The Physics
BrewDog

The PhysicsThe Physics
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From:
BrewDog
 
Scotland, United Kingdom
Style:
Extra Special / Strong Bitter (ESB)
ABV:
5%
Score:
83
Avg:
3.62 | pDev: 11.6%
Reviews:
54
Ratings:
66
Status:
Retired
Rated:
Sep 29, 2017
Added:
Nov 19, 2007
Wants:
  3
Gots:
  0
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by bcdees47:
Photo of bcdees47
Reviewed by bcdees47 from Texas

4.04/5  rDev +11.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4
Appearance: a nice amber, with not too much carbonation going on in the glass and little to no head. Smell: Malt and sweet carmel nose, toffee, biscuits. Really quite nice. Mouthfeel: feels light and carbonated, but also fairly smooth. Taste: Not nearly as sweet as the smell would lead one to believe, though there are some toffee/caramel malt notes. It dissolves into a somewhat bitter aftertaste. No taste really overwhelms, though there is some nice malty sweetness in the middle.

Drinkablility: definitely drinkable, though I found the smell somewhat out of sync with the taste and expected more of an overt toffee experience.
May 13, 2009
More User Ratings:
Photo of jazzyjeff13
Reviewed by jazzyjeff13 from England

3.74/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.75 | overall: 3.75
A 330ml bottle with a BB of July 2017, so it's a little out of date. Purchased a while back from the Brewdog webshop - a re-issue to celebrate their 10th anniversary. The label calls it a laid back amber beer.

A: Poured into a tulip. A very dark brown colour with ruby highlights; holding it to the light reveals plentiful suspended sediment and low carbonation. Produces a large head of creamy off-white foam that lasts for a few minutes before reducing to a patchy surface layer. Some lacing.

S: Aroma of sweet caramel malt with hints of subtle brown sugar, mild roasted grain, leafy hops, faint hay and ale yeast. Definitely malty - pretty good.

T: Tastes of dark caramel malt with notes of subtle roasted grain, faint brown sugar, stewed husks, leafy hops, mild pine, faint herbal hints and ale yeast. Slightly sweet, though less so than the aroma would suggest. A robust hoppy bitterness upon swallowing.

M: Mouthfeel is smooth and tingly, with soft carbonation and good body for the strength. Almost unctuous. Aftertaste of bitter leafy hops, caramel malt and ale yeast.

O: A decent brew that is surprisingly drinkable. Looks alright, while the aroma and flavour showcase plenty of sweet malt and bitter leafy hops. Nice body. The hops and malt sit together unusually well - I think a beer of this kind thrown together less carefully would not have turned out so well. An easy-going beer.
Sep 29, 2017
Photo of flyingpig
Reviewed by flyingpig from Scotland

3.25/5  rDev -10.2%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
330ml bottle from Brewdog.com (£1.29 approx):
Opening very well, this beer got off to an excellent start thanks to how good the nose was when it came through with tonnes of caramel malts & sweetness, some toffees backing them up as well. Things changed after that though, the taste being an altogether different affair with less sweetness & caramel but a lot more bitterness & earthy flavours which weren't too my liking after the great opening to the beer. Throughout it remained an enjoyable beer but sadly the change of direction wasn't completely to my liking & I feel like I would have liked this one more had the caramel flavours continued throughout; nice stuff but nowhere near as good as the brewery's 5 A.M. Saint for me I'm afraid.
Aug 08, 2017
 
Rated: 3.75 by steverx8 from England

Jul 09, 2017
 
Rated: 3.78 by S_McAteer_95 from Ireland

May 20, 2017
 
Rated: 4.06 by Foley67 from Scotland

Apr 12, 2017
 
Rated: 3.25 by jrob21 from North Carolina

Oct 21, 2015
 
Rated: 3.75 by Latarnik from New Jersey

May 26, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by jaydoc from Kansas

Oct 31, 2013
 
Rated: 4.13 by Jamison85 from Indiana

Mar 24, 2013
 
Rated: 3.5 by t0rin0 from California

Nov 12, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by Avant_Garage from Canada (AB)

Jun 10, 2012
 
Rated: 5 by captainbearcat from Illinois

Mar 11, 2012
 
Rated: 3.75 by brandoman63 from Illinois

Nov 30, 2011
 
Rated: 4 by JAHMUR from Connecticut

Nov 18, 2011
Photo of mikesgroove
Reviewed by mikesgroove from South Carolina

4/5  rDev +10.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
deep orange amber. A very dark color which took me a little by surprise to be honest. A very nice three inches of head formed on the top in a good light tan to off white color. Great retention had this thing hanging around for what seemed like forever. Some sediment actually poured out of the bottom and graced over the top of the foam at the end. A very hazy and cloudy brownish amber this was and it had a very full look to it. A very nice aroma of deep caramel malts was the first thing I noticed. A nice subtle hoppiness as well, though sweet. The flavor was very full, almost a hoppy scotch ale of sorts. Very big with a grainy and chewy kind of feel to it. Medium body with ample carbonation led to a great rich feel and this was just a superb drinker
Oct 31, 2011
Photo of slimspady
Reviewed by slimspady from Canada (AB)

3.74/5  rDev +3.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Nice, fat white head on a crimson brew.

Intense and complicated aroma. Some oak notes.

Great taste. Not as good as some other red/amber ales. Nice caramel and roasted malty goodness.

Feels thicker than 5%. Not a bad thing, just not expected. The malt sticks around with a citus finish.

Good beer. I rarely buy beer twice (there's just too many to try!), and this one of those. Glad I tried it, liked it, but not so much that I'd have it again.
Aug 30, 2011
Photo of brewdoc75
Reviewed by brewdoc75 from South Dakota

3.97/5  rDev +9.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
Well, I didn't look at the best before date before I bought this one. Looks like it was best before over one year ago (7/7/09). Oh well, consider this a "cellar" review.

A: Pours out of the bottle a opaque amber color. Low carbonation, I suspect from the inadvertent aging. The head dies down fast to nothing. The upside is that I was able to fit the whole thing into my imperial pint w/o it overflowing.

S: Lots of malt character. Beautiful caramel notes, dark fruits, and toffee. The dark fruit character is that of raisins or prunes. Not overpowering, but definitely adds to the beer. As one would expect from aging, the malts really come through. Maybe a slight hint of butterscotch, but that's ok for the style. The hop character is very muted, but I get a touch of flowers and earthiness.

T: Lovely blend of malty flavors. First I get a strong, munich maltiness. This is followed up by a bevy of caramel malt flavors. These include straight up caramel, some plum/raisin flavors, and a hint of toffee. There is a glimmer of toastiness in the end. The hops are not terribly flavorful, as one would expect from a beer this old, but they provide a reasonable bitterness. Not much in the way of hoppy flavor.

M: Light bodied. Light carbonation. Smooth and light. Pretty decent. The lack of carbonation reminds me of a true English bitter.

D: I have to admit, this beer was old, so I wasn't expecting much. I was pleasantly suprised with the diverse malt flavors. I would have liked to have this when it was fresh.
Aug 11, 2010
Photo of BeardedBoffin
Reviewed by BeardedBoffin from New Mexico

3.62/5  rDev 0%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4
The name of this beer, of course, intrigued me. Although the bottle states: "There is no proper actual physics in this bottle." I am not sure what that means, but the equation on the bottle is a nice touch. Nonetheless, on to what is inside.

The beer poured a hazy orange color with a dishwater head that quickly went away. The head was, as it were, disappointing.

The aroma is malty. Fruit and hops are detectable. When the beer strikes the palate it delivers a big dose of malt. A mix of caramel and grain leads into a juicy center with a touch of hops at the end. The hops give the hint of citrus, but it doesn't last long. This is fleeting flavor, it doesn't last long.

There is something about this beer that doesn't mesh with the fact that it is ESB. A drinkable beer, smooth and enjoyable.
Dec 30, 2009
Photo of mulder1010
Reviewed by mulder1010 from Australia

3.4/5  rDev -6.1%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3
Batch 8 with a best before 1/1/9. See how this goes.
330 ML in a tulip.

A-- Poured and orange reddish color and very cloudy once it settled. No real head or lacing, a little bit of a white film on the top of the beer and not much else. Shows no real carbonation on this at all.

S-- Floral smell with pine and lemon. Also a good sized malt background in this with a little bit of a biscuit sweetness to it. Honestly smells like the Great Divide DIPA.

T-- Malt biscuit taste upfront followed by the floral, pine, and citrus tastes.

M-- No carbonation, fairly thick and coats my mouth. Feels a lot more thicker than it should. More citrus than I thought. Get a lot of lemon in this in the aftertaste. Once it warms up it does have a bit of sour in it.

D-- Was quite good for being WAY out of date. Was surprised how much citrus was still in this and that it seems to want to be a DIPA more than an ESB. Low ABV means very sessionable but I think the negative is that it gets samey after it warms up and kills taste buds. Also has a bit of soap quality in the finish when it warms. Solid none the less.
Dec 24, 2009
The Physics from BrewDog
Beer rating: 83 out of 100 with 66 ratings