Shepherd Neame, Brilliant Ale

Made using a recipe from early 1800s by Shepherd Neame, I think the name of this beer might refer to the colour (pale) rather than any of the more integral qualities that one might associate with a calling something a 'brilliant ale'. Pithy and derogatory-for-the-sake-of-it-because-the-name-is-an-easy-target comments out of the way, I'd certainly get this on cask, I suspect that drunk fresh, the hops would shine more and maybe benefit from a more subdued level of carbonation. From the bottle, I felt there were glimpses of 'brilliance': at its very best it was sweet, rich citrus floating on soft bread but at its worst there was zero malt presence and the hops stung without flavour reward.