St Peter's Organic Best Bitter

A bonus today another beer a English bitter

Appearance:

Pale bronze with nice white head

Aroma:

Malt with some peppery hops in the background

Taste:

Starts of bitter and spicy and then the malt kicks in to balance followed by an almost appley tartness. The finish is not so long and is more malty with the bitterness of the hops being in the background and fades to a fruitiness.

Overall:

Lacks a little in depth of flavour for me, but perfectly quaffable, would have like a longer finish and a bit more body of flavour.

7.0 /10

RCH Old Slug Porter

Today a porter a style that seems to be coming back in fashion

Appearance:

Dark brown almost black, good of tan head that lasts and last

Aroma:

Roast malt with coffee overtones just a faint hint of fruity/flowery hops

Taste:

Coffee and woody flavour fills the mouth then some fruitiness comes to the fore with some spicy hoppy bitterness with a very small amount of acidity. The finish is dry, with mellow wood smoke and lovely bitter hops.

Overall:

Really different lovely complex big flavours with a nice sourness that adds to complexity. I really like this beer, but mine was a bit to cool out of my heated garage. A beer you sip rather than quaff but I could sip a few these any day

8.0 /10

Sheperd Neame Bishop's Finger

Today offering is religious only by name

 

Appearance:

Clear copper colour with good long lasting white head

Aroma:

Malt with a touch of sultanas and hoppy bitterness coming over in the smell

Taste:

The first taste lovely malt with sultana overtones with peppery hops to balance the flavour. The finish is long and dry with bitter hops kept in checked with malt and then some sultanas  fruitiness linger in the background.

Overall:

Really nice bitter, it is a well balanced with no flavour really overwhelming, very quaffable.

8.0 /10

Westvleteren Abt

Today offering is sometime called one of the best beer in the world, big words let see if it lives up to it's reputation or its price tag

Appearance:

Dark cloudy brown with an large off white head that really lasts

Aroma:

Red grapes at first then some toffee overtones with and a little roasted malt hanging in the background.

Taste:

The first taste is described as chewy toasted malt and it really is then you have this fruitiness again thing dark red grapes, then smooth hoppyness comes through the finish is dominated by the warming alcohol with toasted grain balanced by smooth hops

Overall:

A really nice beer lovely and smooth no edges of the two westvleteren I prefer the Blond over this as this lacks a bit of complicity but what is does it does excellently. Probably not worth the 8-12.50 euros it goes for on the grey market.

8.5 /10

Theakston's Old Peculier

Today is another beer from my past as I have a friend who grow up very close to this brewery so this was quaffed quiet a bit when we could afford it!

Appearance:

Very dark ruby red with of white head that lasts

Aroma:

First the mix of raisins and malt reminds me of Malt loaf then in the background you have a touch of pepper from the hops.

Taste:

The taste is different from the aroma with the malt fading more into the background and the initial fruit burst being raisins and sultanas the malt being more roasted and a nice rounded bitter comes through. The finish is mainly a touch nutty malt and the lingering rounded bitterness. The finish doesn't live up to the initial taste being a little to reserved for me

Overall:

A nice pint if you want something a bit different to your normal bitters but doesn't stand out for me

7.5 /10

Grolsch

Today offering is not a rare one for the Netherlands

Appearance:

Golden straw colour with a good long lasting head with a relative large proportion of large bubbles

Aroma:

Light malt with a hint of bitter hops not to aromatic

Taste:

Light malt at first with a touch of roasted malt and another touch of grassy sweetness but not much then the hop bitterness take over. The finish is mainly dominated by bitterness but with the hint of malt coming through.

Overall:

Perfectly quaffable lager but nothing special for dutch mainstream lager, Hertog Jan and Amstel are better in my opinion.

7.0 /10

Schneider Aventinus

Today given the weather I choose a weizenbock today

 

Appearance:

Cloudy dark brown with a touch of dark red with a good off white head that lasts.

Aroma:

Spicy raisins with a touch of plain chocolate and that hint of ripe bananas that I often find with wheat beers

Taste:

The taste is similar to the aroma starts with spices mainly cloves, raisins and chocolate think cadburys fruit and nut without the nut! and then a nice warmth from the high alcohol with banana overtones. There is just a hint of sourness that adds nicely to the flavour. The finish is not very strong or long and is distinctly wheaty with a touch of bitter hops and the warmth of the alcohol continues.

Overall:

A great beer for winter weather really filling and warming however early this year I tried an "out of date" year old aventinus which was much better with a longer finish and overall more flavour complexity and a longer finish. So my advice buy now to drink next winter, if you can keep it that long!! I probably can't

8.0 /10 and 8.5/10 for the year old

Dire Fonteinen Oude Kriek

An old spontaneously fermented cherry beer is today offering

Appearance:

Dark red almost like Ribena, no head to speak off

Aroma:

Typically lambic: wet hay with an acidity and a touch of cherries unsurprisingly

Taste:

Very sour, as expected with an almond like overtone and touch of cherry in the back ground and a pleasant hint of carbonation. The finish is long sour and a touch dry but with a nuttyness as well

Overall:

A good kriek sour but not over the top with an expected nutty flavour. While lambic are not my favourite this is a good one which if I fancy a kriek this will be the one I would go for so far.

8.0 /10

Goose Island IPA

A Chicago IPA is today's offering from Goose Island which has some great beers and I first found out about when I lived in the midwest.

Appearance:

Golden straw colour with a nice head, strange floculents in the bottle, very flat crystals

Aroma:

Flowery hops with orange in the background and a touch of maltyness.

Taste:

Creamy texture flower hops that are very bitter with a touch of maltyness in the background. The finish is long dominated by an iron tasting bitterness, with some orange tang and a faint malt hint.

Overall:

A very bitter US IPA, full of flavour but probably better in the summer than today's Arctic wind!

7.0 /10

Adnams Broadside

Another classic English bitter is today's offering

Appearance:

Nice dark ruby bronze with a good white head

Aroma:

Biscuity Malt with lovely flowery hop overtones and a touch of seaweed

Taste:

Dark roasted malt with tangy fruit coming through latter and some flowery spicy hops very thick. The finish is lovely and long being very similar to the main taste but a lot of hop bitterness with pepper overtones.

Overall:

Different from yesterday not as crisp more a winter bitter than summer as it is nice and chewy. Good for today weather. Again nothing that shouts pick me but a really nice beer.

7.5 /10

Brakspear Bitter

A classic English bitter is today's offering

Appearance:

Nice crystal bronze with a lovely creamy white head

Aroma:

Lovely malty start with a touch of hops with a touch of orange

Taste:

Malt and bitter hit you first with fruity overtones. The finish is lovely and long being creamy malt with increasing hoppy bitterness and a touch of citrus tang.

Overall:

A classic bitter that is good but doesn't shout pick me, but it is a hell of a good pint and if put in front of me I would be happy indeed.

7.5 /10

Manns Brown Ale

Today the UK best selling sweet brown ale

Appearance:

Clear dark brown with good cream head

Aroma:

Sultana's and a touch of toffee

Taste:

More sultanas with a milky coffee/toffee background flavour than so malt comes through. The finish is malty with a touch of sweetness and a very small hoppyness at the very end.

Overall:

It lacks a bit of depth of flavour but other than that it is nice beer for the week night, it feels chewy in the mouth like you are really drinking something that will fill you up.

7.0 /10

Orval

Today a classic belgium Trappist ale

Appearance:

Cloudy orangey brown with a very lively large head that lasts a long time

Aroma:

Peppery mixed with the lambic smell of damp hay with a touch of fruitness as well

Taste:

I was told it tastes of gooseberries and was somewhat sceptically but it does. The initial taste is tart gooseberrys and then cane sugar without the sweetness comes to the for with a please tingle from the carbonation. The finish is long very bitter but with undertones of alpine herbs/ elderbeerries and a slight sourness a la lambic beers

Overall:

A top quality trappist beer which while being in the style is so different than the others. It is a beer I should look for more often

9.0 /10

Ringwood Old Thumper



Ok after a break due to vacation and other stuff I am back with a hampshire extra strong bitter

 

Appearance:

Bronze with a nice head that lasts

Aroma:

Very peppery and spice with softer nutty malt in the background

Taste:

Starts very malty the a tangyness comes through and a touch of the bitter peppery hops. The finish is long a dry and full of malt and nuts and finally a bitterness with a touch of alcoholic heat.

Overall:

A really lovely quaffable bitter with a lovely nuttyness,  I could drink any day but would be best suited to Autumn and I think personally would go with a nice English cheese board.

8.5/10

Shepherd Neame Master Brew



Appearance:

Copper brown mix with small head that last

Aroma:

Touch of malt and touch of hops nothing to strong

Taste:

Very malt almost like a 0.0% Amstel but with more depth of flavour and less sweetness as this a very bitter beer, it also has a citric tang but more orangey than other beers and it has a touch of pepper as well. The finish is long very bitter with that pepperyness coming through.

Overall:

An ok bitter but nothing really special for me nice depth of flavour and complexity but nothing stand out.

7.0/10

Abbot ale

Please keep upright said my abbot ale t-shirt; abbot drinker



Appearance:

Light chestnut with good head that just about last.

Aroma:

Very malt with nice spicy hops in the background

Taste:

Malty with lovely bitter  hops and some tangyness coming through. The finish is long with some malt and lovely fruit all underpinned by a nice hoppy bitterness

Overall:

A nice bitter that I can drink any day a lovely mix of bitter hops and biscuity malt. Just a really good pint

8.0/10

Deuchars IPA

 Today's offering is a Scottish IPA but a exception to other Scottish IPA



Appearance:

Pale gold with nice long lasting head

Aroma:

Malt at first with a touch of citrus and a large dollop of hops

Taste:

Malty at first with some tart hops and a wee bit of citrus type fruitiness. The finish is long starts a little peppery then fade to malt and then finally a back to bitter hops with some more citrus character.

Overall:

Very easy drink beer, easy quaffable and refreshing, nice and light in a good way. One that I will revisit.

8.5/10

Samuel Smith Imperial Stout

A stout made originally for the russian market.



Appearance:

Very black as expected with a small head that disappears

Aroma:

Chocolate and roasted coffee

Taste:

Intially there is  malt but this is very fleeting, as the roasted flavour comes through and a touch of coffee, nice carbonation. The finish is dry and bitter and slighty hint of coffee and a touch of warmness from the alchohol.

Overall:

A really nice stout nice to drink not special but very good.

8.0/10

Anchor Liberty Ale

An American Pale ale is todays offering



Appearance:

Slightly cloudy  gold with reasonable white head

Aroma:

Like malt loaf, you have sultan/raisins and large amount of malt with a good dose of bitter hops

Taste:

A first you have a lovely juicy malt with the hint of raisins and then a lot of bitter hops coming through. The finish is long and grainy more that malt and nice and a lovely hoppy bitterness a touch of citrus fruit

Overall:

A nice beer with a really bitter finish, nice beer to sip rather than to quaff.

7.5/10