It’s not a fancy site, but the info about the brewery makes me wish I could visit North Yorkshire, England. The Old Brewery is Yorkshire’s oldest brewery, and they still employ a cooper! In case you don’t know, coopers make barrels and it’s a profession that’s fascinated me for years. That right there makes me like Samuel Smith all that much more. So far I’ve had their porter and their organic raspberry - both of which I love. Now I find out that they are AWESOME as well as a brewer of good beer?
But it gets better - there are pubs in the area that stock only Samuel Smith’s beers. The brewery has an area manager who looks after Samuel Smith’s pubs and recruits live-in management couples to run a pub and live above it. They also provide a pub atmosphere focused on the beer and on conversation - no music or TVs. Maybe that’s not everyone’s cup of tea, but it sounds fantastic to me.Okay, enough about my new-found puppy love with this brewer. I might as well devote a couple of sentences to what I’m drinking:
It poured a clear orangey-amber with no carbonation or head. The scent wasn’t strong. It was fruity like, apples and pears and sparkling white grape juice. The hops played a large role in the flavor, but I would describe it as predominantly malty. It is not what I would consider a bitter beer, although there was definitely a bitter finish. Instead of being a force to be reckoned with (like I’m known to seek out in beers) the hops provided a bitterness that added character and balance to the malt as well as a hint of fruitiness which reminded me of cider. This was very good.
