Original Stormtrooper Lightspeed Pilsner

It's the 4th of May so Happy Star Wars Day!  I really couldn't have found a better beer to review today than The Original Stormtrooper beers from St Peter's Brewery so I'm posting not just one but two reviews today!  I bought the Lightspeed Pilsner in a gift pack with a glass for £5.99 from B&M in December 2019 but you can also buy glasses and gift packs direct from Original Stormtrooper for the Star Wars fan in your life!  Just click here to take a look.

May the force be with you

Gift set from B&M

As I'm a fan of ale from the dark side, I haven't really experienced a lot of pilsner, however, this Lightspeed Pilsner more than exceeded my expectations.  It is a deep golden yellow colour with a frothy and surprisingly robust cream coloured head.  The aroma is deliciously hoppy and smells strongly of sweet stone fruits with a hint of citrus.

For a pilsner, it is surprisingly flavourful; a lovely blend of malt and hops is evident in the taste along with a grassy and sweet fruit flavour.  I didn't really get any hints of sweetcorn that was mentioned on the label but it may have mixed in with the sweet stone fruits I could taste.  The initial blast of flavour is then followed by a delicious crisp and dry bitter finish.

With medium carbonation and medium body, it's a very refreshing beer.  It most certainly lives up to it's  description of 'lager with a twist'.  It's been years since I've had a lager but the addition of fabulous bitterness pushes this more into the ale category for me.  This could definitely bring a lager drinker over to the dark side of real ale. 

I would definitely have this again, especially as a light refreshment on a sunny day, so Lightspeed Pilsner Ale Be Seeing You Again!

Brewed by St Peters Brewery, Suffolk

4.2% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 3.75

Find out more at The Original Stormtrooper

Wadworth Treacle Treat

Wadworth's Treacle Treat looks like my kind of beer!  It's a deep mahogany red/brown colour with a tight but small beige head.

It scores full marks for aroma with mouthwatering smells of treacle (naturally), burnt caramel, sweet molasses, dark fruit and malt.  I couldn't wait to dive in but unfortunately the mouthwatering aromas weren't replicated in the taste.  It has a flavour of caramel, burnt toffee and slight citrus bitterness but I couldn't detect any treacle at all.  It was so disappointing that it didn't quite live up to, not only my expectation, but its very name.  

Watery and thin-bodied, it has average carbonation and the bitterness even tasted kind of soapy.  Although by no means a bad beer, it was very disappointing based on what I expected it to be.  It's definitely a Halloween beer and I think I've been tricked as I definitely wasn't treated to any treacle 😢.

Brewed by Wadworth, Wiltshire 
4.2% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Wadworth Brewery

Portobello Star

I bought a mixed real ale pack from Laithwaites and found THE HOLY GRAIL OF BEERS.  As I was drinking it I could hear Obi Wan Kenobi saying: 'This is the beer you are looking for.'  Just look at it!  It's a perfect crystal clear amber colour with a thick, tight cream coloured head.

Mouthwatering aromas are released on pouring: sweet malts and fruity hops combined with a hint of floral spice and nutty bread.  I just couldn't wait to dive in and I was not disappointed.

This really is delicious!  It is sweet and bitter with an ever so slight metallic bitter aftertaste at first.  It is perfectly smooth with extra soft bubbles that caress your tongue as you partake in the amazing experience of Portobello Star.  The head remains right to the last drop whilst lacing the glass and I loved every second of this.  Talking of seconds...I wish I could have had seconds but there was only one in the pack.  

If you follow my book blog, The Book Magnet, you will know that I often refer to Disney's Cinderella to identify something extra special.  When I was a very young child, my parents took me to the cinema to see Cinderella.  As we came out of the cinema I was in floods of tears and my Dad asked me why I was crying.  My answer was: 'Because I didn't want it to finish.'  That's exactly how I felt about Portobello Star.  As much as I was loving it and could have greedily gulped it down, I savoured every mouthful as I didn't want it to finish.  I have found my Cinderella beer, although it is proving as elusive to find as the owner of the famous glass slipper who Prince Charming was searching for.  I will wear out my F5 button soon, Laithwaites!

Ale DEFINITELY Be Seeing Portobello Star again and like Prince Charming, I will never give up searching for my Cinderella beer.  

Brewed by Portobello Brewing, London

4.3% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Portobello Brewing

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

Camerons Strongarm

I think it is time for a treat so I picked a ruby red ale for today.  This looks like an absolutely stunning ruby ale, it is a deep shiny mahogany colour with a thick beige head.  There is a lovely malty aroma and a sweet treacle smell so I couldn't wait to dive in for a taste.

Strongarm tastes like sweet malt loaf coated in thick black treacle.  It has a smooth consistency and feels slightly thin but the taste is something else.  It is an outstanding taste experience as sweetness battles with bitterness leaving an explosion of treacle and malt in your mouth.  It is so delicious that  Ale Be Seeing You Again!

Brewed by Camerons Brewery, Hartlepool

4.3% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Camerons Brewery

Allendale Wagtail

Wagtail is a superb amber colour, the traditional colour you'd expect for a bitter.  It smells unusually of oranges and some kind of sweet spice.  It pours with only a small creamy coloured head which leaves a thin layer as it disappears.  What remains does leave a slight lacing on the glass and a quick swirl creates a bit more foam.

It has a very unusual taste and there is no hint of the metallic taste you often get with bitters, instead it has a slightly sweet toffee taste with a spicy citrus aftertaste.  It is definitely more of an orange than lemon or grapefruit flavour, leaving a very pleasant taste on the tongue.

Wagtail is an impressive local bitter that I purchased in a mixed pack from the lovely folk at Best of British Beer.  Ale Be Seeing it Again.

Brewed by Allendale Brewery, Northumberland

3.8% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Allendale Brewery

Allendale Wolf

Time for one of my favourite coloured ales.  Wolf is a strong ruby ale from the Allendale Brewery and it has been on my wishlist for quite some time.  Will it live up to my expectations?

On opening it smells deliciously malty, fruity and sweet.  It is a lovely ruby colour and has an outstanding thick beige frothy head that shows no sign of dispersing.  It's one of those heads that will need a brillo pad to clean the glass afterwards.

It has a lovely malty chocolate taste and, as you would expect from the high alcohol content, it leaves a slightly bitter aftertaste on the tongue.  It's quite carbonated and the bubbles feel a bit harsh on the tongue but then the malty chocolate flavours kick in.  The flavour is so complex that I even felt as if there was a hint of pepper thrown into the mix after a few mouthfuls.  Not quite a 5 star rating, but not far off, and Ale probably be Seeing You Again.

Brewed by Allendale Brewery, Northumberland

5.5% ABV

My rating:

Find out more at Allendale Brewery