Pale Ale – Pale Mild, Bitter, Best Bitter, ESB

Pale Ales are the quintessential British Ale. They are normally served by the pint or the half-pint either in Cask Conditioned form with very little carbonation, in keg form under CO₂, or, recently, with nitrogen pressure known as Smooth. Virtually every pub in the U.K. has one or more Pale Ales on tap.

The basic style originated over 200 years ago when glass drinking vessels became affordable and popular. Before that, dark, murky ales were acceptable. The brewers quickly learned that “Burtonized” water, which is fairly high in sulphur, made a better pale ale.

The famous “Burton Union” open-fermenting vats used at Burton upon Trent are given much credit for popularizing the style. They work by connecting wooden fermenting casks to a trough through piping. Foaming action forces the yeast up to the square rather than let it stay in the wort. The only system left is at Marston’s Brewery and only used to make Pedigree. reference

Fuggles and East Kent Goldings hops are the backbone of th

…