Shepherd Neame 1698
Bottle conditioned.
"Kentish Strong Ale".
First brewed in 1998 as a special @ 10.5% abv to celebrate Shepherd Neame’s tricentenary. A cask version at 4.5% was also released. Was made a pasteurised bottle regular at 6.5% under the name Celebration Ale. Relaunched in March 2005 as a bottle conditioned strong ale @ 6.5% simply as 1698.
Only local hops and malted barley and water drawn from our artesian well are used to brew 1698 Bottle Conditioned Kentish Strong Ale. Hops are added three times, hence it is "thrice hopped".
"Kentish Strong Ale".
First brewed in 1998 as a special @ 10.5% abv to celebrate Shepherd Neame’s tricentenary. A cask version at 4.5% was also released. Was made a pasteurised bottle regular at 6.5% under the name Celebration Ale. Relaunched in March 2005 as a bottle conditioned strong ale @ 6.5% simply as 1698.
Only local hops and malted barley and water drawn from our artesian well are used to brew 1698 Bottle Conditioned Kentish Strong Ale. Hops are added three times, hence it is "thrice hopped".
3.2
512 reviews
Faversham, England
Community reviews
.5 bottle. Clear copper, low, not too pretty or stable, off-white head, a little lacing. Aroma flowers, caramel, fruity, bready, biscuits, candied zest. Taste sweetish, smooth, full. Carbonation medium to high, tingling. Bitterness low, slightly herbal. Aftertaste caramel, hard candy, slightly flowery. A bit too sweet and tiring.
Ciemnozłote, klarowne, piana średnia, mało trwała. W aromacie grzanki, toffi, chmielowość, owocowość. W smaku umiarkowana słodycz i wyraźna goryczka. Spore nagazowanie.
500ml bottle. Amber + off-white head. Sweet malty, molasses, dried stone fruit, tangerine pulp, bready, marmalade, caramel, spices
Pours a clear light copper colour with no head. Aromas of caramel, fruit cake, a little spice and a little alcohol. Taste has the same notes again, caramel, fruit cake, alcohol, more spice, some burnt toasty bread and also a touch of sweet honey on the finish. Medium body, average carbonation and smooth oily mouthfeel. Very nice winter warmer.
Caramel colour, big pillowy head.
Malty aroma, some fruit.
Taste is a little sweet, malty, biscuit, warming alcohol, a little boozey.
It's ok but would be better on a cold winter night.
Found out of bottle from Auchan in Bielsko-Biala, Poland. Pours a dark brown with no foam. Burnt malt aroma strong malt flavor. Better as a fall option but below average for the style.
Bottle. Pours clear dark amber, off-white head. Aroma of dried fruits, biscuits. Taste is more sweet, average bitterness. Flavors of dried fruits, some biscuits, malt. Same in the aftertaste. Medium to full body, slick texture, average carbonation.
Burnt umber with frothy beige head. Malt, banana and pine on the nose. Almond, malt and umami notes with liquorice in the back ground. One to drink in a traditional pub in the middle of nowhere on a rainy night.
Old rating from 2011 - 500ml bottle, pours amber with a white head. Aromas & tastes of dried fruits, caramel, liquorice & roasted malt
Bottle 0,5 ltr: Clear amber coloured brew with an sweet bitter taste with hints of caramel, roasted malts, fruitiness and a bit of liquorice.
50 cl bottle (BBD 2021-03-31), bought from Oli Food Centre (SE17 2NA), drunk at home 2021-02-27.
Appearance is a clear medium amber with a slightly off-white reasonable thickness irregularly formed head that dissipates relatively slowly. Small amount of visible carbonation. Nice enough colour and nice head retention. Pretty decent.
Aroma is okay. Caramel malt, touch of honey, some apple (or maybe elderflower). Hint of grain, but it's thankfully not strong. Pleasant enough, but a bit faint for the ABV. Would like some more darker malt notes too.
Taste is better. Some decent caramel this time, alongside brown bread and maybe toffee too. Very little from the hops, but that's okay. Moderate earthy bitterness to finish. Works well actually.
Palate is pretty good. Medium-full bodied, quite round and very slightly chalky but still reasonably clean, giving way to a smoother decent length finish. Fair hit of in-mouth carbonation too.
Overall, the nose is a bit of a let-down (not uncommon amongst English style ales I find), but in general this is pretty good. Leaning into the caramel and toffee notes works - gives it a richness but not a cloyingness. Not convinced it needs to be 6.5% with this flavour profile, but I'd happily have it again.
Bottle from Tesco. Clear amberish. Nose biscuit malty, red fruits, sweet caramel, honey - great nose actually. Tastes honey sweet, little dried fruits, raisins maybe, sweet malty, warming. Tastes rather nice after all IPAs and such.
Riby coloured amber ale with some feisty carbonation top with light head. Aroma’s of aged wood, caramel and dried fruits. Flavours are heavily malty, bread, with a wild honey background. A Kent ale classic.
Great strength. Lovely Amber appearance. Good hit on palate. Malty caramel honey. Nice level of hoppiness Really good
Aroma of malt, yeast, hops, honey and fruity notes
Amber colour with small short lasting head
Taste of barley, malt, dates, mild honey and a lasting bitterness
Medium carbonation with smoooth oily mouthfeel
Great ale!
Dark amber colour with short head. Smell of malt and honey. Taste of barley malt, dades, caramel, raisins and a nice light bitterness. Nice
OK new to this beer reviewing thing. Since Punk IPA reared its head thats the style of beer I've been increasing drawn to so this seems like a step into the past for its maltiness and sweetness but not without some hoppiness in the finish. Its very drinkable for its 6.5% ABV. I really enjoyed it. My only question concerns its claim to be bottle conditioned. Shouldn't it be cloudy if shaken? It poured amber clear even after agitation.
I have to say I do look at ABV for a beer I'm drinking at home. I usually drink just the one bottle and I like to feel that buzz I wouldn't get from a session ale so I commend this beer to you!
Clear amber with a white head. Aroma is malt forward with some currants and raisins. Taste is broadly in line with aroma. Bottle enjoyed in October 2009.
500ml bottle served, room temperature, in a nonic pint glass. Clear Amber ale with an off white head. Malty alcoholic, fruit cake flavour and aroma, which one would associate with a much darker ale. Not too much carbonation, and pleasent slightly old fashion hoppy aftertaste. In a sentence, a bloody good strong winter warmer.
500ml bottle @home. Ambrata, limpida, schiuma bianco-sporca media. Al naso note di caramello, toffee, nocciola, burro fuso. In bocca è dolce all'attacco, caramellata, con chiusura amara a bilanciare, leggera. Corpo medio, carbonazione media. Piuttosto anonima.
Great old school ale taste. Flavours work well together, really enjoyable drink to take slow and enjoy!
Nice traditional bitter tasting ale. Drank from a Belgian Palm beer glass on a warm, sunny day. In these times of 'golden ales', 'American pale ales' and 'citrus ales' it's nice to get an old school English beer. Love it.
From England’s oldest brewery:
One of the best bottle conditioned ales I have ever sampled.
Being “Thrice Hopped”, the depth of flavour is outstanding.
At 6.5% abv It is best enjoyed slowly in order to be fully appreciated.
Please try some, you will not be disappointed.
Their IPA is also a very special Ale and well worth a try.
Rocky off white head stayed on a slowly carbonating copper coloured body.
Fruity English hops & malt aroma.
Medium bodied, soft on the palate with a lively back.
Well balanced with fruity hops, malts, berries, spices & a sweet finish.
What a lovely pint.
Poured from a bottle into a tulip glass. Malty aroma. Pours a clear dark amber with a good white head that dissipates to form patchy lacing and a high collar. Crisp malt flavour with low bitterness. Medium bodied and low alcohol taste belies the fact that this is a strong ale at 6.6% ABV. Very drinkable and my favourite Shepherd Neame variety tasted so far.
Light brown colour, medium head. Aroma has wood, caramel and black currant. Taste is light bitter with some sweetness. Good one.
Amber color with quite small off-white head. Aroma has toffee, caramel, malt and some grassy hops. Taste is malty sweet with long somewhat bitter aftertaste. Flavors of caramel, malt, toffee and some fruity notes.
Simply a deeper stronger spitfire. Prefer the original
Pours a light mahogany color with very little aroma. Tastes a little bland with no discernible upfront tastes. Good beer for rich, hearty stews.
Bottle - clear light golden with decent frothy head. Fruity hoppy aroma - ok. Good mouthfeel. Good flavour - packs a bit of a punch - good finish.
Taste of a good Belgium beer though easy drinking for a 6.5% beer. Enjoyed.