Southport Old Shrimper
Southport Old Shrimper [baron rating 4/5] - this 5.5% dark ale has a roasted chocolate smell,smooth sweet fruity malt taste & a sweet finish
Thwaites Thoroughbred Gold
Thwaites Thoroughbred Gold [baron rating 4/5] - this 4% ale has a citrus aroma, a smooth citrus & floral taste & slight floral bitter finish
Broughton Merlin's Ale
Broughton Merlin's Ale [baron rating: /5] - this 4.2% copper ale has a fresh hops smell, crisp light hoppy taste & gentle bitter finish
Buy Broughton ales here
Tasty Lytham Gold ale in The Five Ways (Ormskirk)
Tried a very tasty pint of Lytham Gold tonight in The Five Ways pub/restaurant (Ormskirk),this 4.2% gold ale was crisp & hoppy - very nice!
Great St Austell Proper Job in the Queens Head (Ormskirk)
Had a few excellent pints of St Austell Proper Job last night in the Queens Head pub (Ormskirk), didn't try anything else it was that good!
M&S (Batemans) Lincolnshire Best Bitter
M&S (Batemans) Lincolnshire Best Bitter [baron rating 3/5] - this 4.9% amber ale has a malty smell, a sweet malty taste & bitter finish
myBrewerytap's 52 week beer club - first impresssions
After reading a number of blog posts about myBrewerytap's 52 week beer club, 'we' (Chris Routledge & I) signed up a few weeks ago, and the first quarter's batch arrived today.
Before I get to the photos & details of the pack I want to say how impressed I was with the delivery and packaging - the whole box arrived completely unmarked and from following other twitterers it appears that we ALL received it on the same day! That's quite some service!
The well-packaged ale comes with tasting notes as well:
Last quarter I believe it shipped with a glass and bottle opener, this time it came with a 'myBrewerytap' glass, packet of spicy Yorkshire crisps & some 'Dirty Vicar' cheese!
Here are the first six beers:
Before I get to the photos & details of the pack I want to say how impressed I was with the delivery and packaging - the whole box arrived completely unmarked and from following other twitterers it appears that we ALL received it on the same day! That's quite some service!
The well-packaged ale comes with tasting notes as well:
Last quarter I believe it shipped with a glass and bottle opener, this time it came with a 'myBrewerytap' glass, packet of spicy Yorkshire crisps & some 'Dirty Vicar' cheese!
Here are the first six beers:
- Atlantic Red
- Wensleydale Gamekeeper
- Quartz Blonde
- Dent Aviator
- Leyden Raglan Sleeve
- Best Mates Midsummer Madness
- Sam Brook's Wandle
- Bitter End Lakeland Golden
- Three Castles Saxon Archer
- Leatherbritches CAD
- Penlon Cardi Bay
- Sadler's Thin Ice
- Stroud Budding
Now all Chris & I have to do is set a date to start sampling & 'baron rating' them!
Re-rating of Black Sheep Holy Grail
I rated Black Sheep Holy Grail in November but after re-trying it I'm upgrading it to a [baron rating 5/5] - crisp & hoppy, very drinkable!
Final round-up of the Batemans Baron Ratings
As you may be aware, Batemans Brewery very kindly sent me a bottle of most of their range to receive a 'Baron Rating', now that I've consumed them all, here are the final scores:
I would like to say a big thank you to Batemans Brewery for their generosity, they do brew some very fine beers!
I would like to say a big thank you to Batemans Brewery for their generosity, they do brew some very fine beers!
Amazing selection of discounted ales in Booths (Windermere)
The Duke of Windermere did a bit of ale shopping for me in his local Booths (Windermere) earlier in the week and I collected them last night. These twelve diverse bottles were all £1 each!
I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into these soon as I've not 'baron rated' most of them before (I've had the Cains FA [baron rating 4/5] before). I also picked up these two as well (the Williams Gold was £1.32 and the Black Sheep Holy Grail [baron rating 4/5] was £1.29):
Now my beer collection is looking rather full!
I'm really looking forward to getting stuck into these soon as I've not 'baron rated' most of them before (I've had the Cains FA [baron rating 4/5] before). I also picked up these two as well (the Williams Gold was £1.32 and the Black Sheep Holy Grail [baron rating 4/5] was £1.29):
Now my beer collection is looking rather full!
Batemans Dark Lord
Batemans Dark Lord [baron rating 4/5] - this 5% dark ruby ale has a malty smell, smooth sweet malt & bitter taste & gentle sweet malt finish
Buy Batemans ales here
Buy Batemans ales here
Re-rating of Hook Norton Old Hooky
I rated Hook Norton Old Hooky back in November but after re-rating it tonight I'm upgrading it to a [baron rating 4/5] - tasty & drinkable!
Lovely Batemans Rosey Nosey in the Queens Head (Ormskirk)
Had some very enjoyable pints of Batemans Rosey Nosey in the Queens Head pub in Ormskirk, lovely winter brew,better on tap than bottled[3/5]
Good turnout for the Ormskirk TweetUp
Had a great evening in the Queens Head pub with @Mister_Roy,@procrastinatrix,@MikeNolan,@Christopher_R,@BickerRecord,Paul & Matt from Source
Re-rating of Batemans Summer Swallow
I rated Batemans Summer Swallow [baron rating 1/5] back in August and my rating unfortunately still stands, too sweet & floral for the Baron
Buy Batemans ales here
Buy Batemans ales here
Batemans Combined Harvest
Batemans Combined Harvest [baron rating 3/5] - this 4.7% golden ale has a citrus hops smell,sharp spiced apple taste & gentle fruity finish
Buy Batemans ales here
Buy Batemans ales here
Batemans Autumn Fall
Batemans Autumn Fall [baron rating 4/5] - this 4.2% chestnut ale has a spicy smell,spicy bitter hazelnut taste & a dry bitterness to finish
Buy Batemans ales here
Buy Batemans ales here
Beer tasting night at Source deli is 17th Feb
Spoke to Paul at the Source deli in Ormskirk today and we have agreed a date for the ale tasting night:
Paul has said that he will put on a number of food courses along with ten different beers: 5 british & 5 'rest of world'. Doors open at 7pm with the 'tasting' starting at 7:30.
I would like to thank the Twitter world for making this event happen, I had a dozen responses within 48 hours! Let's now all buy the tickets to ensure that this cool event actually happens!
- Wednesday 17th February 2010
Paul has said that he will put on a number of food courses along with ten different beers: 5 british & 5 'rest of world'. Doors open at 7pm with the 'tasting' starting at 7:30.
I would like to thank the Twitter world for making this event happen, I had a dozen responses within 48 hours! Let's now all buy the tickets to ensure that this cool event actually happens!
Batemans Victory Ale
Batemans Victory Ale [baron rating 3/5] - this 6% amber ale has a peppery hops smell,strong sticky fruity taste and a lingering sweet finish
Buy Batemans ales here
Buy Batemans ales here
DBC Jurassic for 79p in B&M Bargains (Ormskirk)
B&M Bargains (Ormskirk) has 500ml bottles of DBC Jurassic [baron rating 3/5] for just 79p, a great price for a standard session ale
Booths December ale offers (31st Dec)
Booths have got some great ales on offer at the moment for one a quid a bottle, here are the details:
- Adnams Gunhill [baron rating 3/5]
£1 instead of £1.60
- Brakspear Bitter [baron rating 5/5]
£1 instead of £1.23
- Jennings Cumberland Ale [baron rating 3/5]
£1 instead of £1.73
- Marstons Double Drop [baron rating 4/5]
£1 instead of £1.88
- Shepherd Neame Spitfire [baron rating 4/5]
£1 instead of £1.50
- Wychwood Goliath [baron rating 3/5]
£1 instead of £1.59
- St. Peter's Best Bitter
£1 instead of £1.50
- Greene King IPA [baron rating 3/5]
£1 instead of £1.49
- Lancaster Brewery Amber
£1 instead of £1.50
- Lancaster Brewery Blonde
£1 instead of £1.50
- Holt Humdinger
£1 instead of £1.35
- Moorhouses Blond Witch
£1 instead of £1.72
- Badger Original Ale [baron rating 3/5]
£1 instead of £1.10
- Wold Top Bitter
£1 instead of £1.50
- Courage Best Bitter [baron rating 2/5]
£1 instead of £1.29
- Jennings Bitter [baron rating 2/5]
£1 instead of £1.29
- Holdens Golden Sunset
£1
JW Lees Brewer's Dark ale for £1 in Morrisons (Ormskirk)
Morrisons (Ormskirk) has 500ml bottles of JW Lees Brewer's Dark [baron rating coming soon] ale for £1 rather than the normal £1.67
Batemans XXXB (Triple XB)
Batemans XXXB [baron rating 4/5] - this 4.8% dark amber ale has a malty aroma,full sweet bitter taste followed by rapidly fading bitterness
Buy Batemans ales here
Buy Batemans ales here
The story behind MyBreweryTap.com
Read a great article about the guys behind MyBreweryTap.com, who now have my order for the 52 week beer club!
Shepherd Neame Goldings for 99p in B&M Bargains (Ormskirk)
B&M Bargains in Ormskirk has 500ml bottles of Shepherd Neame Goldings [baron rating 3/5] for 99p (best before sometime in 2010)
Greene King LBW
Greene King LBW [baron rating 3/5] - this 4.3% pale ale has a gentle hops aroma,a smooth crisp taste of gentle malty sweetness & no finish!
Great ale selection in The Hop Vine (Burscough)
Had fab fish & chips at The Hop Vine pub (Burscough), great ale selection too, had Thwaites Good Elf & Hop Vine Bitter
More cheap (£1/bottle) ale in Asda (Aintree)
Spotted that Brakspear Bitter[5/5] & Badger Original Ale[3/5] are both £1 a bottle at the moment, along with these other offers
Shepherd Neame Kentish Ale Collection for £4 in Asda (Dec)
Asda (Aintree) has 4-bottle Shepherd Neame Kentish Ale packs for just £4: Bishops Finger[2/5], Master Brew[?], Spitfire[4/5], Whitstable Bay[?]
Final round-up of the Black Sheep Baron Ratings
As you may be aware, Black Sheep Brewery very kindly sent me a bottle of each of their range to receive a 'Baron Rating', now that I've consumed them all, here are the final scores:
Black Sheep Riggwelter
Black Sheep Riggwelter [baron rating 4/5] - this chestnut ale has a chocolate malt smell, a smooth dark malty taste & a gentle bitter finish
Buy Black Sheep ales here
Buy Black Sheep ales here
Lidl's December ale offers (7th Dec)
On Monday (07/12) Lidl have a number of ales for just £1 a 500ml bottle: Bishops Finger[2/5], Hobgoblin[4/5], Pedigree[3/5] & Spitfire[4/5]
Anyone interested in an ale tasting night in Ormskirk?
I was speaking to Paul Shiel, the owner of Source deli in Ormskirk today (who stock an excellent range of ales from local breweries) about whether he would be interested in doing an ale tasting evening as they already do some very popular wine (with paired food) tasting evenings.
Paul said that they struggled to fill the last ale tasting (with food) evening and so were not thinking of offering it again. Paul truely knows his beers & his food is excellent too, so I have personally taken it upon myself to see if we can russle up the required numbers in which to make such an event a success.
Paul said that he would need around 25 people to book, with a cost per head of £20, which would give you the chance to try 10 expertly selected ales & beers carefully matched with food. This doesn't mean that you will get to drink ten pints, but I'm sure there would be enough to make sure that every participant had a very enjoyable evening! ;)
He has a wide range of ales and beers in stock including local North West breweries, American and Australian ales, and Trapist beers, so I'm sure there would be plenty of new stuff for everyone to try.
So here is the challenge:
Paul said that they struggled to fill the last ale tasting (with food) evening and so were not thinking of offering it again. Paul truely knows his beers & his food is excellent too, so I have personally taken it upon myself to see if we can russle up the required numbers in which to make such an event a success.
Paul said that he would need around 25 people to book, with a cost per head of £20, which would give you the chance to try 10 expertly selected ales & beers carefully matched with food. This doesn't mean that you will get to drink ten pints, but I'm sure there would be enough to make sure that every participant had a very enjoyable evening! ;)
He has a wide range of ales and beers in stock including local North West breweries, American and Australian ales, and Trapist beers, so I'm sure there would be plenty of new stuff for everyone to try.
So here is the challenge:
- Do you want a night out in Ormskirk, Lancashire?
- Do you want to try ten beers carefully matched with food?
- Do you want to pay £20 for the pleasure?
Black Sheep Golden Sheep
Black Sheep Golden Sheep [baron rating 3/5] - this 4.7% pale amber ale has a crisp, bitter taste & a long lasting bitter aftertaste
Buy Black Sheep ales here
Buy Black Sheep ales here
A big thank you to Batemans Brewery & Stuart Bateman
A lovely gift arrived from Batemans Brewery today courtesy of Stuart Bateman - a 6-bottle sample pack for the Baron to rate. The pack contained the following quality Batemans ales:
The packaging was something special as well, pressed cardboard tubes for the bottles, sealed with parcel tape and then slotted neatly together in the perfectly sized box. I think Batemans really know what they are doing when it comes to delivering ale. These pressed cardboard tubes would be perfect for #beerswap.
I'm looking forward to getting stuck into these ales over the next week or so, as always I'll be posting Baron Ratings as I go...hic!
I'm looking forward to getting stuck into these ales over the next week or so, as always I'll be posting Baron Ratings as I go...hic!
Win a CAMRA 12-bottle Christmas Beer Case on Planet Rock
Win a CAMRA 12-bottle Christmas Beer Case over on Planet Rock today only (I think) http://www.planetrock.com/article.asp?id=1603972