Tasting Notes: Moor: Northern Star

Moor: Northern Star (England: Golden Ale: 4.3% abv)

Visual: Hazy lemon, with a large bubbly white head that contains mounds and troughs within it.  The main body has a few small bubbles within it but not much.

Nose: Really fresh, jiff lemon. Very crisp. Ice cream. Touch of pineapple. Very slight bitterness. Elderberry.

Body: Solidly bitter. Lemon meringue. Quite sherbet like. Pineapple. Slight fruit syrups. Slight bitter ale like sourness. Dried apricot

Finish: Gooseberry and hops. Pineapple. Quite dry bitterness. Honey. Dried apricot and mango.

Conclusion: What a deceitful little aroma. Ok it does prepare you for the lemon and the slight citrus tartness, I’ll give it that. What didn’t it do? Hint at any real bitterness.

Thus while the beer is not insanely bitter, the kick I got on first sipping it hit far harder that you would expect. It’s all in the timing I guess. It’s the surprise really. I was slightly better prepared on the finish where you get big lasting bitterness coming once again.

Despite the fresh citrus nature the play of the bitterness is far closer to that of the Bitter style than it is to the lighter Golden Ale which the flavour plays to. Notably it also has that slight sourness that a lot of bitters have that make them so refreshing.

Combine the two and you get a golden ale of impressively thirst quenching nature and solid bitterness. There are some minor downsides to this that the beer is tailored more towards thirst quenching than a large range of flavour, but I can’t fault it too much for that.

A side note if I may. Most beer pouring advice indicate to not disturb the yeast within. Here I would advise the exact opposite. Not only does a swirl to add the yeast add additional dried fruit flavours, it also makes the beer cloudy in a way that gives the impression of a tropical fruit drink. Which amused me somewhat.

In fact the yeast added version had much more sweetness to go with the impressive bitterness. Combined I find the extra flavour is well worth it.

An absolute thirst quencher balanced nicely between bitter and golden ale. A few bottles of these between friends would make a good standby of a summer drinking session, be it barbecue or chat. It does what it set out to do and it does it very well.

Background: While I have been muted on response to a few Moor beers here over the years, I have grown quite fond of them. Generally finding that the cask versions take the beers I enjoyed, but found not exceptional, and really ratcheted all the good qualities up.  As of such, I have taken to revisiting their bottle range to see what else may lie within. Bought from Beers of Europe, this is apparently the same beer as Nor’Hop. I say apparently as a quick Google search indicates the abv is different (4.1% vs 4.3%), but I guess generally the same beer. Also, despite the jokes of my friends, I did not mistakenly buy this thinking it was brewed in the North.  The bottle does warn you of the beers impressive bitterness, and if I had read it before drinking the beer I would have been less shocked. However I try to avoid reading such notes until after I drink lest they influence my review.

Tasting Notes: Small Paul’s Brewery: Elder Sarum

Small Paul’s Brewery: Elder Sarum (England: Golden Ale: 4.7% ABV)

Visual: Grain to gold with loose bubbled head.

Nose: Honey and lemon. Slightly cough sweets like. White grapes.

Body:  Gooseberry/elderberry. Moderate bitterness. Honey. Slight granite. Ginger syrup cake.

Finish: Light toffee and good bitterness. Sour grapes. Dry granite. Slight ginger snaps. Slight tartness. Dust balls.

Conclusion: Its odd having this beer in the midst of a cold snap, it feels very much like a summer brew. Odd as rate beer lists it as an Autumn brew. Which I drank in February. Go figure.

It’s very fresh and has lots of grapes and gooseberry fruit styling. A tart drink balanced by a nice bitter touch.  The finish does go a bit dusty after a while which works against the freshness. A pity as it’s a nice shtick.

As it is it’s a nice mix of freshness and flavour. A few flaws in there, so its not exceptional. Coming as it has though, being a nice fresh beer when I have been drinking far too many stouts, I found it a very nice change and appreciated its quirks.

It’s average on the quality, but different enough to rise above that. Not great but I can’t complain.

I still think it should be a summer beer.

Background: Seen at the “Royal Oak”. I had never heard of the brewery so of course did the sensible thing and ordered a pint.  On investigation it looks like this is a commercial home brewer who sells from a garage in the back of his house. I love small brewers

Addendum: We have had an update from the brewer in the comments. This is actually a summer (well, spring-summer) beer after all. Good choice! Apparently this was from a specifically requested batch that broke its usual season release. All makes sense then. Thanks for the update.

Tasting Notes: Bradfield: Farmers Blond

 

Bradfield: Farmers Blond (England: Golden Ale: 4% ABV)

Visual:  Very clear grain to yellow with a decent white head.  All very clean and crisp, almost lager like in styling and moderate carbonation.

Nose: Musty hops and light citrus lemon. Meringue.

Body:  Middling bitterness and earthy hops character. Very crisp. Lemony character and slight lager crisp character.

Finish:  Lemon curd and bitter hops. Touch of pineapple. Slight nettles. Thick vanilla ice cream. Slight hop oils. The left over feel on the tongue thickens over time.

Conclusion:  This is a very lager influenced golden ale. There’s the moderate carbonation on the pour, the pale clear character and the extremely white bubbled head.  If it wasn’t for the telling slight thickness of character I could have guessed it as a particularly bitter example of a polish lager, right down to that crisp dry hop finish.

But no, it is an ale, just a very light and refreshing one, with that slight extra grip for the main lemon flavour that that entails.  A nice touch of bitterness to it, which helps explain why I so often get the more citrus bitters mixed up with the heavier golden ales. There can at times be a thin line between the two for the hop character they bring.

This beer is predominantly a light citrus to dry hop body and it really isn’t big on putting on a show.  Pleasant enough and the lager like elements will make it an easy drinking summer thirst quencher, but I will admit it would not be my first choice.

A beer of passable nature, but no shine.

Background: For some reason a lot of farms seem to be linked to beer in one way or another, be it having a small store selling it, making it, or the like. Maybe it’s a good way to make money on the side, maybe its just they have the ingredients close to hand. Any which way it seems to be responsible for the many rustic bottle labels and tap handles that you see around Britain.  In fact it does seem to a British thing, possibly part of the reason for the beard and woolly jumpers image that ale has had for many a year. I honestly can’t remember seeing a similarly predominant farm label theme in any other county.  Anyway I digress, this beer was a kind gift from Will, brought from his home county. Thanks mate.

Tasting Notes: Plain Ales: Maids a Milkin’

Plain Ales: Maids a Milkin’ (England: Golden Ale: 4% ABV)

Visual: Clear golden brown. Dash of a head.

Nose: Light creamy toffee. Maybe a small dash of milky coffee. Light planed wood.

Body: Slight ginger. Low level bitterness. Slightly oaken. Light grapefruit style. Slight sweetness with a hint of brown sugar. Lime and maybe some Christmas spice. Though I may just be influenced by the theme.

Finish: Light pineapple. Ground pepper seeds. Dry hop texture and moderate bitterness. Some greenery, crushed leaves. Golden syrup.

Conclusion:  If you use the word “light” or equivalent more than a given number of times in a tasting note then it is time to admit things are going somewhat badly. I mean, side notes are all well and good, but you need a main body for them to complement.

Thematically it has maybe a herbal touch for the Christmas call. Mainly however we are looking at a lightly sweet and even lighter citrus beer.

If you racked up the intensity then there may be a good beer in it. Maybe. I wouldn’t bet on it.

To go into a bit more detail it does play with touch of grapefruit main body, but ends with a dry bitterness, a lot higher intensity than you would expect from the rest of the beer and hints at where the beer could have gone.  Frankly the finish feels like it belongs to the heavier beer this should have been.

All in all a bit underwhelming,

Background: There is seriously no info about this online. None. Fuck.  My best estimation would be that it is a golden ale, it definitely seems to fit solidly in the style.  Of course now I’ve said that I’m probably going to find out the brewers have a completely different opinion. It is a tad darker than usual, and with the extra bit of bitterness at the finish it may be a bitter.  I have misidentified the more citrus’ and light bitters as Golden Ales in the past.  Anyway, between this and the seven lords a leaping beer I’m guessing Plain Ales are doing run of 12 Christmas beers.  Anyway, drunk at the Royal Oak, a fine bar but one who’s beer selection seems to be waning these days, down from an average of nine or ten cask ales at a time to four or five at best.

Tasting Notes: Facers: Cwrw Campus: DHB: Dave’s Hoppy Beer

Facers: Cwrw Campus: DHB: Dave’s Hoppy Beer (Wales: Golden Ale: 4.3% ABV)

Visual: Just a bit hazy browned grain with barely a sheen of white suds.

Nose: Greenery and resin. Light sweetness and pineapple.

Body: Prickly hops and nettles. Greenery. Sweetness. Pineapple juice and toffee.

Finish: Hops, citrus lime and bitterness. Resin and hop oils. Vanilla.

Conclusion:  Sometimes all a beer needs is a simple trick done well. This is a simple beer of just such a style. Its trick is prickly hops and pineapple juice.  It tastes well enough as well, with the hop style being such that I wondered initially if it had been green hopped (for reference best I can tell it wasn’t).

The abv is nearly low enough to be a true session beer, and frankly it’s not far off so it does that job well enough as is.  The taste lasts well over a couple as well.  Nothing too heavy but it stays fresh and flavoursome.  Frankly it is a one trick pony, but if you are looking for something hoppy to tide you through a pub conversation then this will fill the session nicely.

So a nice prickly of moderate bitterness and nice hoppiness. None too bad I must say.

Background: Drunk at the Royal Oak.  Was the only beer I hadn’t tried on tap.  That about all I knew going in.

Tasting Notes: Art Brew: Happy

Art Brew: Happy (England: Golden Ale: 4.9% ABV)

Visual: Clear amber gold, thin white bubbled sheen over the still body.

Nose: Prickly hop tingle. Apricot. Grapes. Distinct sour styling.

Body: Gooseberry. Slight tartness. Apples and apricot. Slick, not heavy on the bitterness. Pineapple.

Finish: Slight dry bitterness and charring with gooseberry notes at the sides.  Slight salt touch. Orange. Planed wood.

Conclusion: You know, this is the kind of beer I would normally describe as “cheerful”, but with a name like “Happy” you would probably think I was taking the piss, so I’d probably best start elsewhere.

Still, it is definitely aiming for the summer refresher style, with the emphasis on a slight tartness rather than on the bitterness.   Notably brings a lot of sharp fruit flavours to the game.  Considering the medium nasal tingling from the hop aroma I was expecting a much hoppier beer (A happy hoppy beer maybe) but the bitterness mostly vanishes during the main body only to return at the finish, where it tries to pretend it has been there all along.

Fresh and sour, it is kind of nice and somewhat eclectic.  The finish doesn’t quite tie in with the rest of the beer though – it seems to actively work against the freshness which is a pity.

I hate to say it, but it really is a cheerful if unexceptional beer.  Weak at the end, but a happy beer until then.

Background: Drunk in the beer garden whilst chatting with a violinist was warming up for a folk night. There were quite a few smokers out, which lead to some problem trying to get a decent tasting note, but in the end I managed to find a place without horrid aromas getting in the way.  Art Brew has a few stand out beers, I Beer being the most notable, but are generally a solid if unexceptional brewery.

Tasting Notes: Ramsbury: Popham’s Pride

Ramsbury: Popham’s Pride (England: Golden Ale: 3.6% ABV)

Visual: Reddened brown, light sheen of creamed off white head. Clear and still body.

Nose: Slight roasted nut character. Slight cherry and grain. Some muggy hops. Light pineapple and toffee sweetness.

Body: Dry, roasted nuts and treacle. Bitter and liquorice. Sour grape back and a touch of toffee there. Some lemon sherbet and light pineapple at the front.

Finish: Dry, chocolate flakes and hops. Quite bitter with a touch of grapes.

Conclusion: Odd this one, initially taken to be a bitter with a golden ale style twist. It turns out to be more a golden ale with a very roasted style bitter twist.  Style confusion is becoming more regular as people start playing with expectations.

Bitter and yet slightly tart with a quite dry finish.  On the bitter aspects it seems pretty much by the numbers for the style, yet with its golden ale refreshing bite and sour back.  On a big mouthful there is a good chunk of balanced sweetness as well.

All done satisfyingly but nothing seems to shout out and be noticed. It seems to cleave closer to the bitter than its golden ale style.  A pity as the lemon sherbet style to the front gives a nice bit of play to the style, and hints at the experimentation that could have brought a lot more in.
A solid ale, but not very special.

Background: Drunk at a local pub based on random choice from the taps.  Initially presumed to be a bitter from the colour, investigation seems to indicate this is in fact a Golden Ale, in defiance of its appearance. Oh well, I accepted that Nøgne Ø 100 was an Imperial IPA despite being a dark brown, I can call a reddish brown beer a golden ale I guess.

Tasting Notes: Art Brew: Hip Hop: Centennial

Art Brew: Hip Hop: Centennial (England: Golden Ale: 4.3% ABV)

Visual: Pale clear grain amber with a thin reign of off white froth.

Nose: Lots of sweet pineapple crumble and custard. Light lemon meringue and hops dusted over it. Sweet but slightly sharp, Smooth.

Body: Very smooth, light creamy bitterness. Pineapple smoothies, vanilla. Slight sharp lemon and jelly.

Finish: Pineapple, then slow growing dry bitterness. Light hops, malt and lime. Custard

Conclusion: A return to the single hop range, and we find with this one example of where those wonderful pineapple flavours that are evident in so many of my favourite beers come from.

With the single hop beers, I feel I am critiquing the hop as much as the beer, and this example is no exception.

It’s a very lovely beer as is, with the most obvious elements being pineapple, vanilla and custard.  Lots of flavour that I enjoy seeing rounding out a good IPA or golden ale.  It’s a solid beer, not as wide range as the cascade hop version, but definitely demonstrating a hop of varied uses

Works well by itself, and will work well in combination, so worth an explore.  A solid base of a good beer.

Background:  Hip Hop is a single hop line of beers, using the same base recipe but with the hops changed.   Having had a few of the range I do always enjoy comparing the hops to gain a better background to the beers.   Art Brew are a small brewery that turn out the “I beer” which I deeply enjoy and so far have turned out a reasonable range of other beers.

Tasting Notes: Ramsbury: Gold

Ramsbury: Gold (England: Golden Ale: 4.5% ABV)

Visual: Slightly bronzed gold with a speckled layer of off white head.

Nose: Milk chocolate and barley, light chocolate orange cream.

Body:  Orange, treacle and syrup. Lime jelly. Slightly thin on the front, thickens at the back. Grapes, custard, marmalade and a trace of ginger. Slightly chalky as it nears the end

Finish Light charring, dust and marmalade. Milk chocolate

Conclusion:  Not bad, has quite a syrupy back to offset the too weak front, but the malt chocolate end is the most distinguished and distinguishable element, with the marmalade touch just adding a nice bit of spice to the mix.

I can’t complain about it, but it’s not special – another that needs a touch more force to make the flavours stick and give it a bit of life.  Still enjoyable though for what it is.

Tasting Notes: Severn Vale: Severn Seas Of Rye

Severn Vale: Severn Seas Of Rye (England: Golden Ale: 3.8% ABV)

Visual: Hazy dark amber with a toffee coloured bubbled head.

Nose: Vanilla, toffee, creamy and massively rich. Banana and custard. Wonderfully sweet with tiny barley and wheat.

Body: barley and chaff, slight bitterness and wort mash flavour. A sour touch, but contrasted by light caramel and banana, toffee, vanilla pods and rye.

Finish: Wheat grain, sour mash and sour dough.

Conclusion: Recommended to try by the staff ( kindly posing in the photo) and with the interesting quirk of being brewed with rye malt, so heck I had to give it a try.

What a nose it opens up with as well, a sweet dessert wonder calling to banana splits and banoffee pudding  You could eat up the head with a spoon and it prepares you  for a beer of sweet delight.

The body brings in those flavours that the nose hints at but with hardly a tenth of the force.  Whilst it’s probably a good thing if you plan to have more than a half of the beer, it does initially feel like somewhat of a let down.  Most likely wisely the brewers seem to have gone for sessionability, instead of for the full force beer that would excite, but I’d guess would get sickly before you could finish the pint.

Still, it’s a firm session ale, sweet and tasty, but more subtle than you would expect.

Its good, but after the nose I could not help but be disappointed, and wonder if one day someone will turn out necessarily small bottles of the beer that the nose promises.