Sharp's Single Brew Reserve 2007

"Sharp's Head Brewer Stuart Howe personally brewed just one batch of this very special beer in December 2007. The beer was conditioned in the Brewery for over a month and then bottled with live yeast. The live yeast gently conditions the beer over time giving it a very balanced and complex flavour profile. "

This is the description provided by Sharp's for their annual Single Brew Reserve (4.5% abv), which is a red, sweet and lightly bitttered bottle conditioned ale. I can see what the brewer was going for with this beer, but somewhere along the line something has gone wrong! The beer is plain at best, and tastes like Doom Bar does if you drink it too cold. The flavours seem to disappear and you end up with something that tastes plain, clean and along the lines of canned megaswill bitter like John Smiths. I seem to be very negative today! But then again I don't appreciate lacklustre beers, especially from a brewery that produces gems such as Doom Bar and Atlantic IPA. For something that is considered a specialty beer, which has been bottle conditioned to increase complexity - this beer just doesnt live up to its name. Website