Camden Pale Ale (4%) - Camden Town Brewery, London

Holy moly, I'm on a role! It just goes to show what a few beery gifts and some law-enforced quarantine time can do. And lots of hard work and dedication to the cause, of course. 

After a string of tinnies I reached for this bottle, popped the cap with a pftsss here and a jingle jangle there, followed by the glug glug glug of its stunning golden amber insides flowing into my glass, surging with a lovely puffy head. 

On the nose there's a nice subtle waft of tropical and citrus notes, and a swig of the smooth and juicy liquid brings with it some bitter citrus notes balanced out by sweet pine, peppered with herbal grassy notes and a nicely toasted malt backing, all leading to a dry finish. A lot going on as you can see.

Camden in London

As promised on the bottle this pale ale goes about itself in a refined British way that makes it a bit more subtle and a lot more quaffable than some of the zappy American pale ales we're all familiar with. This is one is a beer garden sipper for sure (once they, y'know, re-open). 

Rating ★★★★★★★★☆☆

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Camden Town Brewery

Website here 

Facebook page here

Where to buy

£1.80 at Tesco

Palpita (5.8%) - Cervezas Yakka, Murcia, Spain

In a country where the mention of beer normally calls to mind the mass-produced lager of that region, a quiet rebellion is taking place. As beer guzzlers nationwide develop a growing curiosity for brews with depth and flavour, craft brewers drawing their inspiration from further afield are springing up and catering for ever-inquisitive palates.

Palpita, a name which refers to the beat of a heart, pours an inviting, slightly hazy golden straw colour with an active carbonation that sees bubbles rising quickly to the surface.

Murcia within Spain

While the aroma was subtle on the nose at first, as my brew neared room temperature those classic blonde ale aromas of sweet bready malts and subtle light fruits came to the fore.

The flavour certainly didn't hold back though, gushing forth with a sweet, bready malt backing underpinning spicy clove, fruity hints and a touch of hop bitterness, creating a pleasantly intense and complex character that got my ticker fluttering like a Murcian flag in the breeze.

Full-bodied, thick and juicy, this is a brew that's easy to get your chops around, rounded off with a crisp, medium-dry toasted finish and a pleasing lingering warmth from the 5.8% ABV to warm the cockles of your heart. 

This Belgian-inspired Murcian blonde ale is modest yet packed with character, and can be enjoyed as a chilled, refreshing quencher or savoured as a slow-sipper to your palpitating heart's content. 

Appearance 4/5

Aroma 3/5

Flavour 4/5

Mouthfeel 4/5

Overall 7.5/10

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Palpita on TV:

Palpita online:
Website here
Facebook page here

Where to buy:
1,70€ on Cervezas Diferentes

Pale 31 (4.9%) - Firestone Walker Brewing Co, California, USA

A beer blogger sipping beer without a notepad can be compared to an off-duty police officer - in both of these noble roles, your sense of duty never leaves you. 

I had an acute sense of this when I picked out Pale 31 from my beer shelf with the sole intention of enjoying it for myself, only to find that after popping off the cap and being smacked in the nose by a bunch of blossoming flowers, I was utterly helpless in the face of such a seductive aroma. I had to share it with the beer-o-sphere.

From the Golden State itself (the 31st state to join the union, if you were wondering about the name) it pours a perfect golden colour with a creamy-coloured head. 

On the nose I got a waft of fresh and fragrant floral New World hop aromas along with juicy satsuma segments, complimented by the faintest hint of a herbal and earthy quality. 

A flurry of fruity flavours washed over my tongue, juicy pine perfectly balancing a grapefruit bitterness, ending with a clean, semi-dry and toasted biscuit finish. 

California within the USA

With this self-styled "bold but approachable" Californian pale ale, Firestone have produced something that represents everything a pale ale should be; easy to sip with bags of character. 

Very Californian it may be, but the five awards its won in the last eight years on both sides of the pond confirms one thing: this is a quality crowd-pleaser. 

Appearance 5/5

Aroma 5/5

Flavour 4/5

Mouthfeel 4/5

Overall 9/10 

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The brewery:
Website here

Facebook page here

Where to buy:
£2.99 on The Beer Hawk

Easy Jack IPA (4.5%) - Firestone Walker Brewing Co, California, USA

We've braved our way through the darkest months of winter and springtime is lurking somewhere around the corner, and yet I've hardly left so much as a dent in my batch of brews that was kindly topped up for me by Father Beermas himself. The festive binge came to an end quite some time ago, so it's about time I began to sample my beery offerings at a more reflective pace, starting with one from this Californian brewery.

My first cannie in a while, I happily popped the tab and filled my IPA glass with its hazy pale golden straw-colour liquid, just a tiny patch of sparkling head gathering to fizzle down to leave a clear fizz-free surface. 

A juicy combination of sweet resinous pine flavours and peaches, nectarines and apricots as well as some zesty mandarin segments from the diverse range of German, New Zealand and American hops wafted up in a mouthwateringly enticing, fruity aroma. 

Once I had my chops around it, a powerful hit of tropical flavours came rushing through with a stronger hit of the more citrusy hops, this time accompanied by a toasted malt backing that brought in some balance, all culminating in a dry finish. 

California within the USA

While a tad heavy on the carbonation and a smidgen light on depth it's certainly a highly quenching session beer that'll go down a treat in the summer months, and being such a crisp and refreshing brew, Easy Jack is easy to knock back.

Appearance 2,5/5

Aroma 4,5/5
Flavour 4/5
Mouthfeel 3/5
Overall rating: 7/10

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The brewery: 
Visit the website here

Check out the Facebook page here

Where to buy:
£2.99 on The Beer Hawk

Yankee (4.3%) - Rooster's Brewing, North Yorkshire, England

After my first review of 2017, a Yankee pale ale from North Carolina, I bring you an English pale ale called Yankee from North Yorkshire.

In the glass Yankee is a hazy, pale straw colour topped with a lively, bubbly white head that dissipates slowly, like an excitable chicken settling down on a bale of hay for a much needed roost... or a whisked egg white on a bed of yolks... okay, enough chicken analogies; the last one was a bit fowl. 

North Yorkshire within England

It has a gentle but fresh hop aroma with grassy and floral notes, and if you poke your beak about for long enough a faint, sweet whiff of honey adds a nice extra smidgen of depth. 

The floral character is as alive and well in the mouth as it is up the nostrils, along with fruity hints of white grapes and lychees. These delightful, understated hop flavours come together effortlessly, seasoned with some peppery notes, and end with a sweet, toasted biscuit malt finish that lingers around for you to carry on enjoying even once your glass is empty. 

A gentle carbonation leads to a smooth, juicy mouthfeel culminating in a medium-dry finish. Its balanced flavour and sessionable ABV make it highly quaffable, demanding masses of self-restraint, especially if it's to last long enough to take notes on.

All I want in a pale ale is something with character that's easy-drinking, and Yankee exceeded my expectations on both counts. It offers depth, complexity and harmony and yet remains laid-back and understated. Not only could I drink it all day, it left me clucking for more.

Appearance 3.5/5

Aroma 4.5/5

Flavour 4.5/5

Mouthfeel 4.5/5

Overall rating 8.5/10

The brewery:
Rooster's website

Rooster's on Facebook 
Rooster's on Twitter
Rooster's on Instagram

Where to buy:
£2.29 on The Beer Hawk

Dale's Pale Ale (6.5%) - Oskar Blues Brewery, North Carolina, USA

Hoppy New Year! And a hoppy first review of 2017 as I turn to this huge voluminously hopped mutha of a pale ale as it's modestly described on the can.

Yet again because the people around me know exactly what makes me happy, I've developed an almighty stash of craft beers following the Christmas period, hailing from the likes of Scotland to Belgium to South Africa to this one from the US which shot its way out of a Beer Hawk Beer Bullet and right into my sexy new Teku glass. 

North Carolina within the USA

Dale's Pale Ale pours a gorgeous orange-amber with a surging, bubbly off-white head that develops rusty hues on each swirl the likes of which I'd never witnessed before.

I found it surprisingly tame on the nose with nothing more than some citrus and earthy hop notes surfacing gently, which seemed all too Old World for something from the western side of The Pond. I put this down to the beer being excessively cold, having only just removed it from my fridge which on the very same day had managed to turn a pot of hummus into a chickpea ice cream that even the toughest pieces of carrot couldn't penetrate. Sure enough, as the brew warmed up some tropical mango and piney aromas came forward.

If there had been any doubt about the presence of hops, these were decisively quashed on my first sip when my tongue was overrun with zesty, citrus grapefruit and orange peel bitterness, with only a vague hint of the sweeter, tropical hops. The bitter hop flavours linger on the back of the tongue along with an alcoholic warmth and lead to a dry finish. The hops aren't the only star of the show as you might be led to expect, though, with a robust toasted biscuit caramel malt backing pushing through for some balance along the way.

This beer had struck me as a popular choice after seeing it pop up occasionally on my Instagram feed, so I was drawn to BeerAdvocate to see what the rest of the Beer World thought and it turns out that I'm massively at odds with most others on this one. 

For a moment I wondered whether 18 months of heavily limited access to top-fermented beers and their many new experimental varieties on account of my moving to Spain had deadened my taste buds so much that the exotic nature of Dale's Pale Ale had become too much to handle. 

In truth, though, I'm no stranger to brash, hop-forward American Pale Ales. Something about the combination of bitter citrus hops, the high ABV and used-teabag dryness just didn't make it the easy-drinker that I'd hoped for. An alright sipper that I'd gladly revisit, but I'm puzzled by the hype.

Appearance 4/5

Aroma 3.5/5

Flavour 3/5

Mouthfeel 2.5/5

Overall 6.5/10

What do YOU think of Dale's Pale Ale? Comment below, on Facebook or Instagram.

Moura (5.5%) - Cervexa Artesá Aloumiña, Galicia, Spain

During a festival called San Froilán when the good inhabitants of Lugo in Spain go potty for octopus in their thousands over two weeks of October, I was pleased to see a stall belonging to Aloumiña brewery which showcased the three beers in their range, and tried their bitter-style tosta directly from the cask out of a plastic cup. Relieved to get some top-fermented goodness down me, I scraped together whatever euros I had on me and put a bottle away for a rainy day, of which there's no shortage here.

Wondering if I might ever again encounter a beer in Lugo that deviated from the ordinary selection on draught, in a dark corner of a bar one cold and stormy night (we'll say for dramatic effect) I saw one lone customer with a bottle of an Aloumiña beer in his possession, the only indication of this beer's availability behind the bar. I made a curious enquiry and out came a bottle of their blonde beer Loura from the shelf of a hidden fridge, an exbeerience repeatable in many other bars in town. Having opened up a whole new world of possibilities to me I felt like I now belonged to some elite club, one of the select few equipped with the knowledge to access a diverse range of hard-to-get, small-batch craft brews. The secret code phrase was now mine: "What else have you got?" 

What I'd saved for a rainy day and was still yet to sample was the darkest in their range, Moura. In a tremendous twist of fate it wasn't raining today, but I wasn't going to let that stop me. 

The label boasts the use of quality ingredients even down to the local water (what better use for it?) and adding to the beer's local character all the blurb is in the Galician language. Proudly proclaiming itself a "top-fermented, ale-style" unfiltered, unpasteurised and bottle-conditioned "living" beer, this couldn't be more different from the dead, mass-produced beer more commonly enjoyed here.

As if that wasn't enough, Moura pours the deepest, darkest chestnut brown a beer could be, with a coffee-coloured head that dissipates slowly to leave the odd small patch of lacing.

The aroma is of a smoky, woody quality with distinct hints of roasted chestnuts (another thing Galicians are particularly fond of in the winter months) and fainter hints of licorice. After a glug your mouth is awash with a medium-bodied mouthful of roasted and caramel malts that develop into a delightful dry, toasted, nutty finish. 

It becomes clear that what we have here is a 21st century all-Galician porter, a well-established beer style that Aloumiña have picked up and made their own with bags of character that call to mind a Galician winter's day. This is a bittersweet, nutty, Mourish delight.

Appearance 4/5

Aroma 4/5

Flavour 4.5/5

Mouthfeel 4/5

Overall rating 8/10

Link to Aloumiña's Facebook page.

Link to my ramblings on their blonde beer Loura.

The Ibeerian Peninsula: Estrella Galicia

Happy New Beer! \~/

A new year has dawned (it's fair to say I'm a bit late on that one) and it's time for me to dust the cobwebs off my keyboard and continue my valiant efforts to sample as many hopped, yeast-fermented malt beverages as I can for the benefit of humankind.

Previously conducting my precious research from a little corner of south east England, I've now upped sticks to a mystical territory known as Galicia in north west Spain. Such a move would have always lead to numerous changes to my lifestyle, but the one I was most concerned about, of course, was the selection and availability of beer. 

Since I first stepped foot on Galicia's astoundingly fertile green and pleasant land, it was clear that my drinking habits would have to adapt substantially to the local drinking culture. For a start, beer to a Galician normally means one thing: Estrella Galicia by Hijos de Rivera brewery, a 110-year-old family-owned brewery which squirts out 100 million barrels a year and has all but monopolised beer consumption in this area. There isn't a bar, cafe or restaurant in this part of Spain that doesn't serve it (bar the odd trend-bucker), and if you're after an alternative then more often than not your choice will consist of another offering by the same brewery. 

So for a start, my days of entering a pub and standing at the bar, quietly and agonisingly perusing the labels on the beer fonts before deciding which local or guest ale I should order were decidedly over. "Una caña" (referring to the measure of a small draught) is all I had to ask for now, and soon after a 250ml glass (give or take) of a sparkling, golden, foamy Estrella Galicia would be plonked down in front of me by default most of the time. 

Indeed, when you order a beer in Spain there's no need to even mention beer: ask for a cerveza (or a cervexa in Galicia's local lingo) and you'll be asked how much of it you want, not which kind you want. If a caña doesn't do it for you then a media will get you 330ml, a sorry amount by UK standards but, believe it or not, as much as most Spaniards care to go for at a time. In fact, if a different measure is to be had then it's usually even less than a caña, a 200ml quinto. My British sensibilities were highly affected by these unthinkable measures at first: who orders less than a pint, and who orders even less than less than a pint? It soon occurred to me, though, that a caña fits the Spanish pace of life perfectly, especially when the locals happily sip away from lunchtime and bars don't start to close until 3am (sometimes with you still in them).

What of Estrella Galicia, then? It's a lager (no surprises there) and so shares the same characteristics that all lagers aim for, best described in terms of sensation rather than flavour: clean and refreshing, even if the climate in this corner of Green Spain doesn't always call for it.

A caña with a tapa (free bar snack) in Lugo, Galicia

Prejudices against mass-produced lager aside, after five months of this as my go-to beverage (if you can't beat them, join them) I could almost say I've found it a useful exercise - shock horror - in fine-tuning the taste buds in a desperate attempt to pick up on whatever vague hints of flavour I can, and if the monotony of constant lager consumption hasn't caused me to fall victim to delusional taste hallucinations, I'd go as far as to say a distinctive malty nuttiness is present. It is, I swear it is.

Encouragingly, Hijos de Rivera have a few more ambitious offerings under their 1906 label for those who fancy dipping their toes in something with a bit more character.

1906 Reserva Especial (6.5%) is a full-bodied strong lager with a primarily bitter flavour from the Nugget hops, a slight pepperiness and a hint of toasted malts.

1906 Red Vintage (8%) is malty with a bitterness that seeks to counteract a slight spirity alcoholic flavour coming from the high ABV. A gentle burn is present but it remains drinkable on the whole. 


1906 Black Coupage (7.2%) is the black sheep of the family which is intended to be served at the higher temperature of 6-8 degrees to bring out the flavours of the four malts and two hops. With roasted coffee, chocolate and licorice flavours you'd expect from a porter but almost all the crispness of a lager, Black pushes the boat out even as a bottom-fermented beer, and although super dark lagers have always seemed a bit of a contradiction to me I must give this one an A for effort. Not that it needs it from me, because all of the above beers have already bagged themselves tons of awards (although most of them have gone to the other three).

Albeit Hijos de Rivera's bevvies are the most popular beers in Galicia, I've been relieved and excited to discover a significant minority of local and regional small-batch offerings along the way that are gradually making their presence felt here. These will be my focus from now on, but for now by way of a preview I leave you with my ramblings on a Galician pale ale called Loura by Aloumiña brewery in Lugo. Salud! \~/

Frigate Golden Bitter (3.8%) - Irving & Co. Brewers Ltd., Hampshire, England

Somewhere above the overcast skies of my little corner of England summer is upon us and yet I still have obscene numbers of beers left that were given to me for Christmas. Determined to get through them before they reach their best-by date, I valiantly plough through...

Today's offering is from the English coastal city of Portsmouth, Hampshire, and as part of a gift set, ironically bought a short journey away in France (made by eurotunnel on this occasion, not frigate) it came in a weeny 275ml bottle, which I assume (and hope) isn't the norm for this brewery, but for the purposes of a gift set I totally understand the choice of sample size, if it was their choice at all.

The label shows an enormous warship with the backdrop of Portsmouth's iconic Spinnaker tower, seagulls flying overhead in a hazy golden sunset, hinting at the colour of the beer inside. The back of the label suggests being careful to leave the sediment inside the bottle as you pour, but no amount of caution seems to prevent its hazy appearance and anyway, why would you want to? The sediment was kind enough to keep the golden liquid alive in the bottle, the least we can do is let it join the party.

Hampshire within England

The aroma is of a sweet citrusy nature, evoking sweet tangerine segments with some faint honey notes, with only the slightest hint of a grapefruit bitterness that provides a gentle contrast.

Pale and crystal malts battle their way to the frontline of your palate, firing sweet biscuit notes and toasted flavours in every direction to achieve overall dominance. Contrary to its description as a bitter, the surviving hops bring mainly the sweet character of candied citrus fruits, complementing rather than counteracting the malts. Once everything's settled down, some fresh herbal, almost minty notes bring some balance, ending with a black tea note that brings a dry finish to an otherwise smooth mouthfeel.

For a 3.8% beer, Frigate delivers an impressive level of complexity with its interesting combination of Sovereign and Boadicea hops, and a frigate-load of flavour even if it's short-lived from a cruelly small 275ml bottle.

Appearance 4/5
Aroma 4/5
Flavour 4/5
Mouthfeel 3/5
Overall rating 7.5/10

Old Tongham Tasty (6%) - Hogs Back Brewery, Surrey, England

Having tried a Hogs Back beer that I don't remember making a lasting impression on me I thought twice before picking this one up, but I knew I'd made the right decision seconds after pouring it from the bottle. Old Tongham Tasty has been brewed since shortly after the brewery was founded in 1992, and the brewers describe the flavour of this strong, dark ale as 'a festival of fun on your tongue' on the front and 'a festival of different tastes on the tongue' on the back. They're bold statements to make on the bottle, and not ones I could ignore easily. These, along with the delightful purple and green label were enough to prompt me to slip one into my shopping basket. Would it live up to expectations? 

Where colour was concerned, I had no expectations. Described as a 'dark ale' it could have been dark amber, ruby or brown, but instead it pours a colour so dark it looks like it could distort the space around it, pulling surrounding objects in at the speed of light before swallowing them up with a gurgling sound. The only colour barely visible is around the very edges of the glass where it just about manages to glow a deep red if you shine a bright light at it, but this could just be a result of the light waves approaching the liquid becoming longer as the darkness forces time to slow down. As for the head, the coffee-coloured foam rises about half a finger before fizzling down swiftly.

I didn't find the aroma all that pungent, but it's interesting: you can make out some dark chocolate, rum and raisin, port and plums. It's a bit like a fruit and nut chocolate bar on the nose.

The flavour, though, is where it really starts happening. It's malts galore: toasted nuts, dark chocolate, licorice, coffee and treacle, with a charred and bitter aftertaste. The maltiness is unsurprising given the four different malts used, of pale, crystal, chocolate and wheat varieties, all bringing their own unique character and sensation up and down the tongue. It's a deep, rich and bitter flavour that doesn't budge for a good while, and the rich flavours are complemented by some herbal notes from the Fuggles hops that are added at several stages of the process, bringing with them a lot of depth. As this one lingers on the tongue, all these flavours repeat themselves on some kind of tasty loop in various combinations as you breathe out, adding yet another dimension.

Surrey within England

The thick mouthfeel suits the flavour wonderfully, and has just the right amount of carbonation to offset it, along with a medium-dry finish.

It turns out Hogs Back really aren't being OTT when they refer to this as 'a festival of different tastes on the tongue'. It's deep, bold and complex yet not overpowering, and includes some lighter flavours in there too. In fact, there's so much going on that you can't even taste the 6% alcohol, making it surprisingly drinkable. Old Tongham Tasty is a festival of fun I'll happily come back to this winter.

Beer Belly's rating:

Appearance 4/5

Aroma 3/5

Flavour 4/5

Mouthfeel 5/5

Total 8/10

Hobgoblin (5.2%) - Wychwood Brewery, Oxfordshire, England (Hallowe'en Edition)

With Halloween only a matter of days ago how could I opt for any beer other than the one that labels itself the "unofficial beer of Halloween"? In fact, the new orange label on the Hobgoblin I picked up at the supermarket convinced me I'd found a seasonal brew from Wychwood that I hadn't laid hands on before. Only when I got round to tasting it did I realise that I'd sampled many of these crafty goblins before, under their usual guise of a dark blue label. Would this be a trick or a treat?

Hobgoblin pours a mystical, dark ruby red, a frothy head bubbling up to the brim of the glass before calming down slowly, leaving no trace around the edges. A mischievous brew indeed.

I picked up some chocolate malt as well as rum and raisin from the faint aroma that lurked in the glass. I got no trace of hops from the aroma in the Halloween version, although its regular counterpart gave me the faintest hint of citrus. Probably for no reason other than that I'd not long released the Halloween bottle from the fridge.

Oxfordshire within England

The flavour is complex yet balanced, rich yet refreshing: dark berries, toasted nuts, burnt toffee and a hint of dark chocolate were complemented by herbal and peppery notes which lingered on. This, coupled with the smooth texture and medium dry finish, paves the way for a very moreish brew.

At the stronger end of the scale with 5.2%, there's still, amazingly, barely any trace of an alcoholic flavour. This makes it a cheeky session beer that you'll happily stick with all night, even if that night ends sooner than you expected! 

Beer Belly's rating:

Appearance 4/5

Aroma 3/5

Flavour 4/5

Mouthfeel 4/5

Total 7.5/10

Have you dared try the Hobgoblin from Wychwood Brewery? What do you think? Leave your comments and rating below!