Sainsbury’s Great British Beer Hunt – The Winners Announced

Via Blood, Stout and Tears, news that the winners of this year’s Sainsbury’s Great British Beer Hunt content have been announced and they are…

…drumroll please…

Ridgeway Bad King John and, in second place, Williams Bros Caesar Augustus. Both of which I’ve enjoyed recently, the second of which made my shortlist of favourites from this year’s selection. I’ll look forward to being able to stock up on that one over the next six months.

Congrats to the two winning breweries!

A Few of Those Sainsbury’s Great British Beer Hunt 2011 Beers

I’ve started sampling my way through that selection of Great British Beer Festival 2011 beers that I picked up from Sainsbury’s last week. Here’s what I’ve checked out so far…

Williams Bros Profanity Stout 7%
A big blast of smoky coffee and liquorice flavours and plenty of dry bitterness on the after-taste, but delivered by a slightly thin mouth-feel, which was a tad disappointing. I like stronger stouts a lot, and I was expecting a lot from this one, so maybe it was a victim of over-inflated expectation, but I just thought that at 7% ABV it ought to have a bit more going for it in terms of body. It’s no BrewDog RipTide, put it that way…

Williams Bros Caesar Augustus 4.1%
I thought this second beer from Williams Bros was (perhaps oddly) much more impressive. A lager / IPA hybrid (judging by the the back-label, in this case an ale brewed with lager yeast, then cold-stored before being dry-hopped with ‘IPA hops’, if I read it right) it’s actually one of those rare beasts: a bottled session beer that tastes really rather good indeed. Pale gold in colour, malty in flavour with a hop-burst after-taste that builds and builds, it benefits from not being over-gassy or watery on the mouth-feel. Very nice indeed. A definite candidate for my favourite bottled session beers list.

Harviestoun Wild Hop IPA 5.1%
Pale almost to the point of crystal clarity with a big, big citrusy hop profile: there’s a mix of Fuggles, Goldings and assorted American hops in this one, apparently, and they really shine through. There’s just enough malt sweetness to keep everything check and the beer has a very pleasant mouth-feel as well. All in all a rather excellent drop of ale all round. One I’d definitely be happy to try again, in bottle or draught form alike.

Robinson’s Frederic’s Great British Alcoholic Ginger Beer 3.8%
Definite ginger aroma from this dark copper-coloured beer. Strong malty character with a hint of lemon and a good wallop of Ginger. Jo (who drank this one and has provided the tasting notes) reckons it could be Robinson’s Young Tom with added Fentiman’s ginger beer (in the same way that Ginger Tom is Old Tom + Fentiman’s). Not too sweet; definitely a proper ale-with-ginger rather than an alcopop-masquerading-as-ginger-ale. Very pleasant.

Sadler’s Worcester Sorceror 4.2%
A copper-coloured bitter with a slightly spicy, peppery edge to a mainly malt-led, cough-drop sweet base. Good mouth-feel (not too thin). Easy-drinking and very flavourful indeed. Another good session beer, from what’s turning out to be a very good selection all round.

Hunter’s Full Bore 8.0%
Slightly cloudy (but maybe because I didn’t realise quite how much sediment there was in the bottle) golden amber coloured strong ale, packed with marzipan and toffee flavours, it doesn’t taste quite as alcoholic as its 8% ABV might suggest. Smooth, sweet and distinctly drinkable, a highly enjoyable strong ale, I might have to get a couple more of these in while the stock is still available.

So far, so good. I know these beers were selected by means of a public / expert tasting / voting session (I got an invite myself, but I couldn’t schlepp on down to the Midlands mid-week to take part) and it seems as though the pre-selection process has resulted in some very good choices indeed. More to follow on the other six (and I might have to go back for three of the four I missed – the wheat beer among them excluded for intolerance reasons) when I’ve had a chance to drink them.

Brewery: Williams Bros [Gauntley’s of Nottingham

According to the blurb, Williams Bros Seven Giraffes “combines an electric blend of 7 varieties of malted barley…” so I was expecting a beer that was rich and malty, fruity and sweet. Then again, they do go on to say “…with fresh cone hops from around the world, wild elderflowers and lemon zest…” so that might explain why it’s the big burst of citrus hops that really hits you up front and then stays with you throughout.

Those elderflowers (it wouldn’t be a Williams Bros brew without a decent chunk of Scottish countryside thrown in for good measure) and lemon zest provide freshness and sharpness – a faint acidity that makes for a tangy, tingling charge on your tastebuds – but it’s the long, dry finish that’s really memorable. And yes, there is an element of malty sweetness in there somewhere, but it’s definitely taking a back-seat to all that hop action. The overall flavour mix is nicely balanced and makes for an incredibly refreshing brew that’s extremely easy on the palate.

So, not the malty winter warmer I was half hoping for and probably more of a summer beer, all things considered. Then again, it made for a pleasant reminder of the warmer months in the midst of what, a couple of weeks ago, was looking like a particularly bleak mid-winter. I think I’ll have to try to get some more of these in later in the year, on the off-chance we actually have that blazing hot summer they’ve been threatening us with for a while now.

Tesco seem to be selling off their current Finest range of bottled ales at a very reasonable 2 for £2:

• Traditional Porter (Harviestoun Old Engine Oil)
• Ginger Ale (Williams Ginger)
• American IPA (BrewDog Hardcore)

Session ales – defined quite neatly by beer writer Andy Crouch in his book Great American Craft Beer as: “[a] beer with a relatively low alcohol-level, usually 3 to 4 percent alcohol by volume, that allows the drinker to enjoy several pints in one sitting without becoming intoxicated” – is one of the great strengths of the UK & Irish brewing scene (Andy Crouch again: “Many English-style ales set the standard for such beers” and I’m not going to argue.)

I’ve said it before a few times, and I’ll say it again: over the past couple of years I’ve come to the definite conclusion that the very best way to enjoy a session on the session ales is in a pub, with a few good friends and plenty of good conversation (pork scratchings optional). Of course not all session ales are created equal and a lot of them seem to be just… average – which I realise probably has more to do with the keeping, conditioning and serving of the beer than the actual brewing – so if like me you enjoy sampling a few different brews over the course of an evening, it can be a bit of a lottery.

Then again, if you’re really lucky, you might discover a truly amazing session ale; one that manages to pull off the trick of marrying sublime flavours with a not-so-punishing ABV. The sort of beer you can happily roll around your palate all night long, as opposed to the thin, flat, slightly sour stuff that can put you right off – something Impy Malting has talked about recently as well. I can remember a few magical times when I’ve stumbled onto an amazingly good draught session ale: Wye Valley Butty Bach is the one that springs most readily to mind. Ahhhh, I love a good pub session, me.

Having said that, I also love a good bottled beer – supped at home in front of the telly with a bowl of salt & pepper cashews to-hand – almost as much (and I’ve talked about a fair few of those). It’s much, much trickier to find a truly excellent session beer in a bottle though. There’s generally a marked difference between draught and bottled versions of the same ale, with the draught version usually winning hands-down. But occasionally, if you’re lucky, you’ll hit on a bottled session beer that really does taste very good indeed; holding its own against its draught counterpart, or just in its own right.

So, in honour of those rare auld times, here are five of my favourite bottled session beers, plus a few honourable mentions. I’ve stretched the definition slightly to “beers that I’d be happy to drink a few of in a session” which means the upper-limit strength-wise is around about 4.5% ABV or so. And it is an entirely subjective selection, obviously… please feel free to suggest your own amendments or additions via the comments.

Hook Norton – Hooky Gold

I’ve been drinking quite a bit of this one recently; it was in a couple of rounds of Sainsbury’s rolling 2-for-£3 price-promo. A very fresh, zesty, hoppy golden ale with a very pleasant, balancing malt base.

Tasting Notes: Hook Norton Hooky Gold

Purity – Pure Ubu Amber Ale

As the name suggests, this one is a slightly darker ale with a ruddy hue and a maltier flavour-profile. An easy-drinking, palate-warming ale that seems to be generally available in Sainsbury’s.

Tasting Notes: Purity Pure Ubu Amber Ale

Black Sheep – Black Sheep Ale

One of those seemingly-ubiquitous beers that’s easy to overlook, but actually a very tasty drop indeed. A robust, chestnut-brown, malt-rich ale that can even be chilled down to go rather well with a curry.

Tasting Notes: Black Sheep Ale

Bath Ales – Barnstormer

Barnstormer is dark, malty, nutty and sweet (but not overly-sweet) ale that goes great with hearty winter food. It won the Sainsbury’s real ale competition back in 2008 and it’s still stocked by them on a regular basis.

Tasting Notes: Bath Ales Barnstormer (notes by Tim Lebbon)

Williams Bros – Fraoch Heather Ale

I love a drop of Fraoch – when I can get my hands on a bottle without Jo drinking it – and once again, this is a case of the bottled version being almost as good as the draught. Light and malty with a very mellow bitterness from the heather.

Tasting Notes: Williams Bros Fraoch Heather Ale (notes by Joe Gordon)

A few Honourable Mentions

I would happily drink a drop or two of the following on a regular basis, if only I could get hold of them:

• Hopdaemon Skrimshander – only available by mail order, never seen it for sale this far north :(
• Meantime London Pale Ale – used to be all over the place but Sainsbury’s seem to have stopped stocking it recently…
• Fyne Ales Avalanche – Incredibly refreshing and packed full of citrus hop flavours; really almost as good as its draught cousin. Just can’t seem to find the stuff in the supermarkets.

So, there you go. What are your bottled session ale recommendations?

About a month ago I decided to put my hand in my pocket and order the current quarterly mixed case from MyBreweryTap.com (mainly because The Baron made me do it…)

Here’s what turned up just a couple of days later:

Namely (from L to R):

• Box Steam Brewery Cog
• White Brewing Co Heart of Rother
• Green Room Ales Icon
• Country Life Brewery Old Appledore
• Fyne Ales Avalanche
• Bitter End Brewing Co Lakeland IPA

Those being (L to R again):

• Crown Brewery Unpronounceable IPA
• Ole Slewfoot Brewing Co Fox on the Run
• Wincle Beer Co Undertaker
• Grainstore Brewery Rutland Panther
• Williams Bros Ginger
• The Backyard Brewhouse East India Old Authentic IPA
• Thornbridge Jaipur

I’ve only supped the Jaipur so far (couldn’t resist… and even though this non-bottle-conditioned version is a pale imitation of the utterly superb draught pint, it’s still a very, very tasty beer indeed) and the other dozen bottles are resting up in the Beer Cupboard. I reckon I’m most looking forward to the Bitter End, Crown and Backyard Brewhouse beers. Could be another IPA Night on the cards before too long.

A very big thank you to Richard from MBT who included a bottle each of Thornbridge Halcyon 2009 and Thornbridge St Petersburg Imperial Stout from his sample stock. I drank those very soon after arrival and the posting notes will be following shortly…

And a quick plug: the next Mixed Brewery Case is on the website and available to order (I think I read on Twitter that it’ll be shipping this weekend if you’re a 52 Week Beer Club member) and it looks like Richard has put together another rather interesting selection…

I know I’m nowhere near the first beer blogger to suggest this (not by a long chalk), but fantastic as it is to sip and savour a huge, dry-roasted imperial stout or a gob-smacking, palate-shrivelling double-IPA, sometimes there’s nothing like a few good session bitters to see you through a pleasant evening (or two) of pleasant company down the pub.

A couple of weekends ago I was lucky enough to enjoy not one but two classic cases. On the Friday night I went out for a few jars and a chin-wag with my mate Andy. We started off down the Knott Bar, where I sampled a Titanic Port & Starboard (a 4.2% deep red-coloured ale with a rich malty main-flavour and a hoppy after-taste), followed by an Acorn Barnsley Bitter (3.8%, light, dry and hoppy). After that we wandered off to the Rising Sun, where we had a Leeds Best Bitter (4.3%, perfectly pleasant if not hugely remarkable) and then we nipped in for one more at the City Arms, where I had a Batemans G.H.A. Pale (another 4.2% hoppy and drinkable if not exactly amazing beer).

End result: after a couple of hours of chat and four pints each, we decided to call it a night. Personally I was feeling fine and dandy and nowhere near the worse for wear in the morning despite the 8-unit-or-so (technical) binge drinking session I’d indulged in the night before. So on Saturday I had no problem whatsoever heading out with Jo for date night at The Angel. The place is under new management and they’ve recently opened an upstairs dining room, which is where we sat to enjoy a particularly fine meal (red grouse for me and baked gurnard for Jo, both of which were delicious and are highly recommendable), accompanied by a couple more session bitters.

First up was Williams Bros Fraoch Heather Ale, which I’d only encountered in bottles before (a few years ago) and which turned out to be very good indeed on draught. Quite malty and slightly sweet, with a pleasant, light bitterness on the after-taste, it went down very easily indeed. Jo liked it so much she stuck with it for the rest of the evening, but I’d spotted a couple of others I wanted to try, so I switched to Redemption Urban Dusk, from a relatively new addition to the London brewery scene. This one was a 3.8%ABV dark bitter with a strong burnt-sugar flavour and plenty of malt. A very tasty dark beer that I wouldn’t mind trying again some time.

After that, I decided I was in the mood for something a bit more experimental, so I opted for a half of Hornbeam Lemon Blossom, a 3.7% pale ale that promised lemony freshness and turned out to taste like mildly alcoholic lemon curd; there was lemon zest in there, definitely, but the whole thing was carried along on a slightly stilton tang. Not entirely unpleasant, but not one I’d rush back to, either. And then I’m afraid I fell off the session wagon, because I’d spotted the big, boozy (6.6% ABV) Wensleydale Porter on draught at the very start of the evening and I’d been itching to try it ever since. Delicious it was, too: a big whack of roasty malt flavours, shot through with blackcurrant and fruitcake, with a nicely dry finish by way of contrast. A pint and a half of that one (Jo had the other half, having been tempted herself) and we called it a damn good night.

Brewery: Williams Bros
Location: Alloa, Scotland
ABV: 4.2%
Version: Bottled
Source: Sainsbury’s

One of the 15 finalists in this year’s Sainsbury’s beer competition, Williams Bros 80/- (confused? It means ’80 shilling’, an explanation for which can be found on Wikipedia) poured a lovely dark ruby colour with a frothy head. It tasted sweet and spicy, with flavours of red cherries and plums. There were whisky and port wine notes swirling through the rich malt as well, and just a hint of pepper on the after-taste. And the mouth-feel, which the Williams Bros website describes as “toffee-ish”, was certainly very pleasantly chewy.

All in all: a rich, flavourful, quite delicious brew; definitely the sort of session beer I’d be delighted to find on draught. I picked up a couple more bottles from Sainsbury’s yesterday evening (our local branch still has some competition stock left) to keep me going in the meantime. Highly recommended.

Williams Bros 80/- around the Beerblogosphere

• Zak Avery (@zakavery) encountered woodsmoke, chocolate orange and strawberries.
• Barry M (@BarMas) was reminded of apples and digestive biscuits.
• The Reluctant Scooper (@reluctantscoop) found hedgerow fruitiness and bonfire toffee.

Brewery: Williams Bros
Location: Alloa, Scotland
ABV: 4.7%
Version: Bottled
Source: Sainsbury’s

Ceilidh is Williams’ Bros’s Scottish lager and one of no fewer than four of their beers in this year’s Sainsbury’s Real Ale promo I opened it straight after the rather disappointing Lapin Kulta and I’m happy to say that it helped to restore at least some of my faith in the lager style.

It still wasn’t great, but it did fare well in comparison with its immediate predecessor: a sharper bite, a more distinct hop flavour and a drier, more biscuity finish all made for a more satisfying lager experience. If someone handed me a bottle on a hot day then I wouldn’t hand it back, although If I’m being honest I’d have to say that I’d much rather crack open a Czech-style dark lager instead; BrewDog’s Zeitgeist, for instance, or a Herold Bohemian, or maybe a Budvar Dark (I have one of those in the cupboard at the moment and I’m planning to give it a go before too long).

So: not bad. Not bad at all. But I won’t be rushing back to fill a trolley while the Sainsbury’s promotion is still on. Reluctant Scooper gave it a slightly more encouraging thumbs-up than I just have though, so if you want a second opinion, there you go.

Update: Adrian Tierney-Jones has applied his clearly much more educated palate than mine to Ceilidh over at his Called to the Bar blog.

Sainsbury’s have kicked off this year’s Real Ale promo and have the full range in stock at our local store, which made last night’s mid-week top-up shopping trip about twice as expensive, twice as heavy and ten times as interesting as it usually is.

I grabbed pretty much one of everything they had, which means I’m now the proud owner of a bottle of each of the following all-new (to me) beers:

• Allgates Brewery Porteresque – “classic style porter”, 4.4%
• Bath Ales Golden Hare – “full-flavoured light ale”, 4.4% abv
• Bays Brewery Bays Breaker – “award-winning ale with a chestnut colour and fruity taste”, 4.7% abv
• Greene King Bretwalda – “spicy and fruity ale”, 4.1%
• Hambleton Ales Taylor’s Tipple – “chestnut coloured ale with an uplifting citrus and berry aroma”, 4.5%
• Williams Bros 80/- Ale – “traditional Scottish ale brewed with an emphasis on the malt characteristics”, 4.2%
• Williams Bros Birds n’ Bees – “golden summer ale … brewed with a late infusion of elderflowers and lemon zest”, 5%
• Williams Bros Ceilidh – “crisp, citrusy lager”, 4.7%
• Williams Bros Williams IPA – “Aggressively hopped … an unusual blend of Bramling X and Amarillo”, 5%
• Wolf Brewery Woild Moild – “rich, fruity mild”, 4.8%
• Wolf Brewery Wolf Whistle – “lightly hopped reddish ale” 4.7%
• Wood’s Brewery Shropshire Lass – “a delectable blonde”, 4.1%

I picked up top-up bottles of BrewDog’s Chaos Theory, Dogma and Hardcore IPA as well, all of which I’m already quite familiar with and fairly stocked-up on already… but it would have been rude not to, eh? Prices ranged from about £1.59 to £1.89 per bottle, but with the ’4 for 3, cheapest free’ offer that dragged the averages down into bargain territory, particularly for those BrewDog brews.

Compared to last year’s selection there seems to be a smaller group of participating breweries this time around – whether this is down to their having stormed the taste-tests or for logistical reasons I don’t know – but still a reasonably broad range of beer styles. Nice to see a mild and a porter included, as well as a craft lager and, of course, BrewDog’s two hop-monsters and their rather delicious Dogma.

I think I’m most looking forward (BrewDogs aside, as I’ve already tried all of those) to the Allgates Porteresque, Williams 80/-and Wolf Woild Moild. I have a sneaky suspicion that the Greene King Bretwalda will be the dud of the bunch, but that might be my inherent ‘Greene King = kinda average’ bias creeping in. We shall see.

Update 28.08.09 Reluctant Scooper has posted a tasting round-up of the four Williams Bros beers.