Canned beers

Is it time to start drinking from cans again?  I remember those days of drinking absolute piss from a can at parties.  Many of the national beer brands have been available in cans for many years and it has never been particularly good compared to cask or bottled but there again most of these beer brands aren't particularly good via any method of dispense.  Then there was the attempt to make canned beer more smooth with a good head with the draughtflow widget in cans.  Boddingtons and John Smiths used this and it gave the beer the texture of milkshake and they tasted incredibly bland.  Now we see cans appearing again via the craft brewers.  A fortuitous trip to Cotteridge Wines in Birmingham a few weeks ago meant I was able to purchase a few of these as well as the bottled version of the beer in a couple of instances for comparison.  With a bit of help from my wife I was able to compare these beers blind so here goes. 

Beavertown Gamma Ray (5.4% ABV)

This is my first taste of this beer in any form so let me begin by saying it is absolutely gorgeous.  The first beer had a strong aroma of tropical fruit and a nice creamy mouthfeel.  The sweetness of the tropical fruit flavours was heavenly.  It is not as strong as some American IPAs I've had but this doesn't show in the taste.  Masses of hoppy flavour.  Beer number two had a much less pronounced aroma and was less smooth.  The same tropical fruit flavours were there but there was a more grassy bitterness to the finish.  I preferred this beer as it had slightly more depth to it with this extra bitterness to the finish.    

The verdict here is I preferred beer number two which I guessed was the bottled version.  My guess was correct.  This is a 10/10 beer in the bottle and about 9.9/10 from the can.  Very small differences between the two and both of them fantastic.   

Beavertown 8 Ball Rye IPA (6.2% ABV)

I had tried a can of this beer before so that should have helped me work out which is which.  Beer number one had a strong hoppy aroma.  Plenty of fruitiness from the hops but there was an earthy bitterness to it also.  This beer also had a heavy malt character with very subtle tobacco notes but it combines well with the hops.  Quite smooth and I was immediately thinking this was the can.  Beer number two however was smoother with more citrussy notes coming through in the aroma.  It was also slightly darker in colour.  There was still a strong malty base to it but it was not so apparent and the tobacco notes were missing.  The citrussy notes came through quite strongly in the finish.  This did not taste like the can I had a few weeks back.      

The verdict here was that the bottle was yet again my particular favourite and once again my guess was correct as to which was which.  When I first tried this beer from the can a few weeks ago I gave it a 7/10 but the bottle gets a 9/10 from me.  Having said that I enjoyed the can more this time too although this may have been helped by having the bottled version alongside it too as I tried alternating between the two towards the end.     

The Beavertown beers are much loved by me.  I tried a can of the fabulous Neck Oil (4.3% ABV) a month ago and this hoppy refreshing session bitter seemed ideal for drinking quickly straight from the can to quench the thirst on a hot day and this is indeed what happened.  I was planning this comparison test once I was able to purchase more of their cans and the final two here were enjoyed with no bottled versions to compare them to.  The Black Betty IPA (7.4% ABV) is a classic black IPA.  Lots of roasted malt character with liquorice strongly evident but it combines with the hops to deliver a light hoppy finish that you never get with traditional black beers.               

Finally we have the incredible Smog Rocket (5.4% ABV).  This beer I found did not transfer to the can quite so well.  I first tried this beer from the bottle last year and later I enjoyed a pint of the keg version in the Evening Star in Brighton.  That was pretty much bang on.  Incredibly smooth, very rich with hints of dark fruits, a little smokiness and liquorice.  This can had plenty of flavour but it did not have quite the same depth of flavours that I remembered or perhaps my taste buds are playing tricks on me.  Whatever, however this beer is served I think it is the best smoked porter I have ever tasted.

There is definitely a place for canned beers.  Some craft beer lovers seem to suggest they contain mystical qualities which the bottled versions never had but quite frankly that is crap.  They are handy though for train journeys and much more convenient at certain times and for certain events so I will definitely be buying more of them.  Indeed I have already tried other canned beers including the fabulous IPA (6.5% ABV) from Fourpure, a new London micro.  This beer uses the classic three 'C' hops from the US (Cascade, Chinook and Centennial) which combine to create a rich sweet hoppy beer full of tropical fruit flavours but with a satisfyingly light grassy bitter finish.

Canned beers are also popular among the craft brewers of the US and I enjoyed a few on my travels last year.  The Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA (7.2% ABV) is one you can get quite easily over here and is highly recommended with similar flavours to the Fourpure IPA above.  What I particularly like about the American cans are the larger sizes though and the Brits should definitely do the same.  330ml is just not enough so please sort this out.   

Canned beers are definitely worth drinking now.  I'm sure we will see more craft brewers offering their beers from cans in the future.  They don't seem to offer anything by way of taste improvements on the bottle from what I can tell although they may be less affected by sunlight and have a longer shelf life perhaps which may lead to greater consistency.  Where it does win though for me is in the convenience which is why I will be buying more in the future.

Cheers.       

A Man For All Saisons

When it comes to saison beers I am a bit of a novice.  Saisons originated in French Flanders and the French-speaking parts of southern Belgium.  They were typically brewed to be kept for the summer months when it was difficult to brew beer due to a lack of refrigeration.  They are also known as farmhouse beers and they can vary greatly in both taste and strength although they are typically crisp, tart, dry, refreshing beers.  British brewers are producing saisons now in greater numbers and I had my first taste of one last year and hated it.  It was very tart and sour, very very dry and generally not a pleasant experience.  I won't mention the beer or the brewer here but it was actually a local brewer that changed my opinions on this beer style earlier this year and I have since come to find them much more enjoyable as you will see here.  

Langham Brewery - Saison (3.9% ABV)

I first tried this beer in the prototype stage and I was quite impressed.  There was a slight sourness to it that I experienced on my first venture into saisons and the aroma from the Belgian yeast was fairly typical and which I don't always find appealing.  However, when the finished beer was available at a Meet The Brewer event in the Chichester Wetherspoons I was absolutely knocked out by it.  It has a mega abundance of hops which blend with the German malts to give an amazing deep bitterness that I absolutely loved.  A strength of the bitterness comes from the fact that I had a pint of their Hip Hop (4.0% ABV) afterwards.  This is normally a very hoppy beer but on this occasion it seemed quite tame in comparison to the bitterness of the saison.  Flavours of bitter orange, a little spicy hoppiness and that very long dry bitter finish all combine to give a beer that is sensational.  This is actually the best cask beer I have tried so far this year and the easiest 10/10 I have ever scored in 2014.         

Ilkley Brewery - Siberia (5.9% ABV)

When trying out a new beer style for the first time I generally go for brewers that I know produce superb beers.  This is the case with all of these saisons.  This beer from Ilkley Brewery was a collaboration with top beer writer Melissa Cole and it is absolutely gorgeous.  At the time of buying this one I was still not sure about saisons and I have never been a fan of fruit beers but it seems that the saison style lends itself perfectly to odd ingredients as you will also read later.  The rhubarb flavour is evident but the tartness is balanced superbly by the sweetness of the malts.  There is a nice spicy edge to the finish too to give a lovely zing to the refreshing dry bitter finish.  This beer scores a healthy 9/10 from me.       

  

Bristol Beer Factory - Saison (6.5% ABV)

Bristol Beer Factory is another brewer that only seems capable of producing fantastic beer.  This saison is the strongest of the ones here at a very robust 6.5% ABV and this comes through in the taste although it is also dangerously easy to drink with a lovely smoothness.  It has a lovely deep golden colour and the aroma is typical for a saison.  This beer is actually very fruity with a nice sweetness balancing the usual tartness and there is an abundance of spicy hoppiness too which gives the beer a lovely dry, bitter finish.  This beer also scores highly and gets a 9/10 from me.        

Burning Sky - Saison L'Ete (4.4% ABV)

Burning Sky began brewing last year and is the brainchild of Mark Tranter, formerly of Dark Star Brewing Co.  The brewery is located in a Sussex barn at the foot of the South Downs and they have already built themselves a fearsome reputation for brewing first class beers and they have quite a range of saisons in their portfolio.  This particular summer saison is a classic.  It has a lovely pale colour and it is a little hazy in the glass as with all traditional saisons.  This beer is brewed with elderflower and after fermentation it is aged over a bed of gooseberries.  The elderflower is quite evident but it is not a strong flavour so it simply gives it a lovely refreshing zing which results in a fantastic slightly tart, refreshing beer which is very dry in the finish.  A real thirst-quencher and perfect for those long hot summer days.  This scores a good 9/10 too.              

Burning Sky - Saison Le Printemps (4.2% ABV)

For my second saison from Burning Sky I chose the one for spring (my 'O' level French is coming in handy here).  This beer is much darker in colour than the summer one and probably the most complex of all the ones here.  The aroma is quite medicinal and not very pleasant which probably comes from the addition of nettle tips after fermentation.  I have no idea what nettle tips taste like but the beer has good flavours of bitter citrussy orange along with a spicy hoppy bite with hints of nutmeg and cinnamon.  The balance between sweetness and bitterness is good and the finish is again quite long, dry and bitter.  I prefer the summer saison and this one I will give a score of 7/10 but the beer is still very interesting and enjoyable.

Saisons can be challenging but they are well worth getting to know.  The variety of flavours and strengths does mean that you may not like all of them so keep trying them if you do come across one that isn't to your taste.  What you will generally find though is that they are very dry refreshing beers perfect for the summer months when you are looking for something to quench your thirst and if you want to begin your journey into this beer style then you could do a lot worse than trying one of the ones reviewed here.   

Cheers.

CAMRA Good Beer Guide

The Good Beer Guide 2015 should be falling on my doorstep this week and a chat with a fellow CAMRA member last night brought it home to me how subjective it is as to which pubs get included although, in our branch at least, the process is as democratic as we can make it.  First of all, how does one define 'good beer'.  To most members the pubs in the guide must meet at least one criteria - they always serve their beer in excellent condition.  It may only serve Greene King IPA but it is Greene King IPA as good as it possibly can be whenever you go in there.  But would most CAMRA members think any GK beer is 'good' even if it is served in excellent condition?  I'm sure some would but there are many who won't.  
   

My discussion last night revolved around a pub that was on our short list this year but did not receive a single vote.  My argument was why put it on the short list again as the beer selection is still the same, the pub is still more restaurant than pub and nothing has changed to suggest it will receive a vote next time around.  When we meet later this month and discuss the initial long list I'm sure it will be included on that one but personally I would like to see more worthy pubs on the short list this time around.  

Those of you wondering how pubs are included in the GBG I can therefore tell you that the process for selecting the pubs for the 2016 guide will begin this month.  We draw up a long list and come December we will have narrowed it down to a short list of about 30-35 pubs.  All members will be aware of which pubs are on the short list so they can visit those pubs selected over the winter months before we vote on which pubs to include in a special meeting in February.  At this time all the branch socials will involve visiting these pubs too.  All members will select their 24 pubs (the allocation for our area) and the number of votes for each pub are added up.  The top 24 pubs are therefore included and those finishing just outside are listed as reserves in case of last minute occurrences such as licensee changes or closures.

   

Going back to my discussion last night the question goes back to how we define 'good beer'.  Personally I would not vote for a pub that only sells national brands if they are free to sell anything else.  In my opinion a pub selling Doom Bar is not selling 'good beer' whatever condition it may be in.  There are many pubs in our area selling this beer but rarely at the exclusion of anything else too.  There was one example this year of one pub which sold this Cornish beer but which also sells some notable guest beers (one or two depending upon season) but when I went to survey it the guest beers were off and I ended up having a bottle of Punk IPA.  Despite this I voted for it to be included because I know the pub and I did do my survey on a Monday after a weekend which saw all their guest beers sell out.  Another member going into the pub for the first time may not have known this and would probably not have voted for it.  So you may begin to see how subjective it all is.  All members have their favourite pubs and will always vote for them to be included I'm sure but other pubs will be judged on just one or two visits by some members.  

The vote is an open meeting to all CAMRA members.  In our branch we have over 300 registered members but it is generally only the active members who attend the meeting and last year this was attended by 18 members.  When you are wondering why certain pubs are included then you may begin to realise the decision is actually made by a small number of members but I would guess that it is these members who are the ones who have actually been to the majority of the pubs on the short list and therefore better placed to compare those selected for inclusion.  If you would like to see your local included though go along to a meeting and tell other members about it and tell them why it should be included.  

   

As always I would like to know what others think of the Good Beer Guide, the process for deciding which pubs to include, how this varies from branch to branch and anything else you wish to comment upon here relating to the GBG.  I would also like to know how others would define 'good beer'.  Do some people base it purely on condition irrespective of the quality of the actual beer or not?  And that is a question I will leave you with.   

     

Cheers. 

Pubs Matter

Pubs Matter is the new CAMRA campaign which is hoped, if successful, will slow down the rate of pub closures.  The thinking behind the campaign is that currently those pubs which usually have an A4 planning class use can be converted into categories A1 (shops), A2 (financial and professional services), A3 (restaurants and cafes) or B1 (Business) without the need for planning permission.  They can also be demolished and then of course the land can be used for anything for which planning permission is granted.  It is this loophole (if loophole is the right word) that CAMRA wish to change by making it a law that planning permission is always required before a pub is demolished or converted into another use.  The thinking behind this is of course that pubs should be treated as a special case because of their importance to the community and what we don't want of course is to make it more difficult for shops to be converted into pubs in the way we are currently seeing all over the country with the boom in micropubs.  

The closure of pubs in recent years is highlighted in my current village (and surrounding villages).  I moved from Yapton in 2006 and the village had four pubs.  Two were places I would never have dared set foot in, one was a popular family pub with a decent beer selection and good food and the fourth one was my local and a former winner of the local regional CAMRA group pub of the year.  Last month I moved back to Yapton and the latter is the only pub that remains so would this law change have made any difference?  Below we have the former Shoulder of Mutton and Cucumbers.  This was converted into a couple of residential dwellings called 'Shoulders' and 'Cucumber Cottage'.  This would have required planning permission and the outcome would have been the same.                          

The second pub to disappear was Enterprise-owned The Lamb.  This was a thriving village local until a change of landlord occurred.  Basically the more popular it became the higher the rent went until the tenant could no longer run a profitable business so he went elsewhere.  Since then no incumbent has managed to make it pay and planning permission was granted for it to be demolished and houses will be built on the somewhat large plot.    

The final pub to close was the Olive Branch.  This pub is a total eyesore now as can be seen below although when it was open it didn't look much better as the letters in the pub name had begun to disappear long before the closure!  This was up for sale at a reasonable price of £325,000 for the freehold.  The estate agents did however make it clear in their brochure that the site was also ideal for 'redevelopment'.  It was up for sale for quite some time and it has since been purchased by a development company.  Three pubs gone and thankfully my former local is the sole survivor.  I don't think this new CAMRA campaign would have made any difference to the fate of the others.  However, now I move on to my surrounding villages.

Last week the local newspaper, the Bognor Regis Observer, ran a two page article with the headline 'Residents alarmed by number of community pubs closing down'.  The article highlighted three recent closures and in all cases supermarkets have moved in.  This has been going on for quite some time though in this area and we have seen many pubs converted into mini supermarkets in the past few years.  It is this kind of activity though which is primarily behind this CAMRA campaign.  The problem CAMRA will have though is whether the members of CAMRA themselves actually care much for the type of pubs that are closing.  I don't think I have personally set foot in any of the pubs that have closed down in recent years and have subsequently been converted into convenience stores and I am someone who does like to get out and visit different pubs as often as possible.  The active members of our branch will probably fight against the closure of a favourite pub but quite frankly there are many pubs they will do their best to avoid.  There are many pubs in our area that some members will not go in for various reasons.  The main reason is always the beer choice and/or the beer quality.  The surliness of the owner is also mentioned from time to time and anything owned by Hall & Woodhouse or Greene King is a big no-no.  For this reason our Whatpub completion rate** when I was appointed pubs officer for our area was pitifully low.  You can't blame the members though for wanting to spend their money on good beer and in places that are a pleasure to frequent.                      

The pubs that are targeted in this area by the major supermarkets are large sites with car parking and the bottom line is that these pubs are generally not popular.  If you were just selling the business then the price would have to be low because they are probably losing money.  The only asset the business has is the land it sits on and this is what makes it valuable.  Perhaps we should be talking to these companies to encourage them to retain part of the building as a pub or even as a micropub so the community still has a focus but one which could be run profitably.  At the end of the day all pubs are just one change of owner away from potential closure because there are far too many poor publicans out there.  Even successful pubs can fall into the wrong hands when a successful publican sells up and moves on or retires.

So, if the Pubs Matter campaign is successful and we see a change in the law will this see a decline in the number of pub closures?  I would like to think it will but I think you are more likely to see areas blighted with boarded up buildings that will eventually be redeveloped anyway.  Saving a pub from being changed into a convenience store does not mean a buyer will come along who will be able to run it successfully as a pub.  I think the pub landscape will always be shrinking due to changing demographics.  The number of pubs is falling because less people are visiting them and with land and property prices constantly rising it means the larger establishments are simply worth far more as housing or as convenience stores.  To the large pub-owning property companies it means their debts can be reduced by increasing rents to the point where pubs can no longer be profitable as pubs and so the site can then be redeveloped.  It should not stop CAMRA fighting for pubs though but I'm not sure this particular campaign will make much difference.  I think we need to address what makes these businesses unprofitable in the first place.  High rents, high business rates, high overheads, poor publicans, poor food, poor beer choice can all play a part.  Use them or lose them is often quoted but while there are large numbers of pubs that are simply too poor for regular pubgoers to use you will continue to see a loss because there simply aren't enough people out there willing to take on these failing pubs.  

I've probably raised a number of points here without giving answers to any of them but I would like to know what other people think.  However, there will be further posts from me about some of the points raised here over time because I care very much about pubs and it would be good to know what others see as the problems affecting pubs in all parts of the country.  In the meantime I will continue to visit pubs as often as I can and I recommend you all do the same because there is no better place in which to relax and enjoy a pint.               

Cheers.   

           

** The CAMRA pub guide has listings for all pubs.  The national aim is to get a comprehensive survey of each pub and in our area this figure was at 37% at the beginning of this year.  This is way below the national average but I have managed to get the figure up to nearly 50% now.

Beer Pricing

I must confess I very rarely notice how much I am paying for my pint when I go to a pub.  Even after a night out with my CAMRA friends, if someone asked me how much I paid for a pint of such-and-such I'd shrug my shoulders and say £3 something.  If I am asked to pay £4 something I'd probably make a mental note that the pub is a little expensive for the area and if I am asked to pay anything less than £3 then I must be in a Wetherspoons (or up north).

This brings me on to my visit to the Kings Arms near Fernhurst last week with my CAMRA colleagues.  The Kings Arms is a lovely country pub that was owned by Gales many years ago and has struggled over the past few years with a couple of closures and with one notable failure being a Marco Pierre White venture.  It reopened last year as a gastropub with rooms and there is an adjacent Indian restaurant in the barn.  As a CAMRA group we failed to visit the pub soon after the reopening which was disappointing but last week we finally got round to paying it a visit.

The pub is located near the Surrey border just outside the village of Fernhurst on the main A286 out from Midhurst.  It is therefore quite a hike from where all of our active members live and of course a couple of poor souls had to drive.  The driver asked for a half so I asked for a pint of Harveys Sussex and a half of Harveys R.  The former is a standard 4.0% ABV beer and the latter is the Harveys attempt at a low ABV beer coming in at just 2.8% ABV.  The barmaid requested the princely sum of £6 which I raised my eyebrows at a little.  That made me look at the price list (something I very rarely do).  Both pints were £3.80 which is on the high side for Harveys in this area.  This did not concern me a great deal but I was very surprised to see the R being priced the same as the Sussex.  That brings me to my second grumble and the mathematicians among you have probably already worked out that the price of a half was £2.20.  This price converts to £4.40 a pint which gives a 60p premium on the price of the full pint.

I now hand this over to you.  Am I moaning unnecessarily?  Should I expect a 2.8% ABV to be priced the same as a 4.0% ABV best bitter as beer duty for this beer is obviously less?  Is a premium of 60p a pint high for buying two halves over a single pint?  From a few tweets and blog posts I have read recently I think it is becoming a common cause for complaint but how widespread is it?  Is it justifiable?  From a personal point of view if I was running a country pub and trying to attract drinkers then I would be offering a reduced abv beer so top marks to the Kings Arms with this one, as I also understand from the guys that tried it that it is a very good beer.  However, I would not be trying to rip off the poor drivers by charging them a premium if they choose a low abv product and/or a half over a pint.  Last week the pub attracted a group of drinkers who are less inclined to pay it a second visit.  That's the bottom line really which is a shame because it is a pleasant pub and the beer was in good condition.    

Cheers.

 

Yorkshire Ales Part 6 - Mallinsons

For my sixth Yorkshire brewery I am checking out the beers from the two brewsters at Mallinsons in Huddersfield.  They began brewing with a 6-barrel plant back in 2008 and successfully relocated to a larger 15-barrel plant in 2012.  I am familiar with one or two of their beers having enjoyed them previously after purchasing them from the excellent beer retailer Cotteridge Wines in Birmingham.  I therefore purposely saved them until last because I had a feeling that they could be challenging whoever was leading at this stage of the competition.  The pressure is definitely on then.

Simcoe (4.0% ABV)

Every beer I have tried from Mallinsons has been a single hopped beer and the beer name is simply the hop variety used.  The three I selected from my Yorkshire ales purchase follow this same theme and the first is the American hop variety Simcoe. This beer was lively and had a lovely golden glow to it.  There wasn't a strong aroma but there were enticing citrussy hints.  This hop gives a lovely rich fruity taste with hints of passion fruit but citrus notes come through in the finish to leave a light dry bitterness.  A very pleasant beer and worthy of a score of 7/10.       

Amarillo (4.3% ABV)

For the second beer I stay in the US with the Amarillo hop.  This was another lively beer and in terms of appearance it looked remarkably like the first one.  As with the first, the aroma was not strong.  This beer was much more bitter than the Simcoe though with strong hints of mandarin oranges coming through which I particularly love about this hop.  I've noticed on their website they now produce an Amarillo Extreme with intense orange aroma and flavours.  Sounds wonderful.  This is an excellent beer and I give it a 9/10.  

Galaxy (4.0% ABV)

For the final beer in this selection from the great county of Yorkshire I revisit the Australian hop variety, Galaxy, which I came across with the beer of the same name from the North Riding Brewpub in my last review.  I found that beer to be quite sweet with quite strong tropical fruit flavours.  This one is much more citrussy and refreshing with a very dry crisp quality to it.  Interestingly I have read the hop offers a combination of citrus and passion fruit flavours and between the two beers that's about right.  This one picks up a score of 8/10.

To be honest I scored all of these beers 8/10 when I initially tried them.  However, to obtain the same score and to differentiate between them I slightly adjusted the scores here.  They are all very good beers but the Amarillo would be the one I'd choose ahead of the others with the Simcoe not quite matching the others.  

My final mark is for the branding.  The beer names are simple and tell you what it is.  This can be a little boring perhaps but the hop variety is the distinct difference between the majority of their beers and therefore it seems sensible to label in this way.  I would like to see some stronger beers in their output though but that's just a personal preference.  The labels have a simple and distinctive logo which I like.  The website is a little limited in terms of information but it does have a comprehensive beer list with tasting notes.  Everything is a little minimalist but there is nothing to dislike so a score of 7/10 is awarded.  This gave them a total of 31 points which was enough to put them into second place behind the worthy winners, The Hop Studio.                 

This completes my initial tour around the breweries of Yorkshire courtesy of my first order placed with the excellent Yorkshire Ales.  Yorkshire is full of great breweries producing some lovely beers and I shall be continuing my reviews from this county over the coming months I'm sure and Yorkshire ales will be the place I purchase them from without doubt.  For now though the league table is as follows and as previously mentioned, where there is a tie, the brewery scoring highest on the beer scores places highest.

1.  The Hop Studio - 32 points 

2.  Mallinsons - 31 points

3.  Geeves - 31 points

4.  Axholme - 28 points

5.  Revolutions - 28 points

6.  North Riding Brewpub - 27 points

Cheers.

Yorkshire Ales Part 5 - North Riding Brewpub

For the latest in my journey around my purchases from Yorkshire Ales I head to the east coast and the North Riding Brewpub of Scarborough.  Having won Scarborough town pub of the year on no less than six occasions as the North Riding Hotel they began brewing from the cellar in early 2011 and now have awards for their beer alongside their pub accolades.  So without further ado let's get tasting although before I begin I must apologise for the glass used for the first two.

Motueka (4.3% ABV)     

This single hopped beer uses pale and munich malts along wheat in the mash.  The Motueka hop is a new variety of New Zealand hop with a Saaz parentage and it is one I am not too familiar with.  The aroma is sweet and the colour is pale straw.  The initial taste has quite a citrussy tang to it.  There are also some floral and fruity notes hiding in there but the tang of lemon and lime continues throughout to give it a citrussy refreshing finish.  This beer had a best before end of July and I was drinking it on the first of August so I'm not sure if I had it at its best and it also had to survive a house move.  However, a delightful beer nonetheless and I would give it a solid 7/10.           

Galaxy (4.3% ABV)

Judging by the label the beer appears to be identical to the first except for the hop variety.  The same malts and the same ABV would suggest I am therefore able to judge how the flavours from the Australian Galaxy hop used here differs to the New Zealand Motueka.  It even has the same use by date but it does taste fresher than the first.  There is little difference in the look of the beer but the aroma is more tropical and the flavour is definitely more to my liking and my wife preferred this one too.  There is a much more pronounced tropical fruit flavour with this one with passion fruit flavours dominant.  It is equally refreshing but it has a sweeter finish to the first beer and this one is awarded an extra point giving it an 8/10.     

60 Minute IPA (5.5% ABV)

The first two beers were appropriately consumed on Yorkshire Day and this final beer was saved for International IPA Day.  This final beer had a best before end of October so was hopefully on top form too.  This beer was brewed for the third anniversary of the brewery and the name refers to the 60 minutes of continuous hopping that goes into this beer rather than hopping in stages.  The malt character is similar to the first two beers except for some additional caramedium and the hop variety is Simcoe.  The aroma is not strong but has some earthy and fruity characteristics.  The flavours are quite complex with citrussy lime, a sharp orangey tang, some pine freshness and some rich earthy notes.  This all leads to a deep bitter finish and overall it is a delightfully interesting IPA.  I will award it a score of 7/10 although in fairness it is very close to an 8.  I do like it very much.           

The final mark is for the branding.  The labels are a bit basic although everything is clearly displayed and easy to read along with the ingredients.  The website has the brewery information lumped in with the pub and only a couple of their beers have tasting notes.  Overall I can only award it a score of 5/10 for this category giving a grand total of 27/40 which leaves them in 5th place.  However, for a brewpub that also serves as a hotel they are wearing lots of hats and their beer certainly stands up well against the other Yorkshire brewers I have enjoyed so far.  

Next time I will be judging Mallinsons.  This will be my final brewery before I take a break as it completes the purchases I made from my first order with Yorkshire Ales.  Later in the year I will come back with a further six breweries from this wonderfully beery county.