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Monthly archives for April, 2011

2011 Beer Bloggers Conference

Apr20
2011 1 Comment Written by Bob the Brit

May 2011 sees the arrival in London of the 2011 Beer Bloggers Conference, as I’ve been writing articles for The Brew Club for three years now I figured I should put this on my ‘to do’ list.

2011 Beer Bloggers Conference.

I’ve never been to a beer bloggers conference before, but it promises to me an interesting weekend, a mix of three things: educational content and speakers; trying great beers; and meeting other beer writers, bloggers, and industry folks.

I will, of course report back after the event, but if you’re passionate about beer, and plan to be in London between May 20th and 22nd then you might want to attend, it’s going to be at the old Whitbread Brewery in the City of London, in itself an interesting and historic venue.

Friday promises a gentle start, with tasting brews from Budvar, Adnams, and Shepherd Neame, followed by dinner sponsored by MolsonCoors and an evening party sponsored by Pilsner Urquell.

Saturday includes a talk from Martin Dickie from BrewDog, and a featured Beer Bloggers Conference event – Live Beer Blogging.  Eight different breweries will each pour one beer for a table of bloggers and have five minutes to tell you about the beer and their brewery.

You’ll blog or Tweet live about that beer, they’ll blow the whistle, and breweries will rotate to the next table.  It should be fast paced, fun, and informative!  For now, we’ll be posting live to The Brew Club’s Facebook page and Twitter stream!  Why not stalk us now and follow along?

Saturday evening includes dinner at Dirty Dick’s Pub in Bishopsgate, then another six breweries will be pouring a range of their beers at a Night of Many Beers.  They’re expecting Camden Town and Williams Brothers breweries from the UK, Rogue brewery from the United States, and a consortium of three Italian breweries providing beers.  They also hope to have beers from Darkstar, several Swedish breweries, and another well-known US brewery.

Sunday will be a visit to the Fuller’s brewery including a tasting of a variety of their beers, possibly including Fuller’s aged selection of one or more Vintage Ales, Past Masters, and Brewers Reserves 1 and 2.  Then, I understand, a trip to the football (soccer), to round off an interesting weekend.

If you can’t make the London conference, then there’s an equally interesting conference planned for Portland (Oregon) in August, but I suspect that if you’re on the East Coast (like Scott) then the London event will actually be closer!

Check out their website here, and look for reports from me after (and possibly during) the London event.

Posted in Other Stuff, Views from a Brit - Tagged Beer Events

Woodfordes Admirals Reserve and Head Cracker

Apr18
2011 1 Comment Written by Bob the Brit

I recently reviewed some brews sent to me by those nice people at Woodfordes, a well regarded brewery in Norfolk, East Anglia.

The brewery, you might recall, was founded in 1981 by two enthusiastic home brewers,  Ray Ashworth and Dr David Crease who named their brewery after an eighteenth century Norfolk clergyman who had a reputation for enjoying fine ale – Parson Woodforde.

On a cold dark January night I turned my attention to a couple of their stronger brews, Admiral’s Reserve a 5% ABV strong ale, and Head Cracker a golden barley wine brewed to 7% ABV.

Woodfordes Admirals Reserve 5% ABV

Woodfordes Admirals Reserve - from thebrewclub.comAdmiral’s reserve pours with what I described as a ‘reluctant’ head, it took quite a bit of ‘rough’ pouring to coax any foam from the brew, but the head left some healthy lacing down the glass as it subsided.

The brewery describe the colour as ‘dark chestnut’ but to me it was a perfect copper colour, I remember my parents having a polished copper jug that was exactly the same colour.

There’s not much of a nose to speak of, but the flavour is well balanced, there’s a rich, hoppy bite that gives way to an underlying fruity mellowness. It’s complex, but accessible, perhaps a little bit on the strong side for a session beer, but I wouldn’t have any problem reaching for a second, or third.

Three and half stars, very drinkable.

Rating: ★★★½☆

Woodfordes Headcracker 7% ABV

Woodfordes Head Cracker - from thebrewclub.comAnother ‘reluctant’ head, and another bright copper coloured ale. This bright copper seeks to deceive, as the ale lurking beneath that bright copper is a potent 7% barley wine, usually a much darker colour.

This brew has been runner up in a number of Barley Wine competitions, and gained a bronze in CAMRA’s 2005 ‘Supreme Champion Winter Beer of Britain’ awards.

The brew itself is warming and complex, a balance between rich fruit and sharp, citrus hops. There are hints of plums, damsons and sour apples – only hints mind – but a very satisfying brew.

Again, this probably owes more to the stronger German Ales, such as Weihenstephaner Korbinian, in that it tends to mask its potency, it’s not ‘in your face’ STRONG… but rewarding for its understated strength. It would be oh so easy to pour another…

Four Stars, very drinkable, very dangerous.

Rating: ★★★★☆

Posted in 3 Star Reviews, 4 Star Reviews, Ales, English Beers, Views from a Brit - Tagged english beer month

Wolf Brewery – Battle of Britain Sacrifice

Apr15
2011 1 Comment Written by Bob the Brit

The Wolf Brewery in Norfolk has recently been brewing a selection of brews to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.

Battle of Britain Beer

The Battle of Britain, for background, took place in the autumn of 1940 when the ‘few’ of the Royal Air Force defeated overwhelming numbers of German Luftwaffe.

The resulting British air superiority ensured that the planned German invasion of Britain was postponed, changing the likely outcome of World War 2.  Shepherd Neame (above whose Kent hop fields the Battle of Britain was fought) brought out their own commemorative beer ‘Spitfire’ back in 1990 and it has become a mainstay of their range.

norfolkThere were a large number of air bases in the flat land of Norfolk (that’s the bulbous bit on the east coast of England) and the Wolf Brewery’s range of twelve bottled beers includes four RAF themed beers, ‘Bravery’ (4.3% ABV), ‘Sacrifice’ (4.5% ABV), ‘Freedom’ (4.8% ABV) and ‘Battle of Britain’ (3.9% ABV).

A donation of ten pence (about 15 cents) from the sale of each bottle goes to RAF veterans charities. Every little helps, as they say, and ‘Battle of Britain’ is widely available through a major supermarket chain.

The Wolf brewery itself was founded by Wolfe Witham in 1995 on the site of what used to be a Cider plant in Norfolk.  These were the dark times before cider regained its popularity, and the brewery flourished on the site, until expansion forced it to new premises in the tiny village of Besthorpe.

Wolfe Witham himself was a Norfolk brewing legend, as the mainstay of the Reindeer Brewery in Norwich through the eighties.  I well remember having to ask my wife to drive back after I discovered the Reindeer and its awesome brews.

So, to the beer Battle of Britain “Sacrifice”, which pours with a thin pale head which quickly fades leaving little or no lacing.

The beer itself is a bright copper/brass colour with a hoppy nose, but not as hoppy as an IPA or APA.

This is a bottled equivalent of a ‘session’ bitter and as such you’re not going to expect firework displays on your tongue, but what you get is a well balanced, crisp, hoppy ale that really refreshes.  On a summer’s day this would go down a treat, and at 3.9% ABV I might not need to trouble my wife again.

I’m happy to give this three stars; it’s a beer that does what it sets out to, and does it rather well.  That it helps raise funds for our veterans, so much the better.

Rating: ★★★☆☆

Bob the Brit

Posted in 3 Star Reviews, Ales, English Beers, Views from a Brit

Wickwar Station Porter

Apr12
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Bob the Brit

In April 2010 I wrote about the Wickwar Brewery in Gloucestershire.  At the time I was writing about “Banker’s Draft” from their ‘counterculture’ range of beers, but I also mentioned that the brewery had a ‘heritage’ range that seeks to recreate classic beer styles.

One of these ‘heritage’ beers being Wickwar’s 6.1% ABV Ruby ‘Station Porter’; It was CAMRA’s 2008 Winter Beer of Britain, came third in CAMRA’s 2008 Champion Beer of Britain awards, and was highly commended in the 2009 World Beer Awards.  Of course I tend to be sceptical of awards, but that many are a clear indication that this is a well respected ale.

Station Porter

It pours with a thin, but coffee coloured head that leaves some lacing as it dissipates; the beer itself is a rich ruby colour when held up to the light.

The nose is subtle, it’s not ‘in your face’ but there are hints of coffee in there.

The flavour is much the same, the mouth-feel is perhaps lighter than you might expect from a porter, more a dark ale, but the taste is well balanced with hints of coffee and chocolate, and then a satisfying underlying bitterness.

It improves as it warms, too.  Cradle the glass in hour hand like a fine brandy, and the coffee and chocolate becomes more obvious.

Overall this is a very well balanced beer by a brewery that clearly knows what it’s doing; and after long consideration (and a second bottle) I’m giving this three and a half stars.  I have a few more on my shelf which bodes well for the future.

Rating: ★★★½☆

The brewery has recently launched a dark porter, brewed to 5% ABV and boasting dark chocolate flavours – Penny Black (named for the world’s first postage stamp – but you knew that).  Thus far, unfortunately,  it’s only available on draught in Gloucestershire, but I have hopes that it might be bottled in due course.

Bob the Brit

Posted in 3 Star Reviews, Ales, Bocks, Porters and Stouts, English Beers, Views from a Brit

St. Peter’s Golden Ale

Apr08
2011 Leave a Comment Written by Scott-TheBrewClub

It’s been fun reviewing English beers, and like last year we ran out of the month of April before we ran out of English Ales!  No matter! I think I’ve discovered a few winners like the Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout as well as a few beers like Moorehouse’s Black Cat that I’ll likely not bother with again!

St Peter's Golden AleI bet you’re wondering where today’s beer, St. Peter’s Golden Ale fits in that spectrum!  (Well, if you’re not I’m going to tell you anyway!)

I first came to be interested in the St. Peter’s beers simply because of their unique and old-fashioned bottles.  Their beer bottles are actually modeled after bottles manufactured in the 1740′s in Delaware.  I don’t know, I think they look cool.  After having the St. Peters Winter Ale, (and almost giving it 5-stars) I thought I should try some of their other beers as well.  Well, I did try the Old-Style Porter and it really left a lot to be desired.  Bob had a little better luck with their G-Free gluten-free beer and so it seems to be hit or miss with these guys (despite the cool bottles).

St. Peter’s 4.5% ABV Golden Ale poured into my glass a mostly clear golden color.  The beer looked good, but the head was rather lame.  It was a weak, soap-bubble looking thing that was not confidence inspiring.  The head (as it was) was gone completely just moments after the picture you see was taken.

Trying to pick up on the aromatic profile of this English beer was a little tough.  Golden ales as a style, are not something I have too many of, but the best I can describe this beer is bready, and buttery with a touch of malt.  Doesn’t sound so bad actually, does it?

After checking out the smell a bit, the taste did not come as a shock.  The beer is very mild tasting and nothing stands out as a dominant flavor.  However, I did find that bready, buttery, and malty parts made up most of the flavor.

The beer is not watery, but not thick, and having a very low carbonation it turned out to be a smooth drinker.  I found there to be a little bit of bitterness in the aftertaste, but otherwise not much else going on here.

Overall, I found this beer to be a little too much on the wrong side of blandness and while it isn’t bad, there are just so many more interesting beers out there to enjoy that I really doubt that I’d bother having this one again.

It might make a good pairing with a plain pork-chop and white rice and a side of Wonder Bread.

Rating: ★★☆☆☆

Posted in 2 Star Reviews, Ales, English Beers - Tagged english beer month, st peters
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