Blog & White

Very bitter, and not very interesting. Contains malted barley.

BrewDog Ltd., Fraserburgh, Scotland. 6.1% alcohol

“a fresh-citrus, hoppy aroma and a dry, bitter finish. Brewed using organically grown Pale Ale malts and organically farmed English hops”

Orangey taste, very bitter (and quite an unpleasant bitterness). Contains wheat and barley malt.

Bath Ales, Warmley, South Gloucestershire, England. 5.0% alcohol.

Smells like a lager, tastes like a lager. Contains malted barley, maize and rice.

Cobra Beer Ltd., London, England. 5% alcohol.

Smells like some kind of vegetable or herb. Quite sweet and “vegetably”. Contains barley malt and coriander.

Traquair House, Innerleithen, Peebleshire, Scotland. 8% alcohol.

Quite sweet and dark, not bitter, smells like honey and flowers. Good, but yet another dark ale.

St. Peter's Brewery, Bungay, Suffolk, England. 6.5% alcohol.

“marmalade and fruitiness… blend of Northdown, Target, Challenger and Goldings hops”

Smells of red fruits, sweet. Very good. Contains malted barley.

Fuller, Smith & Turner, London, England. 5.9% alcohol.

“We brew Dark Hare using a blend of dark roasted malts and old fashioned (and rather famous) English hops called Fuggles.”

Just another stout, not sweet, quite bitter. Contains wheat and barley malt.

Bath Ales, Warmley, South Gloucestershire, England. 4.0% alcohol.

“We brew Gen using floor-malted Maris Otter barley and Goldings hops. … Fine filtered…”

Just another ale with a strong malt taste. Made of wheat and barley malt.

Bath Ales, Warmley, South Gloucestershire, England. 4.7% alcohol.

“Ridgeway FES bottle matures in a similar way to vintage port. Roasted malts and leaf hops initially provide an aroma of breakfast coffee and fresh spices that gradually fades to reveal licoricem caramel and raisin notes that are products of the aging process. Beneath all this change sits a solid and resilient backbone of bitter English hops.”

Smells of fresh dark bread. Tastes maybe of coffee, but definitely of caramel. Very sweet and strong. Made of barley (Marris Otter malt) and oats.

Ridgeway Brewing, South Stokes, Oxfordshire, England. 8% alcohol.

“Roast malts, whole English aroma hops and bottling with live yeast…”

The first sip tastes strongly of fresh white bread. It is slightly bitter. Otherwise, it's just another ale. Made of malted barley and wheat.

Ridgeway Brewing, South Stoke, Oxfordshire, England. 5.2% alcohol.

“brewed to celebrate the courage of Admiral Nelson and his crew… brewed with Maris Otter pale and crystal malts and hopped with English Goldings and American Liberty hops… peppery hops and bitter orange aromas, balanced by fresh bread maltiness. Ideal accompaniment to stew and gravy”

Quite bitter, maybe orangey, and a definite fresh bread flavour. Contains malted barley.

Batemans, Wainfleet, Lincolshire, England. 6.0% alcohol.

“rich ruby malt ale, medium dry, with hints of toffee and banana… fresh spicy hops to give a zesty peppery backdrop”

Rather hints of red fruits than toffee, I'd say. But that's just me.

Williams Bros Brewing Co., Alloa, Scotland. 4.5% alcohol.

“brewed from pale ale and crystal malts… northdown, challenger and target hops”

Very sweet and very strong. Contains malted barley.

Fuller, Smith & Turner, London, England. 8.5% alcohol.

“A rich dark ale, dominated by the strong flavours of blended roast malts… Smooth coffee and chocolate undertones… late harvest cone hops, giving a blackcurrant aroma.”

Definitely coffee-ish taste, not too bitter. Didn't notice the blackcurrant aroma, though. Contains malted barley and malted wheat.

Williams Bros Brewing Co., Alloa, Scotland. 4.2% alcohol.

“blend of Kent hops”

Slightly bitter but slightly sweet and fruity too. Contains malted barley.

Shepherd Neame, Faversham, Kent, England. 4.5% alcohol.

“brewed to a traditional recipe and has been described as having a flavour not commonly available these days… spicy and aromatic”

Slightly bitter, but somehow sweet too, with hints of red fruits and almond. Contains barley and wheat.

S.A. Brain & Co. Ltd., The Cardiff Brewery, Cardiff, Wales. 4.5% alcohol.

“Brewed using Chocolate malt, providing a clean palate with hints of liquorice and fresh ground coffee.”

Sweet, slightly bitter. OK for the coffee, but I didn't find any hint of liquorice. Contains barley and wheat.

S.A. Brain & Co. Ltd., The Cardiff Brewery, Cardiff, Wales. 4.1% alcohol.

“This stout is dark and full of flavour with hints of chocolate and coffee, due to the use of freshly roasted malts and barley. Unusually, this beer is without any animal or fish-based ingredient such as isinglass… This beer is bottle conditioned.”

Sweet and slightly bitter, definitely tastes of coffee and maybe a bit of chocolate. Contains pale and roasted malts.

Hop Back Brewery, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. 4.5% alcohol.

“Ingredients: Avon Valley Water, Best Barley and Wheat Malts, East Kent Golding and Pioneer Hops, Lemongrass, Coriander and Hop Back Yeast.”

Quite bitter with a hint (but really just a hint) of lemony something. Bottle conditioned. Contains barley and wheat malts.

Hop Back Brewery, Salisbury, Wiltshire, England. 4.2% alcohol.

“Fraoch is Scotland's native ale. Fraoch is Gaelic for Heather. Heather ale has been brewed in Scotland for four thousand years and is the oldest style of ale still made in the world. The Picts who ruled Scotland until the 9th century were known to brew the legendary heather ale, these people of the designs were the creators of the artistic style of our label.

The ale is produced to a 16th Century Scots – Gaelic recipe from malted barley bree, sweet gale and heather flowers, The hot ale is infused in heather flowers before being fermented in copper tuns. Fraoch has a floral, peaty aroma, full malt body, a spicy hearbal flavour and a dry wine finish.”

Tastes slightly like a sweet kind of flower, not bitter. Contains barley malt.

Williams Bros Brewing Co., Alloa, Scotland. 5% alcohol.

“…brewed using a blend of Maris Otter pale malt and torrefied wheat, with four varieties of hop (Fuggle, Progress, Styrian Gold and Mount Hood)…”

Very sweet (it contains No3 Inverted Block Sugar and High-Maltose Syrup), very strong, tastes very slightly of flowers (violet?), otherwise boring. Contains malted barley and torrefied wheat.

Highgate Brewery, Walsall, England. 8.2% alcohol.

“Sir Alexander Ramsay of Dalhousie and Sir William Douglas, Knight of Liddesdale were great military leaders and both men had been brothers in arms in numerous campaigns sharing many victories and accolades. They were outstanding in a brilliant array of valiant knights that thronged the court of King David of Scotland in the 14th Century. Like these great leaders Champion Double Ale is a blend of two strong characters. A strong ale brewed in the Scottish tradition, strong, warming and malty, combined with a Porter style ale with rich roasted malt characters on a background of good hop flavour and aroma.

The two beers are brewed and fermented separately in their unique ways then blended together in a warm conditioning vessel to allow the two to mature.”

Quite strong, with a strong malty taste, maybe with a hint of chocolate (maybe). Made of malted barley.

Broughton Ales limited, Broughton Biggar, Scotland. 5.5% alcohol.

“The world's original pale beers were born in London over 200 years ago. … American and English hops…”

Flowery smell, quite bitter. Contains barley malt.

Meantime Brewing, London, England. 4.3% alcohol.

“soft and golden season ale.”

Quite bitter, but maybe not as much as other beers from the same brewery. Contains malted barley.

Shepherd Neame, Faversham, Kent, England. 4.7% alcohol.

“Craft brewed with organically grown ingredients, using Target and Goldings hops to provide a zesty aroma and fruity flavour.”

Strong hop falvour, slightly bitter and fruity. Contains barley malt.

Brakspear Brewing Co., Oxfordshire, England. 4.6% alcohol.

“a traditional hop flavour to balance the sweet malty caramel finish”

Smells a bit like beef stock. Quite bitter, slightly flowery. Made of barley malt and wheat.

Carlow Brewing Company, Carlow, Ireland. 4.3% alcohol.

“It is every golfers dream to play The Old Course… Created entirely by the forces of nature, the historic links of St. Andrews are believed to be where the first ever game was played.”

Just another ale, slightly fruity maybe. Contains malted barley.

The Belhaven Brewery, Dunbar, Scotland. 4.6% alcohol.

“Local folklore tells of a fox that lived in and around the old Hightgate and Walsall Brewery. Althought frequent sightings of the fox were recorded no one ever caught more than a glimpse of the animal's head as he darted amongst the barrels. The old English word for head is Nob and this beer is named after that elusive fox.”

Quite bitter with a distinct nutty flavour, especially of bitter almond. Contains malted barley.

Highgate Brewery, Walsall, England. 4.0% alcohol.

“Stouts and porters were the beers that made London the brewing capital of the world. When pale ales displaced porters the style lived on in Ireland in its own distinct form. Meantine London Stout reverts to the original malt only recipe to recapture the full complexity of this great London beer.”

Just another stout, but a quite good one. Made with barley and wheat.

Meantime Brewing, London, England. 4.5% alcohol.

“Ossian, Son of Fingal, was a legendary 3rd century Scottish warrior. Sir Walter Scott wrote:

In this still glen, remote from men,
Sleeps Ossian, in the narrow glen.

… smooth, with distinct nutty tones and fruitiness. First Gold, Perle and Cascade hops create our unique spicy orange zesty aroma.”

Quite bitter, otherwise just another pale ale. Contains malted barley and malted wheat.

That's the 100th beer I have tasted and reported.

The Inverlamond Brewery Limited, Perth, Scotland. 4.1% alcohol.

Just another ale, with a slight metallic taste. Contains malted barley.

Highgate Brewery, Walsall, England. 4.0% alcohol.

“A blend of chocolate and three dark roasted malts”

Tastes of dark, bitter chocolate, with maybe a hint of fruits. Made of malted barley and wheat.

Daleside Brewery Limited, Harrogate, Yorkshire, England. 4.0% alcohol.

“named after the famous hills of the Isle of Skye”

Just another ale, slightly bitter, with a kind of sour, none-ripe fruit aftertaste. Contains malted barley.

The Isle of Skye Brewing Company (Leann an Eilien), Isle of Skye, Scotland. 4.2% alcohol.

“… one of Scotland's oldest surviving breweries, dating back to 1719 … brewed using Scottish malted barley…”

Very sweet, with a slightly fruity taste, maybe red fruits. The smell reminds me a bit of St Peter's Honey Porter. Made of malted barley.

Belhaven Brewery Company, Dunbar, Scotland. 4.1% alcohol.

“Lia Fail is Gaelic for Stone of Destiny, which for centuries was the coronation stone of the Kings of the Scots. Taken from its Perthshire home at Scone in 1296 by Edward I, it was finally returned to Edinburgh Castle in 1996. … A dark beer with a well balanced sweetness, malt anc chocolate tones. Challenger, Fuggles and Cascade hops produce a rich and spicy aroma with a balanced bitterness and full-bodied flavour.”

Quite sweet, only slightly bitter. Tastes of some kind of dried fruits, maybe, otherwise just another dark ale. Contains malted barley and malted wheat.

The Inverlamond Brewery Limited, Perth, Scotland. 4.7% alcohol.              

“English Target hops give this beer a remarkable aroma. Late copper hopping with Goldings & fermentation by the Brakspear yeast creates the subtle bitter palate. Bottle Conditioning preserves the fruity, zesty aroma… Organic beer”

Strong taste of tropical fruits (ananas, maybe passion fruit). Contains malted barley.

Brakspear Brewing Co., Oxfordshire, England. 4.6% alcohol.

“English Goldings, American Cascade and Cluster hops provide the bitterness, whilst our unique dry hopping technique with bucketfuls of Cascade and Willamette hops gives it a tantalising aroma.”

Very flowery smell, quite bitter and not-very-flowery taste. Contains malted barley and wheat.

Meantime Brewing, London, England. 4.7% alcohol.

“Organic Pale ale”

Strong taste of yeast (or is it hops?), slightly bitter. Contains barley malt.

Wychwood Brewery Co. Witney, Oxfordshire, England. 4.7% alcohol.

“Aile is the Manx Celtic word for Fire and this crafted Okells Beer has delicate smokey aromas derived from the careful addition of peated malt. This malt is made from selected barley that uses burning peat during th malting process.”

Smells like Marmite® or Vegemite®, or maybe some kind of vegetable broth. The taste is slightly bitter, but the smokey aromas are very delicate… Made of malted barly.

Okell's Ltd, Kewaigue, Douglas, Isle of Man. 4.7% alcohol.

“lightly hopped… with a hint of fruit”

I can't really say what it tastes like… It's not bitter and has maybe a slight aftertaste of peach/apricot. But it doesn't have this heavy hop (or yeast?) taste that many pale ales have. Made of malt and wheat.

Carlow Brewing Company, Carlow, Ireland. 4.3% alcohol.