The beer imports have landed but this one is something special. For the first time a refrigerated container has been used to protect this precious cargo from the extremes of the equator. The rigours of having ones beer travel through the tropics wont be something most readers in the northern hemisphere will have to worry about, however for the southern English Ale nut (or German, Belgian or American beer fan) the beers we love are often a mutated facsimile of how the beer tasted as rolled out the Brewery gate, this is particularly true of un stabilised bottle conditioned beers. Many thanks to the fantastic efforts of the Beer Emporium in
Here’s what came home in my shopping bag
- Saltaire Goldings Bitter
- Saltaire Challanger Special
- Nigerian Foreign Extra Guinness
- Coniston Bluebird
- Nethergate Old Growler
- Adnams Broadside
All but Adnams Broadside are new to me, Broadside is one of my all time favourite beers and if I had to pick a desert island bottled beer it would be it, tasting note to come ....
7 comments:
OK That was odd. Roboform got a little overzealous and filled in a comment from a previous entry instead of just logging in. Anyway... You're in for a treat. The Nigerian GFE is the only one I've not had fresh, and they're all awesome! Can't wait to read your tasting notes.
Boy are you in for a treat if that container has done its job.
I had the Durham Temptation Stout and Old Growler at the start of this month and both were superb. The Saltaire Goldings ale I'd sampled here
http://johnsrandomramblings.blogspot.com/2007/05/beer-festivals.html
and can safely say it's the best goldings only beer I've tasted, beating even Hopback Summer Lightening. I've also tasted the Bluebird but not recently I can't remember not being pleased with it.
Keep us posted on what you think of them
I'd be interested to try the Durham stuff. I rarely encounter their beers, which is a shame as I was born and brought up in County Durham (well, I was if you ignore the 1974 reorganisation).
Bottled Adnam's Broadside in the bottle is, as you're probably aware, a totally different beer to the cask version that is all too common in London. The draught is only 4.7% abv I believe, and seems to suffer from indifferent handling to the extent I never order it.
Yeah, a freind who lived in Norfolk for awhile has told me that the bottled version is much better than the cask, and ofcourse it must be a far different beast with that gap in gravity.
Do you know if any of the beers from these shipments make it up to Auckland? If so, what shops sell them?
Martin
So far the refridgerated imports are being handled by the Beer Emporium in Chch and Regional Wines in Wgtn. Greig was keen on seeing if Hamilton Wine co could enter into the arrangement,nothing in Auckland however, its a bit tougth up there.
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