Greene King Suffolk Springer

Posted by on Jul 20, 2009 in English Beer | 2 Comments

There are plenty of places or organisations that claim something as their own, and so like to be known as ’The home of…’. For example, St Andrews is the home of golf, Lord’s the home of cricket, and Bury the home of black pudding. The county of Suffolk prides itself on being both the home of horse racing and the home of brewing – which may come as a surprise to the beer producers in Burton on Trent. But these claims are always subjective, and as it was Suffolk-based brewing behemoth Greene King who made that claim, maybe we can take it with a pinch of salt.

They stake a claim to horse racing as the fabled Newmarket track is located within Suffolk’s borders, having witnessed its first recorded race back in 1622. Greene King like to say they began operations in Bury St Edmonds in 1799, so they have plenty of history in common. They were joined again last week at the Newmarket Horse Racing Museum for the launch of their new bottled beer – Suffolk Springer.

Named after a racehorse whose odds shorten dramatically just before a race begins, it’s made in very interesting circumstances as two different beers are made and then blended together – unfortunately the press release didn’t elaborate on exactly what was mixed with what, only that they were of ‘different characters and strength’. Greene King’s take home and export Director Neil Jardine describes Suffolk Springer as a “highly crafted, strong, dark ale for people who appreciate excellent beer.”

Well, it pours with a large but quickly dispersing head to become almost flat, with a dark, dark ruby, almost purple/black colour. It smells very malty, and this comes through on the taste, which is extremely smooth and rich with those dark malts coming right to the fore. Sweet, fruity molasses and fruitcake with even a bit of over-ripe banana in there, it’s a heady mix of winter tastes – I’m not sure why it would be launched in July for racegoers. At 6% abv it’s a fireside sipper, not a summery quencher, but has a fantastic roasty prune aftertaste and reminds me very much of Theakston Old Peculier, and I would say on balance the Yorkshire version beats it by a nose.

2 Comments

  1. m
    June 21, 2010

    Hi,

    where can I get this beer:Greene King Suffolk Springer?
    I’m from Poland.

    Many thanks.
    M

  2. Richard
    June 22, 2010

    Hi there – try the official Greene King importer into Poland, address below. They will mostly import Abbot Ale and Old Speckled Hen – but if you ask them they might have plans to bring Suffolk Springer to Poland as well. Thanks for stopping by!

    John King Polska s.a
    UL. Pszczelinska 11-2
    05-840 Brinow
    Poland

    Contact: Jacek Dziubinski
    Email: jddhclou@priv4.onet.pl
    Email: john_king_int@yahoo.com (UK Contact)
    Tel/Fax: 0048 22 729 6732
    Mobile: 0048 60 344 0673
    Web: http://www.johnkingpolska.pl

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