1327 Pod's ESB - Blue Blood Brewery

claspada

New Jersey

2.88/5  rDev -11.4%
look: 3.75 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.75 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.75

Pours a pale amber color with a small white head that settles quickly leaving some spotty lacing.
Aromas begin with ever-so-slight grassiness and some light crackery and caramel maltiness. Sadly that's pretty much it.

The tastes begin with light crackery and biscuity maltiness with some mild grassy hop flavor and bitterness.

Mouthfeel is light to medium bodied with medium carbonation.

Overall, that's 0-2 so far on this brewery. While this was better than the Pale ale by leaps and bounds this still isn't anywhere close to style and no where near a respectable ESB.

Serving type: can

02-07-2013 23:18:12 | More by claspada

StonedTrippin

Colorado

2.9/5  rDev -10.8%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 2.5

i promise im not discounting this beer because its made by cops. i swear. it really is just lousy, and under no circumstances could anyone who knows anything about beer call this an esb in good faith. the pour is clear pee yellow with an inch of big bubbled and fading whie head. gone in seconds. the nose is pushing offensive. extracty and watery at the same time, nothing to this at all. flavor is the same, generic and watered down, where are the robust english malts? the nutty aftertaste? the smooth thick feel? the fortitude? its all absent from this entirely forgettable brew. a predictably watery mouthfeel, lacking any real substance. carbonation is too light, but its not too bad. funky metallic finish, not for me. had to split this can with two others to choke it down. was bummed when we showed up and the brewery was closed, but one can of this wash makes me glad it was. i should be fair though, ill try again when passing through on a day other than sunday next time. ive had worse beers, but skip it.

Serving type: can

01-01-2013 01:35:09 | More by StonedTrippin

searsclone

Arizona

3.05/5  rDev -6.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

can into a pint glass. tons of carbonation formed a light tan head on top of a very clear honey colored liquid.

smell reminds me of wood glue followed by a bready sweetness.

taste is bitter hops at first followed by some malt. spicy finish.

mouthfeel is light and watery

overall, just average. I won't search for this one

Serving type: can

11-25-2012 03:34:31 | More by searsclone

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.1/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3

12oz can, been kicking around for a while now. Apparently, the whole lot that was shipped to our small corner of the world has gone off, and been recalled, which makes makes me all the more curious to ascertain the status of this lonely, singular aluminum vessel.

This beer pours a somewhat hazy, dark golden amber hue, with three fingers of dense, creamy off-white head, which leaves a solid paint job of lace around the glass as it very slowly melts away.

It smells of bready, grainy malt, a bit of sour red fruitiness, and zippy leafy hops. The taste is sweet bready malt, a nicely balanced orchard fruitiness, and loitering, ne'er do-well leafy, musty, earthy hops.

The carbonation is pretty well sublimated, the body an adequate medium weight, and smooth, in a field of no contention. It finishes sweet, with a slightly saccharine biscuit maltiness, that lingering fruitiness elevating the cause, and some soft leafy hops rounding things out.

A tasty enough affair, though it is indeed missing that sharp biscuity character that I associate with the style. However, this is hardly enough evidence to dismiss the whole freaking batch, IMHO, as I have had much more egregiously off-putting examples of ESBs that lack one or more of their expected attributes. Beyond my measly control, I reckon.

Serving type: bottle

07-20-2012 06:47:29 | More by biboergosum

cpolking

Iowa

3.78/5  rDev +16.3%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

The beer pours hazy, yet a bright and glowing orange and amber in color. There is a short head of thin off-white foam.

The aroma is somewhat floral, and fruity, with fresh plums and dried apricots.

The taste is malty, light caramel, followed immediately by a floral and grassy bitterness. The overall effect is refreshing, but very flavorful. The taste is far better than the aroma, and this makes a very good English bitter.

Serving type: can

03-24-2012 19:03:09 | More by cpolking

dbossman

Nebraska

3.55/5  rDev +9.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: Ice-tea colored beer with a thin but steady head; lacing is pretty intricate--though they fade a bit

S: Lots of bready malts--sweet and bready but also some tea leaves, lemon, grass; this smells pretty good and nicely balanced

T: Good hop bitterness up front with a citrus grassy quality; some slightly sweet toasty, bready malts; this is a nice American take on a British beer: balanced, drinkable, good

F: Medium body; sticky; nicely carbonated; good all around mouth feel

O: Again, this is a drinkable slightly hoppy and bready beer; I'm impressed with my first Blue Blood offering and coming from a can is cool too

Serving type: can

03-08-2012 03:22:58 | More by dbossman

lawlerj

Nebraska

3.25/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured from a 12 oz. can into a standard pint glass.

A - Pours a translucent light copper color. Slightly off white two finger width head. Appears to have strong carbonation.

S - I'm primarily picking up caramel malt on the nose. Not much else really - a bit of hops, a hint of breadiness. Nothing super complex going on here.

T - Caramel malt up front, sliding back into some moderate hop bitterness. It has a nice bready finish. Not too bad. Again, nothing crazy or complex going on here, but tastes pretty good.

M - On the light side of medium bodied; it felt a little slick. Not quite as crisp as I would have liked.

O - Overall, tastes pretty good and would be a great sessioner, especially for a nice spring day.

Serving type: can

02-04-2012 00:31:55 | More by lawlerj

scarfield

Nebraska

3.25/5  rDev 0%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

App- High Clarity, Golden/Dark Amber. Pours with a half inch head. Moderate lacing. Nice looking beer.

Smell- Not much to get here in terms of complexity. Malty and bready.

Taste- Very malty, taste is also earthy and a bit stale. Caramel is present, but matched by the hops. A bit of an alcoholic bite as well.

Mouthfeel- A bit of bitterness from the hops lends to the crispness of this beer. Carbonation is perhaps on the high end.

Overall- Very easy to drink, but there is nothing that stands out about this beer. Balanced well, packaged well in a very attractive can, but I hope that better can come from the brewery in the future.

Serving type: can

02-03-2012 23:44:30 | More by scarfield

NStLincoln

Nebraska

3.98/5  rDev +22.5%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

Old gold coloring with a slight white head that is gon e in a snap.

Caramel is the star of the nose supported by dark fruit and breadiness. Not getting much in terms of aroma, but the beer might be a little too cold.

Really nicely balance ESB. The caramel and bread is coming through but the hops (including Nebraska grown hops) is big and upfront. The finish is soft and easy making for a sessionable ESB.

Serving type: can

01-19-2012 22:54:56 | More by NStLincoln

midworken

Nebraska

3.25/5  rDev 0%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Poured a very clear amber brown with a head that dissipated rather quickly. Lacing was left until the last drop.
Smell is not overly complex, nutty aromas with a stronger malt presence balanced with a bit of bitterness from the hops aromas. Nothing fancy here.
Taste is a very bright, yet mellow enough to not overdo it. Same that went for the smell goes for the taste here. Maybe I'm too used to Imperials that this beer doesn't wow me. However, it is very sessionable and easy to drink a few. Maybe a great intro beer to non-craft drinkers. Mouthfeel is dry, with the flavors leaving quickly and the beer being "smooth".
This beer is a good representation of the style, but nothing that is out of the norm - little complexity and no stunning features.
I hope this new brewery does well, it's the second to open in this city and will have a pretty good competition with the other brewery that has been around for a while. Hopefully Blue Bloods can turn out some great beers, and I look forward to trying other offerings.

Serving type: can

01-17-2012 02:54:50 | More by midworken