Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Pale Ale - Samuel Smith Old Brewery (Tadcaster)

magictacosinus

California

4.23/5  rDev +9.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 5 | overall: 4.5

Poured into a pint glass from a 550ml bottle.

Darkish amber color abounds, with loads of carbonation rising towards the glass. A small head fights to remain at the top for the most part. Looks festive yet retains a wholly traditional look of beers of this style.

Aroma is a balanced exchange of caramel, near candied malts, with dry, lemony hops. Has a full yeasty smell that that deliciously dances with the malts, and the modest alcohol adds a sweet underside that compliments the aromas. Also, is it me or is it surprising how fruity this is?

Starts with a malty, biscuit flavor that quickly ends up slightly smoky and sweet and zesty towards the end. Truly a fascinating venture on this pale ale's part! The hops are far less present in the flavor, but linger on the tongue after each gulp. Also, the yeasty, fruity taste keeps itself alive and well and more interestingly, a barrel-aged woody flavor comes out of nowhere in the end. The mouthfeel of this beer is perfect, by the way. Thick and creamy, and ridiculously easy to drink.

What a great beer! Simple, refreshing, and surprisingly full of complex flavors. Another victory for Samuel Smith.

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2012 04:01:26 | More by magictacosinus

mattparsons

New Hampshire

4/5  rDev +3.4%

05-18-2013 22:16:05 | More by mattparsons

Xzfgiimtsath

Texas

4.5/5  rDev +16.3%

05-17-2013 12:40:10 | More by Xzfgiimtsath

KStark

British Columbia (Canada)

4.25/5  rDev +9.8%

05-13-2013 14:33:46 | More by KStark

rph97

Texas

3.5/5  rDev -9.6%

05-10-2013 20:03:56 | More by rph97

thatdewguy

North Carolina

4.75/5  rDev +22.7%

05-09-2013 05:14:34 | More by thatdewguy

StonedTrippin

Colorado

3.71/5  rDev -4.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.75

the glory of these beers is their price, less than 4 bucks per go? are you kidding me?! the quality to price point is unrivaled in the beer world. while some are outstanding, standard setters, others are just okay. this pale ale is somewhere in between. its clear in the pours, more red than copper, with a finger of off white bubbles that pop down to a thin skin before long. the nose is quintessentially English, with all the caramel malt dusty attic you could ever want, but with a welcomed touch of vanilla extract. the yeast doesn't really manifest itself until the flavor, neither do the hops. the yeast combines with the caramel malt to give a doughy cereal profile, while the hops finish the beer nice and bitter, balancing the vanilla expertly. tastes just a tad old at the end, but ill bet this is nearly perfect at the source on tap. thinner body, which im back and forth between liking and not, and airy carbonation that keeps this beer drinking easily. overall this isn't my favorite beer from sam smiths, but now that I have worked my well into their lineup, I can safely say that the quality of this brew is up to the high bar of the others. again, the economics cannot be beat.

Serving type: bottle

05-02-2013 04:20:14 | More by StonedTrippin

DrewSnyc667

Massachusetts

4.44/5  rDev +14.7%
look: 3.75 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.25

12 oz bottle poured into a pint glass

A: Slightly hazy brilliant copper color. Minor activity and almost no head whatsoever

S: Amazingly robust chocolate and caramel. Unique to the stye, I am chewing on the malts before I take a sip.

T: A malt fans delight. Super complex starts like chocolate chandy and ends with a nice little hop crisp

M: Nice amount of carbonation keeps that sweet malt at bay and makes this highly session able

O: I have been really into the English session ales lately and this one is another treat.

Serving type: bottle

04-27-2013 01:35:02 | More by DrewSnyc667

Damian

Massachusetts

3.3/5  rDev -14.7%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.25 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.25

Drank from a 1pt. 2.7fl.oz./550 ml bottle
Served in a Samuel Smith's imperial pint glass
Thanks to my dad for this bottle

The beer poured a slightly hazed, deep crimson-amber. A two-finger crown of tight, frothy, beige colored foam topped the liquid and slowly faded to a lasting cap. Patches of lacing trickled down the glass.

The nose was very British. A bit steely and quite mellow overall. Good dose of biscuity malts. Somewhat toasty. Mild toffee notes. Slightly fruity and moderately sweet.

The flavor profile was decent. Biscuity malts dominated. Some toffee. Touch of noble hops. Fruity in the center. Earthy, bittering hops came through in the finish. Crisp and drying.

The mouthfeel was slick, smooth and somewhat creamy on the palate. Medium bodied with a fine and mild effervescence.

Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Pale Ale might be spot-on for the style, but I found it rather boring. If you have an affinity for British session ales, this might be your cup of tea.

Serving type: bottle

04-24-2013 03:22:32 | More by Damian

BigJohnny

New Hampshire

4/5  rDev +3.4%

04-23-2013 10:29:29 | More by BigJohnny

bmurray10

Texas

3.75/5  rDev -3.1%

04-22-2013 14:35:32 | More by bmurray10

scmoore81

Massachusetts

4.5/5  rDev +16.3%

04-19-2013 14:11:22 | More by scmoore81

Lee45102

Ohio

4.25/5  rDev +9.8%

04-17-2013 01:42:56 | More by Lee45102

SFC21

New York

3.75/5  rDev -3.1%

04-08-2013 23:44:28 | More by SFC21

shohen

Minnesota

3.75/5  rDev -3.1%

04-07-2013 13:55:50 | More by shohen

Kinzei

Texas

4/5  rDev +3.4%

03-30-2013 20:50:00 | More by Kinzei

RonaldTheriot

Louisiana

4.41/5  rDev +14%
look: 4.25 | smell: 4.25 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4.25 | overall: 4.5

Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Pale Ale has a very thick, soapy, cream-colored head, lots of thick lacing rings left behind, and a somewhat hazy, amber appearance, with a few bubble streams and some little brown particles floating about. The aroma is pungent, sweet, bready, roasted, and full. Taste is of the same elements, with toffee and a pleasant, and even sharp, hop bitterness in the middle-to-end of the sip. Mouthfeel is medium and slick, and Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Pale Ale finishes dry, refreshing, and quite drinkable. Overall, this is a most excellent beer!

RJT

Serving type: bottle

03-30-2013 14:42:21 | More by RonaldTheriot

JMS1512

New Jersey

4/5  rDev +3.4%

03-29-2013 02:10:36 | More by JMS1512

JavierGC

Spain

3.5/5  rDev -9.6%

03-24-2013 05:55:03 | More by JavierGC

yoitsarch

California

3/5  rDev -22.5%

03-23-2013 18:06:21 | More by yoitsarch

Chucker17

South Dakota

4/5  rDev +3.4%

03-19-2013 18:14:55 | More by Chucker17

WissBrauSean

Pennsylvania

4.1/5  rDev +5.9%
look: 4 | smell: 4.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

The beer pours a deep red amber, very clear and with a nice tan head consisting of tiny bubbles that fade to a ring around the glass and a center cap for the rest of the drink. Lacing is a wide and uniform polka dot pattern, but very little of it.

The aroma is of dark fruits like figs and raisins with a caramel malt base and some nice bread to make you feel at home. As it warms, it becomes even more like you wanna put your feet up on the coffee table and drink in the atmosphere.

With the taste you can sort of make out the effect of the hard water as it seems to carry the light hop bitterness on top of a caramel malty, bready, figgy base. The bitterness is mild but apparent with the whole sip as the mild sweetness moves across the tongue and ends up finishing lightly dry with a little bitter at the back of the tongue. It's nicely mild and balanced well leaning a little more to the bitter side.

Mouthfeel is fairly moderate and maybe a little on the thin side allowing the bitter to slightly overtake the sweetness at first. I poured it too cold. As it warms up it becomes even better balanced. Carbonation is perfectly moderate leading to a lasting dry mild bitter finish. English hops for sure. My favourite.

Overall, I would say that this is close to being a world class beer if it were only a little more full bodied, but then it would not be a session-able pub beer would it? It gets a 4+ out of 5 from me!

You have to try this beer as it is pretty affordable and a classic! Get out there, drink good beer. Life is too short for the mundane!

Serving type: bottle

03-18-2013 00:14:01 | More by WissBrauSean

grittybrews

Washington

4/5  rDev +3.4%

03-14-2013 15:03:44 | More by grittybrews

JeffSuttonTX

Texas

4.5/5  rDev +16.3%

03-11-2013 03:48:02 | More by JeffSuttonTX

Dannyboy

Maryland

4.5/5  rDev +16.3%

03-03-2013 00:25:48 | More by Dannyboy