A Local Beauty

 The Whitewater brewery is a small micro-brewery situated deep in the Mourne Mountains, Co. Down, Northern Ireland. It employs less than 5 people and is relatively anonymous outside of the Emerald Isle, but bloody hell, it produces some good beer!
   Their flagship brand, Clotworthy Dobbin, is a 5.0% rich porter, brewed to an original recipe concocted by Mr. Dobbin himself in the 1800's. The brewery still use yeast from the old Belfast brewery in order to achieve the most accurate reproduction of the original beer.
   This beer is a dark ruby in colour, with a smoky appearance and a thick, brownish head. It holds fantastic smoked oak and burnt sugar aromas, giving it a lot of body and depth. A significant amount of fruit is apparent both on the nose and on taste, giving it that little sweet edge, and adding an extra dimension to the beer. The finish is short and dry with some bitterness.
   Altogether, this beer makes for a great drink, whether as a session beer or with food. It left me dying for another, but instead, I decided to go for another of the Whitewater brands, this time, it was the lesser known Belfast Ale.
   This is a 4.5% amber ale, again brewed to an old recipe, originating in the old Belfast brewery.
  On first taste, the typical 'ale' tastes were immediately apparent. The beer had distinct sharpness with some hop and malt. As I took a few more sips, more fruity tones along with some sweet caramel aromas came along, eventually culminating in an obvious oaky taste and a long, bitter finish.
   Now, although not nearly as good as the old Clot, this beer is still something special. Another fantastic brew from a group of local heros, re-inventing the craft beer scene in Northern Ireland.
    Both these beers are truly wonderful and no matter where you are over the next few days, I encourage you to do your best to get your hands on either one of them, and enjoy an alternative Irish beer this St. Patricks Day.

Švyturys

When we think about beer, Lithuania is not a country that immediately springs to mind. Germany, Belgium and even the likes of Poland are all big beer capitals, but Lithuania?

   Well, think again. Švyturys Ekstra is a great beer, brewed in Klaipėda, Lithuania, and is fast becoming a big name on both the local and international stage. The brand is owned by the Carlsberg group, and is part of the Baltic Beverages Holding company.

  The beer itself is a 5.2% lager. It pours a typical golden colour and has a thick, lasting head. On first taste, some mild ale-like tones are apparent, as it has a reasonably strong aroma with some maltiness and some floral scents on the nose. There are some mild toffee notes with a hoppy undertone, giving a little kick. The finish is bitter but quite quick.

  Altogether I thought this beer was quite enjoyable, and went well with a delicious plate of beef stroganoff. I know that the brewery produce a number of great beers and I will be keeping my eyes peeled for any beers under the Švyturys brand.

March 2011

March's 'Beer of the month' is...'Pilsner Urquell'! Why? Because people that like lager should see where it all started. The original Pilsner. Try it this month!
      

Bitte, Ein Bit

 Germany. Some would call it the home of beer, but it is most certainly the home of one of the world's most famous continental lagers, BitBurger.
    'Bit' is instantly recognisable. It tastes like real lager should taste, pure. The Brewery opened in 1817, so was brewed under the Bavarian Reinheitsgebot (still a precondition of German Unity from 1871 right up to 1988, when it was lifted after over 500 years). This meant, and to some extent, still does mean, that the beer was just pure beer, no additives, no extras.
      This is apparent upon first sight. The beer is a wonderful golden colour with very little cloudiness and virtually no visible impurities. On taste it holds a delicious maltyness with fresh bread and biscuit aromas, along with some mild fruity tones. This all makes for a very quaffable pint, and in fact, this is one of the most drinkable beers I have ever tasted (excluding the macro- brewed American 'lagers' which thrive upon tasteless drinkability), yet I did want to drink it slowly. There were so many flavours on the nose and pallate that I just had to take it one sip at a time. I will concede, the beer is brewed for drinking and not over-analysing, but there is so much there that I just had to really examine the bouquet of flavours that it held.
    A truly underestimated force in the beer world, nochmal Bit, bitte.