The BeerCast

Choked by the toffee traffic of a north London Friday evening rush hour, turfed out onto the cold January roadside whilst a passenger had a heart attack and after a soundcheck in which i had to create a drum kit out of left-over bits of guitar amps and beermats. It was with some relief that i sat down in Cambridge’s Chipotle Mexican restraunt to enjoy a well earned lamb fajita. It was perhaps this combination of exhaustion and hunger which led me,  in a strange new land to temprailiy forget my non-beer beer drinking ways and order a Negra Modello with my fajita.

How did it go down? … well you’ll have to listen to the podcast to find out..

1. Pacifico (4.5%abv)
Pacifico Brewery, Mazatlán, Sinaloa, México. 330ml glass bottle

A rather fancy but somewhat obscure website tells us much about the surrounding peninsula where the beer is brewed but nothing about the beer itself. Nevermind, wikipedia tells us that it was first brewed in these parts in 1900 by germans and hence is brewed in the traditional german pilsner style. Cerveza Pacifico Clara is it’s full name (clara means clear, obscura is the dark version). The Pacifico brewery was bought by brewing giant Grupo Modelo in 1954.

What They Say -
“Ever so lightly sweeter beer. No noticeable sourness in taste, acceptable balance and a clean finish, slight lime dryness for aftertaste.” [SamN, ratebeer.com]

What We Say…
Andy - 4.5; Andrew - 4.5; Marc - 4; Francis - 4; Jess - 3; Nick - 3

2. Dos Equis XX Amber (4.5%abv)
Cuauhtémoc Moctezuma Brewery,  Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico

The most interesting show in the world says the website. Contortionists, crossbow-weilding lovers, death-defying acrobats, burlesque sirens, and a human slinky are many of the items on the menu.

Sounds exciting, but is the beer?

What They Say -
“Dos Equis Amber is a traditional Vienna style amber lager with a rich, big flavour. Think of it as Lager’s dark moody cousin” [Official Website]

What We Say…
Andy - 7; Marc - 5.5; Francis - 5; Andrew - 5; Nick - 4; Jess - 4

3. Negra Modelo (5.4%abv)
Grupo Modelo, Mexico

Their website says… well, not much really. Perhaps that’s because they spend more time and money on the beer than the website. This is the beer which inspired this podcast, i hope it’s worth it!

What They Say -
“Pours a brownish color, nice carbonation, small white head, with some sticky lacing left behind. The nose is malty, with some hops, slight caramel. The taste is slightly sweet, malty, slight hop note. Medium body. Slightly drinkable, would not buy again.” [wasatch, beeradvocate]

What We Say…
Andy - 7.5; Francis - 7; Andrew - 6; Marc - 6; Jess - 6; Nick - 5.5

Panellists - (clockwise from top left) Andy&Jess, Marc, Francis, Nick, Andrew

BeerCast panel verdict
Negra Modelo (38/60)
Dos Equis XX Amber (30½/60)
Pacifico (23/60)

We’ll hand back over to the Edinburgh office for the next Podcast.

Till the next time mon amis!

Our first podcast in 2010 takes place back in our regular Edinburgh haunt, after the excitement of our BOTY Show had subsided. No 32%abv beers on offer tonight, as Grooben and MrB join Richard for a last-minute BeerCast decided on the spur of the moment. Richard dashed to Morrisons at lunchtime to come up with four beers - hence the title of the podcast (and also homage to a truly great television programme of old). First up in our aisle foraging special - Everards Tiger (4.2%) from the award-winning Leicester producer. We then move slightly south-east as we sample Wychwood’s Circle Master (4.7%), and debate it’s ‘Golden Pale Ale’ description. Our third beer is from Cumbria - Jenning’s Sneck Lifter (5.1%), and we finish on a slightly stronger note with Greene King’s vintage ale Abbot Reserve (6.5%). Stay tuned also for discussions on driving, Richard’s story about the time his Grandad almost punched Tommy Cooper, and a heartwarming tale of cross-border teen romance from MrB.

1. Everards Tiger (4.2%abv)
Everards Brewery, Leicester, Leicestershire. 500ml glass bottle

Tiger is the flagship ale from one of the East Midland’s most successful family brewers. Everard’s were established in Leicester back in 1849 when one William Everard purchased the South Street Brewery. Over the years they have expanded and developed, and today are in the hands of the fifth generation of William’s descendants. Their current home is Castle Acres in Narborough, and was purpose built to push the company into nationwide levels of production. Tiger combines Maris Otter malt with the classic British bitter combination of hops - Goldings and Fuggles.

What They Say -
“A true award winning best bitter with universal appeal. Tiger Best Bitter is a classic example of getting the perfect balance between sweetness and bitterness. Crystal malt gives the beer its rounded toffee character.” [Official Website]

What We Say…
Grooben - It’s not as interesting as it makes out 5
Richard - I’ve had this on cask and I liked it a lot more 5
MrB - Malty and watery with a bit of toffee 5

2. Circle Master (4.7%abv)
Wychwood Brewery, Witney, Oxfordshire. 500ml glass bottle

Wychwood are one busy brewer. Alongside their varied and expanding range of ales, they also contract brew all bottled beers put out under the Duchy Originals label, not to mention their acquisition of the troubled Brakspear. There are two brew plants at their Witney headquarters to cope with the demand, which is understandable. In 2002 (the same year they bought Brakspear), they were themselves taken over by the pithily-named Refresh UK, a subsidiary of Marstons plc. Their most popular beer is Hobgoblin, famed throughout real ale circles for it’s “…afraid you might taste something?” advertising.

What They Say -
“Whole leaf target hops, naturally grown in a single garden in Kent, are added to create a beer of exceptional taste and character. The Circle Master conducts a melody of refreshing citrus and delightful malt flavour, rounded off with a spicy bittersweet finish.” [Official Website]

What We Say…
Richard - They may be stuck between two styles here 7
Grooben - There’s an extremely lingering dry aftertaste 6
MrB - Bitter and fizzy, too much like a lager 6

3. Sneck Lifter (5.1%abv)
Jennings Brewery, Cockermouth, Cumbria. 500ml glass bottle

Like Everards, Jennings are another 19th Century family brewer - they began in the village of Lorton, between the Cumbrian towns of Keswick and Cockermouth. In 1874 the Castle Brewery in the latter of those two towns was purchased, and Jenning’s moved to increase production. Cockermouth made global news in November 2009 when enormous floods caused by the rising rivers Cocker and Derwent inundated the town to a depth of eight feet. The Jennings Brewery - situated on Brewery Lane almost at the confluence of the two rivers - was also flooded, but has since re-opened for production.

What They Say -
“In northern dialect sneck means door latch and a sneck lifter was a man’s last sixpence which enabled him to lift the latch of a pub door and buy himself a pint, hoping to meet friends there who might treat him to one or two more. This dark beer with a reddish tinge, derived from the use of coloured malts, perfectly balanced with specially formulated brewing sugars and English aromatic hops.” [Official Website]

What We Say…
Richard - I love the smokiness that gives way to bitter taste 8
MrB - Once the smokiness goes down the hops come out 7
Grooben - I didn’t expect it to be this complex 7

4. Abbot Reserve (6.5%abv)
Greene King plc, Bury St Edmonds, Suffolk. 500ml glass bottle

Greene King aren’t a family brewer - but they do have a history, as they claim to have started production in 1799 in the Suffolk town of Bury St Edmonds. Having a head start seemed to help, as they are now the largest British-owned brewery in the UK. Trading on the ftse stock exchange, they have helped their position by an aggressive series of acquisitions of smaller brewers - Morland, Ruddles and Ridleys have all been bought and closed, and they also own Dunbar’s own, Belhaven. We sampled their 5.0% flagship beer, Abbot Ale way back in BeerCast #4 in September 2007, where it scored 36/60 (60%).

What They Say - “Abbot Reserve has an abv of 6.5% and is a perfect winter warmer on a cold night. It is a distinctive full-bodied smooth and mature beer, bursting with rich fruit cake and toffee flavours.” [Official Website]

What We Say…
Grooben - A brown sugary blast, not offensive but not pleasing 5
Richard - Fruitcake taste but nothing else to give it substance 4½
MrB - Gets far too sweet as it warms up 4½

Panellists - (clockwise from top left) Richard, MrB, Grooben

BeerCast panel verdict
Jennings Sneck Lifter (22/30)
Wychwood Circle Master (19/30)
Everards Tiger (15/30)
Greene King Abbot Reserve (14/30)

Stay tuned for our next podcast, as our Southern studio get together for BeerCast #46 - a celebration of Mexican beer….

The first podcast of any year is always one to look forward to – as tradition dictates it’s our BeerCast Beer of the Year show. As highlighted in our recent preview, the four highest scoring beers from the podcasts recorded in 2009 are re-sampled, and a winner picked. Previous winners are Anchor Christmas Ale 2006 (2007) and Hop Back Summer Lightning (last year), so whichever beer came out on top this time, it would be in good company. Re-tasting is always an interesting experience, as a second go often brings a different result from last time – and so it was to prove. The four beers in our BOTY show were St Austell Tribute (4.2%), Carnegie Baltic Porter (5.5%), Stone Ruination IPA (7.7%), and Goose Island Christmas Ale 2009 (7.0%). On the extended panel – Shovels, MrB, Andy, Richard, Jess and Grooben, all of whom were seconded to a remote and snowy location to sharpen the tastebuds…

1. St Austell Tribute (4.2%abv) 500ml glass bottle
St Austell Brewery, St Austell, Cornwall.
BeerCast#33 scored 40½/50 (81%) 28th May 2009
Originally tasted by Steve 9; Richard 9; Grooben 8; Shovels 7½; Stu 7

What They Say - “Tribute is a magnificent example of a bronze coloured English bitter, with a rich aroma of biscuity malt and tart citrus fruit from the Willamette hops. Juicy malt, hop resins and tangy fruit coat the tongue, while the finish is long and lingering, with a fine balance between malt, hops and fruit, finally becoming dry and bitter.” [Roger Protz]

What We Say…
Grooben - Much nicer than your standard session beers
Richard - As an English bitter you can’t get a better example
MrB - I don’t like it, it’s too watery and too biscuity
Shovels - It’s very subtle but very nice
Jess - There’s some kind of citrus in there, it’s very drinkable
Andy - It reminds me of drinking Tennents in working men’s clubs around Edinburgh

2. Carnegie Starkporter 2008 (5.5%abv) 500ml glass bottle
Carlsberg Sverige AB, Gothenburg, Sweden.
BeerCast#28 scored 32½/40 (81%) 1st January 2009
Originally tasted by Jess 9; Shovels 8½; Andy 8; Richard 7

What They Say - “Carnegie Starkporter är Sveriges äldsta ännu använda varumärke. Smakrik, fruktig och med en tydligt rostad ton och stor beska. Inslag av karamelliserat socker, kaffe och choklad. Carnegie Starkporter kan lagras upp till 10 år. När den lagras mjuknar smaken och aromenens komplexitet ökar.” [Official Website]

What We Say…
MrB - I like porters a lot, but that’s far too sweet
Shovels - I think we’d had a lot of mediocre beers that night
Grooben - It’s a half-pint beer – although it is smooth
Richard - Sweet and it’ll get sweeter, I’m not that keen on it
Andy - I’m not sure it deserves to be in the BOTY Show
Jess - Can’t believe I gave it a 9, I think we were maybe too happy because we were on holiday

3. Ruination IPA (7.7%abv) 355ml glass bottle
Stone Brewery, Escondido, California.
BeerCast#36 scored 38/40 (95%) 13th July 2009
Originally tasted by MrB 10; Shovels 9½; Steve 9½; Richard 9

What They Say - “So called because of the ‘ruinous’ effect on your palate! This massive hop monster has a wonderfully delicious and intensely bitter flavour on a refreshing malt base. One taste and you can easily see why we call this brew ‘a liquid poem to the glory of the hop!’” [Official Website]

What We Say…
MrB - I stand by my 10
Richard - Love that piney resinous hop aftertaste
Jess - I can see why everybody go excited about it
Grooben - Expertly balanced, I’d give it 9½ too
Shovels - It’s the single malt whisky of IPA’s
Andy - They’ve managed to get the perfect balance point so you don’t taste furry-teeth sugary-ness

4. Goose Island Christmas 2009 (7.0%abv) 750ml glass bottle
Goose Island Brewing Company, Chicago, Illinois.
BeerCast#43 scored 25/30 (83%) 16th December 2009
Originally tasted by MrB 9; Grooben 8; Richard 8

What They Say - “Specialty Belgian malts create a deep garnet color and a truly rich old European flavour in our classic Christmas Ale. And the generous amount of crystal hops adds that extra spicy aroma to your pint, perfect for a wintry night.” [Official Website]

What We Say…
Jess - It’s smoky but not as interesting as the Ruination
Richard - This one makes good use of it’s brown ale base
MrB - Not Christmassy, tastes like a nicer Goose Island IPA
Grooben - I think Ruination would blow away anything
Shovels - Gets high praise from me, it’s easy to drink
Andy - Pretends to be smooth but leaves you with a sharpness I don’t like

So that was the thoughts – or re-thoughts – of the panel during the tasting of the four beers that had made it through to the final. The next thing to do was go round the table and mark down a first and second choice for beer of the year. Given the comments about one of the beers above, it wasn’t really a surprise when the slip of paper had circumnavigated the table. Stone’s Ruination IPA was a resounding choice for BeerCast Beer of the Year 2009. Fitting, given that it debuted with a record score of 95% that will struggle to be beaten. There was a tie for second between the Goose Island Christmas and St Austell Tribute – despite certain comments on both it seems festive warmers and English bitters always seem to do well in our BOTY shows. But there was really only ever going to be one winner – the fantastic balance of massive hops and punchy alcohol really came through in Stone’s strong India Pale Ale. It was a deserved winner.

Our panel also tasted a fifth beer - a surprise bought by Richard and smuggled to the podcasting under the strictest secrecy. BrewDog’s Tactical Nuclear Penguin (32%), the strongest beer in the world. Listen to our tasting after the BOTY voting, and check back to the website in a few days for a full review post on what’s becoming the most infamous beer in Britain…

2009 was a great year for the BeerCast, we managed to get through 63 beers over the space of 16 podcasts, attend several beer festivals, and unleash a few new panellists on the podcasting public. As things wind down over Christmas we’ll be turning our attention towards the turn of the year – which means our annual BeerCast Beer of the Year Show. We tally up the scores achieved by each ale over the last twelve months, and take the four highest scoring away to a secret location for a re-sample. Which beer will follow on from Hop Back Summer Lightning and become our BOTY for 2009? Here are the four contenders.

First up (in order of when we initially scored them), you have to go all the way back to New Year’s Day and a snowy evening in Stockholm. Although our Swedish Special eventually hit the airwaves in March, and having been recorded on an iPhone it sounded like we were lisping underwater, our first finalist made it all the way through the year in the top four placings. Carnegie Baltic Porter 2008 (5.5%) came top of BeerCast 28, despite being brewed by mega-behemoth Carlsberg, who bought its Gothenburg creator Pripps Bryggeri. This sweet, earthy porter scored 32½/40 and thankfully we managed to track some down in the UK for our BOTY show.

Next is the only UK beer that made it through to our final four, the flagship ale from Cornwall’s St Austell Brewery, Tribute (4.2%). This classic English bitter won the highly competitive SouthWest Special of BeerCast 33, which produced several high-scoring beers. Recording a tally of 40½/50, it drew praise for its balance of malt and citrus, including two 9/10 scores. English session ales have traditionally done well in BeerCast BOTY shows, with Coniston Bluebird Bitter and Thwaites Double Century respectively making it through to the first two end of year spectaculars. Neither won though – can the self-styled “Taste of Cornwall” fare better?

Our final two beers hail from over the Atlantic, coming from two heavyweights of the American craft brewing scene. That’s no co-incidence, as smaller-scale producers are very rarely found in the UK. Things are changing though, thanks to importers such as James Clay, and specialist beer retailers like Norfolk’s Beers of Europe, York’s The Bottle, and Edinburgh’s own Cornelius. Our third beer is Stone Ruination IPA (7.7%), a “liquid poem to the glory of the hop” from California. Ruination blasted to the top of our leaderboard (where it remains) in our IPA Battle, BeerCast 36 in July, ending up with a 38/40 score for an almost perfect 95% rating. The balance of hops and alcohol make this truly special, and as it garnered the first ever BeerCast 10 score (from MrB, of course) – it has to be the favourite for our 2009 BOTY show.

The final beer that made it through is also our most recently drunk – coming from last week’s Christmas Special. Anchor’s festive beers have done very well in the past, but their 2009 beer was gazumped in spectacular fashion by Goose Island Christmas Ale 2009 (7.0%). Racking up 25/30 it finished with the second-highest score of the year, ironically bumping Goose Island IPA out of the top four in the process. The Belgian malts and Crystal hops combine for the wintery tastes, and although our panel felt it wasn’t as classically festive as others they tried, it was still head and shoulders above the rest. This could be a dark horse for the title, particularly as a Christmas beer has won previously, Anchor Christmas Ale 2006, won our first ever BOTY show.

So as our list stretches from the afore-mentioned Stone Ruination IPA on 95% down to Dieu du Ciel’s terrifying Péché Mortel coffee-infused imperial stout on 14%, we can look back at another great drinking year on the BeerCast. We’ll be recording the BOTY show at New Year, and it’ll be up sometime within the first couple of weeks of January. Stay tuned for surprises, controversy, and personal highlights, and in the meantime everyone associated with the BeerCast wishes our readers and listeners a fantastic Christmas and New Year, and all the best for 2010.

2008 Beer of the Year Show
2007 Beer of the Year Show

Ho Ho Ho, and Merry Christmas from all at the BeerCast! As with any other time of year, there are no shortage of seasonal ales that can be used to celebrate the festive period, so we’ve collected several for our Christmas Special. This episode is actually our third festive outing, and as with last year we celebrated by ramping up the number of beers. We begin with Naylor’s Santa’s Choice Winter Warmer (4.9%) from Yorkshire, and then move down to Suffolk for St. Peter’s Winter Ale (6.5%). Our third beer follows BeerCast tradition - Anchor’s Our Special Ale 2009 (5.5%), following on from the three previous Christmas vintages that have featured in our podcasts. Next up we sample Bad Elf (6.0%) from the Ridgeway Brewery, before finishing on Goose Island Christmas 2009 (7.0%) from the Chicago-area producers. On the panel for our festive special are Richard, Grooben, and the returning MrB.

1. Santa’s Choice Winter Warmer (4.9%abv)
Naylor’s Brewery, Keighley, West Yorkshire.
500ml glass bottle

Keighley’s Naylor Brewery were founded in 2005 by two long-time friends who decided to purchase and renovate a local pub, the Old White Bear. As their success grew, they outgrew the homely surroundings in Crosshills and had to open a bespoke brewery to keep up with demand. They produce beers under the Naylor’s name, and also a range of Pinnacle beers, named after a local pointy landmark. We sampled their Ginger Beer in BeerCast #23, our unusual ingredient special. Their festive offering might weigh in at under 5%abv, but it’s a self-styled ‘winter warmer’.

What They Say - “Chestnut in colour, with a hint of Christmas fruit and spice. This traditional ale is a real winter warmer” [Official Website]

Label Christmas Rating - 8/10

What We Say…
Grooben - I fail to see how it’s a winter warmer at all 5
Richard - Too watery to be warming, it tastes like a shandy 4
MrB - Santa on the label has a beer - I bet it’s not this one 4

2. St Peter’s Winter Ale (6.5%abv)
St Peter’s Brewery, Bungay, Suffolk.
500ml glass bottle

The small East Anglian village of Bungay used to be renowned for tales of a sinister feral dog called Black Shuck that terrorised it’s medieval inhabitants – but these days thankfully it’s a brewer that has put it back on the map. St Peter’s produce a wide range of beers from their Suffolk base, and supply a single – but outstanding – pub in London, the Jerusalem Tavern (link for our visit). We’ve also featured the brewery on the BeerCast, tasting their Golden Ale in a summery-themed show last year, BeerCast #19. This time we take on their Winter Ale, and see how it compares to others that have also been brewed for the season.

What They Say - “A deep, ruby red strong ale with an excellent balance of malt sweetness and hop bitterness. A classic example of a ‘winter warmer’; high in alcohol and rich in taste.” [Official Website]

Label Christmas Rating - 0/10

What We Say…
Richard - Dark, deep and rich, but cloyingly sweet 6
Grooben - That’s some malty business, not for the faint-hearted 5
MrB - Too fizzy, and I don’t associate liquorice with winter 3

3. Our Special Ale 2009 (5.5%abv)
Anchor Brewery, San Francisco, California.
355ml glass bottle

It wouldn’t be a BeerCast Christmas Special without the latest special festive ale from Anchor. Each year they produce a highly secret recipe, slightly different from all previous years – the 2009 vintage is the 35th in the series. The 2006 edition topped our beer rankings for a long time, and was eventually crowned beer of the year in our 2007 Beer of the Year show, (during which we also tasted the 2007 one). The 2008 version also scored well last year, so as ever we have high hopes for the 2009. There are never any tasting notes as the San Francisco concern keep the exact ingredients classified, but expect spices, piney freshness and all kinds of winter flavours.

What They Say - “The Ale’s recipe is different every year—as is the tree on the label—but the intent with which we offer it remains the same.” [Official Website]

Label Christmas Rating - 3/10

What We Say…
Richard - No cloves or spice, it just tastes of juniper 7
MrB - Very bitter – lemon-juice bitter, not hop bitter 7
Grooben - I would have like a bit more warming spice, I’ve got a vague sense of disappointment 6

4. Bad Elf (6.0%abv)
Ridgeway Brewery, South Stoke, Oxfordshire.
500ml glass bottle

Ridgeway can be loosely pushed into two pigeonholes – as a phoenix brewery, and a cuckoo brewery. They were founded from the ashes of a defunct producer, as ex-Brakspear head brewer Peter Scholey left and managed to start up another company in his own right. He named the new operation Ridgeway, after the ancient upland pathway that meanders along the South Downs, first trod by the Druids. They contract brew, so Peter leases time from brewers with the capacity to spare, most commonly Sussex’s Hepworth. They export a lot of their beers to North America, and revel in the use of elf puns, increasing in strength from Bad Elf through Very Bad Elf, to Insanely Bad Elf.

What They Say - “Olde England meets the New World in this strong, warming golden ale. A generous amount of famous English malt is masterfully balanced with an astounding 45 ounces of fresh hops – including English Cascade – per barrel.” [Official Website]

Label Christmas Rating - 3/10

What We Say…
Grooben - Not a Christmas beer, but it’s the kind of beer I like 7
Richard - Hoppy at the start, then the taste vanishes 6½
MrB - A smoky IPA, smokier than an American pale ale 6

5. Goose Island Christmas 2009 (7.0%abv)
Goose Island Brewing Company, Chicago, Illinois.
750ml glass bottle

Anchor aren’t the only American craft brewer that produce a seasonal beer with slightly varying recipes each year. Chicago veterans Goose Island also put out a festive ale along those lines, and we’re really pleased to have finally tracked down a bottle. The company started off based in a Chicago brewpub, one of the first in the United States, but like Naylor’s Brewery they became too successful for their fledgling space, and had to open larger premises. We delighted in their amazing India Pale Ale (5.9%) in BeerCast #36, our IPA special. In fact, before we started our Christmas Special the IPA was in our top four beers of the year, and heading for the Beer of the Year Show.

What They Say - “Specialty Belgian malts create a deep garnet color and a truly rich old European flavour in our classic Christmas Ale. And the generous amount of crystal hops adds that extra spicy aroma to your pint, perfect for a wintry night.” [Official Website]

Label Christmas Rating - 7/10

What We Say…
MrB - It’s like a special Goose Island IPA, sooo good 9
Richard - Hoppy, bittersweet, smooth, warming, fantastic 8
Grooben - Anchor’s more of a seasonal beer, but this is nicer 8

Panellists - (clockwise from top left) Richard, MrB, Grooben

BeerCast panel verdict
Goose Island Christmas 2009 (25/30)
Anchor Christmas Ale 2009 (20/30)
Ridgeway Bad Elf (19½/30)
St Peter’s Winter Ale (14/30)
Naylor’s Winter Warmer (13/30)

As that concludes our 2009 BeerCast season, stay tuned for the announcement on which four beers have made it through to our Beer of the Year Show in early January. Reigning champion and 2008 BOTY Hop Back Summer Lightning will be displaced…but by what…?