As is undoubtedly clear by now I spend a great deal of time considering the best possible beers to showcase every week and then spend an age – sometimes upwards of a minute – nailing my review so as to give you the best possible insight into why they are worthy of your time. This week however I found myself positively paralysed with choice over just one small piece of the puzzle and that was the photograph up there. Now, I can’t pretend that the photo itself is my handiwork, I have far more talented colleagues who take care of that and make sure that it’s in focus and that labels are all round the right way, but I do have to decide on the order that they should go in and this week I really struggled with something which was both pleasing to the eye and roughly the order I would suggest that you drink them in if you happened to like the sound of every single one. In the end I decided to slightly eschew aesthetics, I hope you can forgive me.
There really is a lot of hard work going in to this column, it is – in the words of one of our nation’s favourite sons – "a sair fecht", it’s no wonder I need a beer after such Herculean efforts.
Burning Sky Petite Saison
£3.10/3.5%/330ml
A fresh saison from one of the UK masters of the style. Apparently this uses Sorachi Ace, regularly one of my least favourite hops but this could be enough to change my mind. Funky with a nutty Belgian Orval note on the nose, backed up by sharp cooking apple, and a vinous note. Amazingly complex and deliciously refreshing at a low ABV.
Magic Rock/J. Wakefield/Slim Pickens Cherry Cola Vice
£2.80/5.5%/330ml
The last in Magic Rock’s Berlinerweisse series comes off like a tart and spritzy cross between the Cherry Cola it’s aiming at and those herbal botanical "artisanal" Colas. I thought it was both very tasty and very fun indeed. Perhaps not one for the serious beer drinker, but who wants to be one of those all of the time?
North End Salt & Wood Oud Bruin
35.30/7.0%/440ml
A New Zealand take on a traditional Belgian Oud Bruin like Rodenback or Duchesse De Bourgogne, this is more restrained with the balsamic notes that you get in those two, and is heavier on the malt character. Still a little sharp and definitely fruity, this is like a delicious slice of malt loaf and jam in liquid form.
Wild Beer Fruitbooter
£4.40/5.7%/330ml
A raspberry and pink peppercorn sour from one of our regularly featured breweries, this starts off with a little funk and pepper before a huge refreshing wash of sharp fruit on the mid palate that took me back to childhood Rocky Raspberry ice lollies, finishing with just enough to peppery spice to keep things interesting.
Siren Rum Coffee Broken Dream
£3.00/6.5%/330ml
Right, let’s finish with a big stout! A slight variation on one of Siren’s core range, this – unsurprisingly – has plenty of dark roast coffee, dark chocolate, rum and raisin fudge, some cinnamon and a savoury/umami soy sauce note that – alongside the very dry roast finish - keeps this from being too sweet. I’m a fan of the original, but I would say that this may be an improvement.
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