Beer of the Week (w/e 18th January 2015)

[ROBCamra]

london calling: Weird Beard Sorachi Face Paint & Buxton Dragon Tips
Wittenden: Burning Sky Plateau
Bucking Fastard: Red Squirrel Redtail Citra
Mobyduck: Vibrant Forest Citra
Aqualung: Elland 1872 Porter
hondo: Harviestoun Schiehallion
Thuck Phat: Titanic Plum Porter
aleandhearty: Mallinsons Experimental Citranell
oldboots: Ridgeside Jailbreak
ROBCamra: Black Flag Fang

[london calling]

some exceptiona lbeers this week
darkstar -hophead vics secret
porterhouse -Dublin pale ale
Essex st-the gavel
hop studio -passion
mallinsons -mocha-alaxy
gypsy hill -beatnick
wharfebank -ro sham bo
st peters -Christmas ale
great heck -black jesus
northern monk -pale ale (yes on cask)
but 2 sensational strong keg beers are tied
weird beard -sorachi face paint 8.1 and
buxton dragon tips 8.9

[Wittenden]

Two new Sussex Breweries:
Burning Sky-Plateau 3.5%abv:Very pale,lemons and nettles. A bit like Hophead of old. My first meeting with this Sussex brewery.
Downlands-Pale 4.1%abv:Another new brewery for me.Slight haze.Woolly.
Downlands-Devils Dyke Porter 5%abv-Rich chestnut colour.Rather heavy on the chocolate ,liquorice front.Cloying finish.

After the Plateau, the Downlands beers seemed rather lacklustre,despite the low abv of Plateau which is my BOTW, even at the rip off price of £4/pint,which I've never knowingly paid before. All taken at Shepherd & Dog (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/39621/)

[Bucking Fastard]

A mixed week.

Oakham -- Citra*
Fullers -- London Pride
Marston's -- Pedigree
Red Squirrel -- Redtail Citra *


BOTW was a battle of the Citra's won by Red Quirrel Redtail Citra,a complex pint in good nick in the Port Jackson,Bishops Stortford on an otherwise most disappointing tour of town.

Next week voyage from Banbury towards Oxford ,always the risk of being iced up.

[Mobyduck]

Some very good beers for me also this week,
Darkstar Hophead 3.8%
Darkstar American Pale Ale 4.7%
Darkstar Hophead Vic Secret 3.8%*
Binghams Dr Rudi Extra Pale Ale 4.5%*
Tillingbourne Black Troll 3.7%*
Siren Driftwood Mild 4.3%*
Vibrant Forest Citra5.0%*
Vibrant Forest Nova Foresta 3.8%
Brains First Gold 3.8%
Robinsons Voodoo Dawn 3.8%

Several would have won any other week but nothing was going to beat the Vibrant Forest Citra, BOTW, absolutely stunning, their other beer I tried this week was in good nick but not to my taste so no star.

[Aqualung]

Not much of a list this week :-

Crouch Vale Brewers Gold 4.0%
Conwy Welsh Pride 4.0%
Sharp's Doom Bore 4.0%:eek:
White Horse Tenth Anniversary Pale 4.4%
Blindman's Icarus 4.5%
Wibbler's Spiced Porter 4.5%
Shalford Hyde Bitter 4.7%
Phoenix Double Gold 5.0%
Skinner's Skilliwidden 5.1%
Oakleaf Blake's Gosport Bitter 5.2%
Fat Cat Marmalade Cat 5.5%
Elland 1872 Porter 6.5%

The easy winner is the Elland 1872 Porter which was in great form at the E4 King's Ford and at the January Sale price of £2.10. I don't know if it comes from Thwaites or Elland but if it is Thwaites they are doing a great job. The runner up would be the Wibbler's Spiced Porter but I'm not sure if three pints of such a spicy beer would go down well.

[hondo]

Harviestoun - Schiehallion

[Thuck Phat]

A very quiet week with just Oakham Bishops Farewell and Hop Back Winter Solstice sampled both of which I've nominated recently.

BOTW Titanic Plum Porter (bottled)

[aleandhearty]

Decent week for me, with several very good brews.

4Ts - APA.
Nottingham - Centurion.
Kelham Island - Hi-ho-Silver.
Five Towns - Lost Hope.
Townhouse - Armstrong Ale.
Geeves - Smokey Joe.*
Dark Star - APA.*
Sky's Edge - Stateside Pale.
Great Heck - Voodoo Mild.*
Mallinsons - Experimental Citranell.*
Fernandes - Simcoe.*
Saltaire - Blackberry Cascade.
Fernandes - Sunshine IPA.*

Was convinced that the Dark Star wouldn't be beaten, but the Mallinsons brew made with Experimental 366, Citra and Centennial hops was on great form at the Fernandes Tap.

[oldboots]

Ridgeside Jailbreak drunk from the wood in The Junction, Castleford (http://www.pubsgalore.co.uk/pubs/40287/)

[ROBCamra]

As predicted Black Flag Fang won the BOTW.

It was so good that I had another half of it at the Manchester Beer Festival even though there were loads of beers I hadn't tried. :cheers: