First Look…Barney’s Beer

In January we attended the Scottish heats of the SIBA Bottled Beer Awards; the winner of which – Stewart Brewing’s Hollyrood – went on to take overall Silver at the National level (behind the excellent Kernel Export Stout London 1890, a very worthy British champion). The event was attended by a number of Scottish brewers, as the SIBA AGM was also held on the same morning. Before the judging began I managed to speak to a few of them, including an affable chap named Barney who is one of the newcomers on the scene.

Brewing at the Behind the Wall microbrewery in Falkirk – and also with John McGarva at the Tryst Brewery up the road in Larbert – Barney’s Beers have been out for a few months, and are now reaching the bottle shops of Edinburgh. Having started off brewing in his kitchen, as the fifties-esque labels proudly display, it’s great to see another local start-up following the path of Robert Knops. We managed to get hold of two of Barney’s beers – a Pale Ale and a Beetroot beer – there may also be a porter in the offing, albeit cask-only.

Starting with the less unusual of the two, Barney’s Good Ordinary Pale Ale (3.8%) is slightly hazy, but light and malty on the palate, with a touch of caramel and a faint hoppy edge to it. Extremely easy drinking – on cask it would probably be more agreeable – it just peters out a bit too quickly. There is a good beer in there somewhere, but unfortunately although it goes down very easily, it’s just a bit too plain.

The big draw though is the other offering – Barney’s Beet Red Beer (3.7%). When I chatted to Barney, he told me that he enjoys doing unusual things, and that the female drinkers at the Behind the Wall preferred the beet beer. There are a few other examples out there – and with great names – Beet-L-Juice, Beet the Clock, Beet the Blues (which has one rating on RateBeer, ending with the words ‘never again please’). The sweet but slightly earthy beetroot is in theory an interesting addition to beer, leading to some interesting flavours.

That’s what I was telling myself as I took a hesitant sniff, anyway. It poured totally flat with a really vibrant red hue. The unmistakable aroma of beetroot came on the nose straight away – that mix of must and soil with a slight metallic edge. Some fruit on the nose as well – and there was a touch in the taste, although the vegetable really came out on top here too. At least you know what you’re getting – sweet, earthy beetroot with a malt edge and faint hop presence. My girlfriend thought it was revolting – which is harsh, but again unfortunately it’s an experiment that doesn’t really work.

Barney’s Beer website