Thornbridge / Thornbridge Hall American Brown Ale (collaboration with Track)

Tasting Summary

These comments are the opinion of the individual reviewer and represent what they thought of the beer on a particular day in a particular pub. If a review is less favourable, it may be because the beer suffered somewhere in the supply chain between them and the brewery.

The River Ale House, East Greenwich, Greater London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	30 Jul 2026
Hogan Sampling	Not Tried	30 Jul 2026
Philip Pirrip	Not Tried	29 Jul 2026
Hogan Sampling		28 Jul 2026	3rd beer of this visit: Third day on and still exhibiting a lasting head and lacing on this American Brown Ale from Thornbridge brewing in Bakewell and made in collaboration with Manchester’s Track Brewing. A dry malty first bite on this mahogany brown hued ale. A bitter maltiness rising from its Malted Barley and Oats. A malty, nutty and toasted caramelly sweetness joining in. Touches of chocolate, creamy toffee and dark bread crust flavours prevailing. Fruity notes of grapefruit citrus alongside resinous pine lingering. Its hoppy bitterness from its US West Coast hops: Centennial, Simcoe, Cascade and Chinook. Served still in good nick.
Philip Pirrip		27 Jul 2026	Full on flavour so a slow drinker
Philip Pirrip		26 Jul 2026	Good hearty brown with lingering flavour
Hogan Sampling		26 Jul 2026	2nd beer of this visit: Also fresh on and served with a lasting head and lacing throughout on this American Brown Ale from Thornbridge brewing in Bakewell since 2009 and made collaboratively with Track Brewing, the latter in co-developing the modern recipe by applying their expertise into the contemporary hops used. Track launched in 2014 under a railway arch near Piccadilly station in Manchester and later moving to a larger warehouse and taproom on the Piccadilly Trading Estate. This mahogany brown hued ale has been brewed using Thornbridge's historic Burton Union brewing system in Derbyshire, and which is an interconnected wooden barrel fermentation system rescued from Carlsberg Marston's that uses gravity and a series of pipes to continuously circulate fermenting beer while naturally separating out excess yeast. A mildly fruited first bite. A dry bitter maltiness rising from its Malted Barley and Oats with a malty, nutty and toasted caramelly sweetness mixed with chocolate, creamy toffee and dark bread crust flavours. Fruity notes of grapefruit citrus alongside resinous pine climbing up with a hoppy bitterness derived from its US West Coast hops including Centennial, Simcoe, Cascade and Chinook. Served in excellent nick.

Star & Garter, Bromley, Greater London

Who	Score	When	Notes
Philip Pirrip		15 May 2026	Superb and full bodied. Sipped to savour for 45 minutes

Iron Pier Brewery & Taproom, Northfleet, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Hogan Sampling		02 May 2026	5th beer of this visit: Very good head with a creaminess to-die-for on this American Brown Ale and lasting. Its malt bill of Low Colour Maris Otter, Munich, Crystal, and Chocolate malts aiding its deep black-brown hue. A dry bitter first hit from being heavily hopped on this collaboration between Thornbridge Brewery in Bakewell, Derbyshire, and Track Brewing Company in Manchester. A malty but slightly fruited bitterness emerging. Its Willamette hops lending hedgerow fruits and red berries. A citrusy edge rising from its Columbus hops. A dry bitter liquorice flavouring lingering on in the finish. Served in top form.

The Creeker's Tap (formerly The Corner Tap), Faversham, Kent

Who	Score	When	Notes
Dosser		25 Apr 2026	Took 10 minutes to pour. 5£, but it was a fine pint. Lost a lot of money by young barmaid method of pouring