Moor, Hoppiness

Easily one of my favourite beers at the moment (deserving of an extra photo)! 660ml of fruity bitter goodness. Justin at Moor really knows his onions - I'm not sure I've had anything from him that I haven't liked. I first tried Hoppiness a while back now (more or less on a whim: it's described as part barley wine on the label which I hadn't really experienced and I must admit it wasn't without a certain degree of trepidation that I picked up this particular beer, but I'm extremely glad I did!) and was fortunate enough to be able to get hold of a couple more from Mr Lawrence. Unfined (of course) natural beer, a hazy, burnt orange in colour, frothy head, super nose (zesty and citrusy), and a decent malt smoothness gives way to a blistering long bitter ending. A jolly satisfying drink. Strong at 6.7% and best to share it I reckon! (Well, on a weeknight at least.)

Mr Lawrence Wine Merchant, Crofton Park SE4

I discovered Mr Lawrence too late - I've only been going there a few months now, and as has been widely publicised recently, they are set to close their off license and continue trading as mail order only.

Whilst their focus is primarily their grand selection of wine, 'they have become a must-visit for South East London's growing legion of beer geeks'¹. I discovered Beavertown, Moor and the scarily tasty Magic Rock here, their Kernels are the best priced in the capital (better even than the brewery itself somehow - I think because they were the first off license in London to agree to stock it?) and the proprietors themselves have been nothing but friendly, chatty, knowledgeable and accommodating.

Every cloud has a silver lining though - They're continuing to trade via mail order, focussing initially on London based breweries, with Kernel, Beavertown and potentially Partizan amongst those offered (for pick up or delivery), and also, quite excitingly, the owners want the premises to be given over (subject to the local council granting change of use) to a micro-brewer who intends to brew on site and run a bar selling the beers!

I'll miss being let in through the security gate, browsing the wood panelled shop and chatting to the congenial owners, but I look forward to continuing to make my mini-missions on the No. 122 down to Crofton Park to pick up my fortnightly supply of quality London ales!

¹The Craft Beer App: http://craftbeerlondon.bluecrowmedia.com/

Shepherd Neame, India Pale Ale

New IPA from Shepherd Neame - a certifiably British IPA: bitterness from the fuggles hops sting the tongue and a confident toffee malt on the flip. Amber in colour, well carbonated with head. Would definitely drink this again - it's comforting to have a wide choice of solid UK IPAs: Empire Strikes Back, Sainsburys TTD and this one.

Buxton, Wild Boar

Elegantly fruity IPA from Buxton. Unfined and a glowing pale gold in colour. Very lightly carbonated, smooth and hoppy with a nicely bitter finish. I first had a pint of this on draft at The Rake in Borough and hadn't seen it in a bottle until quite recently (purchased again from the soon-to-be-mailorder-only Mr Lawrence Wine Merchant).

Moor, Revival

I could easily drink an awful lot of this beer from Moor. A tinge of fruit on the edges and the main flavour for me was an umami-esque, indefinable yet clearly a zesty, hoppy character. (Again, if I was perhaps more experienced I might recognise the particular hop(s), but I'm not, so I don't.) Amber in colour, I shared this bomber with my mother-in-law. Really really easy to drink. I imagine this would be amazing at a BBQ in the summer! I bought this from Mr Lawrence in Crofton Park.

Arbor Ales, Yakima Valley American IPA

It's with beers like this one that my inexperience really tells. I'm afraid I wasn't into this IPA by Arbor Ales at all. Perhaps I had a bad bottle? Basically, I'm not sure! I've had the Yakima Red from Meantime - they describe the Yakima hops as imparting "spectacular fruit and citrus flavours". This IPA from Arbor using similar hops did not impart such flavours. It had a sickly, caramely taste, not entirely dissimilar to those super strength lagers like Helden Braü, Special Brew and the classic Steinberg Super. I've had 2 beers relatively recently that've had that same distinctive sweet cloyingness: Dark Star 6 Hops and the Old Dairy Brewery Hop Top. Is this a style of beer that I simply don't like? Or perhaps I've had a bottles from a ropey batch? Post a comment to let me know!

The Kernel Brewery, IPA: Centennial, Topaz, Stella

I think the Kernel made this brew at the end of last year and it's their current IPA. Slightly more amber then Moor's Empire Strikes Back, but still very pale in colour. Typically huge fruity nose although not much of a lingering bitterness. Not too much carbonation, but of course it's extremely hoppy - the bitterness it does produce is the kind that gets the roof of your mouth. I hope I'm not building a tolerance or something to the Kernel IPAs, but this didn't seem to impress quite like previous ones. Nonetheless, this is still a very beautiful and immensely satisfying drink.

Adnams, Ghost Ship

I first had Adnam's Ghost Ship on draft at The Regent in Balham (I think I had this before I went on to the Goose Island). I more or less fell in love with it then and have been on the look out for the bottled version ever since. I'd not seen it about at all (I kind of expected Sainsburys to have it) until I wandered into Boss Man Wines on Lordship Lane, where I bought a couple of bottles. There's a slight carbonation in the bottle as compared to the totally flat draft. It has a distinct fruity nose and is very bitter. I'm not usually very good at all at discerning the fruits in my beers, but even I could taste the lemon in this. Very pleasing, lingering bitter finish that tingles the gums. What I admired about this beer was that it managed to get fruitiness into it and remain an english brew - it isn't really like an APA at all. An absolutely fantastic session beer that I will continue to go back to. (Only slight problem with this perhaps is that the lemon is so prominent that it almost could be reminiscent of those alcopop things.....)

Moor, Empire Strikes Back

Without wanting to labour any point about 'types' of beer, I think it's reasonably important to mention the different types of IPA. (Genre definitions are the bane of electronic music aficionado's lives, and I suspect that they're a point of issue for beer geeks too.) Anyway, Much like the Sainsburys TTD IPA, the Empire Strikes Back from Moor is a UK IPA, brewed to deliberately (I imagine) stand apart taste-wise from the US varieties. No tropicality, only a faint and delicate nose, extremely pale and massively hoppy. (Actually, what this UK IPA does share with it's US sisters is it's extreme hoppiness.) There was a touch of fruit coming through in the aftertaste (alongside the longlasting big bitterness stinging my gums) but the major flavour was that earthy/grassy one from that Joker hop they use. As with all Moor beers, this is unfined (which again I understand has come to be a talking point for beer lovers: Mark Dredge via Matt Curtis) - for me this is important and a selling point for good beer. The Moor advocation of unfined beer is here. I love the Moor branding btw, it really stands out.

Ps - Yesterday was a Moor day: 1 x pint of Sloe Walker, 1 x 0.5 pint of Dark Alliance (many thanks to the discerning manager of my excellent local Westow House) and then my bomber of Empire. Spoilt rotten with excellent beer!

Sainsburys Taste The Difference, India Pale Ale

No nose on this UK IPA. Poured clear and amber. Didn't get a head on this. Faint grassyness in the taste I think*? A decent lasting bitter finish at the back of the mouth. No tropical fruitiness going on here, but this is brewed by Marstons who're responsible for Old Empire IPA - no expectation of that West Coast IPA flavour. Like Moor's Empire Strikes Back, this is a UK IPA, a specific style harking back to the how and whys of when the IPA was first created. A decent drink with a strong ABV. Despite the otherwise rather drab nature of the TTD branding, I really like the elephant graphic on the label.

*disclaimer: immature palette!

Brooklyn Lager

I'm pretty sure that this Brooklyn Lager was the first (before the Goose Island) 'craft ale' that I ever drank (I believe that my cousin Talal was responsible...). Modern phrases annoy me slightly, but the term 'game changer' can probably apply to this beer. As a 'lager', I've always felt that this Brooklyn is more of a 'bitter flavoured' lager (if that makes any sense) - a big malty taste that's gently balanced with a mild, yet carefully considered hop bitterness. It makes the Kronenbourgs and Stellas of this world taste bland and insipid by comparison.

Goose Island, IPA

The Goose Island IPA was the first craft US IPA I'd tasted since starting to seriously and methodically try out different beer. I started with the english ales (favourites being Courage's Directors and Bath Ales Gem) and the taste in this IPA was very new to me. I think I was initially attracted by the bitterness and I remember my wife saying something like "It tastes like flowers". Anyway, it started a bit of an (expensive) addiction, and therefore this blog. So - thank you Goose Island!

The Kernel Brewery, London Brewer's Alliance Collaboration Stout

Had this Kernel Stout just after the Porter. Clearly a lot more viscous, opaque and rich. Velvety on the nose and a bit of spice in it? This was recommended to me by the kind lady at the brewery itself. I think next time, I'll try and get my head around a few more of their porters, as the stout is pretty heady. I drank it slow too, which is pretty rare for me. Even though I definitely enjoyed every sip of it, I couldn't help but feel a bit like I did when I used a cheat code on an old Megadrive game to get past a level that I couldn't beat, just so that I could get to the end boss. More practise with the darker brews is needed!

The Kernel Brewery, Export Porter: Cacao

Whilst I've known of the Kernel Brewery for a little while already, I've only really drunk their pale ales. My brother bought me a Beavertown Smog Rocket for Christmas and the experience of drinking it was definitely akin to how I felt tasting that first Goose Island IPA I had over a year ago now. Anyway, I know next to nothing about Porters except that I'm keen to try more. This one from Kernel was great. I had their stout afterwards and had the smoky, chocolatey coffiness from the 2 drinks buzzing around my sinuses well after I'd gone to bed.

The Kernel Brewery, Table Beer

Fantastic nose on this Table Beer by Kernel, much like their stronger pale ales, but I barely noticed the modest alcohol content - the stand up character of this drink is a testament to their brewing: they've managed to make a 3.1% beer taste like one that's 5%+. Something to be well applauded! I will buy more of this beer. (Ps - I've never understood the term 'biscuity' used by beer bloggers until this drink.....)

The Kernel Brewery, Dockley Road SE1

Paid a visit to the Kernel Brewery in Bermondsey today. I remember walking past their old premises in the Maltby St market ages ago and not paying it any attention. It was busy back then and today they're clearly still enjoying very brisk business. The beer hall was packed and there was a big queue to the till. I came away with a few of their frankly amazing Table Beers and a kind lady let me try a couple of their stouts (bought a London Brewers Alliance Collab). I was hoping to see the brewing equipment but there wasn't anything on show unfortunately. Oh well. To be honest, I'll probably go to Mr Lawrence to get my Kernels in the future, less of a queue and fewer hipsters.

Buxton Brewery, Black Rocks

Not sure about black IPAs on the whole. I can understand the concept, but I'm not sure if I can get behind the more extreme versions of it. Kernel do a great one, the Beavertown one goes more towards the darker flavour associations, and this one from Buxton goes further still. This Black Rocks had an amazing fruity nose! The maltiness was definitely in the ascendency over the fruits. The after-zing wasn't especially bitter. (In fact the main fruit flavours seemed to come through then rather than before.) Nice fruity repeat!