A British Brew Review - Moray IPA

Beer - Moray IPA
Brewery -SpeySide
Strength - 5.5%
Type - IPA

Moray IPA is the first beer in the British Brew series, and I've chosen it for a reason.

I'm a big fan of IPA's in general, some have even received 9's and 10's on the Grover-Debs Beer scale, but it takes a rare care to get the delicate balance of smooth bitterness and full hops to compliment the perfect carbonation. This is why I love trying new IPA's, and I also love reviewing them.

SpeySide Brewery is set in the Moray Country-side in Scotland, along the river Spey (Hence the name) It shares the area, and the highland water, with some of the worlds most renowned single malt whiskeys. The area is well known for it's Beer, Whiskey, and Food - giving the Moray IPA a tough reputation to live up to.

This Ale was first brewed to provide a Pale Ale to our troops in India. Obviously this was in the days before air travel and so the Moray IPA had to be shipped over, a trip which can take several months.
To survive unspoilt for this passage it was very highly hopped, and had a higher alcohol content than most other IPA's. This extraordinary formula has survived unchanged to this day, so I was expecting a lot from this small Scottish brewery.

I was not disappointed. It's golden and rich in colour, and has a very distinctive hoppy aroma.
The medium-low carbonation is expected from a normal IPA, but this is far from normal. The expected hoppiness continues into the taste, and it creates a rare tangy hop flavour which is finally complimented by a bitter citrus aftertaste which lingers for minutes or more.
This is likely the hoppiest IPA I have ever tried, but it somehow pulls it off.

Most will not appreciate the hoppy flavour though, and once I was through most of the pint, it did start to lose it's appeal.

Be that as it may, it's still a delightfully satisfying IPA, and the increased hops give it a flavour to remember. Not a game changing beer, but one I will visit again.

                                                                      GDBS - 8

INTRODUCTION - A British Brew Series

Over the past few weeks me and my esteemed tasting colleague, Mr. Debenham, have been talking about imported beers (If you scroll down you'll find a very interesting article from the man himself on the matter).
Imported beers tend lose out on the taste originally designed and crafted by the brewer, and you'll have to travel to the country of origin the get the real flavour - The taste that it was brewed for.

We often try to make the most of our time abroad by trying foreign beers, and getting a real feel for both the brew, and the brewer.
Unfortunately this is not always possible, so over the next few weeks, whilst continuing our normal programming, we will be visiting some of the most celebrated, and some of the rarest local British Brews.

If you have any favourite British Lagers, Pilsners, Ales, or Stouts, please send them in and we'll do our best to get them in the series!

Happy Drinking,
Benjamin "Pale Ale" Grover

ABSTRACT - "National Beers" and the problem with exports

"National Beers" and the Problem with Exports

A lot of beer we drink in England is a foriegn import. Estrella, San Miguel, Peroni, even Guiness are all prime examples. All popular beers in England but all imported from factories based largely in mainland Europe or (in the case of Guiness) Ireland. To the average beer drinker this makes no difference. I´ve been trying beers imported from other countries and have tried beers in the countries that produced them.

All of them taste better in their home countries.

This isn´t surprising, but it is somewhat annoying. On the surface, knowing that San Miguel tastes better while sitting in this study in my hotel in Barcelona than it does from a tap at my local in England does little to phase me, but knowing that I could be tasting superior flavours to what I get in England is more than a mere annoyance. The popular (and unattributed) saying "life´s too short to drink shit beer" comes to mind - why should I have to drink a lower quality beer than what it was intended to taste like?

And this is my point. When I visited the Guiness factory I tried Guiness there and it was amazing. The flavours were exactly how the tour guide had just described them to me and I was certain this was the best generic beer I could aspire to taste with my mortal taste buds. Returning to England and cracking open a fresh bottle from the local co-op I was shocked to find not only is it a lower ABV (a requirement for exports) but it just didn´t give me all the flavours that the tour guide had spoken to me about. I didn´t feel like I was drinking Guiness, more "Guiness Lite".

If we´re going to allow exports of beer, why do laws exist that regulate the ABV of beer, and indeed the methods and ingredients used to produce them? Surely the creativity and development, the study and effort that goes into producing every drop of beer desrves the respect of being delivered to anyone in the world exactly how the brewer intended?

Till these laws change, you´ve not had a real pint of anything brewed off our tiny little island until you hit Europe. Generic beers suddenly taste less generic and more how they were meant to taste. So to any budding beer tasters out there, come to Europe, the pint glasses are ready for you here (well, litre jugs, but who´s counting?).

And finally, if we really want to develop a true art in beer making on a wordlwide level, can we really achieve this when we so closely regulate the export and import of even the most common beers on the market? Food (or drink) for thought.

REVIEW - Estrella Galicia Premium Lager (In Spain)

Beer - Estrella Galicia 1906 Reserve (draft)
Brewery - Hijos de Riviera Brewery
Strength - 5.5% (before export)
Type - Premium Lager

I´m on holiday - it was bound to happen sooner or later - and I thought of many marvellous ways to continue to spread the beer tasting revolution across the world. But the best was to try some international beers while here (in Barcelona) and tell you how they compare to some of our English beers, and most importantly how they compare to the imports of similar styles.

Estrella Galicia may sound familiar to anyone who has had Estrella, but it´s not the same company - Estrella (the red coloured bottle we often see in England) is by a mass-production generic beer company of the same name, whereas Estrella Galicia is produced by Hijos de Riviera Brewing, a company that is and always has been 100% family owned. It must be noted that I am reviewing the 1906 Reserve version, as it is draft and so much fresher than many of the slightly warmer beers that are available here.

The first thing to note about the beer is the smell. It holds fruity notes with the double malts sneaking in afterwards, and it´s this smell that properly describes the flavour - sweet and fruity, with a refreshing initial taste but a full malty flavour to back this up. I´ve often had a dislike of many "fruity" beers, feeling that when the fruity flavour is overdone the beer´s flavour suffers as a result. far from this, the beer is complex and enjoyable. Hints of cheery barrels slip into the aftertaste with the malts to leave a smooth finish on the pallat.

I had this beer while eating a steak dinner and found it to compliment the flavours of dark meats much better than it would anything in the lighter end. Sweet and light with a small fluffy head, this beer is well worth trying. It cannot achieve the perfect score, however, because despite using the double malt technique it does not taste as malty as you would expect from a double malt beer. None the less, this beer ranks highly for me. Definitely worth a try, on it´s own or with a meal.

GDBS - 8

(N.B. apologies for the horrible formatting and any spelling or syntax errors, I´m not used to using an international keyboard!)

REVIEW - Fullers Honey Dew

Beer - Honey Dew
Brewery - Fuller Smith and Turner
Strength - 5%
Type - EPA

I've reviewed a few Fullers in the past, and they usually get high marks, which is why I thought getting a Honey Beer might be worth the risk if it was from them.
Quirky beers are hit and miss though, so I was unsure of how this one would go down.

The smell is fantastic, it's similar to a Pilsner or a Pale Ale but very floral, and the sweetness of the honey really springs out.

On first taste it feels a bit watery, then toward the middle it's sweet and malty with a hint of caramel. It's towards the end though that the honey comes out, the sweetness of the honey overpowers the malt flavours completely, and you're then left with a slightly bitter honey aftertaste.
I don't normally look for bitterness in an EPA but without it, for me, the sweetness would be too strong and would ruin the experience that Fullers have created.

Fullers have, as usual, done a very good job of balancing this brew, but no matter how well crafted, it still just doesn't completely satisfy the beer lover in me. I would say this is a beer for people that don't like beer.

Overall an odd but refreshing taste... I wouldn't say it was a bad beer, but I wouldn't say it was a great one either.

                                                                      GDBS - 5

REVIEW - Southwold Bitter

Beer - Southwold Bitter
Brewery -Adnams
Strength - 3.7%
Type - Bitter

I'm a big fan of British Bitter's, so I couldn't resist doing at  least one this week. For my fourth beer I've gone for Adnams Southwold Bitter.

I am reviewing the Cask version of this beer, as the Bottled version is stronger at 4.1% ABV, and is also brewed separately using less hops than the Original. Both of these changes means that the bottled version tends to be a slightly different experience.

This is an interesting brew - They use Fuggles hops (Local to East Anglia, and are used in many traditional British Beers) but don't add them till very late in the boil. Adnams claim that undercooking these hops preserves the herbal flavours, producing a lingering hoppy taste. They also use a Pale Ale malt barley, again sourced in East Anglia.

The result is a beautiful copper colour, an earthy hoppy aroma, and well defined, balanced Bitter flavour. The PA barley adds a smooth malty taste, with slight vanilla undertones and hints of fruit. It's full bodied and has a deep bitterness and a full hoppy aftertaste.

It's not the most exciting beer, and I would love to give it a 10, but it just doesn't quite have that something special to get there. On the whole though, it's a very well crafted British Bitter that I will definitely visit again.

                                                                       GDBS - 9 

REVIEW - Blond Witch

                                                                      

Beer - Blond Witch
Brewery - Moorhouses
Strength - 4.5%
Type - Blonde Ale

I am even surprising myself with my third beer of the week. I am not ashamed to admit that I have never been, and probably never will be, an advocate of Blonde anything... but this blonde ale was pleasantly surprising.

A lovely straw yellow colour, it could be easily mistaken for a lager... without the bubbles. It's got a very fruity smell, that doesn't quite overpower the light hoppy aroma.

With an extremely smooth texture and a staggeringly low carbonation, this ale is easy to drink, and quick to go down. It's got immediate citrus flavours, complemented by slight undertones of toffee, which is then swirled into a bitter hoppy aftertaste.

On tap it tasted fresh and smooth, and was probably the most drinkable Blonde Ale I've had to date.


                                                                      GDBS - 9

REVIEW - Riptide Stout

Beer - Riptide Stout
Brewery - Brewdog
Strength - 8%
Type - Strong Stout

Stouts for me are a treat. When done right, they are a dark jewel in the crown of brilliant beer. And Riptide, with it's use of chocolate hops and high strength, is a beautiful if overpowering stout.

Riptide is a gloriously dark stout from Brewdog. Brewdog are well known for producing some very strong but intense beers and this pulls no punches to join its contemporary beer brethren. With a similar viscosity to tar, the beer has numerous dark tones and a ruby finish that catches the light in any setting. Far from an easy drink, this complex drink will challenge stout lovers who aren't used to varying far from a pint of Guiness. At the 8% strength mark its strength gives it an intense flavour which will put up a fair fight to anyone not ready for it.

The use of Marris Otter and Caramalt hops allow the recipe to match an old Russian recipe originally produced only for the Tsars, giving it a unique taste not permitted to many beers. The malts are brewed together with muscavado sugars (as required by the Russian recipe) which give it a pleasing sweet twist to the aftertaste and rewarding the connoisseur brave enough to tackle the strength of the flavour. 

                                                                        GDBS - 8

REVIEW - Estrella Damm 4.2% (UK Import)

Beer - Estrella Damm
Brewery - Estrella Damm
Strength - 4.2% (UK)
Type - Pilsner

Anyone will tell you that I don't normally drink pilsners. Bitters are fine, ales are superb, stouts are beautiful and lagers are...there. But Pilsners usually get avoided by me. And often, I don't even know why. This beer is the first proper pilsner I've had in a while, and it's a pleasant break from the usual. 

Pilsner, similar to the way a stout could be considered a stronger ruby ale, is often regarded as just a particularly pale lager. Pilsners are popular in Europe, being widely produced in Germany and Spain. So this Spanish beer caught my eye. Annoyingly, to make it available on the UK market they've had to produce a weaker version, at only 4.6% compared ton the usual 5.2% available in native Barcelona. The beer uses a popular mix of barley malt and maize but places rice higher than hops in the ingredients, giving it a distinct flavour.

First thing to point out with this beer is it's a VERY easy drink to drink. As a pale lager, many would assume it means it has no flavour - however, when drunk properly chilled and from a chilled glass the beer is absolutely fantastic. The taste of the rice is very evident in the overall effect of the beer on the palate. As with many Spanish beers it is made to be enjoyed cool on a hot summer's day and this is no exception. 

With a pleasant dark aftertaste and a bitter note at the back of the tongue, this is a very enjoyable beer. The only major negative is it has to be watered down to make it into the country, and as a pilsner it already has a slightly weakened flavour from my usual ale choices. Improve the taste and strength and the pilsner world has a beer to add to the upper ranks.

                                                                        GDBS - 6

REVIEW - Moosehead Lager

                                                                      

Beer - Moosehead Lager
Brewery - Moosehead Independent Brewery
Strength - 5%
Type - Pale Lager

As most people know I am an Ale and Bitter man, but I do also enjoy my Lagers. For this reason I have decided to review a Lager for my second beer this week!

I was visiting the Waterloo Beerhouse, which is favourite spot of mine for craft brewers and some foreign beers that you wouldn't normally see in Blighty, when I saw the Moosehead.

I'd never had a Moosehead Brewery Beer before, and here was their primary product! Needless to say I hurredly bought a bottle.

It's a very American Lager,  although it's brewed in the great white north (Canada). It's thin and crisp, and very light. It has a similar texture to US Lagers like Budweiser, but has a very different palette.
It has a malty taste, with a hint a lemon, and it's much sweeter than other Lagers from the West. You get a slightly hoppy taste towards the end but it's still sweet and the hint of lemon undertones stays with you all the way.

Unfortunately, like many US beers (Also Canadian it seems), it's very watery and the body is very light. It's an extremely average Lager, and is easily forgotten.
I'd like to try it on tap, as some weaker tasting Lagers (like Budweiser) are greatly improved on tap compared to bottled.
The bottled product however, did not impress.

I hope to try some other brews from Moosehead in the future, but I probably won't get this one again.



                                                                        GDBS - 5