BrewDog Cake Cartel

Ooh I wanted to try this hazelnut stout from BrewDog as soon as I heard about it and it did not disappoint.  This is definitely one for the sweet toothed beer drinker.

It's a very dark brown stout with a small, rapidly vanishing tan head that doesn't leave a single bubble behind, giving it a very disappointingly flat appearance.  It makes up for it in the wonderful aroma though - it's as sweet as candy with notes of malt, caramel, milk chocolate and raspberry jam.

It tastes like liquid chocolate cake with a huge helping of malt, a dash of candy floss and a sprinkling of nuts.  It leaves a lovely sweetness of the lips and it's very moreish, although it doesn't taste as nutty as I expected.  Brewed with lactose, it's a very smooth stout with low carbonation and a full body.

This is a lovely rich, dark, sweet pastry stout and it tastes exactly as would expect from the can.  If it hadn't lost its head so quickly and tasted a bit more nutty, it would've been a five star beer but for taste alone, Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by BrewDog, Ellon, Aberdeenshire 
6% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.25/5

Find out more at BrewDog Brewery

Bellfield Dark Sky Porter

 

This is a beautiful dark and fruity porter from Scottish brewers, Bellfield.  It's very dark, almost black, and it has a small, loose and rapidly vanishing tan head.

It has a mouthwatering aroma of roasted malt, treacle, chocolate and coffee with a hint of juicy red fruit.  It tastes as good as it smells too; it's sweet and fruity with notes of chocolate, treacle and caramel with an unusual and interesting coffee and tangy berry finish.

With low but firm carbonation and a full body, it has a smooth but tingly mouthfeel that made it really pleasant to drink.

It's a lovely fruity porter with a delicious sweetness that reminded me of candied fruit.  I have a sweet tooth so I really liked it and Ale Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by Bellfield Brewery, Edinburgh
4% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at Bellfield Brewery

Stewart Brewing Cocoa-Nut

I love chocolate and I love stout so I snapped up this chocolate and hazelnut stout when I saw it in Lidl's beer festival.

It has a traditional stout appearance with a black velvet body and a small tan head that leaves a patchy layer when it settles.  It smells incredibly nutty and I could smell them as soon as I opened the can.  Underneath the nutty aroma there are delicious notes of chocolate, malt and even more nuts.

The taste is deliciously dark with loads of malt and hints of chocolate and liquorice.  The chocolate is dark and slightly bitter and there's no prizes for guessing the aftertaste: it's nuts!  It has a lovely full body and medium carbonation, giving it a relatively smooth mouthfeel that I like to see in a stout.

With an ABV of 7.1%, it's a very rich and decadent stout.  The dark chocolate bitterness is a little bit too much for me as I don't really like dark chocolate but the nuttiness is amazing and it tastes like it says on the can.  It's definitely one I'd recommend trying and Ale Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by Stewart Brewing, Loanhead, Midlothian, Scotland
7.1% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at Stewart Brewing

BrewDog Silk Road

 

I picked up this can of mango and lychee hazy IPA in Herons for something silly like 69p, so of course it would have been rude not to get one....or two.

It's a lovely hazy golden beer with a small, rapidly vanishing off-white head that leaves a patchy layer of foam.  There's quite a lot of sediment in the can so I left a lot of it behind as it was hazy enough already for me.

It has a beautiful aroma.  It's very fruity with notes of mango and some highly perfumed lychee.  It tastes very refreshing with the delicious flavour of sweet juicy mango and a slight bitterness of lychee.  It has a lovely soft and silky mouthfeel with low, soft carbonation in a thin to medium body.

This is a lovely hazy IPA but because of the mango, it tastes more like an alcopop than a beer to me; it was just missing a cocktail umbrella.  I can't complain for the price though!  Unless I saw it cheap again, Ale not Be Seeing You again.

Brewed by BrewDog, Ellon, Aberdeenshire
6.5% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4/5

Find out more at BrewDog Brewery

Türk Tuborg Fiçi

Tuborg Fiçi is a Turkish pilsner and I just had to try it when I spotted the unusual shaped bottle in Home Bargains.  The bargain price of £1.29 was another attraction, of course.

It's a deep golden beer with a frothy, very rapidly disappearing cream coloured head and it has a traditional continental beer smell of hops and malt.  

I was surprised how malty it tastes as I would normally expect a darker body to correspond to this amount of malt.  I'm not complaining at all, I love a malty beer!  There are also notes of tangy hops, sweet caramel and biscuit.  The body is quite thin but it's not watery as the soft, low carbonation gives it a tingly mouthfeel.  

It's a lovely malty, refreshing beer.  It would be perfect to quench your thirst on a hot day so I would definitely be seeking it out if I ever went back to Turkey.  For now, I'll keep an eye out in Home Bargains and hopefully, Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Türk Tuborg Brewery, Turkey
5% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 3.5/5

Find out more at Türk Tuborg Brewery

Robinsons Trooper Hallowed

Just look at the rich mahogany colour of this Iron Maiden beer brewed by Robinsons Brewery.  It has a tight, robust cream coloured head and it gets full marks for appearance as this beautiful red/brown body is what I like to see in a beer. 

It has a delicious malty aroma with a hint of roasted nuts, treacle toffee and tangy Belgian hops.  It tastes delicious too; there's a big hit of tangy hops at first followed by huge sweet and malty notes and it has a lovely dry. fruity finish.  I couldn't particularly identify plum and banana but it's definitely fruity.  It has a full body and it's quite fizzy but the carbonation isn't harsh,

It's a lovely Belgian with a British slant.  The flavour is rich and the fruity plum finish is really unusual.  I loved it and Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by Robinsons Brewery, Stockport
6% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 4.5/5

Find out more at Iron Maiden Beer

Monastère Double

Now that's what I call a BINGO beer!  Monastère Double scored a full house on my beer scoring sheet - that's a huge 50/50 covering appearance, aroma, flavour, mouthfeel and overall.

It is a beautiful mahogany brown colour with a tight tan head that retains a thin layer.  The aroma is to die for with notes of malt, caramel, treacle toffee and tangy Belgian hops.  It gets better with the taste as my tongue was hit with an explosion of sweet treacle, roasted malt, tangy hops, raisins and a hint of chocolate.  There's even a slight liquorice finish to add to the complex flavour profile.

With a full body and medium but firm carbonation, this is an outstanding double.  It is faultless and even better that it came in a 500ml can to prolong the experience.  This was a bargain from B&M and I really hope Ale Be Seeing You again!

Brewed by United Dutch Breweries, EU
6.4% ABV

My rating:

My Untappd score: 5/5

Find out more at Monastère