I have just returned from a culinary adventure, a very pleasant peregrination around some of the west coast’s most excellent eateries. Beer was not necessarily the focus, but as I’m sure you’re aware it’s never far from my mind.
So here are some of my favourites from the weekend, some which I enjoyed with phenomenal food and some which just helped make a lovely time that little bit lovelier.
Beerbliotek A Passion For Gingers
£3.50/3.8%/330ml
KB, my companion for the weekend – and in fact for some time previous – is both a fan of a Berlinerweisse and about as ginger as they come, so I was inevitably drawn to this one from those ever exemplary Swedes Beerbliotek. The name definitely gives you a big clue as to what you can expect here, a big nose full of passion fruit and warm ginger with some zesty orange, a little spice and some herbal notes coming through as it warmed up a little. Sharp and juicy on the palate, plenty of those titular notes in the flavour with the ginger coming through particularly in the finish.
Fallen Grapevine
£2.80/5.4%/330ml
Long drives through Scottish scenery and an obvious desire to showcase local ingredients everywhere that we ate made it difficult to ignore the beauty of Scotland, and a few of the beers that I enjoyed over the weekend helped feed into that too. I had 3 different selections from Fallen and each one was amazing in its own right, but the Double Barrelled Chew Chew didn’t last long on the shelves so I didn’t see much point in talking about that, and from the two others this one just edged it (although ignore Local Motive at your peril). I had it on cask on Friday night and it was such a joy that I had to get another can at a later stage, it’s super smooth with some zesty orange and juicy tropical notes and finishes with a refreshing but never overpowering bitter hop bite.
Partizan/New Belgium West Fork Saison
£3.10/5.0%/330ml
Jumping back a little in our timeline to my first beer of Friday night, this was the last of the Rainbow Project beers that I tasted and I wish I had it sooner. Hazy orange in colour with the orange reflected in the flavour alongside delicious yeasty spice, a floral note and some zesty lemon sherbet on the finish.
Tempest Unforgiven Red Rye
£2.60/5.4%/330ml
Another excellent Scottish offering and a perfect foil for the smoked meats that I enjoyed it alongside, this has a combination of light smoke and dried fruits on the nose, with more fruit and some nutty umami notes on the palate and the return of that smoke character alongside some spice in the finish.
Fyne Ales/De Molen Mills and Hills
£4.40/9.5%/330ml
We passed by Fyne Ales on our way home, but unfortunately didn’t have time to drop in. I had already enjoyed a few of their beers in the restaurant we ate at on Saturday – where they also make oatcakes with he grain from Jarl – but unfortunately they didn’t have this to accompany pudding. A huge, complex Imperial Stout with chocolate, coffee, earthy notes, dark fruit, liquorice and much more in the flavour and a perfectly balanced finish with an almost treacle sweetness balanced by roasted bitterness. This is undoubtedly my favourite from them.
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