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