Beer Database

Here is a selection of reviews for beers brewed by the Adnams brewery

From: K Folwell - 3457

Rank Head Of Allied Command

Rating: 7.50

Crystal clear, dark ruby winter brew. Fresh to start with a tart, lively, bitter fruit taste. Turns mellow in the finish.

Talking about Old Ale

Submited On: 2006-10-31

From: Sigmund - 395

Rank Colonel Barrel

Rating: 8.00

500 ml bottle, courtesy of Cardinal Pub & Bar, Stavanger. ABV is 4.0%. Chestnut coloured beer, big light tan head. Aroma of berries and malts, hints of toffee. The flavour is brimming with fruit/berries, caramel and malts, but is not too sweet, with a pleasant hoppy bitterness and some chocolate notes in the finish. Excellent beer, and quite amazing that it is only 4%.

Talking about Gunhill

Submited On: 2008-09-13

From: anth - 254

Rank Lieutenant Colonel Kilderkin

Rating: 6.50

[500ml bottle from Tesco's Reading] Claims to be the first carbon-neutral beer in the UK, and I'm not about to argue with a company that has turfed over the roof of its admin building and organises regular litter collections on the local beach! However, it does mean that this beer is a (very) few pence more than the others in their range. A large white head quickly dissipates leaving a dark golden beer with a soft yet mouth-tingling carbonation. Aroma and initial taste is the classic Adnams maltiness tempered with overtones of orange. A refreshing bitterness creeps gently in, but on the whole this is sweeter than the other beers in the Adnams range. A very easy drinking beer (couldn't believe how fast the bottle vanished!) yet one that leaves behind a warm comforting feeling. I love Adnams beers anyway, and this one seems to be one of their best yet. Clearly the whole environmental drive has not been at the expense of their product, so nice one guys! 7.5/10

[Cask from Thatched Cottage, Maidenhead] I'd really enjoyed the bottled version of this beer, so was delighted to find it in cask form locally. However, I was also a little wary - firstly because I've heard that Adnams cask beers don't travel well, and secondly because their cask and bottled variants often seem to be completely different beers. This one poured an odd dirty deep gold colour with a moderate white head. Smelled lager-like, with a hint of the Adnams maltiness. Taste was initially lemon sharp with grapefruit sourness, and a little grassy hop too, with a little carbonation. However, these flavours were quite muted and it somehow reminded me of a cheap, watery lager. Over the course of the pint it did start to mellow a little and reveal the smooth, relaxing Adnams malt that I love, but the predominant impression I came away with was still of a weak, watery and rather sour beer that's not a patch on the bottled version. 5/10

Have put 6.5/10 as average of bottled and cask versions - although they're two completely different beers!

Talking about East Green Carbon Neutral

Submited On: 2009-01-11

From: Nick - 2462

Rank Field Marshall Tun

Rating: 7.00

A light well hopped fruity ale with a rich maltiness which leads to a good spicy bitter finish.

Talking about Flagship

Submited On: 2005-10-11

From: anth - 254

Rank Lieutenant Colonel Kilderkin

Rating: 5.50

[Bottled version from Adnams Brewery shop, Southwold, 4.5%]. Renamed from the original name of "Suffolk Strong Bitter" to the imaginative "The Bitter". Initially very bitter (appropriately enough, given the name), although this gradually grew easier on the palatte. Intensely dry and woody, with a slight hint of orange in the aftertaste. Overall though, this is an average best bitter, tending towards the watery side. (5/10)

[Cask version from Coopers Arms, Reading at 3.7%] The cask version is a totally different animal to the bottle; a different ABV, and a very different flavour too - one does wonder how they can sell it under the same name. It pours a deep, handsome orange/brown, with a good, lasting, cramy head and - thankfully - little carbonation (Iâ€™ve always felt that English bitter is ruined by excessive carbonation). The initial taste has a good bitter hit, but unlike the bottle this is not overpowering - soon some earthy and leafy hop flavours emerge. The bitterness quickly mellows as you drink more of your pint to reveal the familiar, reassuring Adnams maltiness. Thereâ€™s a surprise in the tail end - woody flavours come through, followed by a smooth, warming, comforting, caramel-and-butter finish that leaves a soft mouthfeel. Overall I rather enjoyed this - itâ€™s far better than the bottled version, with a decent depth of flavour for a low ABV bitter. (6/10)

Talking about The Bitter

Submited On: 2008-06-19