Organic ESB - Lakefront Brewery, Inc.

baos

Indiana

4.15/5  rDev +26.5%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 3.25 | overall: 4

Poured out of bottle into pint glass.

A: Nice translucent amber color. Two finger head that dwindles to a nice sheen with bits of lacing here and there.

S: Nice floral hops and light malt character makes for a fresh smelling esb!

T: ESB's aren't one of my favorite styles, but this one seems a bit different. The lighter malt character makes for a great flavor. A bit of malt sweetness and floral hops at first this evens out into a pleasant bitter hop flavor.

M: A bit watery, just a bit more would be nice, however, this would make a great brew from a hot day.

O: Not a bad bier, try one on for size!

Serving type: bottle

02-27-2013 04:19:30 | More by baos

TheManiacalOne

Rhode Island

3.53/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Poured from a 12oz bottle into a US tumbler pint glass.

A: The beer is a deep amber color, with a thin off-white head that fades slowly and leaves a thick lace on the glass.

S: The aroma contains caramelized malts, fruit, nuts and some hops.

T: The taste starts out with some mildly sweet flavors of caramel and fruit that fade quickly. Then a hearty but not too heavy malt character comes in. There are some background flavors of honey and nuts. The hops good for the style and brings a decent balance. The after-taste is slightly bitter.

M: Crisp and a little smooth, medium body, medium carbonation, finish is dry and slightly sticky.

O: Tasty, goes down easily, not too filling, mild kick, decent representation of style, it’s not a bad beer but there are others in the style that I would choose first.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2012 18:32:46 | More by TheManiacalOne

Beerandraiderfan

Nevada

2.75/5  rDev -16.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

Another bottle from my favorite brewery tour. Copper pour, thin off white head that is below .5". Lacing and retention are decent though. Aroma imparts almost nothing but a mild undercurrent of breadiness and bitterness. Very miniscule, very far from robust.

Bitterness and cardboard are the heavy hitters in the flavor profile. Cardboard lacks any caramel or toffee notes. Kind of a headscratcher. A tiny bit of old closet mustiness. Copper + cardboard doesn't make for the best of beers. I've had better bottles than these, but even those weren't awesome by any means. There's just a void of hops in this beer, and even when viewed through the most stringent (I should mention the beer is also astringent, without hops, like it was dry hopped with cardboard and pennies) traditionalist viewpoint of an old school English esb.

Kinda hurts to give a brewery I really like a negative review. I think for some, the word 'organic' on the front is license to charge a bunch for an underwhelming product.

Serving type: bottle

11-07-2012 19:50:37 | More by Beerandraiderfan

barnzy78

Illinois

3.73/5  rDev +13.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle, pours copper-brown, with a foamy, beige head that leaves a little lace. Aromas are malty with toasted grain, brown sugar, spicy/earthy hop. Tastes are lots of brown sugar with caramel, toffee, toasty grain, bready, earthy, complementary spicy hop, some fruity notes in there as well. Mouth-feel is creamy and smooth, with a little over-carbonation, but it does allow for the flavors to meld on the palate. Overall, it seems to be that I liked this one more than most. I thought it was good, regardless of whether it was organic or not.

Serving type: bottle

10-30-2012 02:47:37 | More by barnzy78

JerzDevl2000

New Jersey

3.05/5  rDev -7%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Picked this up, er...actually, I was given this. Free. No charge. Left to drink on my own. After having the fabulous Wisconsinite and Local Acre Lagers recently, I wasn't sure what to expect here and now that I've nearly finished downing this, I'm not sure exactly what I had. Many reviewers on here wondered what was missing on here and it comes as no surprise that the ingredient lacking in this is none other than HOPS. If you're expecting this to be bitter, keep expecting. This is unlike any other EB that I've ever had.

This poured like a Weizenbock with an apricot hue, cloudy appearance, and somewhat decent head that lasted for a little while. Not much of an aroma to this and the taste was bland and uncarbonated. Lots of brown sugar, apricot, and crystalline sweetness here with the sugar holding on for a while after each sip. Maybe some signs of a light Ale from Belgium here without the alcohol, or dark fruit that would categorize this as such. A slight earthy bitterness was found here but was this anything like Fuller's, Goose Island, or Red Hook? No way...

I can't quite tell where this missed but I wish the alcohol was a bit stronger, if for no other reason than to giver this beer some teeth. I downed it pretty quick but I prefer to savor my beer as I search for the distinctions in it. Unfortunately, there's not much memorable to this, even if "organic" was printed on the bottle. A disappointment, to say the least.

Serving type: bottle

10-28-2012 06:01:10 | More by JerzDevl2000

waldoiverson

Texas

2.83/5  rDev -13.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5

12 oz into nonic

A: amber with moderate carbonation, soapy head, and light lacing

S: sweet sugary malt, lightly hopped green apple, toasted grain

T: very malty body with grassy hops, ritz cracker sugary overtones

M: overly sweet and juicy, no heavy body so missing something to justify the malt base

o meh, it's fine but all components are just a a tad shy of exceptional

Serving type: bottle

10-10-2012 03:28:09 | More by waldoiverson

MadScientist

New York

3.75/5  rDev +14.3%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A: This is a somewhat hazy medium amber having a thin, persistent and creamy, light tan head.

S: Mild fruity esters of apricot and orange with a mild floral hops and a biscuity malt aroma.

T: The flavor is mostly a mix of fruity easter, a caramel and biscuity malt flavor with a moderate hops bitterness taking over at the end. The balance is mostly towards the bitter. The finish is dry with a malt aftertaste.

M: A crisp, medium-light bodied with a moderately-low level of carbonation.

O: This is a nicely balanced ESB with a a bit of fruitienss and a nice malt flavor. A little cloudy for an ESB it lost a bit on appearance.

Serving type: bottle

10-02-2012 23:33:07 | More by MadScientist

jsprain1

Minnesota

2.08/5  rDev -36.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2

A- Red-copper with golden highlights. Head is half a finger, just a shade off white. Decent retention, light lacing.
S- The aroma is minimally there. There is some malty notes. But where is the bitterness? It really is missing that.
T- Not very flavorful. There is some generic sweetness up front with a touch malty caramel. But the bitterness is really really lacking.
M- The body is lacking depth and the carbonation comes off fizzy.
O- This was an absolute disappointment for me. All around lacking, unfortunately.

Serving type: bottle

08-29-2012 01:05:06 | More by jsprain1

Knapp85

Pennsylvania

3.43/5  rDev +4.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.5

This poured out as a decent looking amber color with a thin very minimal tan colored head on top. The smell of the beer was malty, it had some nice caramel like aroma's on the nose as well as some other grains in there too. The taste of the beer was earty, semi-sweet with a nice dry bitterness in the finish. The mouthfeel of the beer had a good amount of carbonation to it, the beer was drinkable and easy going. Overall this beer wasn't too bad, not my favorite ESB but still not a bad beer in my opinion.

Serving type: bottle

08-13-2012 03:17:17 | More by Knapp85

donmonkey1

Tennessee

2.78/5  rDev -15.2%
look: 3 | smell: 3 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Appearance: Reddish-brown, like hazy tea. The head is good but dissipates too fast. Very little lacing.

Smell: Not enough to tell. Possibly the faintest smell of brown sugar. They need to man-up on the smell. I mean, where the hell is it?

Taste: A hint of hops in metal water. I'm really feeling ripped off. WHAT THE HELL IS THIS ORGANIC BULLSHIT?

It's pretty fucking average.

Serving type: bottle

07-01-2012 04:42:23 | More by donmonkey1

WastingFreetime

Wisconsin

3.5/5  rDev +6.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

Reviewed from session notes.

Poured out a semi-hazed standard amber color with a single finger that lasted for about a minute before dissolving without leaving any lacing behind. Presents a very fruity yeast ester aroma, some candied nuts and earthy hop tones as well in the nose. Flavor is very toasted whole-grain bread and cereal grain-like with a sharp crispness from the heavy carbonation over the medium body texture.

I've had worse and I've had better than this one...

Serving type: bottle

06-09-2012 00:16:31 | More by WastingFreetime

BeerFMAndy

Wisconsin

3.93/5  rDev +19.8%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 4 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

12 oz bottle poured into a Lakefront imperial Pint.
Bottled Apr Wk2 (2012) notched on label.

A - Pouring a delicious clear copper color with a tall egg-shell head comprised of densely packed bubbles, Lakefront's Organic ESB looks beautiful. Plateauing to a thick pile of foam, the head randomly dots the pint in chunky lace.

S - Earthy and harsh opening, little caramel and some wet, spent grain notes arise followed by slight hop aromas, but nothing about it screams ESB. Soft, earthy hops seem present, but in very low levels.

T - Very malty right off the bat, caramelization flavors pull through with toffee slivers and toasted Vienna notes. Wet grain undertones hide behind a slight earthy hop flavor. While the grain bill seems on par, the hops only balance in flavor. It isn't until bitterness becomes a part do they really kick this ESB towards the style a little more.

M - Medium-light bodied and smooth in the entry, Organic ESB is well-balanced by a bitter, dry finish from the organic hop additions and a lingering finish on the tongue.

O - The under-rated and humble Lakefront scores again with the first USDA certified organic beer! While this ESB doesn't hold a candle to the classics from England, Organic ESB features a nice, tasty malt base with subtle earthy hop overtones and a refreshing bitterness along the finish. A great session beer to put pint after pint back while chatting up the blokes at the bar, I'd say!

Serving type: bottle

05-30-2012 00:45:48 | More by BeerFMAndy

StaveHooks

Oklahoma

3.53/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 3 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

12oz served into a SA perfect pint glass.

A - Pours a clear amber with an off-white head. Average lacing.

S - Sweet cereal grains, caramel malts, biscuits.

T - Yeasty bread, caramel, sweet cereal grains, grapes, and hints of citrus. It finishes up semi-dry with a light earthy toastedness.

M - Creamy carbonation, medium body, smooth feel.

This was straightforward and pretty good. Needs a little more hops but drinks nice. Caramel malts and a sweet grain flavor dominate. I would drink this again.

Serving type: bottle

05-18-2012 22:28:26 | More by StaveHooks

jimmah120

Minnesota

2.9/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

12oz bottle brewed 3rd week of December.

Cloudy amber with minimal head. Smell is skunky grains. A slight sweet smell as well. Bitter character at first as you sip. Some sweet malts but mostly the rest is grain. Very plain tasting. Dry mouthfeel.

Overall I was a little disappointed in this one. Easy drinking and balanced but seems to be missing something.

Serving type: bottle

03-07-2012 00:43:46 | More by jimmah120

mrfrancis

Kentucky

1.85/5  rDev -43.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 1.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2

A: Pours a murky amber with no real head.

S: Aromas of earthy, peppery hops and caramel are overwhelmed by an oddly pungent, grainy aroma. What is going on here?

T: Notes of minerals, caramel, toffee, roasted nuts, and peppery ale hops are muddled by tart grainy flavors and an odd metallic backtaste. The finish lingers for some time and is most notable for its complete lack of hop and malt character; instead, that metallic taste takes over completely.

M: Medium-bodied and very dry with active, firm carbonation. If it tasted better, I could see myself being generous and calling it drinkable.

O: This is hands down not only the worst ESB I've ever had, but also the worst organic beer of any type I've ever had. I don't know what the people at Lakefront were thinking. Maybe they weren't. I've never been so happy to pour a bottle down the drain as I am now.

Serving type: bottle

03-02-2012 15:55:23 | More by mrfrancis

soju6

Missouri

2.93/5  rDev -10.7%
look: 2.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3

A: Pours a dark copper color with no real head , just a ring around the edge with some lacing.

S: Mild aroma of some malt sweetness bit of fruit and some grain.

T: Mild, almost bland flavor, with just a bit of malt sweetness and a trace of grain. No real bitterness and a dry finish.

F: Fairly medium body and smooth. Just not a lot here.

O: This is not what I expected in an ESB. I guess I'm just not in to organic beer.

Serving type: bottle

02-19-2012 15:11:48 | More by soju6

Jparker37

Wisconsin

3.15/5  rDev -4%
look: 4 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5

A - This light amber ESB poured relativly bright with a nice, barely off-white head full of small bubbles that colapsed to a small but diligent cap of foam. Left a little bit of lacing on the glass.

S - Disappointing smell. Expected some dry hopping or maybe some big toasty malt, but I am left with a very mild, slightly sweet maltiness.

T - The malt begins to come around with some nice toastiness and a little bit of balancing hop flavors and bitterness finishes quite different than it starts. On the lighter side of the English Bitters spectrum. Not all that rich and complex in flavor.

M - Has a nice full bodied mouthfeel with a light gentle carbonation.

O - A little light to be an ESB. Not very complex in flavor or smell. Overall I am not a big fan of this beer but cool with all organic ingredients.

Serving type: bottle

01-20-2012 00:44:15 | More by Jparker37

BeerLover99

New Jersey

3.4/5  rDev +3.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A: orange/mild cloudy body, trace white head,
patchy lacing

S: caramel, biscuit/malt,

T: sweet biscuit malt, caramel, nutty,
semi-dry/light bitter finish

M: med body, smooth/semi-dry mouth

O: Nice ESB, enjoy Lakefront.
Would get again, few American
craft breweries make this style.

NICE, NOT MUST HAVE!

Serving type: bottle

01-11-2012 17:36:51 | More by BeerLover99

pweis909

Wisconsin

3.53/5  rDev +7.6%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

A=Slightly hazy amber, with a solid head that stuck around for several minutes before receding.

S=Caramel with a bit of hops, reminiscent of the noble hops found in a European pilsner, possibly a Czech pils. Maybe this is the Safir hops? Not 100% sure as the Lakefront website is ambiguous about the hops. The hop aroma fades soon. By the end of the glass, I can pick up a more grainy, breakfast cereal character that hides underneath the caramel.

T=The caramel malt presence dominates, to the extent that it comes close to overpowering the flavor contribution of other components. It is sweet, but not unbalanced, as there is sufficient hop bitterness to prevent it from being cloying. Still, I would prefer this a little dryer.

M=Nothing stood out to me about the mouth feel.

Overall, I don't mind this beer, but the dominance of sweet caramel makes it a bit of a one-trick pony. I would probably not want to drink several over the course of one evening. While I am happy to support an organic beer, I must say that the ESB moniker sets up some expectation of toasty maltiness and hoppy bitterness and aroma that just don't seem strong enough to me in this example. It is much more like a caramelly American amber, or even an Irish red.

Serving type: bottle

01-03-2012 02:46:12 | More by pweis909

ForWhatAlesYou

Minnesota

3.6/5  rDev +9.8%
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12 oz bottle into a tulip

A: Warm amber-orange. 1 finger white head. Falls quickly. Spotty lace.

S: Bready caramel overtones. Citrus (orange) hop.

T: Very malty. Biscuit and multigrain bread. Bitterness finishes but not at all aggressive. Light aromatic spice, buckwheat, sone fruit. Very good drinking ESB.

M: High in initial carbonation. Drying on the finish.

D: Good for the style. Not overly hopped. Well balanced and sessionable.

Serving type: bottle

12-23-2011 01:44:31 | More by ForWhatAlesYou

biboergosum

Alberta (Canada)

3.2/5  rDev -2.4%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5

12oz bottle, number 2 in the Milwaukee mix pack. Is that cow leaping or flying?

This beer pours a mostly clear medium amber colour, with one fat finger of foamy pale beige head, which leaves some low-reaching, random spiky lace around the glass as it settles. It smells of crackery cereal malt, confectioners' sugar, and mild floral, leafy hops. The taste is plain bready malt, a bit of grape character - leaf and fruit, and green, earthy hops. The carbonation is quite sedate, the body medium weight, and innocuously smooth. It finishes off-dry, the bready malt seeing only a light floral hops counterbalance.

While rather easy to put back, on the ESB scale, this offering is quite lacking. Not crisp, not really bitter, not biscuity. Ergo, not a proper ESB. Drink this while not thinking too hard.

Serving type: bottle

11-09-2011 23:58:15 | More by biboergosum

wordemupg

Alberta (Canada)

3.03/5  rDev -7.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

355ml bottle poured into pint glass 3/11/11

A clear copper with lots of big bubbles feeding a fast falling finger of creme colored foam that leaves a few polka dots of lace

S some dry cereal and purple candy with a little caramel

T not far from the smell really a little malty and lacking the hops for a great bitter

M a little flat and thin with just a little bite

O pretty basic beer if you ask me, nothing offensive but not what I look for in a bitter

nothing special going on here, it went down without any problems but I don't think I'd bother buying it again

Serving type: bottle

11-04-2011 01:49:23 | More by wordemupg

canucklehead

British Columbia (Canada)

3.13/5  rDev -4.6%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Pours a dark brown with a decent head. The nose is mostly malt with a small hop note. The beer is decent but there is a lack of complexity with the hops that makes an ESB interesting. Drinkable for sure and no real faults but it gets a little boring over time.

Serving type: bottle

10-15-2011 03:54:23 | More by canucklehead

airforbes1

New York

3.75/5  rDev +14.3%
look: 4 | smell: 3 | taste: 4 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 4

Pours an orange color with some cloudiness at the bottom of the glass. Fair head retention. The aroma is modest; I don't get much besides grains and maybe some grape.

The taste is simple, with some grape and butteriness. It's a straightforward ale, but it's pleasant. Maybe a bit thin, but I'm enjoying it.

Unlike most reviewers, I thought this beer is a good example of the style and favors well when compared to Fuller's E.S.B. I'd seek this out again if I wanted a smooth, highly drinkable ale.

Serving type: bottle

09-12-2011 03:40:08 | More by airforbes1

JackieTH

Minnesota

2.9/5  rDev -11.6%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 3 | overall: 3

Amber-colored liquid topped by a short-lived cap of foam. Smell is lightly malty at best. Taste, similarly, is malt forward, biscuits, but mostly non-descript. Not particularly sweet with just a hint of floral hop. Mouthfeel is medium-light. Overall it's not at all bad, but really doesn't distinguish itself in any way.

Serving type: bottle

08-30-2011 21:16:05 | More by JackieTH