Spring Drinking

Well we've had a couple of false starts but slowly, surely, Summer is getting closer and closer, and if you're anything like me an evening's drinking habits change tack a little. Whilst I'm still drifting into cold evening fare (the other week I was drinking a bottle of Harviestoun's Old Engine Oil 'Old Engineer's Reserve') I generally find myself moving toward the hoppy end of the beer spectrum and away from dark warming brews. Stouts from the cellar give way to IPA from the fridge, currently heavily supplemented by a big beer order from BrewDog - if you're looking for big, hoppy, flavours I don't think you can go too far wrong.

Is there a whisky equivalent? When I head for the cabinet in search of a dram as the summer comes on I go less for the peaty end of things - there's something about the bonfire notes of a dram like Argbeg Uigedail or the Bunnahabhain 11 I wrote about the other week that seem to exude warmth. Similarly big, rich sherry-cask aged whiskies can be a bit heavy come the summer (unless you're talking Glenfarclas 105 with an ice cube - heresy maybe, but summer heaven). That's not to say I don't think whisky can be a summer drink, I'd go for it any time of year. Much as I enjoy a gin & tonic I prefer one as an aperitif rather than something to while away a contemplative hour or so of a late evening.

It's decision time then. What to add to the cabinet for a late spring whisky? Speyside is a natural destination for something sweet, lighter and more summer-friendly, but there are other light, delicate drams out there. I've particularly enjoyed Bunnahabhain 12 recently, it seems to be a much more complex dram than I remember (might be my palate, might be the fact that since 2010 they eschew chill filtration). Balblair's 1997 offering is also in the running for my first bottle for the summer; another sweet, easy-drinker that I've been impressed with recently (Inverhouse are obviously gearing their production to my palate*). Others in the running are Glen Garioch Virgin Oak and Bruichladdich Classic Scottish Barley.

If anyone has any recommendations feel free to pass them on, in the mean time I'll carry on musing and attacking that stash of IPA I think.

* OK, probably not!

Meantime London Stout

This was my beer for the 'Open It' weekend. Although I've not really had it that long, there's not much that I've had much longer either. I have wine going back to the days I first started in Oddbins down in London, but I tend to buy beer to drink (revolutionary concept there eh?). I am fascinated by the ageing process though, and I keep meaning to get some beers cellared for a longer time. I'm sure I'll get round to it at some point!

There's lots of coffee on the nose. On the palate more of the fruit notes come through, lots of damson and dark cherry. These fruit flavours work really well with the medium body, which provides just enough weight to give the beer some structure, but is light enough to showcase those fruits. Those fruits also provide a good counterpoint to the bitterness of the coffee and contribute to the gentle finish. All in all a most enjoyable beer. Rich and complex and perhaps importantly, without too much alcohol, meaning  it's mellow, but not to the point where you feel like a bit of a doze after you've finished it. Enjoyed both this and the Vienna style lager they make so I look forward to trying more Meantime beers.

4.5% abv. £2.19 (50cl) from Beers of Europe

Additional:

Nothing really to do with the beer, but since I wrote this the earworm has had me listening to Helmet's In the Meantime. nI had my last ever illegal (well, under-age anyway) pint at a gig where theses guys were supporting Ministry. No idea what it was, but damn sure it wasn't as good as the Meantime beer, although the gig was well worth the long trans-Pennine trip to Manchester. My cure for the earworm? Listen to the tune, so here it is...

 

You wouldn't have been able to do that in the nineties eh? Open to suggestions for a beer match for that one.

Williams Bros 'Profanity' Stout

This is one of the beers that was in the Sainsbury's British Beer Hunt earlier this year (some of which I blogged about here) and since it was Stout day yesterday (a sort of Twitter-hashtag induced beer holiday) it seemed like a good excuse to getting round to trying this. As I've said before I'm a big fan of Williams Bros - and so I've been looking forward to this one for a while!

A smartly-packaged beer that pours with a hint of brown to the head - it's a black beer with a reddish hint when you look through it at a bright enough light! Serving it cold, as suggested, did seem to restrict the nose at first, but more of the malty/coffee aromas did pop up as it warmed a little. Full-bodied enough to carry off the alcohol, with an interesting, almost grainy texture (potentially from the oats) which contributes to the satisfying nature of the beer. Lots of dark-roast coffee flavours that are supplemented by dried fruit as it warms.

Like a good wine it's a beer that invites you to dwell on it and savour it rather than knock it back. A cold and rainy winter afternoon beer, to be matched with a good book or the Sunday papers.



7% abv, £1.89 (33cl) from Sainsbury's (although since the beer competition is finished it's probably not available there any longer.)

Black Iris Brewery, Derby

I had the chance to have a look round the new Black Iris brewery in Derby last night. It is at the back of the Flower Pot pub, a proper, independent (the owner has two pubs) boozer/live music venue not far from the city centre.

Black Iris' beer is a work in progress project, but they have released three - a pale ale, a bitter and a stout. Bearing in mind these are the first releases from guys who are learning on the job they have done really well - I'm glad to see that they intend to learn the basics, ie. get these styles of beer right, before leaping into more experimental projects. Each of the beer recipes only uses a couple of different hop varieties - again so that they can get an idea of how the hops effect the end product.

Here's the artwork for the first run of beers as designed by a local tattoo artist.

Nick, a proud Dad, and a small but perfectly formed brewery:

   

Note: This is actually a post from my old blog which kept going wrong, but I thought I'd add a bit and move it over (19/11) as it's something that not many people would have seen.

More backstory from This is Derbyshire here. You can also get more news from Black Iris on Facebook. Their Intergalactic IPA was a highlight of Nottingham Beer Festival for me.