Yesterday I got so old,

but you know what, getting old ain't so bad.  There's nothing new in this post, well there is a new chapter of a favourite story.  One of my favourite ale tales is that of what in my humble opinion, is the best beer festival ever.  The Independent Salford Beer Festival, now onto it's fifth instalment.

It has been my honour to serve beer for all four of these beautiful, hand crafted, small batch artisan events.  It hit the ground running and the first could be held up in equal esteem as the last.  This is probably down to the sound organisation skills of Jim Cullen.  A man who knows not only good beer but also, probably more importantly good beer people.  I could wax lyrical over the four years of awesome beer brought mostly from the North of England, served at the funkiest festival.  However as I like to keep this sharp and relevant I would rather gear this section persuading you into attending the upcoming Revenge of the Fifth event.

At this time there are only tickets for Thursday night and Saturday night on the 29th of November and 1st of December.  Eighteen pounds will get you admission, official glass, program and £10 of beer tokens, with profits going to charity.  Your ticket will also provide access to the friendliest beer festival, alongside  exclusive beers from collaborations not seen outside of the event and no doubt live music.  But the beer itself, the beer.  All brewed by microbrewers, nanobrewers, brewpubs and ale legends that will this year include Belgian stalwarts De Ranke.  Served via cask and for the past couple of years on (evil) keg (filth) have been a wonderful balance of truly obscure styles, new takes on regular beers and of course more traditional fare.  The Salford Beer Festival has seen Sorachi bubblegum stout, beer made from fermented tea, whinberry mild and more double IPAs, IPAs, pale ales and porters than you could shake an official festival glass at.  Treat yourself, it's well worth it, and what could possibly be better than beer served by me?
https://www.salfordbeerfest.com/tickets/


Also nothing new is re-branding and that's what Aldi has done with their 330ml budget craft range.  In my 'Budget Craft Supermarket Range' post I put up reviews & photos, that have now all been renamed, thanks Aldi.  Hopefully having the brewery of origin at the neck of the bottle will mean that without the anonymity, quality will be kept up to avoid any detraction on the makers name.  The beers remain priced at 99p for a 330ml bottle and here are the two beers that I was most curious to see if any change with the re-badge had taken place:

Brain's Dark Matter.   Formerly named 'Spill the Beans: Coffee Porter' which was one of my top recommendations for budget supermarket beers.  Dark Matter has intensified the coffee, increased the dark chocolate element & bolstered it's body.  This has claimed, or reclaimed my title of best budget supermarket beer.

Sadler's Jesse James.   Formerly named 'Land of Liberty: American style IPA' and both really highlight that dubious use of the word 'style'.  Kind of, sort of, in the vicinity but to be honest not exactly.  Think 'olde fashioned style lemonade' where they try and sell you additive full, Aspartame sweetened pop with a picture of a Victorian drinker looking lovingly at a glass of tasty lemonade made with sugar & lemons.  Thankfully  this new variant has slightly more detectable hops giving a minor improvement with the flavour, not enough though for me to suggest you buy to try.

Brewed under licence and also a re-badge Marston's have another go at recreating
Devils Backbone's American IPA.  £1.79 for a 500ml bottle from Bargain Booze.  The malt base flavours are improved and hop wise there is more citrus, but what they are improving on is the tastes of a UK IPA.  Progress just not necessarily in the right direction.

Episode IX: The Beer Returns.

I bring you the ninth instalment of my advert free, ever so irreverent, pragmatic Manchester based beer blog.  Are you not entertained? Are you not amused? What? do I amuse you? Like a clown? Forget about it!

So I return to beer drinking after a ten day break for health reasons, because I'm sensible like that, me.  Presenting the main matinee feature 'Skol vs Lost Lager'.

Now, cards on the table, let me be brutally upfront here.  Skol is made by Carlsberg, a corporate macro machine I hate with a vengeance.  Lost Lager is made by Brewdog, a brewery that in my opinion put money and hype before good beer, bores me something rotten.  In all honesty the table is slightly slanted in Brewdog's favour.  Skol is not only 2.8 percent, sold in cheap cans and here reduced to clear. Counting against of Lost lager is that a 660ml bottle costs £2.80 whereas £1 delivered 880ml of Skol, admittedly reduced not a RRP.

Considering all the negatives Skol is the surprise winner, an average tasting lager with a surprising body despite the low alcohol content. Lost Lager loses due to a pretty similar end result of a fair to middling quality pils but with the massive detraction of a peculiar perfumed palate.
What isn't a shock is the round up of the beers I've sampled recently, purchased easily.

Redwell's Ghost Dance, £1.29 for a 330ml can from Aldi.  Doesn’t really pay proper respect to the proud Native American tribe or the proud Native American hop. Like your average, everyday American beer, but in an alternative universe where the craft movement never happened. Dull.

Hawker's IPA, £1.79 for a 330ml bottle from Marks and Spencer's.  Sold as reduced to clear, so might not be around for long.  The aroma is old time health food store, the flavour is candied peel and carob. It sounds all wrong but somehow the end result is so right.

Thornbridge's Green Mountain, £1.80 for a 330ml can from Tesco.  I take it that a Vermont IPA is a session New England IPA, this being cloudy and in the mid four percent alcohol strength bracket.  In any event this is a great tasting beer that has so much citrus juiciness proving Thornbridge should can their wares more often.

Thornbridge's Florida Weisse, £1.80 for a 330ml can from Tesco.  Described on the can as a hazy raspberry sour.  It is hazy but the sourness is so overwhelming,  I lost any fruit flavour.  I really like sour but I found this a struggle.  A very sour fruit sour, sour. Did I mention sour? SOUR!

Today, there is no news. **Warning very rude Limerick**

One night a man drank too much stout.
His cock a hard on would not give out.
It just wouldn't budge, a stiffy's too much
so his missus had to do with being licked out.

There's your dirty limerick, if you don't know, just don't ask and please accept my deepest apologies.

Welcome to the super secret, not going to publish a blog this week, blog.

Aside from a sneaky half on Friday with a good friend, I have not imbibed alcohol since Wednesday the 3rd of October.  I'm not going anywhere near 'Go Sober for October', but in the somehow continuing quest to sample more beer, I've drank a lot in the last few weeks & need a break.

Sunday approaching will see the wagon roll again and will bring some up to date beer recommendations.  Until then let's have a recap of some of the outstanding ales of 2018 so far.  I am pretty much certain you can still find these gems.

January, sick and tired of you hanging on me.  No I'm not because I have my birthday in the first month of the year, didn't sup a lot but made up for that with a few of Torrside's big strength monsters range so I present....
Torrside's Monsters Double Spartacus. A heavy weight 13.60% by alcohol volume and described as an 'Imperial DIPA?' Is that a double double? Plenty of hops, plenty of bang for your buck and I reckon still available in Beermoth, drink it before the flavour fades.

February made me shiver. To counter that all that shivering might I advise going to Bargain Booze and purchasing a bottle of:
Black Jack's One Eyed Jack Brettanomyces Barrel Aged.  All the tang of a Belgian stout but without the flimsiness. Instead you have a great slightly sour fruity export strength stout.

March, cos we'll go marching on!  Gird your loins for all that marching with a pint of real ale porter:
Beer Nouveau's Peterloo.  Go to their brewery tap at the weekend and there is a good chance you can get a pint of this thoroughly Mancunian porter hand pulled from a wooden cask.

April fools no one. I reckon a trip to The Epicurean on Burton Road West Didsbury would be rewarded with the opportunity to purchase a bottle of:
Cheshire Brewhouse's Conger Tun.  A scotch ale that give subtle hints of pine and some beautiful brown sugar flavours that makes you think of wee heavies from Scotland.

May I bore you talking about beer? Take a trip to Waitrose or order with an online shop:
Saviour's Saison.  A fantastic lemony refreshing beer, great introduction to the style.

June dear!  Can you pass the BBC authorised trousers joke?  The Cooperative will sell you a can of:
Ægir Bryggeri's Littlebro. A snappy little IPA from Norway, that will have you exclaiming 'No Way!'

July?  Oh bugger!  Sorry no crappy pun. Beermoth is still I believe selling bottles of:
Weird Beard's Dirrty Haands. A stronger than usual German style Schwarzbier. Tasty!

August or what?  Bargain Booze might still be able to exchange cash or card payment for:
Cloud Water's DDH IPA Chinook Ekuanot. IPA so full of hoppy goodness I used it as beer cordial.

September! Do you Remember? No I don't, far too much beer.  Consigned to Oblivion:
Atom Beer's Oblivion. A Raspbery Milk Stout?  Mmmm gives a real boozy Neapolitan ice cream flavour.

 **Starts beatboxing**
There'll be no freestyle rap,
I don't do that rhyming crap

I won't throw bars just to vent
from me you'll get no lyrical content.
**Drops mike**

"God money I'll do anything for you."

It's payday.
"God money I'll do anything for you."
What I want you to do is stop listening to that electro industrial goth nonsense and be bored with beer rambling. Get ready to go out and hand over your hard earned wages for some great beer.

It's been a bumper few days of beer for me. So much so, that I'm planning to have only one beer next week!  No, it's not going Sober for October, I'm taking care of myself and making next week's blog a real challenge!

I present some big spends, some rare treats, but still some value for money beers.  Besides that there is beer here that is good enough to be worth the price, if not more.

Since this blog is served with a healthy side of pragmatism and can be paired with a certain frugality, I'm heading straight to Lidl's box of 6 Exclusive Belgian Ales.  At the cost of £10.99 that price may seem a bit steep, but it will buy a 7.2, 9 and four 10.5% 330ml genuine bottle conditioned imported ales. I put them at a conservative estimate of £22 bought elsewhere. The next six reviews cover them.

Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.'s Gulden Draak. A boozy sweet treat that gives a lip smacking flavour of caramel, delivered deftly avoiding being heavy or sickly. Beautiful.

Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.'s Gulden Draak 9000. Blancmange flavour mixed with golden syrup and lime wine gums. Again never stodgy or overly sweet.

Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.'s Piraat Triple Hop. It's hops Jim but not as we know them, the extra hops lends a lime flavour whilst the ale brings a hint of cinnamon.

Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.'s Piraat. The quintessential spicy clove tasting Belgian golden strong ale. Classic.

Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.'s Bornem Dubbel. Flavours of molasses, candy pear, caramel and cream with hints of Angus bitter.

Brouwerij Van Steenberge N.V.'s Bornem Triple.  Standard butterscotch clove and hint of Bananarama flavour is similar but more subtle.

Fourpure's Juicebox, £1.80 for a 330ml can from Tesco. Tastes like funky orangeade with a grapefruit finish. A great introduction to US IPA.

Birra Moretti's Grani Antichi, £5.00 for a 750ml bottle from Tesco.  A fiver for a bottle of lager?  Well with it being 8% and wine bottle sized, it is twice the strength, twice the size providing a lot of that slightly sweet strong lager that is an Italian staple.

Wiper & True's Quintet, £2.70 for a 500ml bottle from Waitrose. Wonderfully balanced full flavoured but understated IPA. Very Tasty.

Brouwerij Boon's Oude Geuze, £3.20 for a 330ml bottle from Waitrose.  Dry yet oily with fruit sherry tartness. Yet another great introduction to a classic style.

Alphabet Brewing Company's A to K, £2.20 for a 330ml can from Bargain Booze.  Oatmeal and grapefruit flavour. Distinctive.

Alphabet Brewing Company's Flat White, £2.20 for a 330ml can from Bargain Booze. Tastes like the coffee it's named after, but a light(ish) coloured Stout?

Cloudwater's Helles Tettnanger, £2.40 for a 440ml can from Bargain Booze. Best UK Helles?  Definitely.  Best Helles?  certainly. Best Lager?  probably **winks**.

 

Cloudwater's Parkin Cake, £5.50 for a 440ml can from Bargain Booze. Smells like a well mixed, good quality whisky mac (whisky & ginger wine) and taste like the classic cake soaked in booze. Bliss.

There you go, there is some great ale and beer out there.  So go get 'em.