Beer talk talk.

Going back about ten years ago a relative, well an in law said to me "Beer is for drinking not for reading or writing about".  At the time I wasn't a million miles from that mindset however, obviously this definitely isn't the case now.  I've tried to keep this blog as practical as possible, who is selling what and is it any good.  That withstanding please allow a little discussion on the label of 'Craft'.  


So what is Craft?   It seems far more of an elusive term than real ale, cask and bottle conditioning, which a lot of the times does make a better beer.  Craft doesn't have to be real ale but, in my humble opinion, it  helps.  It can even be lager, just not big corporate brewed by the billion gallon batch and pasteurised, made with five pence worth of ingredients per pint and then shoved full of additives lager.

"Oh you like beer do you Bevis? American Beer? Same here! Bud, Coors Lite and Miller".   Perhaps this statement off a former work colleague shed a little light on the craft label.  The word beer has been so associated to pretend pilsner that ale and quality lager needs to be distinguished by a term of its own.  For me Craft beer, basically has to be supremely good, so working in my regular theme of 'do you get better beer paying more?'.

I put £9 into a budget supermarket Lidl  purchase and £9 into a purchase from Didsbury independent bottle shop The Epicurean.  The former bought a Belhaven Craft beer Discovery Pack of six 330ml bottles.  The latter bought three genuine craft, local, small batch 500ml bottles.

The three bottles from Epicurean are Cheshire Brewhouse's Bugtown Brown and The Revolution Will Not be Televised alongside Torrside's Say No to Cake.  The cold hard facts are that the Belhaven box sets provide 1.98 litres of beer and 11.9 units of alcohol.  Whilst the three bottle conditioned microbrewery beers give 1.5l of ale and 7.9 units of alcohol (or one pleasant night of drinking).  Let's start with the budget supermarket box set.

Belhaven's 5.2% Scottish Ale.  A bizarre flavour of unfurnished Shredded Wheat biscuit, it is not wholly unpleasant just not my pot glass of beer.

Belhaven's 4.8% Craft Pilsner. Tastes tinny and I consider it a flimsy, flaccid waste of calories and alcohol units.

Belhaven's 5.6% Twisted Thistle.  Slightly weaker than the standard issue of this beer and fractionally stronger than the European version.  What we have here is a competent IPA with some noticeable grapefruit tasting hops. Decent.

Belhaven's 6.5% Speyside Oak Aged Blonde Ale. Sublimely sweet with a subtle caramel flavour.  It is an ale that is both delicate and also complex in a very relaxed manner.  The flavours however could go unnoticed if drank after an aggressively hoppy beer.

Belhaven's 7% Scottish Oat Stout. Quite a harsh charcoal flavour, not unlike burned oatmeal toast.  This I like, but the big alcohol strength and dark, dark flavours don't have the stout bodied substance to it, I wouldn't say watery but decidedly lacking that aspect.

Belhaven's 7.4 90 /~ Wee Heavy. Well, a full on Scottish style that gives the full malty toffee flavour. Outstanding in this collection.

Overall you have one great beer, two fairly good, two barely above average and one abysmal lager.  It would be quite a smart little introduction to the varied flavours of different styles of beer.  But to anything more than a new comer on the craft scene, you would be better off individually sourcing the better bottles. On to the genuine, small batch, bottle conditioned ale.

Cheshire Brewhouse's 5.5% Bugtown Brown. I must warn you, American Brown Ale is pretty much my favourite style of beer and Cheshire Brewhouse is pretty much my favourite brewery, so I'm not sure this can be classed as 100% impartial.  Of course I love this ale, it's a joyful affirmation of life.  With such complex and complimentary flavour elements as chicory, un-roasted coffee beans and dry roasted nut coating.  Balanced in every sense, I cannot recommend this beer enough.

Torrside's 5.5% Say No to Cake. A beer inspired by Sticky Toffee Pudding referencing Brasseye?  That is going to generate massive expectations!  But Torrside is a brewery that is so adept at whetting the appetite and making good on those promises. Incredibly, not a sickly or heavy beer, this is a great easy drinking mocha slanted UK brown ale.  Highly enjoyable. 

  

Cheshire Brewhouse's 5.4% The Revolution Will Not be Televised.  A New England IPA (a murky, orange juice looking beer full of citrus flavour) that has clearly present Brut IPA notes (dry Champagne like elements).  There is a lot going on in this bottle and it is all wonderfully citrus bliss.

Unsurprisingly I am going to recommend a trip to The Epicurean for three bigger bottles of beer that both qualify as real ale and genuine craft over stretching that £9 over six bottles from Lidl or nine bottles of their slightly above average budget craft or 36 cans of economy bitter.
You get a relaxed beer session of both UK and US styles and so much flavour and body in those ales.
Enjoy!