Left Handed Giant x Highland Park Brewery Intrinsic Value

Instrinsic Value is a vanilla and blueberry imperial stout brewed by Bristol brewers Left Handed Giant (LHG) in collaboration with Los Angeles brewers Highland Park Brewery.  

As you would expect from a beer brewed with fruit, there is some sediment in the can so it needs a careful pour.  It pours a very dark brown with a huge, tight deep tan coloured head which is possibly the darkest coloured head I've ever seen.

It has a very distinctive and appealing aroma of chocolate, vanilla, malt and fruity blueberries so this is a beer that smells as good as it looks.  The all-important taste is not disappointing at all; it is delicious.  Smooth milk chocolate, fruity blueberries, sweet malt and vanilla all combine beautifully.  It's actually not as sweet as I expected, it's a bit earthy, woody and dry with a bitter chocolate finish.  A hint of blueberries keeps appearing every now and again.

It's a very full bodied beer that's well carbonated to give a bit of a tingle to an otherwise smooth mouthfeel.  With such a high ABV of 11% there's not even a hint of raw alcohol in the taste but it's quite warming which makes it feel incredibly boozy.  

LHG have produced some cracking beers and Intrinsic Value is no exception.  I would definitely recommend this imperial stout and Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Left Handed Giant Brewing, Bristol
11% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.25/5

Find out more at Left Handed Giant Brewing

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

Buxton Brewery Buxton Blonde

Buxton Blonde is a deep golden yellow ale with a frothy, reasonably tight off-white coloured head that dissipates to leave a nice layer of foam.  Aroma is biscuit, caramel and yellow fruit.  It's not a strong aroma but it is pleasant.

Malt, caramel, honey and hops dominate the flavour with a slight bitter citrus finish that isn't pithy at all.  It's thin bodied but not watery and has good carbonation that's fizzy enough without being harsh.

Incredibly refreshing and easy to drink, i's a lovely biscuity blonde ale with a bitter finish.  It's not currently brewed by Buxton but if it was, Ale Be Seeing You as it's a lovely summery ale.

Brewed by Buxton Brewery, Buxton, Derbyshire
4.6% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 3.5/5

Find out more at Buxton Brewery

Wychwood Diceman

 

Wychwood is a brewery that rarely disappoints and Diceman is no exception.  

It's a jet black stout with a thick, tight, beige head that is surprisingly robust.  The aroma is a little uninspiring; malt and treacle on a strong metallic base, however, the ale redeems itself in the taste test.  It is a lovely stout with notes of treacle, malt, dark fruit, and liquorice followed by a hint of chocolate to give a bittersweet chocolate finish.

It has a medium body and it's well carbonated with hard but not harsh bubbles that somehow manage to give a silky smooth mouthfeel.

Diceman is like a liquorice toffee in a glass and I loved it.  It's just a shame it lost a few points in the aroma as it deserves a higher score than 3.75/5.  It's the taste that counts so Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Wychwood Brewery, Witney, Oxfordshire

5% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 3.75/5

Find out more at Wychwood Brewery

Staggeringly Good Post Imperial Porter

A maple syrup and vanilla porter?  YES PLEASE!

I had my eye on this on Instagram when I saw it being brewed and ordered one as soon as it was canned.  I was not disappointed.

It's a very dark brown ale with a small, loose, rapidly vanishing tan head that leaves a patchy foam.  It smells SO boozy, which isn't a surprise as it has an ABV of 10%.  The aroma is mouthwatering with notes of malt, treacle, chocolate, maple syrup, liquorice and vanilla.  There's so much going on, it's like you smell something different with every sniff.

Full marks for flavour!  Wow, this is impressive.  It's a dark and decadent brew with treacle toffee, maple syrup pancakes, malt loaf and liquorice all having a party in my mouth.  Mouthfeel is perfect with low but firm carbonation, and a full body that looks slightly syrupy as it clings to the glass but doesn't feel sticky on the tongue.

This is a very special beer.  It's one to savour and take your time with as I didn't want it to finish.  It is everything a dark ale should be with treacle and maple sweetness balanced with burnt roastiness.  I was impressed that the high ABV didn't leave a strong alcohol taste in the mouth, simply a warming bourbon finish.

Very highly recommended and one Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Staggeringly Good Brewery, Portsmouth
10% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.75/5

Find out more at Staggeringly Good Brewery

Seven Bro7hers Throw Away IPA

 

Seven Bro7hers have found a unique way to upcycle less than perfect cereal - make beer with it!  What a brilliant idea!  Cornflakes rejected by Kellogg's have found its way into Throw Away IPA.  

Throw Away IPA is a hazy orange-hued golden ale with a loose, frothy off-white head that disappears to leave a patchy layer.  Although quite lightly fragranced, it smells of sweet, juicy fruit on an underlying base of hops.

Much like the aroma, the flavour is very very weak and there's not much taste to it at all.  It tasted like a very watery squash to me with a slight bitterness in the aftertaste.  A slight buttery corn flavour develops after a while but an overall weak flavour coupled with a thin, watery body completed the whole disappointing experience.

Although it's a great idea, there's just nothing much to it at all.  It's not a drain pour by any means, it's just like lightly flavoured sparkling water.  It's not for me so Ale not Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by Seven Bro7hers Brewery, Manchester
5% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 2.75/5

Find out more at Seven Bro7hers 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.