Hullaballo,
when I first started drinking in 1990 ish the main North Eastern and Newcastle area beers came from Scottish and Newcastle, Big Lamp, (although that may have been later) and of course Vaux and Castle Eden. Castle Eden Ale was, in fact, the first beer I had bought for me in a pub - in 1989 with a meal WF bought me a half. Am thinking that this was OK, and he bought it and the place we were eating in was full so am certain it was....
In the early nineties I made a couple of trips up to Northumberland, and discovered Longstone Brewery. Memories as always are a bit vague but I always recall it having a blur pump clip and a lighthouse on it - am certain there is still a Longstone Lighthouse. In it's short history one of their beers was called Old Grace Bitter, named after Bamburgh born lighthouse keeper's daughter Grace Darling. I only ever tried one of their beers, somewhere in Northumberland, which was a 3.7% one called Hotspur. And I never saw their beers again.
Its at this point that I should point out my understanding of the North East as an area - I am in fact referencing everywhere from Middlesborough to Berwick. Am certain that is not everyone's idea of the same description but it is broadly accurate.
Meanwhile, I know that High House Farm and Wylam set up in the noughties, along with later on Anarchy Brew Co and Allendale, and also that Hexamshire was set up in the nineties and is still trading, but in the last couple of years we have seen both Almasty and Errant breweries set up, both producing excellent beers, and supplying output to a number of pubs including the excellent Shakespeares in Sheffield, AKA my second home. And recently, my latest selection of cans from local shops has pointed to a few more.....
First up is Full Circle Brew Co - I had a can of their Lake of stars pale ale at 4.5% and as well as being incredibly pale I also found it very easy to sup - there was bitterness in there, as well as oats, and although hardly a session ale, as well as not a strong ale, I found that it didn't last very long. A look on the tinterweb, where everything is true, suggests that its well regarded and also that they opened both a micro brewery and a tap room in Hoults Yard Newcastle, last year. Probably due to their newness, and also maybe because this appears to have been brewed with Brewgooder whom I thought may have some involvement with BrewDog, this is the first beer of theirs that I have come across. Once again the lack of information generally available about their products suggests I may have to unfurl the horror of Untapped at some stage.....
Next up is another new one on me - that being Play Brew Co in Middlesborugh, a place that I, undoubtedly incorrectly believe was or still is, in North Yorkshire - please don't hate me if this is not true! The beer of theirs that I tried was Lazy Daze, a 6.5% NEIPA featuring Mosaic, Eukanot and Amarillo hops. This once again did not disappoint in terms of flavour, and lacked any of the oftentimes appearance of sweetness which many North East and North West brews sometimes contain. Darker than the Full Circle, but 2% stronger, the calmer colouring did nothing to take away from the excellent mouthfeel within.
The final brewery is one that I have another of their cans paid for and pending in fine sunny Sheffield. Alpha Delta Brewing are based in Newburn in Newcastle upon Tyne and their Selene Galaxy DIPA at 8.2% was sensational. I have to clarify that appearance of cans does not on it's own pressurise my choice of beers, but also, that a good design can often make me more willing to give one a try. The Alpha Delta can is black with a white A and triangular D letter below it, and it tasted fabulous. Possibly due it being Unfined, Unfiltered and Unpasteurised, this beer ticked all the boxes in terms of its appearance - a soupy cloud of delicious orange gunge which was not only easy to drink for it's strength, but if I hadn't had been taking care of my intake last night I imagine I could have supped down the beer in about ten minutes. Instead I let the flavours on show linger, and enjoyed every single minute of this.
I have discovered that there are also now a large number of other microbreweries in Newcastle and beyond in operation, and these are ones I ill take the opportunity to sample in the next year or so, but these three examples alone demonstrate that the North East area brewing industry is blooming and improving regularly.
Keep up the Good Work!
Wee Beefy
Showing posts with label Allendale Brewery. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Allendale Brewery. Show all posts
Tuesday, 5 May 2020
Friday, 16 November 2012
The 4th Shakespeares Sheffield real ale and cider festival
Hello,
tonight I had been aiming to take it easy. To slip home quietly after work, not having been left to lock up, nipping to the shops for essentials and creating a leisurely meal then spending the remainder of the evening in front of the telly. Then I remembered tonight was Children In Need night. Where good telly went to heaven. The waining careers of peripheral or has been figures resuscitated for schmaltz strewn discomfort, admittedly with a worthy pay off for charitable causes.
Luckily at work someone mentioned my inevitable attendance at the Shakespeares beer festival. Which I had, erm, remembered. In my unused memory. So now I had to fanny about going to the pub after work, seeing people I knew and liked, and partaking in the rigmarole of drinking beer.
Still, it could have been worse - I could have been sat in front of the computer screen, driven senselessly mad by the sh*t combo of Orange snoozeband and Internet Explorer with Blogger, a double act who's flaccid unresponsive death jerk of a typing portal will lead me to actually smash the keyboard to pieces with my fists. I realise Google Chrome maybe better, but that's only one out of three problems solved. But I digress (breathe, calm, breathe....)
Shamelessly poor technology aside I arrived at the Shakespeare to bear witness to a seething throng of punters, some curious, some oblivious, many excited, and some taking it far too damn seriously. Portus was with me, and I bought him a lager and myself a Revolutions Masquerade Black IPA (4.5%, £2.80). This was a dry, ascorbic hoppy beer with an unforgiving bitterness. Just a slight extra facet of balancing flavour would have made it impeccable. As it was, it seemed uncompromising with none of the redeeming features that usually faultless Revolutions beers have, which was a shame. I could admire its bite but not its intent.
Portus had to leave soon after and I went upstairs to find the helpful lass who'd served me downstairs in the bar. Alas the upstairs "festival" bar wasn't officially open at this point; but being a top bar person she offered to pour me a half in a pint glass and let me take the beer downstairs with her to pay. The upstairs bar was to be manned later on, but this was a good example of the usual excellent Shakespeares service.
From said haunt alas the beer was less commendable, that being the Marlpool Straw Gold, 4.2% which I had long wanted to try, not least because I fancied a trip to the Queens Head where the brewery is based. Alas, whilst this may not be a best example, the overriding feature was hazy and sickly sweet honey flavours. Not to my taste at all.
Up next was a dark and pale combo - halves of Red Willow Heartless Chocolate Stout (4.9% £2.80) and a half of the Tryst Hop Trial Nelson Sauvin, 3.9%, at the same price. The Tryst started well but became a bit one dimensional, not a surprising trait for a single hopped beer but a suggestion that the malts used to balance its flavours weren't suitable. It was at least a refreshing drink. The Red Willow meanwhile was even more disappointing. A heavy cloying chocolate free slick of a stout, with a grim burnt edge, perhaps made worse simply because of my expectation? I don't know, but I was very disappointed, and left a bit in the glass.
Thankfully things improved greatly from here on in. A pint of the brilliant Fyne Ales Hurricane Jack Blonde (4.4% £2.80) and a half of the Allendale Winter Dunkel were impeccable, with the Fyne perhaps edging it, if only for a slight smokey sweet aftertaste to the Allendale. Based on staff recommendation, and my own curiosity, I really wanted to finish on the Porter Geist from Raw (5.9% £3.10) but it was getting late and I wanted to get home and get some food - although the pizza sold in the garden (?) smelt and looked fantastic.
Other breweries beers you may wish to seek out for yourself over the weekend include :
Barkston
Cross Bay
College Green
Collingham
Cullercoats
Jolly Sailor
Lincoln Green
Two Bobs
Urban Brewhouse
Not to mention the fantastic LocAle offerings on the bar including, of course, Abbeydale, plus Geeves and Welbeck amongst others.
So, although a fleeting 3 hour visit, (and despite being enraged by the fact the programme lists 3 full beer fests and 1 mini one then above lists this as the third!) this was a great start to the festival for me, and no doubt based on how busy it was, a great second day to proceedings for Shakespeares. And all beers were priced between £2.50 and £3.10 a pint, so very good value.
Get down quick before it runs out!
Wee Beefy.
tonight I had been aiming to take it easy. To slip home quietly after work, not having been left to lock up, nipping to the shops for essentials and creating a leisurely meal then spending the remainder of the evening in front of the telly. Then I remembered tonight was Children In Need night. Where good telly went to heaven. The waining careers of peripheral or has been figures resuscitated for schmaltz strewn discomfort, admittedly with a worthy pay off for charitable causes.
Luckily at work someone mentioned my inevitable attendance at the Shakespeares beer festival. Which I had, erm, remembered. In my unused memory. So now I had to fanny about going to the pub after work, seeing people I knew and liked, and partaking in the rigmarole of drinking beer.
Still, it could have been worse - I could have been sat in front of the computer screen, driven senselessly mad by the sh*t combo of Orange snoozeband and Internet Explorer with Blogger, a double act who's flaccid unresponsive death jerk of a typing portal will lead me to actually smash the keyboard to pieces with my fists. I realise Google Chrome maybe better, but that's only one out of three problems solved. But I digress (breathe, calm, breathe....)
Shamelessly poor technology aside I arrived at the Shakespeare to bear witness to a seething throng of punters, some curious, some oblivious, many excited, and some taking it far too damn seriously. Portus was with me, and I bought him a lager and myself a Revolutions Masquerade Black IPA (4.5%, £2.80). This was a dry, ascorbic hoppy beer with an unforgiving bitterness. Just a slight extra facet of balancing flavour would have made it impeccable. As it was, it seemed uncompromising with none of the redeeming features that usually faultless Revolutions beers have, which was a shame. I could admire its bite but not its intent.
Portus had to leave soon after and I went upstairs to find the helpful lass who'd served me downstairs in the bar. Alas the upstairs "festival" bar wasn't officially open at this point; but being a top bar person she offered to pour me a half in a pint glass and let me take the beer downstairs with her to pay. The upstairs bar was to be manned later on, but this was a good example of the usual excellent Shakespeares service.
From said haunt alas the beer was less commendable, that being the Marlpool Straw Gold, 4.2% which I had long wanted to try, not least because I fancied a trip to the Queens Head where the brewery is based. Alas, whilst this may not be a best example, the overriding feature was hazy and sickly sweet honey flavours. Not to my taste at all.
Up next was a dark and pale combo - halves of Red Willow Heartless Chocolate Stout (4.9% £2.80) and a half of the Tryst Hop Trial Nelson Sauvin, 3.9%, at the same price. The Tryst started well but became a bit one dimensional, not a surprising trait for a single hopped beer but a suggestion that the malts used to balance its flavours weren't suitable. It was at least a refreshing drink. The Red Willow meanwhile was even more disappointing. A heavy cloying chocolate free slick of a stout, with a grim burnt edge, perhaps made worse simply because of my expectation? I don't know, but I was very disappointed, and left a bit in the glass.
Thankfully things improved greatly from here on in. A pint of the brilliant Fyne Ales Hurricane Jack Blonde (4.4% £2.80) and a half of the Allendale Winter Dunkel were impeccable, with the Fyne perhaps edging it, if only for a slight smokey sweet aftertaste to the Allendale. Based on staff recommendation, and my own curiosity, I really wanted to finish on the Porter Geist from Raw (5.9% £3.10) but it was getting late and I wanted to get home and get some food - although the pizza sold in the garden (?) smelt and looked fantastic.
Other breweries beers you may wish to seek out for yourself over the weekend include :
Barkston
Cross Bay
College Green
Collingham
Cullercoats
Jolly Sailor
Lincoln Green
Two Bobs
Urban Brewhouse
Not to mention the fantastic LocAle offerings on the bar including, of course, Abbeydale, plus Geeves and Welbeck amongst others.
So, although a fleeting 3 hour visit, (and despite being enraged by the fact the programme lists 3 full beer fests and 1 mini one then above lists this as the third!) this was a great start to the festival for me, and no doubt based on how busy it was, a great second day to proceedings for Shakespeares. And all beers were priced between £2.50 and £3.10 a pint, so very good value.
Get down quick before it runs out!
Wee Beefy.
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