BrewDog Hoppy Xmas

Christmas time is here again and you can always count on BrewDog for a festive beer. 

Hoppy Xmas is a festive IPA and it's very lively so it took me a couple of pours to fit it all in my 330ml glass.  It pours a slightly hazy golden yellow with a tight, thick, robust off-white head that lasts and laces.

The aroma is deliciously fruity with notes of lemon, orange and tropical fruit as well as the expected blast of hops.  It tastes like it smells with a lovely blend of citrus and tropical fruits and hops that give it a lovely dry/bitter finish.   The pineapple and papaya flavours add a note of sweetness that takes the pithy bitter edge off the citrus.

It has a good medium body and it’s very well carbonated, as you can see from the head, but the bubbles aren't harsh and they give the tongue a nice tickling.  

I don't think there's anything particularly festive about it apart from the name, but it's a lovely IPA that's just the right level of bitterness for me.  Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by BrewDog, Ellon, Aberdeenshire 

6% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at BrewDog Brewery

Kees Baby Caramel Fudge Stout

 

This pastry stout is a lighter version of Brouwerij Kees' imperial caramel fudge stout but it still packs a punch at 5.3%.  I couldn't see any best before date on the can so I've got no idea whether or not it was in date when I drank it.  

It has a dark brown mahogany coloured body with a small rapidly vanishing tan head.  The aroma is surprisingly light for a sweet stout and although I didn't smell any caramel I did pick up notes of malt and chocolate.

After the slightly disappointing smell and appearance,  it totally redeems itself in the taste test as it is delicious.  It's like sweet, creamy candy covered in milk chocolate and it's so malty.  The sweetness really lingers so it's definitely a beer for the sweet toothed among us.  It has a full body and medium carbonation which gives it a relatively smooth mouthfeel.

It's a lovely sweet stout but it tastes more chocolate than caramel fudge to me.  I'd be really interested to try its big brother in the future and Ale Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by Brouwerij Kees, 
5.3% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at Brouwerij Kees

Hexhamshire Whapweasel

 

Whapweasel is such a great name that the beer has a lot to live up to but thankfully it does deliver.

It's a light amber/dark golden beer with a small, loose, rapidly vanishing cream coloured head.  A few foam patches remain but it quickly has a flat appearance, which is a shame.

It has a lipsmacking aroma of sweet caramel, malt, and sticky toffee pudding and the taste is similarly mouthwatering.  Sweet caramel and malt combine with tangy hops to give an almost trappist taste and the slight bitter finish lingers on the tongue.  The body is medium and carbonation is decent with softish bubbles that caress the tongue.

This is a delicious bitter that's as memorable as its name and Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Hexhamshire Brewery, Northumberland
4.8% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at Hexhamshire Brewery

BAD Co. Off-Tempo 0518

Off-Tempo is an experimental range from BAD Co. brewed to explore flavour and style and their milkshake IPA 0518 is a cracking result.

It's a deep golden, slightly hazy ale with a decent sized, loose but surprisingly robust off-white head.  I poured it slowly and carefully, leaving just a tiny bit of sediment in the can.

The aroma is a tropical fruit explosion.  It's so fruity with notes of pineapple, mango, lemon and grapefruit bursting out of the can the moment it is opened.  The overall flavour is juicy tropical fruits but the addition of lactose gives it a smooth, creamy taste and adds some sweetness to the initial bitterness.  It's thin bodied with relatively low carbonation but the bubbles are quite prickly and left my tongue pleasantly tingling.

It's a very refreshing and easy drinking IPA.  I much prefer a sweet rather than pithy IPA so this one was spot on for me.  Hopefully BAD Co. will deem the experiment a success and brew this milkshake IPA again in the future.  Ale Be Seeing You!

Brewed by Brewing & Distilling Company Ltd, North Yorkshire
5.8% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at BAD Co.

Brewdog Dead Pony Club

A stunning crystal clear light amber ale with a substantial frothy beige head that laces down the glass.  It has an absolutely mouthwatering aroma of oranges with a hint of grapefruit; I could quite easily close my eyes and imagine that I was walking through an orange grove...with a grapefruit or a can of Lilt.

I was pleasantly surprised with my first sip; I expected a huge citrus burst but instead the citrus flavour is quite subtle in the form of a tropical fruit burst after the initial sublime malty taste.  The carbonation is slightly on the harsh side and, coupled with the fruitiness and a hint of floral spiciness, it results in a pleasant tongue tingling.  Although quite thin in body, it wakes up my taste buds without feeling as if they've been tasered.

Dead Pony Club is a perfect sunny day beer as the fruitiness is so refreshing and the ABV is quite low at 3.8%.  I really enjoyed it and although I'm not usually a pale ale fan, Ale Be Seeing You Again Dead Pony Club.

Brewed by Brewdog, Ellon, Aberdeenshire

3.8% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Brewdog

Allendale Double IPA

If tropical fruit is your thing then this beer is for you!  I think you can tell it is a citrus fruity beer from the cloudy golden yellow appearance and it has quite an impressive tight off-white head that lasts and laces.

It smells strongly of tropical fruit and is actually quite refreshing as the aromas of pineapples and lemons make me think of distant shores.  The taste, however, isn't totally tropical but is more grapefruit overload for me.  It is very very VERY bitter and the grapefruit flavour takes over to the point where that's all I could taste.

Very fizzy and very bitter, it wasn't my kind of beer and Ale not be Seeing You Again.

Brewed by Allendale Brewery, Northumberland

7.4% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Allendale Brewery