Abbeydale

Artanoo yall,

               as predicted yesterday, today has been a fab day - not least because of yet another large serving of my indomitable six hour Bolognese, but also because the fab folk at the above named brewery arrived today with my beers from their factory of joy. So far, entirely of course in order to increase my relevant knowledge of their output, I have tasted two of their cans - both new to me. And as also expected, they did not disappoint.

I started first of all with a can of Reverie. New to me, this 4.2% pale ale was immediately of interest to me when I doffed the cap - or rather, opened the can, it straight away released a huge amount of delicious aroma - I remember thinking Citra mixed with bitterness, and reading the back of the can, not only do I still smell the same after nearly two hours, but I can see that its a dry hopped pale made with Citra and Cascade, explaining the noticable bitterness. Tasting the same brought out a fabulous mixture of both dry and staunch bitterness with whisps of glorious Citra over the top. At 4.2% it holds a fabulous mouthfeel and is, as with all my favourite beers, very easy to drink.

Just now, having next moved back onto tea from the past, I decided to try their DIPA. Now I have to be honest - I was slightly worried about it's strength. Having started my DIPappreciation with the wonderful 9% Cloudwater specials four years ago, I have noticed that almost all breweries, although a few exceed that, have settled on 8 to 8.5% being a fine strength. I had only twice previously tried a DIPA at below 8% and was impressed with neither.

Now I realise that the strength alone does not completely yield the flavour - but also that the higher bitterness on many occasions changes and also often improves the way the hops malts and other ingredients dance together on your palate. The weird thing here was that two years ago I sat in the sunshine with the lovely Vikkie and her family and friends at the Sheffield Student Beer festival in May. I tried a cask Abbeydale DIPA at something nearer 9% and I found it quite disappointing - seemingly overly strengthened, perhaps, with too much yeast, and the wrong type or simply too few hops?

Then I saw earlier this week the video of Sheffield Hopcast featuring Sean, Laura and folk whom I recognise yet strangely cannot recall the names of. One of them was drinking and enjoying an Abbeydale DIPA - and I know there are more than one - and stated that he had found it both very enjoyable but also far different to the versions that had gone in the past. Inspired by this faith, I ordered 6 cans of Deliverance in my order. And when I tried this, it once again did not disappoint.

Firstly, as all good beer should be, it was cloudy - although, perhaps because of his unfathomable age, Wee Fatha doesn't like and will not even sip such provisions, citing effects on his obviatorial process in such potations - I would hope that I need provide no further facts in such a claim. I, on the other hand, as a mere bairn of just 45, am still unaffected in that region by cloudy beer, but in terms of ease of suppability, I suggest that such beefiness makes the same far easier to drink.

The can lists the inclusion of Sabro, HBC 472 and HBC 692, along with their collaboration with Yakima Chief Hops in the US. As they note, the other ingredients are likewise drawn from the Neomexicanus subspecies, and although I am too short of foliage knowledge to appreciate that, I still have sufficient taste buds to recognise that these combine for an exemplary brew.  The taste is amazing, with fruity and resinous flavours in the aftertaste, mixed with punchy bitterness in the front and lingering in the background throughout. I still love Absolution, but as a new treat I have to admit that the balanced excellence of Deliverance has blown my mind.

I do hope you all get to try the same, or either, or those brews that I have tried, or indeed anything from their current backdrop of excellent brews, from pale bitters like Moonshine and Deception, through to excellent dark ales like Black Mass and Salvation, mixed in with their Heavy Nettle saison and numerous others.

And I would now ask you all to raise a glass and a massive thank you to these brewers of excellent beers here in fine, sunny, Sheffield.

Cheers!

Wee Beefy