Category Archives: Beers

The beers

103. Shipyard Fuggles IPA

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It’s funny how things work out. One morning I’d been poring over The Official 300 Beers Todo List, as is my wont, and fretting over how on earth to find Shipyard Fuggles IPA, a beer I’d never seen from an American brewery I’d never heard of.

A couple of hours later I walked into my local Oddbins only to find a freshly delivered case being loaded onto the shelves and into the fridge. And here it is.

Shipyard Fuggles IPA

This could be interesting, because Shipyard Fuggles IPA is an American IPA from Portland, Maine, but as the name suggests, it’s brewed exclusively with Fuggles, a quintessentially English hop that you’d more usually find in a pint of bitter.

The label proudly pronounces this to be “Craft Beer”, which is typically an unambiguous sign that it’s nothing of the sort, and is more likely to originate from a mediocre brewery vainly trying to buzzword their way into a seat on the bandwagon. But maybe this is an exception.

Shipyard Fuggles IPA

Shipyard Fuggles IPA is a warm copper colour with almost no head at all. There’s barely a wisp of froth on there, despite a reasonably hard pour.

The only way I can describe the taste is that it’s what a not-particularly-knowledgeable American lager drinker probably thinks an English beer tastes like, but then sweetened and with the ABV bumped up to make it more acceptable to that same American guy.

It doesn’t really work. It’s sweet, soapy and slightly medicinal with pronounced notes of fungus, plaster of Paris and disappointment. If you were to imagine a poorly-kept pint of something like Doom Bar that’s been left out overnight, and then industrially condensed to accentuate the unpleasantness within, you’d be quite close.

I’m going to be charitable here and assume that this is a beer which does not travel well. At all. Maybe it’s an absolute delight when sampled in Portland. I suspect I’ll never know, but I do rather wish I’d only bought
the one bottle.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Shipyard Brewing Company, Portland, ME
Style: India Pale Ales
Strength: 5.8% ABV
Found at: Oddbins, Rosendale Road, London SE21
Serving: 355ml bottle

102. Mordue Workie Ticket

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The contribution that The Grape & Grain up in Crystal Palace has made to this ridiculous project so far has been nothing short of heroic, and continues with this oddly-named Best Bitter from the North East of England.

I’d been wondering how to find this one, so the moment “the Grape” announced that it was on the bar via their Perfectpint page, plans were hastily changed and Threehundredbeers was on its way up the hill.

Let’s order a pint from the friendly young staff and take it outside into the spacious beer garden. In fact, in over a hundred beers covered, I think this is the first outdoor beer we’ve had. It must be summer.

Mordue Workie Ticket

The name “Workie Ticket” apparently derives from a distinctly North Eastern term, the meaning of which is somewhat ill-defined. I’ve seen various explanations involving being a jobsworth, or trying to get expelled from the army, but I won’t bore you with them, because no one really seems sure, and I imagine you know how to use a search engine at least as well as me.

The name of the Mordue Brewery itself dates back to the 19th century, but its present incarnation actually began life in 1995, shortly after which they were awarded Champion Beer of Britain for this particular brew. It’s a famous beer then, though you rarely see it down here in London.

Mordue Workie Ticket is a handsome enough beer, pouring a deep rubyish bronze colour with a small tan head. Right from the first taste, it’s full of flavour. It’s a Best alright, but there’s a big malty sweetness that’s strongly reminiscent of a Mild.

The sweetness is backed up by a huge mouthful of spicy English hops, though, and there are dates, currants and other assorted dried fruits, but also some chocolatey and roasty notes that wouldn’t seem out of place in a Porter. It all combines to make for a huge beer that’s chewy, mouthwatering and very moreish.

I stuck at one pint though, because I suspect all that flavour could potentially get a bit overwhelming. Still, this was a very fine, restorative pint. I liked it a lot, and it’s one that I’d happily drink again.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Mordue Brewery, North Shields, Tyne & Wear
Style: Best Bitters
Strength: 4.5% ABV
Found at: The Grape & Grain, Anerley Hill, London SE19
Serving: Cask, pint

101. Koningshoeven La Trappe Blond

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It must be all of two weeks since we last visited Lowlander. It’s a pleasant evening for a stroll around the West End, so why not let’s drift back. We can tackle this week’s Beelzebub crossword and sample the third and final La Trappe beer that we need while we’re there.

Koningshoeven La Trappe Blond at Lowlander Grand Café

We’ve already seen the La Trappe Dubbel and also the Tripel. The Blond is actually the least strong of the three, at a mere 6.5% ABV.

It pours very much the expected golden colour with a small amount of dense, white foam, and there’s a remarkable amount of fizz to it.

This is technically a Dutch beer, but like the previous La Trappe offerings, it’s basically as Belgian as a beer can get, short of, you know, actually being Belgian. It smells and tastes every inch the typical Belgian blond: floral and honey notes, banana fruit and musty farmhouse yeast.

There’s a hint of vanilla and some spicy hops, and despite being a little gassy, it’s quite refreshing. Unfortunately it’s a disappointingly inoffensive beer. There’s none of the moreish, zingy saltiness of the last Trappist blond we tried, the famous Westvleteren, or the warming alcohols of the La Trappe Tripel.

There’s nothing to particularly dislike about this one, but on balance, it’s really a rather forgettable beer.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Abdij Onze Lieve Vrouw van Koningshoeven, Berkel-Enschot, Netherlands
Style: Trappist Beers
Strength: 6.5% ABV
Found at: Lowlander Grand Café, Drury Lane, London WC2B
Serving: 330ml bottle

100. Westvleteren Blond

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I feel under a certain amount of pressure to come up with something a bit special for beer number 100. I hope this will do, as it’s a bottle of something rather rare which I brought back from Belgium when I visited in February.

Westvletern Blond - cap

Westvleteren Blond is one of three beers brewed by the Trappist monks at The Abbey of Saint Sixtus of Westvleteren somewhere deep in the Flanders countryside. The Blond is perhaps the least famous of the three, and the lightest in terms of alcohol, at a sensible-by-Belgian-standards 5.8%.

The beers are officially only available at the monastery, and even then only after you jump through some pretty draconian hoops. The reason is that the monks have no desire to become a commercial brewing operation, instead preferring to sell just enough beer to pay for the upkeep of the monastery, and to allow them to carry on with their monky business undisturbed.

So they’ve rather shot themselves in the foot, then, by brewing what many consider to be some of the very finest beers in the world. The combination of lack of supply and huge demand mean they’re also some of the rarest and most difficult to find.

Fortunately for 300 Beers, there’s a small, shall we say, grey market in Brussels, and you can get hold of them if you know where to look, at least if you don’t mind parting with a few extra euros.

Westvleteren Blond

As you can see, the monks don’t even feel the need to do anything so pretentious as to put a label on their bottles, instead squeezing all the required information onto the cap.

There’s a hefty dose of loose yeast in the bottle, making it impossible to pour without getting a little in your glass, which doesn’t matter. As such, the beer pours an attractive, cloudy, deep golden colour with a modest amount of tenacious white froth which coats the glass beautifully.

The nose is all grapefruit, honey, delicate floral hops and Belgian yeast. The mouthfeel is interesting for a blond, as it’s so velvety smooth, and the beer is really quite full bodied.

To taste, that honey is there in spades and is joined by banana fruit courtesy of the malts, and big pepper and clove spice notes from the Northern Brewer hops.

The spices are present right through to the finish, which is surprisingly bitter for a blond. In fact it’s distinctly salty, in a way that’s reminiscent of an unaged Orval, which in many ways I guess is quite a similar beer.

The saltiness is a little odd at first, but soon becomes mouthwatering, and combines with the slightest of sour and farmhouse notes to provide an overall effect that’s a great deal more satisfying than many Belgian blonds.

Whilst it was always going to be hard for the Blond to live up to the high regard afforded to the two other beers in the Westvleteren family, in particular the Abt, there really is a very special quality to it: a real balance and refinement that only the finest beers ever achieve.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: The Abbey of Saint Sixtus of Westvleteren, Flanders, Belgium
Style: Trappist Beers
Strength: 5.8% ABV
Found at: De Biertempel, Grasmarkt, Brussels, Belgium
Serving: 330ml bottle

99. Crouch Vale Brewers Gold

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Fancy a quick pint on the way home from work? Tell you what, let’s pop in to the Edgar Wallace. I’ve heard a lot of good things about the pub, and have an inkling that they might be able to help 300 Beers out with a beer or two.

It turns out to be a very nice pub. It’s pretty traditional, and the walls and ceiling are lined with brewery and other booze-related memorabilia and pump clips.

Sure enough, among the eight handpumps is Crouch Vale Brewers Gold (no apostrophe, note), a beer about which I know very little, other than it’s in The Book, and that it’s the only beer to have been crowned Champion Beer of Britain two years running.

Crouch Vale Brewers Gold

As you can tell, it’s kind of dark inside the Edgar Wallace, even on a sunny evening, but I can just make out that Brewers Gold is well-named, as it’s gold in colour, with a white head that fades to nothing a within a few minutes of getting back to your seat.

It’s in good nick here all the same, much as I’d been told it would be. The first taste is sweet, sappy and resiny. It’s full bodied, with rich honey flavours and a slight chemical note that I can’t quite place.

The sweetness carries through strongly to the finish, where it’s joined by a restrained hop bitterness that builds noticeably as you work your way towards the bottom of the glass.

Brewers Gold reminds me somewhat of the Kelham Island Pale Rider that I enjoyed a great deal up in Sheffield, but I’m not sure it’s quite in the same league.

It’s a pleasant enough, slightly moreish and very sessionable beer, though I didn’t find it particularly exciting. I’d drink it again, but probably wouldn’t go out of my way for another pint.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Crouch Vale Brewery, South Woodham Ferrers, Essex, England
Style: Golden Ales
Strength: 4.0% ABV
Found at: The Edgar Wallace, Essex Street, London WC2R
Serving: Cask, pint

98. Pilsner Urquell

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It may not always be obvious, but I do try to think about how to make some of these posts interesting for both my readers. And I had wondered what I could find to say about Pilsner Urquell, a beer that you can find by the bottle in any supermarket in the land.

So when the very pleasant The Canonbury up in North London announced they were to hold a Pilsner Urquell Oak Barrel Event this weekend, Threehundredbeers was predictably first on the scene.

Pilsner Urquell Oak Barrel Event

What we have here is unfiltered, unpasteurised Pilsner Urquell, drained directly from the lagering tanks at the brewery in Pilsen into a very limited number of oak casks, and then promptly escorted over to the UK to be dispensed by gravity into the glasses of eagerly waiting beer nerds who come from far and wide. All for the regular price of a pint of the keg stuff.

Having got in early, the beer was still settling when I arrived, and the first pint was mostly froth. It turned into actual beer quickly and I was invited to return for as many refills as I fancied, so I was a very happy camper indeed.

Oak Barelled Pilsner Urquell

As you can see, the beer is a beautiful cloudy amber colour. CAMRA types should take note that this is what “real” beer actually looks like, rather than the artificially, chemically clarified stuff they seem to prefer.

The aroma is absolutely huge for a lager, and full of Pilsner malts, oak and restrained, floral hops. Being served at room temperature certainly helps.

To taste, the beer is quite subtle and delicate at first. It’s full bodied and malty though, all Digestives and Rich Tea biscuits. This is not a sledgehammer of a beer. Instead it takes its time, and quietly works its way up to a gigantic, bitter finish, leaving you wanting more immediately. Back in the queue we go.

This really is special. It’s still a lager, but with all the flavours turned up to 11. There’s even banana fruit and a caramel richness in there, but absolutely zero sweetness. In fact this is one of the driest beers I’ve come across in a long time, and I like that.

I was told that the oaked Pilsner Urquell is the same strength as the regular stuff, which is 4.4%. Now, maybe I didn’t have enough breakfast before setting off, but this one went to my head much quicker than a beer of that strength usually would. I’ll survive.

Sadly, the last of this year’s oaked Pilsner Urquell consignment has been drunk now, but I can strongly recommend keeping your eyes peeled for future events, and making your way along if some does turn up. I certainly shall.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Plzeňský Prazdroj, Pilsen, Czech Republic
Style: Pilsners
Strength: 4.4% ABV
Found at: The Canonbury, Canonbury Place, London N1
Serving: Oak cask, gravity, somewhat more than a pint

97. Meantime Raspberry Wheat Beer

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Now, cards on the table, I’m not sure I’m going to like this one. Not that Meantime would ever make a bad beer, but if there are two styles I don’t tend to care much for, it’s wheat beers, and beers with any kind of fruit in them.

And here we are then, a Raspberry Wheat Beer. Still, it’s a good excuse for another trip back to The Old Brewery in Greenwich, where we sampled the Coffee Porter a week or so ago.

Meantime Raspberry Wheat Beer

Much like the Coffee Porter, the Raspberry Wheat Beer is an ever-so-slight substitution for the original beer in The Book. The “Red Beer” covered in there no longer exists, but a touch of research suggests this one to be almost identical in all but name and ABV, being a fraction stronger at 5%. If anyone can confirm or deny this, do let me know in the comments.

Perhaps not surprisingly, the Raspberry Wheat Beer pours a pleasingly cloudy, frothy orangey-pink colour, and there’s an immediate waft of raspberry filling the air. Upon seeing a grown man drink a pink beer, one nearby American tourist did look a bit puzzled, but I can live with that.

To taste, it’s certainly fruity, but thankfully not over-sweet, which really wouldn’t be to my taste. Instead, the fruit is tart, perhaps slightly bitter, and perfectly balanced, with the tiniest hint of sourness. In fact the effect is more reminiscent of a Kriek, such as the Cantillon one, than any raspberry beer I can remember.

I think I detect Belgian yeast in there too, and all in all it quickly becomes apparent that these Meantime chaps really do know what they’re doing. It’s an extremely high-quality beer, and almost despite myself, I find myself enjoying it greatly.

Served chilled, the Raspberry Wheat Beer is hugely refreshing, and this would be a great summer afternoon beer. That said, even on a rainy evening in South East London, it’s no hardship to drink it. It was a very pleasant change from the usual, even though next time I’m in Greenwich I’d probably still opt for the IPA or the very tasty new Black Pale.

In conclusion, I’d say that this beer is a great example of why I persist with this ridiculous blog project. I simply wouldn’t have tried this beer otherwise, and I really would have been missing out.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Meantime Brewing Company, Blackwall Lane, London SE10
Style: Beers made with Fruit, Spices, Herbs and Seeds
Strength: 5.0% ABV
Found at: The Old Brewery, Greenwich, London SE10
Serving: 330ml bottle

95. McMullen’s AK

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I had wondered if I was going to have to make a trip up to Hertfordshire for this one. McMullen’s appear to have countless pubs up that way, but happily I found this pint of AK a little closer to home, or at least to work.

The Spice of Life in Soho is quite familiar to me, having worked just across the road a few years ago. It’s a famous place, apparently a cornerstone of both the folk and later punk movements. It’s now a fairly traditional and very pleasant London boozer with charmingly friendly staff, but it still hosts regular live music, and the fish and chips I used to enjoy there is among the best I’ve ever had.

Yet I hadn’t twigged it was a McMullen’s pub, and so would perhaps be able to help 300 Beers out, until I started work in the area again recently. It’s time for a brief jaunt up to the far end of Soho.

McMullen's AK

McMullen’s AK is listed in The Book under Brown and Mild Ales, which I find hard to understand. I can’t believe it has changed much in the intervening years, but it’s absolutely, unquestionably an English bitter these days.

As such it pours a typical copper colour with a thinnish cream-coloured head that fades quickly. The aroma is all floral English hops, with a hint of pepperiness that carries through to the flavour.

It’s in impeccable condition here, as you’d hope from the brewery’s own pub, but even so I’m finding it hard to conjure up much to say about it. It’s your standard session bitter—refreshing, tasty and, well, bitter, but it isn’t deeply exciting.

Again, as with the Oakham JHB, that probably isn’t the point. I personally prefer a beer that packs a bit more of a wallop, but if you like a decent cask bitter, you won’t find much to complain about with this one.

Indeed, if you like “Real Ale” but are looking for something with a bit more flavour, I’m pleased to note that the McMullen’s IPA and also the Country Bitter at the Spice of Life are very enjoyable beers indeed.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: McMullen & Sons, Hertford, Hertfordshire, England
Style: Brown and Mild Ales
Strength: 3.7% ABV
Found at: The Spice of Life, Moor Street, London W1D
Serving: Cask, pint

96. Koningshoeven La Trappe Tripel

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I very much enjoy my all-too-infrequent visits to the splendid Lowlander on Drury Lane. To while away an afternoon being waited on by their charming and tirelessly efficient young staff, who unhesitatingly fetch you round after round of hopelessly strong beers at the slightest invocation, is one of London’s great pleasures.

You’ll remember that we previously enjoyed that rather special Rodenbach Grand Cru there a little while ago, but we haven’t exhausted the intersection between Lowlander’s extensive beer menu and the 300 Beers Todo List by any means. Let’s beckon our serveuse over and order a bottle of La Trappe Tripel.

Koningshoeven La Trappe Tripel

As I mentioned when I covered La Trappe Dubbel a little while ago, the Trappist Abbey of Our Lady of Koningshoeven brewery is the only Trappist brewery in the Netherlands, and as such brews what may be regarded as quite typically Belgian beer styles.

The Tripel is no exception. Blonder, hoppier and a little stronger than the Dubbel at 8.0%, the La Trappe Tripel is absolutely typical of its style, the archetype for which is of course the Westmalle Tripel.

This is a remarkably similar beer. One whiff and I’m back in Brussels, as the Belgian yeast, subtle hops and that distinctive dried banana aroma flow freely forth. To taste, it’s fresh, zesty and astonishingly light for an eight percenter.

As it warms, peppery, spicy notes come through, and while I wouldn’t have identified it myself, it’s not entirely surprisingly to learn that the monks brew this one with a touch of coriander. It contributes a spicy heat and adds complexity, though the beer isn’t lacking in that already.

I’m becoming quite fond of this brewery, though I’d tend to lean towards their 10% ABV Quadrupel, a couple of which are quietly ageing in the Official 300 Beers Cellar (a cardboard box in the spare room). That one isn’t in The Book, but there is one more La Trappe beer to track down. Stay tuned.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Abdij Onze Lieve Vrouw van Koningshoeven, Berkel-Enschot, Netherlands
Style: Trappist Beers
Strength: 8.0% ABV
Found at: Lowlander Grand Café, Drury Lane, London WC2B
Serving: 330ml bottle

94. Diebels Alt

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This bottle of Diebels Alt is the second beer from that Beers of Europe case I mentioned when we met Švyturys Ekstra. It’s also the first beer to be covered here from the Alt and Amber Beers chapter of The Book.

Diebel Alt - cap

Which is terribly exciting, not least because I don’t really know a great deal about the style at all. I know that Alt is a German style, and a little light reading tells me that it’s predominantly brewed in and around Düsseldorf, just as this one is.

Interestingly, it turns out that the Alt style predates the widespread proliferation of lager in Germany. That’s intriguing, because one tends to associate Germany strongly and almost exclusively with lagers such as Kölsch, perhaps with a few strange wheat beers thrown in for variety.

Which has me wondering what we’re in for. We’d better give this a try, then.

Diebels Alt

Diebels Alt immediately surprises me by coming out of the bottle remarkably dark. Held up to the light, it’s a really deep copper colour with a creamy white head.

In fact, it looks more like an English bitter than anything I had expected from Germany. Perhaps I shouldn’t have chilled this one overnight.

The beer smells deep and malty, a little like an ESB, but with a faint hoppy aroma that becomes distinctly peppery when you get your nose right in there.

And it tastes pretty blooming good, to be fair, especially after a long day at work. It’s dark and slightly sinister, with those peppery flavours coming through strongly and complementing the plentiful rich dried fruit notes. There’s a tiny hint of orange too, again reminding me of an ESB, in particular Fuller’s.

There’s a big old bitter finish, and a very modest degree of fizz, so despite being full of flavour, Diebels Alt is hopelessly easy-drinking. You never seem to see beers like this on tap in the UK, but it could be a great session pint, particularly served from a keg.

Well I never. That was all a bit of a pleasant surprise, and I wouldn’t mind another just now. Still, there was another Alt in that case, so I imagine we’ll be seeing that one in these pages before long.

Facts and Figures

Brewery: Brauerei Diebels, Issum, Germany
Style: Alt and Amber Beers
Strength: 4.9% ABV
Found at: Beers of Europe
Serving: 500ml bottle