheads. Floral herbaceous fruiting fronts hop-oiled wood-chipped grapefruit-peeled orange rind bitterness. Tropical pineapple, guava, and tangerine tang counters ascending piney brashness.

Dry wheat-husked toasted hop sass and chalky caramel malting seduce laid-back soft water flow as aromatic tobacco-peat earthiness lingers. Secondary rye-pumpernickel breading and wet cedar sweetness recede to smoked wood tinge. Surprisingly lacks advertised bitterness though redeeming novice appeal is undeniable.

Russet Extra Special Bitter gives laid-back fruity waft concise chocolate-caramel initiation quickly juxtaposed by peppery hop bite, orange peel souring, and floral spicing to ample maple malt finish. Warning: high acidity may prelude amateurs.

Sweet malt-scented English-styled Extra Special Bitter lacks appropriate enriched bitterness then finishes weak and predictable. Blunt hops disturb initial toasted grain development, blemishing delicate chocolate malt insistence and maple sap suggestion. Nowhere near as thick and heavy as false “”Anvil”" signifier.

Refreshingly spry bitter with mellowing barley recession to crisp mineral water finish. Off-dry hop bitterness underscores grain intimacy for mild pilsner elan that lager fans may find tempting.

Fruitier upgraded version of Belk’s E.S.B. brings serenely cereal-grained orange-grapefruit tang to lemony floral-hopped bittering. Soapy finish slightly downgrades well-balanced easy-to-drink medium body.

Middling phenol-fizzed bitter loses Fuggle-hopped sass as well as barley-roasted toffee-butterscotch sweetness by unresolved cereal grain finish. Raspberry-cider tartness dissipates in tea-like midst.

Chaotic fizzy grained sweetness merely gets in the way of off-dry mild hop bittering and thin berry afterburner, becoming too predictable by dissolving cracked wheat finish. Grapefruit-orange peel souring needs sharper identity.