Pikes Peak Brewing: Smoked ESB

What in the world is an Extra Special Bitter you ask? Well, if you don’t know, I’m not going to tell you. You should be ashamed! It’s special, you see. It’s EXTRA special. But it’s not bitter—that’s just in the name to throw off unsuspecting beer drinkers. I think it had something to do with fooling the Germans during the war, but that’s just a hunch so don’t fact check me.

ESBs have a nice, smooth caramel taste with not too much bitterness, despite the name (again, to fool the Germans). Pikes Peak’s version lives up to that bill. I was expecting a much smokier profile based on the name, but it’s very subtle. Since I’m a big fan of smokey beers, I was looking for a good punch of smoke up front. But, I admit that smoke is an acquired taste and that it’s off-putting to most people (give me a peaty scotch any day of the week).

The further I get into the beer, the more I can detect the smokey notes. Again, not overpower, but just right. Unfortunately, this is just a seasonal, otherwise I’d order this every time I visited Pikes Peak. I came on the first day that it was offered, but only because their St. Patrick’s Day party scheduled for this weekend might empty their supply.

If you’re unfamiliar with this style of beer, the closest cousin is the English mild. Not familiar with the English mild? Well, time to get out there and try something different than an IPA. English milds are mild in the ABV; usually 5.5% (give or take). Normal ESBs are usually in the 6-7% ABV range. Pikes Peak version comes in at 7.5% (I’m not complaining).

All in all, I’m very happy that I came up to try this one out. Slightly smokey and nicely caramelized. Thank you Pikes Peak for creating a great beer! And thank you Great Britain for allegedly designing a beer to fool the Germans during the war (Again, no fact checks allowed.)