Lucky Number 7 -Northern Mornings by Northern Monk

 I have been a fan of Northern Monk Brewery for quite some time. Their beers are well made and well thought out (a particular favourite being Faith). They wear their Northern roots proudly and the fact that they started with very little and have created a highly successful brand within the Craft beer movement. They have created a Breakfast Stout.

I have struggled to find agreement on what a Breakfast Stout should be; some people say it needs to have coffee in it some give all sorts of definitions. Certain breweries have even added bacon to the mix! I am not averse to drinking at any time of the day but I'm not sure I could cope with a beer at 5.8% pint with my muesli!

And so to the beer: On the nose there is a strong smell of toast (yes honestly), also the tiniest hint of dark treacle. In the mouth there is a very strong sense of "Abbey" which ties in with the house style of Northern Monk. It is sweet and strong, rich, malty and dry at the finish. This is not a beer to be hurried, it requires the drinker to savour and consider the richness of flavours. Thoroughly well made beer, and I promise it smelled of toast!

   

The Sixth Companion - Brixton Brewery's Midnight Hour

 Those of us who started their drinking in the late 80's carry a lot of baggage when it comes to beer. We suffered the indignity of bad keg bitter, badly kept real ale and lager which didn't taste of much at all. So it is inevitable that we carry certain prejudices. Like all unconscious prejudices. it is good to have these challenged and then reflect on how much netter the world of the beer drinker is today. The prejudice that lager was merely a vehicle for alcohol has long left my psychology, there are many beautiful lagers on the market, many made at scale. However, when somebody labels a beer "Black Lager" then the prejudice that larger should be a light straw colour is thus challenged! Incidentally, Melissa Cole has written a great book on lager, well worth reading

Brixton Brewery started in a railway arch in 2013, if this is the quality of beer that they generally produce then I need to try more. This is a well made beer. I also love the naming of the beer: as if we weren't aware, time is running out!

On the nose it is like a dark chocolate Malteser (if they existed) full of malty Ovaltine tones. IN the mouth it is lighter than expected but has a lovely clean  with hops coming through at the end. By the time it has taken me to type this, it is almost finished. Very, very moreish!

5th Companion - Bedlam Brewery Sussex Smokie

I like all things smoked. I make my own smoked salmon, love smoked bacon and smoked almonds are a favourite. Smoke has been used as a form of preservation for hundreds of years. It has developed to such a level that smoking has become a method of adding value and flavour rather than a method of giving greater shelf life. 

Bedlam Brewery lies in Sussex and produces a whole raft of really lovely beers. Their ethical credentials are building too with solar panels and spent grain being sent to feed livestock. The "secret" ingredient in this beer is beech smoked malt.

So to the beer: This is an intriguing beer. On the nose there is the slightest hint of smoke, chocolate and espresso. This really draws you in, in short, it is exciting to smell. In the mouth this beer truly delivers. Smoke, sweetness, coffee, even a little liquorice mingle together in a wonderful rich mouthful. It has a slightly dryer finish but this is a beer for a cheeseboard or even sticky toffee pudding. This is my first smoked porter and I am hooked. 

Companion No. 4 - Stroud Brewery -Buen Vivir.

Over twenty five years ago I first encountered Wheat Beers. To say I fell in love with them would be an understatement, they have been my go to treat ever since. Early on in this love affair I tried to convert others, and thus share the love around. This did not always go well. My brother's reaction of "why would you put that in your mouth?" was not untypical of the response I got from many. A few years later, of course they were all trying to convert me to the joys of Hefeweizen like they had discovered it!

My fourth beer from The Toast Companion box is Buen Vivir from Stroud Brewery in Gloucestershire. It is described by them as an Organic Hefeweizen. The label on the can, which is fascinating in its own right, carries the lovely line "Buen Vivir is based on the belief that true well-being relies on a harmonious connection between people, their communities and nature". Frankly if you don't buy into that then have a very hard look at yourself! Their organic credentials also live up to this statement.

On to the beer. The nose carries a mild clove element and a quite strong sense of banana skin, it is worth lingering a moment or two with this beer as it opens up, much like a wine might in the glass. In the mouth it has the characteristics  you would expect from a beer of this type: it is spicy (cardamon, cloves and maybe nutmeg), it is rich and dry with a lovely soft mouthfeel born from gentle petillance. This is not a beer to be hurried, though at 4.5% abv, I wouldn't say no to a second or third. 

The third Companion - Orbit Beers' English Pale Ale.

 The third beer from my Toast Companion box comes from Orbit Beers of Walworth SE London. The suggestion on the label that this is an English Pale Ale in the traditional sense is seen of at the first sniff. This is a very modern beer in all the good ways!

It looks like an old fashioned Pale Ale (albeit an unfiltered one). That is where the "old fashioned" stops. The nose is pure strawberry (yes, really) with a hint of green salad (yes, really). In the mouth there is very clear malt with the tiniest hint of toffee and this is followed by a really dry clean finish. 

There is nothing "old fashioned" about this beer. I hope that Orbit decide to continue to produce this beer as it is exactly what the craft beer revolution of the past decade has been all about. They have taking British brewing heritage and danced it into the 21st century. Cheers!

Companion No. 2 - Toast Coffee Porter

This is the second of my tastings from the Companion series issued by Toast. This Coffee Porter comes in at 5.6% and is brewed by Toast themselves. This beer has been brewed using Fair Trade Coffee from Cafedirect, which itself is a certifies B Corp. Even the label on the recyclable can is made with a sustainable wood based paper. This has ethics all over it!

The beer itself is not in anyway simple! The nose has deep espresso notes, a strong burnt chocolate edge and the tiniest hint of roasted nuts. In the mouth it is rich though avoids sweetness there is both Coffee and Chocolate again with a definite bitter mouth feel and clean finish. There is a distinct hint of red wine in there too (Think a butch Barollo or Rhone) 

This is a beer for a roaring fire, and good company. It might even work with blue cheese. Totally fascinating!

 

My first companion. Toast Juicy IPA.

 I wrote yesterday about the Toast Companion series of beers. Today is November 1st and hence the end of my self imposed "Dry October" and I have just opened my first can. This beer was recommended by Toast themselves as my first of the box, and is brewed by the team at Toast.

Toast Juicy IPA is modern cloudy India Pale Ale coming in at 5.5%. A firm tight head formed from the pour (into the supplied glass) and held throughout the entire drinking. On the nose there is a gentle sense of fruit and spice and even a hint of apricot jam. This is a classic beery deception as the beer itself has a really clean dry finish and a wonderfully soft mouthfeel.

I am a fan!

Now I have the delicious problem of deciding which will be my next choice....