Butcombe Original (aka Bitter) (Cask)
Cask: Regular.
Butcombe Bitter was the brewery’s only beer until 1998, and only available in cask until 2009 when it was made available in the bottle to take advantage of increased sales after winning the Silver Medal at the 2009 Great British Beer Festival. Name change from Bitter to Original had occurred by 2017. Previously brewed at 3.9%.
Ingredients: Mendip Spring Water; 100% best Maris Otter Malt; a blend of (never divulged) traditional English hop varieties.
The West Country’s favourite beer is notably bitter, clean tasting, refreshingly dry, distinctive, and moreish!
Butcombe Bitter was the brewery’s only beer until 1998, and only available in cask until 2009 when it was made available in the bottle to take advantage of increased sales after winning the Silver Medal at the 2009 Great British Beer Festival. Name change from Bitter to Original had occurred by 2017. Previously brewed at 3.9%.
Ingredients: Mendip Spring Water; 100% best Maris Otter Malt; a blend of (never divulged) traditional English hop varieties.
The West Country’s favourite beer is notably bitter, clean tasting, refreshingly dry, distinctive, and moreish!
3.1
170 reviews
Wrington, England
Community reviews
Cask @Inn at Fossebridg, Fossebridge. 04/02/2020.
Color ambarino espuma blanca, aromas maltosas, cereal, sabor maltosa, caramelo, notas dulces, cuerpo medio.
Cask at The Moon Under Water (JDW), Watford on 12/05/2007. Well, funny names aside, this was always a decent pint. Quite malt forward with a little bittering hop at the end.
Proper, traditional bitter but done very well, toffee malty taste which remains throughout.
Cask at the Park Tavern,Eltham. Copper coloured pour with a white head. Nuts,malt,touch of fruitcake in the nose. Dried fruit,nuts,whisper of citrus in the taste. Competent tasty bitter.
Probably the finest Ale I’ve consumed: dry, not too strong, properly bitter, and always kept at a high standard due to the brewery’s stringent supply checks. Exceptional!
Can at Spoons Stansted Airport. Nutty brown with a small bubbly off white head. Aroma is caramel, fruit and a little spice. Flavour is toffee and not a lot else
Butcombe Bitter 4.0%. Bronze, caramel malt and fruity aroma, medium bodied, caramel malt, nutty, citrusy, grapefruit finish. Lovely bittersweet from Somerset.
Draft - clear light orange, good creamy white head. Good mouthfeel. Only faint aroma. Easy drinking, mild tasting bitter. Ok.
Cask (Village Inn, Shanklin) - Copper in colour. Raisins, caramel and a hint of spice in the aroma. Nicely balanced taste with dried fruit, caramel and a moderate bitterness.
Excellent colour, tight head (appealing to the Yorkshire drinker looking for value for money) good body and a satisfying finish........ an ideal session beer.
Barwa bursztyniwa, piaba mala, osadza sie na szkle, smak wyczuwalny chmiel i gozdzik, pitne
Cask pint at The Post Horn, St. Helier. ABV 4.0%. Deep copper colour, off-white head. Malty aroma, a hint of malt vinegar. Malty flavour, slightly sweet, again with a hint of malt vinegar. Undistinctive.
Cask at The Royal Oak, Prestbury. Clear amber with no head whatsoever. Aroma is malty, caramel, toffee. Taste is malty, caramel, toffee, quite a strong bitter finish. Light body, very fine carbonation.
Kobber klar skum hvid
Citrus smør nødder
Bitter modrate sød lidt
Vandede flad
GUEST SPOT
Ordered from the Captains Bar, South College Street, Edinburgh.
Butcombe Original has come a fair way to be with us, from Wrington near Bristol to be precise. It's a bitter-style ale, dark amber in colour, malty but with a hint of hoppiness. I found it to be clean-tasting and as refreshingly dry as my humour.
At 4%, it has a respectable ABV for a session ale and styles itself as "The West Country's Favourite Beer" (presumably drunk when the folks down in that locale aren't knocking themselves senseless with scrumpy cider.) Arrrr!
For the ale buffs amongst you, Maris Otter malt forms the base of this beverage and it is flavoured with a "secret" variety of English hops, the recipe of which is doubtlessly under armed guard at the nearby GCHQ. You 80' drinkers out there might also like to have a try of this one for a wee change.
I give it a 7/10 which, as I am as brutally conservative as Craig Revel Horwood with my scoring, is eminently respectable.
Very generic bitter, lovely full bodied, classic bitter. Only downside is the incredibly metallic after taste, really lets it down. Not really anything that sets it apart or stands out but good traditional beer none the less.
Cask at The Rutland Arms - not a particularly interesting brew, but perfectly palatable. Would drink again :)
Cask at the foot of the walk. Pours clear amber, nose is floral, vegetive, light funk, taste is sweet, berries, hay, floral.
Same deal as my bottled rating, not a bad brew but not really up to scratch with the worldwide beer scene, and there are far better examples in the UK too. I do not have a vendetta against Butcombe, they are absolutely not bad brewers, but there is something distinctly average about the beers of theirs that I have tried.
Casque at Greatfield pub. Nice malty aroma with coffe, bread accents and a bit fruits. Gentle short bitternes. Medium body, light malty taste with a bit stout character. Good beer.
Thin, slightly malty, clear auburn ale, a bit flat. Quenching. Fades quite quickly after a half pint.
Three pints in the Plough Inn in Wrington less than a mile from where this is brewed. This is a classic English bitter, dark with toasted malt, bitter hops, smooth mouthfeel and low abv. It is a perfect session beer and worked alongside the rather large lunch.
Casque at Greatfield pub. Nice malty aroma with coffe, bread accents and a bit fruits. Gentle short bitternes. Medium body, light malty taste with a bit stout character. Good beer.
From cask at the Bristol, England, airport. Clear amber with an off-white head. Bready aroma with a taste of caramel and toast. Balanced and easy to drink. Medium mouthfeel.
Excellent brown bitter beer. The Three Swans, Frome
copper colour. smell is slightly medicinal/dark fruits. taste is bitterness with fruity notes. medicinal hints. ok
Decent enough to have a few in a holiday camp bar. Dark bitter with good malt flavours, nicely balanced by the English hops.
Draught at the Charles Holden, Colliers Wood. Pours clear mid brown with a white head. Aroma of caramel and malt. Sweet taste. Bitter finish.
On cask in Castle of Comfort, nr East Harptree. Clear chestnut brown bitter with an off white foam head. Nose is fresh. Light citrus peel, caramel malt, crystal malt, light cereal grains, brown bread, slightly sulphury but in a good way. Taste is citrus peel, brown malts, caramel malts, brown bread. A fairly standard bitter but fresh and in good condition and a change from all the hoppy stuff. Very solid.
Klar bärnstensfärgad med ett smutsvitt skum. Dofter och smaker av smör, karamell och frukt. Mjuk och rund munkänsla.