Timothy Taylor, where have you been all my life? I had long heard wonderful things about Timothy Taylor’s Landlord, going back decades actually. I’d never seen it here in the states, though. A few months ago, however, I was travelling through South Carolina and stopped at Total Wine in Greensville, where I finally found a bottle. That got me thinking how the American beer scene has come such full circle in the past 35 years or so.

Way back in the early eighties when I started drinking beer, imports were the best way to drink quality beer. Oh, there were a few microbrews around to be sure, but they were by far outnumbered by good beers from Germany, England, Ireland and Belgium. Today, it’s really the other way around. That’s not to say there aren’t oodles of imported beers to choose from; there are. At most stores, though, the import section will be dwarfed by the American craft section. For my part and for that reason, I tend to head straight to the import section these days. That’s how I found my bottle of Timothy Taylor’s Landlord.

From the label:

Landlord is the classic pale ale, traditionally brewed using the finest Golden Promise malted barley, whole leaf hops and pure Knowle Spring Water.

Landlord is a full flavoured pale ale with a complex and hoppy aroma. Landlord has won more major awards than any other beer, including 4 times as CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain.

Ingredients from the website:

Malt: 100% Golden Promise Barley

Hops: Styrian Goldings, Goldings and Fuggles

Timothy Taylor’s Landlord has an alcohol content of 4.1% by volume in the bottle. The website mentions 4.3% which one assumes is the draft version. The beer has been around since 1952 and I paid $5.99 for my half-liter bottle, the only drawback.

Timothy Taylor’s Landlord pours to a pale orange color with a thick fluffy head of white foam and an appetizing nose of fresh malt and earthy grassy hops. Taking a sip, the beer has a delightful supporting palate of crisp biscuity malt up front laced with a hint of caramel and permeated with fresh aromatic hop notes. Those hops are herbal and tea-like in aroma, and truly permeate the beer. Landlord finishes dry with a light flowery bitterness that lingers gently on the tongue after sipping. The delicate balance is just wonderful.

This beer is truly delightful, something you could just sip on continually over an evening. I give it 5 stars less 1 star for price. Would I buy it again? In all honesty, probably not at $6 a bottle. It’s worth every penny of that, though, to experience this beer at least once.



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