There is no reason to snicker at the name of this beer. None.

Brewery: Samuel Smith Old Brewery
Location: Tadcaster, England
Name: Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale
Type: English Brown Ale
ABV: 5.0%

Come now, children. Get your juvenile chuckles out of your system. Today we're going to be talking about Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale...heh. Quick fact about Smiths, they have been using well water from their original well that was sunk in 1758. Plus, according to Michael Jackson (the beer God, not the Jesus Juice peddler) "Samuel Smith has the richest, maltiest, and nuttiest of brown ales." I should also point out that my friend Adam left this beer in my fridge thus making it fair game. Ballyhoo and prestige aside it's time to talk beer. The ale poured a solid mahogany with a touch of red. In fact, I think it looks a lot like the color of the bottle it came in. The head was fairly thin and colored a shade lighter than tan. The aroma is pleasant and warming. A mishmash of nuttiness and malt that hints at maple syrup collides with notes of toffee that treads into butterscotch territory. I was expecting a hint of raisin somewhere in there but never found it. Definitely a light body to this one and the effervescent carbonation does little to distract from the taste. The first suggestion of flavor is one of sweet malts and that familiar toffee taste. Midway through the profile adjusts to the nuttiness from the nose and starts to dry a little. Right before the bitterness at the end I got a splash of slightly burnt grains. The bitterness at the end is a confusing blend of earth and metal. My guess is that those flavors come directly from the water used to brew this beer. Those fleeting hints of taste remind you that this beer has been brewed a very specific way for a very long time. I may have to put my two cents in against Mr. Jackson (I am by no means saying he's wrong...the guy literally wrote THE BOOK on beer) but I have had other brown ales that have delivered a richer and maltier experiences, specifically Rogue's Hazelnut Brown Nectar and Dogfish Head's Indian Brown Ale (both of which are American brown ales, not English). I'm thinking that while traditional brown ales may not be my favorite, this offering from Samuel Smith's is pretty good and I would consider it an honorable starting point to see if brown ales are your thing.

So Sam Adams, Sam Smith, and Sam Jackson walk into a bar...