Grounding Angels Good Vibrations

This is a hazy golden yellow beer with a loose, rapidly disappearing off-white head.  There is a lot of sediment in this one, despite a careful pour.

It smells like a fruit cocktail with notes of mango, guava, pineapple and grapefruit.  Grapefruit is the predominant taste but it's not overly bitter at first, however, it does leave quite a pithy aftertaste.  Underneath the grapefruit there's a slightly floral note with hints of mango.  It's well carbonated with a thin body and it has a spicy and dry finish. 

This beer has a bit of everything: it's fruity, spicy, floral, dry and bitter.  I just found the amount of sediment to be very off-putting and I really don't like seeing bits in my glass so unfortunately, Ale not Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by Grounding Angels Brew Co, Hexham, Northumberland
4% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 3.5/5

Find out more at Grounding Angels Brew Co

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

Rigg & Furrow Owl Porter

 

This is a very dark brown ale with a tight tan head that lasts reasonably well, dispersing slowly to leave a thin layer.  There is a bit of sediment in the bottle so it needs a careful pour.

Aroma is malt, chocolate, tangy hops and a hint of metallic bitterness.  Whilst the aroma might not be anything exceptional, the flavour certainly makes up for it with a perfectly balanced blend of roasted malt, chocolate and coffee beans.  The chocolate flavour really lingers on the palate and it's not bitter at all.

It has a medium body and it's well carbonated with soft tingly bubbles.  Overall, a very nice porter indeed and one I'd highly recommend trying.  Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Rigg & Furrow Farmhouse Brewery, Morpeth, Northumberland
4% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.25/5

Find out more at Rigg & Furrow Farmhouse Brewery

Allendale Wanderlust

 

Wanderlust is a golden honey coloured IPA from Northumberland brewers, Allendale.  It has a small off-white head that disperses to a patchy foam.

It smells SO fruity and more sweet than bitter; think sugar coated pineapple cubes and freshly cut grapefruit segments.  Flavour swings towards bitterness with notes of tangy marmalade, pine and a lingering grapefruit bitter finish.

Well carbonated and thin bodied, it tingles the tongue nicely but the abundant grapefruit bubbles made the taste a little too pithy for me.  I'm not a huge IPA fan but I can appreciate that this is a pretty nice one and I probably would have one again so Ale Be Seeing You!

Brewed by Allendale Brewery, Hexham, Northumberland
6.5% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 3.5/5

Find out more at Allendale Brewery

Allendale Pennine Pale

Pennine Pale is a traditional looking pale ale from Northumberland brewers, Allendale.  It's a lovely golden yellow colour with a thick, bright white head that leaves thick lacing on the side of the glass.

It has an intensely fruity aroma, mainly citrus but with some tropical fruit notes and a hint of hops too.  The flavour is unsurprisingly citrus initially but it combines with the hops and malt flavours to take the edge off the bitterness. It's zesty and refreshing without being too pithy and is one of the few citrusy ales I find palatable.

Quite softly carbonated, it has a smooth mouthfeel with little bubbles of bitterness bursting on the tongue.  Pennine Pale is another quality ale from Allendale and a cold one would be perfect to quench your thirst on a hot summer day.  When I fancy something a bit zesty, Ale Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by Allendale Brewery, Northumberland
4% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 3.75/5

Find out more at Allendale Brewery

Grounding Angels Mr. Stouty Pants

The fabulously named Mr. Stouty Pants was the whole reason I placed an order with Hexham-based brewery, Grounding Angels.  I love stout and just had to try this one; I am delighted to report that I was not disappointed (just as well as I ordered 5 of them!).

Pouring a very dark brown/almost black with a loose rapidly disappearing light brown head, the delicious malty aroma leaps out of the can as soon as you open it.  Along with malt, there's chocolate, treacle, liquorice, molasses and a hint of coffee.  It really does smell amazing and my mouth was watering as I leaned in for my first sip.

What a delicious blend of flavours!  The taste is quite extraordinary; a lovely blend of malt, chocolate and coffee with absolutely no bitterness whatsoever.  There's a slight smokiness and a hint of sweet treacle but the overriding taste of milk chocolate is divine.  It's relatively softly carbonated and the body is quite thin for a stout but the taste is so outstanding that you can forgive these little slights.

Brewed with local grown Golden Promise Barley, 11 different speciality malts and finished with Madagascan vanilla, cacao nibs and freshly roasted Pilgrims coffee from Holy Island, Mr. Stouty Pants is a very easy drinking stout.  Although the body makes it feel quite light, it's surprisingly strong at 5.6% and one to be savoured rather than devoured.  It's a shame its rapid loss of head gives it a flat appearance and makes it look like a glass of coke but the flavour more than makes up for it.

Even if I didn't already have another four cans, Ale Be Seeing You Again Mr. Stouty Pants!

Brewed by Grounding Angels Brew Co, Hexham, Northumberland
5.6 % ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.5/5

Find out more at Grounding Angels Brew Co

Grounding Angels Chasing the Horizon

I recently found Northumberland brewery Grounding Angels Brew Co on Instagram and when I saw that they were offering local home delivery it was definitely an offer that was too good to refuse.  So doing my bit to support local businesses during lockdown, I chose a mixed case of 12 cans and a couple of hours later they were in my fridge.

First up is Chasing the Horizon, a New Zealand NEIPA.  I was a bit put off by the cloudy, opaque and slightly weird juice-like appearance at first but the amazing aroma of fresh mango, orange and lime more than made up it.  It really does resemble a glass of freshly squeezed orange juice when the loose frothy cream coloured head disappears.  If I could drink beer for breakfast, this would definitely be one I'd choose!

The aroma is unbelievable; it's so deliciously fruity and the mouthwatering aroma continuously wafts out of the glass as if it was a scented candle.  It smells like a bowl of freshly peeled fruit comprising orange, mango, peach and lime; it's very exotic and summery.  Everything I smelt in the aroma was replicated in the taste along with a hint of spice and a citrus bitter finish.  It really is a lovely blend and so very refreshing.

It's a full bodied ale with a smooth appearance but has the perfect amount of carbonation to give the tongue a good tickling.  It's like a beer cocktail and just needs a little cocktail umbrella and a slice of lime on the side of the glass to look the part.  It's not something I'd usually pick but I'm so glad that I did as I really liked it; with the balance being more tropical fruit than citrus, it turned out to be more my kind of thing than I thought.  As I bought 4 cans, I can definitely say Ale Be Seeing You Again!

  
Brewed by Grounding Angels Brew Co, Hexham, Northumberland
5.3% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Grounding Angels Brew Co

Allendale Golden Plover

You're always guaranteed a good ale from Allendale Brewery and Golden Plover is no exception, in fact it's an award winning golden ale and it's easy to see why when you experience it.

It's like summer in a glass with a golden straw coloured ale and excitable bubbles giving a lava lamp appearance.  The loose frothy white head is disappointingly small and disappears to a thin foam but it leaves surprising lacing on the glass,

There is no mistaking the citrus aroma from this one!  The bitter citrus is mixed with sour hops and something rather herby and floral to give an unusual aroma that is very appealing.  All of these wonderful aromas transfer into the taste and are perfectly blended to leave an explosion in the mouth of citrus, floral, hops and malt flavours.  There is a subtle bitter aftertaste to round off the perfect experience.  Softly carbonated, it has a moderate to thin body which, after all, is not unexpected in a golden ale.  

Surprisingly delicious, I expected an overpowering taste of citrus but I was very pleasantly surprised with the blend of flavours.  Golden Plover is a very crisp and dry ale that is so pleasant and moreish that Ale Be Seeing it Again.

Brewed by Allendale Brewery, Northumberland

4% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Allendale Brewery

Wylam Red Kite

So I looked at my beer notes before writing my review and they were very helpful indeed:

'Wylam yum yum yum'

Luckily, Red Kite is a beer I know and love so I can share a bit more of exactly what I meant by 'yum, yum, yum'.

Red Kite is a deep ruby red, brown coloured ale with a teeny tiny thin beige head.  It is very highly carbonated as you can see from the many bubbles clinging to the glass.  As we say in the North East, it smells 'MALTY AS OWT' with aromas of treacle, fruity malt loaf and a slight metallic hint.

The malty aroma is replicated in the taste which is delicious (hence the 'yum yum yum').  It has a perfect helping of maltiness with a balance that is more sweet than bitter.  There is a very faint metallic aftertaste, which is not unexpected from a traditional 'scotch' type ale.

Despite all the bubbles, there isn't much head but you forget about that the moment it hits your lips.  As soft bubbles caress the tongue and burst with malty fruitiness, you find yourself savouring every drop.

Another cracking local ale; perfectly balanced and deliciously malty, Ale most definitely Be Seeing Red Kite Again.

Brewed by Wylam Brewery, Tyneside

4.5% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Wylam Brewery

Allendale Black Grouse

This deliciously dark porter smells amazing with aromas of treacle, chocolate and coffee and a slight smokiness due to being brewed with oak chips.  The loose beige head disappears very quickly, so don't blink or you'll miss it, and it leaves you with a glass of something that resembles coke but the mouthwatering taste definitely compensates for the lack of head.

The mouthfeel is quite an experience as you start to taste treacle and liquorice whilst dark chocolate bubbles stroke and lightly tickle your tongue before bursting in a mini chocolate explosion.  It's so delicious that it goes down far too easily and would be a perfect drink on a cold winter's night sitting beside the fire with a good book.

I love the strong treacle and liquorice toffee taste, it has a bit of a fruity sweetness at first closely followed by a bitter chocolate aftertaste.  There is also a hint of flavour that reminded me of whiskies brewed in sherrywood casks, so don't be put off by the description of this ale being brewed with oak chips.  The flavours are perfectly balanced, making Black Grouse a top notch porter and Ale Be Seeing You Again!

Brewed by Allendale Brewery, Northumberland

4% ABV

My rating:

Find out more from Allendale Brewery

Wylam Jakehead IPA

I was looking forward to this one as I had heard so much about it and it surprised me on every level.  Firstly the colour, I would have expected an IPA to be golden yellow but this is a ginger orange.  I got the impression that this wasn't going to be a regular IPA.

It smells very medicinal and orangey with an absolutely massive beige head. The head is so thick that I thought I might have needed a spoon to get through it.  So I love the colour, I love the head, the smell is intriguing now on to the taste...

The taste is far too strong for me, I felt like I needed to brush my tongue afterwards.  I often find that by increasing the alcohol volume the taste is overpowered and this was the case for me with Jakehead.  It just tasted of 'strong' ale, I couldn't differentiate between tastes and was disappointed that some of the orangey smell wasn't replicated in the flavour.  I'm not a big fan of citrus ales, so this just wasn't for me.

Brewed by Wylam Brewery, Northumberland

6.3% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Wylam Brewery

Hadrian Border Brewery Farne Island

Being a fan of locally brewed ale, it was only a matter of time before I featured a Hadrian Border Brewery ale on my blog.  A lovely crystal clear amber ale flowed out of this bottle and the photo really doesn't do it justice.  It is a perfect amber colour and so clear, once the bubbles dispersed.  It has a small head but it doesn't disappear at all and it smells so malty and, with a slight hint of citrus, so refreshing that I couldn't wait to taste it.  

My first taste impression was "oooooh" - this really is an outstanding amber bitter.  It's smooth and bursting with a range of flavours from malt to honey - absolutely divine!  With no hint of a metallic aftertaste, it's a bitter without bitterness so Farne Island gets top marks from me.

I'll definitely be trying more from this brewery as I already have Secret Kingdom and Grainger Ale on my wishlist, but I can definitely say that Ale Be Seeing You Again, Farne Island.

Brewed by Hadrian Border Brewery, Newcastle upon Tyne

4.0% ABV

Find out more at Hadrian Border Brewery

High House Farm Nettle Beer

I've been on the lookout for Nettle Beer for quite some time, it is really hard to get hold of as it is only brewed once per year in the Spring.  It is an amazing light golden amber colour and strangely aromatic.

There is a slight floral or honey aroma on pouring, I can't quite describe it as it is something I have never smelt before.  It's almost like sugar coated cut grass; really unusual and distinctive.  I would go so far as to say that it smells green, hilariously reminding me of Percy in Blackadder when he invents the gem called 'green'.

There is not a great head on it and it virtually disappears before I can get the glass to my lips.  So on to the taste...at first I would say it doesn't have a lot of taste but then I'm hit with smooth honey tones and the taste of 'green'.  It's so refreshing and slightly sweet that I think that if I had a blind taste test, I would find it hard to decide whether it was a very unsweet cider, a slightly sweet ale or a cider/ale mix of both.

Based on a 14th century recipe and only brewed once per year, this is the holy grail for beer lovers.  Everyone should try Nettle Beer at least once - it's so unusual and, with a different taste in every mouthful, so difficult to describe that I know Ale be Seeing You Again!

Brewed by High House Farm, Northumberland

4.5% ABV

Find out more at High House Farm Brewery