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. Herbaceous floral fruiting fronts wood-chipped grapefruit-peeled orange rind bitterness and sufficient hop-oiled juniper berry bite to candi-sugared caramel malt base. Tropical pineapple, nectarine, apricot, guava and tangerine tang counters ascending alcohol-burnt piney brashness.

Sweet malt-wafted 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.

Dank grain-malted prune-hued ESB leads sweet barley inlet and bitter hop undercurrent down into blandly soft-watered Scotch basin. Distant nuttiness caresses unassuming mineral grain finish.

Citric-perfumed ESB counters initial barleymalt sweetness and earthy mineral grain ascendancy with hop-tingled orange peel bitterness, but desolate finish rather toned down for English bitter styling.

Sedately mild English Bitter needs firmer bruised lemon souring and more vigorous floral hop bittering. Dry earthen vegetal hint and sweet tobacco stint bring scant compensation.

Up-front rye determination of copper-bronzed bitter lingers way past wheat-cracked barley biscuit confluence and mild chicory sway, finishing with a honeyed Scotch-like warmth.

Clear golden copper English-styled Bitter retains courteous bread-like lightness and sugary bottom. Buttery almond-caramel nuance masks cardboard-y finish admirably.

On tap, dry-bodied chocolate malting persists as vegetal backdrop builds above honeyed cocoa restraint. Fig-date recess hides oxidized acidity, but grassy hop bitterness recedes to styptic bark-like parch. In bottled version circa 2011, overpowering foam burst forth, forming ridiculously rocky tan head, so please pour slowly. Dry-honeyed rye-breaded caramel malting and sweet tobacco roast contrast mild orange-dried nut-soured hop-toasted bittering, creating sleek ESB flavor profile. Contract brewed and bottled by Mercury Brewing, Ipswich, Massachusetts.

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.