Aim For Balance

It’s been said “all things in moderation.” While there are worse words to live by, I think that overindulgence on occasion is no bad thing. An extra long vacation? A large, multi-course meal? Sleeping 10 hours? An extra beer or two? Some of these hedonistic moments can prove the true happiness of life.
As far as personal slogans are concerned, I tend towards “life in balance.” Salty and sweet, light and dark, happy and sad, excited and calm. I like to keep things more balanced, enjoy tastes of both extremes. A bit of each side usually afford a nice mix of opposing sides. When one looks for balance from the beer world, the king of all balanced beers, is Extra Special Bitter, or ESB.
With quality examples of ESB, neither hops nor malt should shine above the other, but both should be noticeable in the mix. The key is a wonderful blend of both ingredients that brings about a smooth, somewhat strong tasting, and totally enjoyable beer. Mild sweetness will generally be followed by a drying, hop-leaning finish.
Originating in England, ESB was a more powerful version of the classic slightly hoppy session beer, bitter. Drinkability was the purpose with these beers, even though they could be of moderate strength. The hoppy nature of the beer was in the sip, not in the finish, and the malts kept it in check.
From west London comes the original of the style, Fuller’s ESB. Around for nearly 50 years, this complex ale offers three different types of malts and four varieties of hops, offering a glowing liquid amber, emitting spice, caramel and fruit, while the flavor profile combines peppery hops and oranges with a not overly sweet toffee and bread malt. The finish leaves a fantastic balance of orange, malt and earthy, spicy, English hops. Medium-bodied, with some carbonation, this one is super easy to drink.
Extra Special Bitter is also a favorite with American brewers, and in the mid-2000s forward, ESB could often be found in brewpubs across the land as a likable amber that could easily stand up to all seasonal tastes. The American variety of ESB, a favorite of mine although bottled versions are hard to come by, generally offers more alcohol and more citrus hops compared with the classic English examples.
A solid American ESB is AleSmith’s Anvil Ale. Not overly complex, it seems the brewery wanted you to know for certain this is not a pale ale, much less an IPA. There is enough floral hop and maltyness to keep the beer enjoyable, but nothing overwhelms. 5.5 percent alcohol by volume (ABV) is in the classic English range as well.
The best, if not totally expected more hopped out, American version of an Extra Special Bitter is Rogue’s Brutal Bitter, now re-named Brutal IPA. A cross between an English ESB and an American IPA, this 5.8 percent ABV beer is all citrus, but the bready malt base competes well in the mouth, giving the notion of a jacked-up, American ESB.
Be it English or American, these are perfect beers for warmer days and cooler nights, as we ease into spring. Seek out ESBs when you’re done with the heavy malt beers, but aren’t yet ready for hop bombs. Enjoy the brews … Cheers.
Gene’s Haufbrau has more than 200 beers in bottles or on tap. Gene’s is located at 817 Savannah Hwy. 225-GENE. E-mail the Beer Snob at publisher@westof.net.