Cracking stuff young Les.

I'm visualising you doing for beers what Jilly Goulden did for wine

Seems bizarre to hear of the late great John Le Mesurier with a draw on, great man who lived in Ramsgate for many years.

Always remember his best vignette(very arty- farty) from Dads' Army when he roared with laughter when Arthur Lowe revealed his new hairpiece

Are you back up from the beer cellar yet ?
expect you could have done with more after Rostock tonight..

Regarding the St-Idesbald, the second bottle was better..... hic, giggle.....
the third was fecking great! teehee

Here's one you all know and love....

Leffe Brune. ABV 6.5% from Benton ASDA @ 98p per 330ml bottle. Dense, well-formed head that's long lived and almost Guinness like in texture. The ale itself is dark brown, very pleasing on the eye. Aroma is of banana and fudge, first taste is very malty but with sufficient hoppiness to give a nice bitter feel in the mouth. The alcohol vapours hang on the breath, you'ld guess that it was stronger than it is in fact. Nice long licquorice and slightly 'burnt toast' finish. This is an abbey beer and does have a hint of commercially brewed product about it, professionalism perhaps? This is probably my least favourite Leffe but it's a good beer all the same, especially at the price!

Although I've just got in from Khan's and have a belly full of home cooking, Punjabi style, I've got room for a late evening Trappist beer. It has the brown and white (how fitting) 6 sided 'Authentic Trappist product' logo on the label. It's called Trappist Achel and it's a bruin bier. 8%ABV. It's brewed in Sint Benedictus Abdij in De Kluis (?). Love the brown and white label btw, Hamont-Achel ist braun weiss.
The beer has the aroma of melting snow and damp pine wood. The head is large and foamy, the body a rich brown colour. The smell is hops and yeast, the first mouthful dry and biscuity with currants at the back of the mouth. The malt taste is thinner than I expected, slightly swamped by the alcohol wash which is a little harsh on the tongue. There isn't the sweetness that you get with many of the Belgian brown ales. Faintest suggestion of a licquorice after taste now I'm half way down the glass.
It's probably having a fight on its hands competing with the spices from the chicken tikka shashlick and the sag aloo!

Another of my favourites tonight. It's Trappist and it's called Orval. ABV 6.2%. There's a legend that some queen lost her gold ring over the side of her boat and when they caught a fish later and cut it open they found the gold ring in its belly. The grateful monarch built a monastry as thanks and they now brew this delightful ale there.
The bottle is shaped like a monk! It has a simple label which depicts the fish with the ring in its gob. The beer pours smoothly (I have an Orval glass) with a shallow but well formed and long lasting head. There is a strong aroma of orange marmalade or maybe Cointreau... The body is dark gold, like a dark English bitter. The taste is distinctive, like no other beer I've tasted. Very hoppy with more than a hint of iodine. Imagine a root beer flavoured whiskey! Heavy citrus notes, grapefruit, sherbet, cough drops and kiwi fruit even. Perhaps medicinal?
The taste lingers long after the swallow. The label suggests serving at 12 - 14 degrees C but mine has had an hour in the fridge. I know that this is a controversial beer amongst the cogniscenti but I like it a lot. It has a summer holiday feel about it for me, fresh mown grass, birds singing and sunshine. Maybe just outside my top 5 Belgian beers.

'Augustijn' ABV 8% brewed by Br. Van Steenberge. Duvel shape bottle, picture of a monk prising the lids off barrels on the label.
Very lively out of the bottle - volcanic in fact! The head settled down to a generous foam with nice lacework on the sides of the glass as the beer was supped. Aroma, colour and initial taste suggests a very acceptable Triple. Very good balance of hops and fruity malt in the mouth, alcohol rising to the palate and lingering on the back of the throat on swallowing. The faniliar hint of cough candy and suggestion of bitter oranges. I'm liking this one. The mouthfeel is very smooth, it's going down nicely.
This would be excellent with french bread, Port Salut cheese and a crisp apple.
I'm just going to finish this and nip across to The Ship for a pint or two.

Just emptied a bottle of Einbecker Winter Bock (Doppelbock). Sweet, but not too sweet, malty... sorry, I am not Les :( but it tastes good anyway 7,5% and only brewed for the winter. 18.2% wort.

And the best: it's BROWN

Nice one astro, let's get the ball rolling now..... more reviewers, more reviews, more brews

Don't normally drink this early in the day unless there's football involved, I'm on holiday or there's a vowel in the month. However, I've been toiling away at a presentation I've got to do for our INSET day on Monday on SEAL (Social and Emotional Aspects of Learning ) and this is my reward.

Abdij van Roosenberg Dubbel, brewed by Brij Van Steenberge (an abbey beer then) ABV 8%. Wiki reckons that 'Tripel' and 'Dubbel' refer to strengths of beer, I'd say it was more about style. An etching-like line drawing of the Abby on the label bodes well. Looks historical.
A tower of foam forms in the tulip glass (despite my careful pour) which subsides to a tight packed well-formed head. Looks and aroma of a stout. You can smell the dark malt, kilned just that little bit extra... First taste says stout to me also. But not quite as bitter though, the malt fills the mouth and the little bubbles scamper over the tongue. This is very nice.
The second taste suggests a berry fruitiness with the hops way back in the throat by now.
This is my idea of what an archetypal dubbel should taste (and look) like. If you think: Tripel = strong bitter or pale ale, Dubbel = strong brown ale or stout, you're along the right lines.
I'd have this again.

Something a bit different tonight. Not Belgian. BrewDog PUNK IPA, ABV 6% 'post modern pale ale'.
I must admit I was suckered by the label. Describes itself as 'an aggressive beer'. Sounds like a challenge to me!
Pours easy with a short lived almost feeble head. Looks like a classic pale ale and has the hoppy aroma of one. The taste is superb, think Deuchar's IPA or Darwin's Rolling Hitch or Marston's Empire. Bitter as fuck with a real astringency that makes you suck your teeth in. Very refreshing, maybe for consumption with a mature cheddar and strong pickle sandwich or even a curry.
Very like Sierra Nevada pale ale in fact. Jesus, the hops are crammed into this one! Wish I'd bought two now.....

Whenever you write about a beer, I somehow feel the urge to open one as well - even as I made myself a beautiful fruit mix (1 mango, 1 kiwi, 1 banana, a quarter of an pineapple).
This time it's a Winterbock as well, but brewed by Flensburger (7%). To be honest, it should be warmer to taste the details. Anyway, compared to the Einbecker Winterbock it tastes a bit uneven. It's quite sweet at first with some honey, then the bitter taste more typical for Flensburger developes. It's alright, worth a try, but I'd prefer the Einbecker if I had the choice.

astro wrote:

Whenever you write about a beer, I somehow feel the urge to open one as well .

I feel that I am successful. That is the ultimate compliment to any food or drink reviewer. Many thanks. We'll have to do some serious beer hunting next time I'm in Hamburg. Probably February.
Cheers astro.

GeordieLes wrote:

astro wrote: Whenever you write about a beer, I somehow feel the urge to open one as well . I feel that I am successful. That is the ultimate compliment to any food or drink reviewer. Many thanks. We'll have to do some serious beer hunting next time I'm in Hamburg. Probably February. Cheers astro.

Cheers Les. I'll take you to "Bierland", resistance is futile!

Will try to go there tomorrow to try "Ginger Beer" from the UK - it's non alcoholic and no "real" beer, but I found it to be an ingredient of a very nice cocktail I had on Saturday night when I was out with my girlfriend. Will have a look at the real beers anyway, let's see if I'll find good candidates for my test series of Winterbocks ;)

Quest for this weekend: find some examples of Winterbocks in the NE of England......

GeordieLes wrote:

Quest for this weekend: find some examples of Winterbocks in the NE of England......

Well, look for Doppelbock, that should do. The "classic" Doppelbock is Paulaner Salvator. While normal Bock contains more than 16% wort, Doppelbock has more than 18%. Some breweries produce a special version for the winter with an especially high amount of wort, but in the end that might be more about marketing.

I was in Bierland today and got these three candidates:
- "Doppel-Hirsch" - Allgäuer Doppelbock, 18.5% wort, 7.2% vol. alc.

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- Gut Mergenthauer - Dunkler Doppelbock, 20.6% wort, 8.9% vol. alc.

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- Andechser Bergbock Hell - a "normal" Bock, 16.5 % wort, 6.9% vol. alc., 300 kcal/1254 kJ per 0.5 liter - the monks called Bock and esp. Doppelbock liquid bread and I guess they knew why!

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Forgot the Andechser Doppelbock - will be an option for next time.

I couldn't resist and just opened the Doppel-Hirsch (Hirsch meaning deer/stag). It's at room temperature. Dark, nearly black and if you hold it in front of a candle, it seems dark red. The foam vanished quickly. Only slightly carbonated. Taste: heavy, malty with some sweetness. Not bitter at all, have to think of dark red wine. A beer to enjoy at a warm fireplace while it's a dark winter's night outside, not for the piss in the Jolly Roger.