Marston's

  The Marstons brand is a familiar sight in any pub across the UK. Their 'Pedigree' ale is one of the top selling ales in Britain and their many other brands are becoming increasingly popular, and there is a reason for that. Character.
  Now, I probably use the term 'character' far too often with regards to beer, but there is no other way to describe the beer coming out of the Burton-on-Trent brewery. Marston's plc. does own many beer brands, such as Wychwood, Brakespear and Jennings', but Marstons branded beer has something special.
       Their flagship brand, Pedigree, is made in a unique way, using the oak Burton Union System (allowing it to ferment in wooden casks, rather than steel or alloy ones). The result is a pale, amber coloured ale with sweet, toffee-like aromas along with some grassy notes. In the mouth it holds a crisp, dry flavour, with some sweetness and biscuity malt. The beer is brewed using the ever-popular hop varieties, Fuggles and Goldings, giving an earthy flavour and plenty of aroma. This is a very drinkable beer, and has an abv of 5%.
     A slightly less common beer under the Marstons brand is their strong ale, Owd Roger. A 7.3% dark ale, with quite a lot of flavour.
          The toffee and oak notes are immediately apparent and some aromas of burnt sugar and liquorice do appear once you have started to drink. The flavour is sweet but with a bitter finish. It is very smooth on the pallate and is suprisingly quaffable for such a full-bodied ale.
    Both these beers are full of body and character, and are a welcome addition to any meal  or just an evening in the pub. I know that Marston's have many more brands out there, and I look forward to trying them all!

Re-united with an old friend

 This month I re-discovered an old favourite of mine. Peroni's extra special 'Gran Riserva'. This Italian beauty is one of the nicest, most flavourful continental lagers on the market. A 6.6% abv doppio malto, this is not a weak beer. The hoppy flavours are immediately apparent, creating a refreshingly bitter bite, whilst retaining the depth of flavour that Peroni is famous for. It was dark gold in colour with a small white head. My only criticism of the beer was the slightly watery taste that it left at the back of the mouth, but one could argue that this made the beer somewhat more drinkable and refreshing.  The beer went perfectly with the small portion of Bruschetta that I was enjoying, but would work equally well with any Italian cuisine. It was one of the few beers which genuinely left me feeling happy afterwards. It combined character, depth and drinkability, working together to create one of the most well rounded beers of its type in the world.

  On a side note, the beer is quite hard to get in the UK, and, as far as I know, is not stocked by any of the major supermarkets. I had my most recent bottle in a ‘Pizza Express’ restaurant, where I know it is often available at a reasonable price. If anybody reading this knows where the beer is available, please do leave a comment.

The Commercial Crisis

 The beer world is in a state of crisis. It's public image is being weakened constantly by a vast deluge of sub-standard 'commercial' lagers. Beers such as 'Coors Light' and 'Miller' are controlling the worldwide beer market, giving the general public the idea that all beer is just urine-coloured (and some would say urine flavoured) water. Coors is a particular pet hate for me. It lacks any sort of flavour, texture or character, and is, quite frankly, disgusting. The sad thing is, this is what people are drinking. these beers would not be as common as they are if nobody actually drank it. Even some of my favourite breweries are succumbing to this phenomenon. Italy's 'Peroni' now distributes 'Nastro Azzuro' right across Europe and further afield. This beer is a far cry from the original 'Peroni'. It is, although infintely better than any of the commercial American beers, unbearably watery. This is truly worrying. I love beer, not alcoholic water.
    So where is the future for beer? Ales and German Wheat beers are still popular across Europe, but how long until the ominous giant that is popular western culture consumes them, producing more brands of characterless muck?
    My advice to you...Don't conform to this damaging and degrading culture. Stand up for the craft brewers, and the micro-breweries, and the ales, the stouts, the wheat beers, the truly original creations! It's time to start a beer revolution!

February 2011

So, January is over, and I hope you had a good one, but now we must concentrate on the month ahead. In February I will continue to write regularly (a new review every Monday), and will keep you up to date on what is happening in the beer world. I hope to add a few new features to the blog, as it is currently very early in its life. But, for now, as I plan to do every month, I will suggest one beer which you should try before the end of  February, and that beer is...Innis and Gunn Oak Aged Beer. Available at most Asda stores and many other off-licences or supermarkets, this beer will open your eyes to a new world of flavour. So have fun!