13 Rebels ESB - French Broad Brewing Co.

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BA SCORE
81
good
-
128 Ratings

rAvg: 3.55
pDev: 11.55%
Reviews: 88
Hads: 40

Ratings Help

Brewed by:
French Broad Brewing Co.

North Carolina, United States

Style | ABV
Extra Special / Strong Bitter (ESB) | 5.20% ABV

Availability: Year-round. bottle (63), on-tap (20), growler (4), cask (1).

Notes:
No notes at this time.

View: Beers (17) | Reviews (2) | Events (0)

Reviews

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Reviews by gabeerfan:

gabeerfan

Georgia

3.63/5 rDev +2.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours a crystal clear amber with somewhat fizzy head that completely disappears rather quickly. Little bits of lace left on the glass.
Nice malty aroma. Lots of toasted bread, biscuit, and fruit. Herbal, slightly minty hops are present.
Malty flavors too. Again, lots of toasted bread, biscuit and fruit. Herbal, grassy hops play a big role too.
Medium bodied. A little sticky, but not resiny.
Quite drinkable. Flavors are good and the ABV is close enough to sessionable to make this a nice drinker for the evening.
It's hoppier than a traditional ESB, so it's definitely an American version. It's no substitute for a nice Fuller's, but at only $4 a bomber, it's a nice alternative.

Serving type: bottle

04-17-2009 23:35:39 | More by gabeerfan

More User Reviews:

jpro

South Carolina

3.68/5 rDev +3.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.75

22oz bomber poured into a mug...

A: light copper; light beige, pinky-width head; thin retention leaves a few strands of lace; looks pretty good. *there may be an error on the label... 142 IBUs?!

S: toasted malt; nutty; bready; typical ESB aroma.

T: bready malt flavor; peanut skin; crusty; somewhat abrasive hop finish.

M: pretty average feel.

O: not bad overall; kind of a hoppier Fat Tire (but not at 142 IBUs); a nice traditional ale to throw back.

*from notes 5-13-13

Serving type: bottle

05-20-2013 16:00:20 | More by jpro

Dave1999

Virginia

3.5/5 rDev -1.4%

05-14-2013 00:04:10 | More by Dave1999

NoCurse2012

South Carolina

3/5 rDev -15.5%

04-11-2013 00:26:19 | More by NoCurse2012

GPHarris

Alabama

3.96/5 rDev +11.5%
look: 4.25 | smell: 3.75 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

a - poured a one finger thick off-white and billowy head into a snifter that left good lacing throughout. the body was a bright copper.
s - caramel and toasted bread.
t - caramel, bread, toffee, spicy and grassy hops.
m - creamy and medium mouthfeel.
o - one of my favorite ESBs and i think this is FB's best beer.

Serving type: bottle

04-02-2013 18:28:26 | More by GPHarris

Jalogan2

Tennessee

3.5/5 rDev -1.4%

03-29-2013 21:36:48 | More by Jalogan2

SmellsofMahagony

Texas

3/5 rDev -15.5%

03-12-2013 02:15:03 | More by SmellsofMahagony

jerefreakinmiah

Texas

3/5 rDev -15.5%

02-24-2013 19:43:51 | More by jerefreakinmiah

hardrock

Arkansas

2.75/5 rDev -22.5%

02-18-2013 17:59:36 | More by hardrock

LXIXME

New Mexico

3/5 rDev -15.5%

02-15-2013 18:35:46 | More by LXIXME

KYGunner

Kentucky

3.61/5 rDev +1.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.75 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

There was tons of carbonation which created a fizzy two inch head and tons of bubbling on the edges. There was an Ice Tea like coloring that was not ugly but just above average.

The scent was kind of stale but had a fruity tone; maybe apple or plum.

The taste was sweet, malty and fruity. There was a breadiness to this Bitter but a bit of apple, plum and sweetness that really caught my eye. Not a bad example of the genre but perhaps a bit to bubbly for my liking.

Serving type: bottle

01-13-2013 03:15:27 | More by KYGunner

dbrauneis

New Jersey

3.58/5 rDev +0.8%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Pours a crystal clear golden orange to light amber in color with some orange highlights and moderate amounts of visible carbonation. The beer has a finger tall dense foamy white head that reduces to a medium thick medium sized patch of medium bubbles, a very thin film that covers the remainder of the surface of the beer, and a thin ring at the edges of the glass. Light to moderate amounts of lacing are observed.

S: Light to moderate amounts of bready malts with some light notes of apricot. There are also some faint hints of grassy hops.

T: Moderate amounts of bready malts with some lighter amounts of light fruit (apricot) sweetness and light amounts of grassy hops. Light to moderate amounts of bitterness in the finish with light amounts of lingering.

M: On the lighter side of medium bodied with moderate amounts of carbonation. Smooth with a very light hint of dryness in the finish.

O: Easy to drink, with a nice flavor and a low ABV - a little sweeter than other offerings in the style but definitely one to try (or have again).

Serving type: bottle

01-08-2013 01:29:46 | More by dbrauneis

BigGingDrinker

North Carolina

3.75/5 rDev +5.6%

01-03-2013 06:00:39 | More by BigGingDrinker

Falcone

North Carolina

3.75/5 rDev +5.6%

12-08-2012 04:25:57 | More by Falcone

freduardo

Alabama

3.75/5 rDev +5.6%

11-23-2012 02:19:59 | More by freduardo

plaid75

New York

4.13/5 rDev +16.3%
look: 4.5 | smell: 4.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

On draft at Barley's, Asheville, NC.

Poured a medium copper hue with a two finger dense frothy head. There was very good lacing and retention.

The smell featured toasted biscuit malts and herbal and slightly piney hops.

The taste was extremely well balanced with a sharp toasted breadiness complimented by a clean herbal hop.

The mouthfeel was clean with a vigorous carnonation.

Overall a very good and balanced ale.

Serving type: on-tap

11-09-2012 20:19:41 | More by plaid75

sendbeer

Georgia

2.5/5 rDev -29.6%

11-01-2012 15:26:59 | More by sendbeer

Beejay

Virginia

3.65/5 rDev +2.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: A murky copper orange color, with off white head on top.

S: Bready with a nice hoppiness. Some toffee notes, as well as a floral hop presence. Bready and a faint hint of earthiness.

T: Toasty with touches of toffee, and burnt sugar. some raisin notes, as well as a bright floral hit from the hops. Not overly bitter, good balance between malt and hops, although there is a lingering coffee flavor.

M: Medium light in body, carbonation is medium, and pleasant on the tongue. Fairly light feeling although there is a slight slickness to the finish.

O: Overall this is plenty drinkable. Tasty, and interesting though I don't think I am in love with the flavor, there is almost a light licorice character to it that seems out of place to me.

Serving type: bottle

10-23-2012 03:48:33 | More by Beejay