COLONSAY IPA

BEER REVIEW: 84

BREWER: The Colonsay Brewery, Inner Hebrides, Scotland

STYLE: IPA

ABV: 3.9%

VESSEL: 500ml brown bottle

DATE POSTED: 17th May 2019

JYMI SAY’S…

As you approach the confectionery section of any newsagent you are faced with the same cast time and time again. You have the heavyweights such as Mars, Snickers and Twix. You have the underrated Bounty and Topic knocking around too. Then there are the ones that nobody in the whole world has ever even opened let alone actually eaten, I’m on about the likes of Picnic and Star Bar. But underpinning all of these you have the likes of Chomp, Freddo and FUDGE.

Now, do not underestimate a Fudge bar. Of my 104 friends only 3 dislike a Fudge. Ernie the bin man, Short Bob and Dave Baxter. A bar of Fudge may have a thin body (unlike Short Bob, his other nickname is Wide Bob) but it is packed full of flavour… and this is exactly what this IPA from Colonsay Island is bringing to our drinking table. And it’s a table where many folk may stick around for many hours drinking this India Pale Ale from the wee isle of Colonsay. See what we have here, (unlike this liner on the label losing beer bottles everywhere due to an unexpected wave that seems to be bigger than a cliff) is the perfect storm. A beer that tastes great and isn’t so strong that it will see you in your bunk by mid arvo.

And as a parting note I’m going to draw us to the information provided on the label….

Firstly a great fact: Colonsay is the smallest island in the world with its own brewery.

Secondly the ingredients state that Pure Scottish Water is used in the making of this brew. And you know what… you can tell.

Crisp is the word, is the word, is the word, etc.

Jymi’s Rating: 76%

SAMMY SAY’S…

Firstly, a big shout out to Colonsay Brewery for setting up their production; it’s the smallest island in the world to have its own brewery. Having this claim, though, will only get you so far. To make the claim mean anything, you have to produce good beer…

This offering from Colonsay Brewery, simply named IPA, isn’t a complex beer. It provides a sweet and light aroma, which is different to what one might expect from an IPA. It’s subtle, not at all in your face, and you have to pull deeply to get a hint of what the aroma is about. I really like the fact that it makes you work to get this sense.

The drinking is very similar. When you first draw on the IPA, it’s almost not there. You may feel a little short changed. But the strength of this beer is the more you drink, the more it gives. It builds up subtle complexities and, while it never stands up and shouts, ends in a refreshing crescendo of loveliness.

So, it turns out that Colonsay Brewery aren’t just about being the smallest island in the world with a Brewery. They are about making good, very drinkable beers. A big shout out to them, then, for doing so.

Sammy’s Rating: 76%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 76%

MOB review next weekend: BRAVADO by MAGIC ROCK

MUSE ON BOOZE

RADICAL ROAD

BEER REVIEW: 83

BREWER: Stewart Brewing, Midlothian, Scotland

STYLE: Pale Ale

ABV: 6.4%

VESSEL: 330ml brown bottle

DATE POSTED: 10th May 2019

JYMI SAY’S…

Quite how you combine Big Bird and Oscar the Grouch and end up with an open chested hop popping pagan pigeon as the focal point of your packaging is beyond me. But we are where we are.

I also have to bring up the brave use of the word Radical in the name. Pretty sure the last time MOBJymi used that word I was chatting to a girl in a bowling alley in the early nineties dressed as a Ninja Turtle…. but we are where we are.

Have to say I was pushed for time a little when testing this Triple Hopped Pale. So when I turned the bottle and was told I was going to be having a Grapefruit – Marmalade – Pine – Bitter/Sweet experience I was pretty chuffed. From the description at least, this beer had a chance of being a goodun’.

Pressure was on to deliver Stewart Brewing, as a bad brew reviewed in a hurry is not going to work out too well.

Tell you what, we are darn professional over here at Muse on Booze.

Well, this is a very pleasant brew I have to say. There is an initial hit of orange and pine that is pretty intense but this Pale then softens and allows the drinker a bit of room to absorb that hit. This is then followed by a pretty intense (almost too intense actually) grapefruit finish which hangs around a long time I have to say. It’s a good beer this, there are elements I’m not too sure on and the over grapefruit and strength of this pale means not too many would be had before moving on but as said… ‘tis a good beer.

Anyway, I’m off…

# Can you tell me how to get, how to get to…. West 63rd St and Broadway? #

Jymi’s Rating: 70%

SAMMY SAY’S…

Radical Road is a strange creature on first meeting. It takes a some time to get used to, a little like a cousin that you haven’t seen in many a year and since you last saw them they have changed beyond recognition. You see, Stewart Brewing have produced a beer that looks like an amber ale, but is so strong in its bitter grapefruit nose. In fact, the nose is so strong you can almost taste the beer through the smell.

Unsurprisingly, Radical Road does taste like it smells. The grapefruit comes through in waves and pulls on the taste buds at the back of your tongue. I have to say, I really like it. There is an incredibly dry feeling once finished and as soon as I have finished one sip, I find myself going back for more.

Strangely, it leaves you both thirst quenched as well as thirsty. RR is a well brewed and well balanced beer. The team at Stewart Brewing haven’t compromised with their delivery of bitter grapefruit. I am really pleased that they haven’t.

While Radical Road may take some time to get used to, especially on first meeting, it is an acquaintance well worth meeting. If it were a long lost cousin, time has served it well and its unusual appearance is supported by an uncompromising personality, which steals the show without being overbearing.

Radical Road quietly goes about its business and does a very good job of doing so.

Sammy’s Rating: 80%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 75%

MOB review next weekend: COLONSAY IPA by THE COLONSAY BREWERY

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ROYAL RHA

BEER REVIEW: 82

BREWER: Bronckhorster Brewing Company, Gelderland, Netherlands

STYLE: IPA

ABV: 6%

VESSEL: 33cl brown bottle

DATE POSTED: 3rd May 2019

SAMMY SAY’S…

From the outset, if I were buying a beer on packaging alone and Royal RHA was the only beer available, then the fact is I would never drink beer. As it is, I am on a mission to try as many different beers as possible so I find myself with a bottle of Royal RHA in hand.

Before drinking, Royal RHA claims to be a regal beer. A big claim…it needs to be tested…here we go…

On opening, Royal RHA fizzes up quickly in the bottle, but this strangely doesn’t translate to being poured into the glass, where the head isn’t disappointing, but it’s by no means…regal. One should definitely not compare it to a crown.

The nose is definitely there…and I can’t say much more about it. It doesn’t even begin to compare with other IPAs, and while there is a hint of fruitiness, it definitely doesn’t smell like it’s fit for any royal table.

Royal RHA is so thin in the drinking, that it disappears into insignificance. There is a nasty bitter flavour, which hints at a poor brew. It’s almost as if the alcohol has been added afterwards and has not been borne out of a high class brew.

To summarise, Royal RHA is not a regal beer by a long chalk in my view and all you monarchs out there would be best off searching for your ale hit elsewhere!

Sammy’s Rating: 31%

JYMI SAY’S…

Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha, went I, as Sammy handed me this latest beer to be tested and reviewed. Now the reason for this outburst of chuckle was because I honestly thought that he had handed me a bottle of White Wine Vinegar. I mean really, what on earth were the Bronckhorster design team thinking when then pencilled, then penned and eventually signed off this bottle art? It’s an absolute disaster. I could actually get over the whole white wine vinegar thing if it looked super slick, but it doesn’t, so I won’t. I WON’T I TELL THEE!!
And what is with the name? I learned that Rha was a town in Holland but I do not see the connection with this being royal and this being a regal tasting IPA. Why? What? Where? Is it because it’s an English IPA? I do hope not.

Ok, to the inside of the bottle we go…

Now I wasn’t holding out much hope that this would be any good but my mind was open and as the ol’ regal saying goes… Do nei judge a boook by its cover like.
The nose I got from Royal Rha was one of trout. Now I like the whiff of trout but… Yeah I think you can draw your own conclusions here.
Now taste wise I have to say there was almost no flavour at all. Certainly not undrinkable and the feel of this IPA in the mouth was actually pretty good but as I’ve already mentioned, there was hardly any flavour whatsoever. If you could pick up on anything the flavour was possibly one of very faint banana but you really do have to go searching for it.
Once the zero flavour had faded (if that’s even possible) it’s then replaced by a reasonably pleasant bitter finish.

All in all what we have here is an ale that is drinkable but would I think about drinking it again?

Nope…

See ya.

Jymi’s Rating: 35%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 33%

MOB review next weekend: RADICAL ROAD by STEWART BREWING

MUSE ON BOOZE

FAR BEYOND

BEER REVIEW: 81

BREWER: Odyssey Brew Co., Worcestershire, England

STYLE: Double IPA

ABV: 8.2%

VESSEL: 440ml tin

DATE POSTED: 27th April 2019

SAMMY SAY’S…

Far Beyond is a place that you may or may not want to go to.

Far Beyond (unsurprisingly) is a German heavy metal band.

Far Beyond is a beer brewed by Odyssey.

Far Beyond (the beer) is very grapefruity both on the nose and on the palate. And on the palate it extends beyond beyond grapefruit to deep bittersweet, which is very good indeed. It has the back of your tongue going into overdrive.

Far Beyond (the beer) is unreserved in its brew. Odyssey haven’t held back or limited themselves – and they were right to do so.

Far Beyond (the German band) isn’t very good.

Far Beyond (the beer) is incredibly good.

Sammy’s Rating: 81%

JYMI SAY’S…

Houston, we do NOT have a problem.

So once you’ve got over the ridiculously good waft of lemon and lime that comes off of your Far Beyond DIPA you sit back for a second. Excitement begins to flood your body yes but also with that comes apprehension. The excitement is because the wonderful nose of this beer has to mean, surely, that something tip top is coming your way. But the apprehension is there because of the percentage of this monster. Weighing in at 8.2% this pup needed to be handled with care but also, it could taste like rocket fuel.

Blah blah blah

You take your first sip and… WE HAVE BLAST OFF!!

Literally this beer keeps coming at you as though you’re accelerating towards space at 8 gazillion million MPH (I have to admit I did need to use Google to find out that figure).

First up you get a large smash of citrus followed by a massive bitter hoppy build and build and build and build and build that keeps intensifying with flavour then cut… to a long beautiful finish. Superb. Just from the texture in the mouth that Far Beyond gives you you can tell that it has been brewed to a very high standard… and it doesn’t even taste too strong. Dare I say, it almost could be sessionable.

Now this is where the drinker needs to mentally step up. If you’re going to have a few of these then do it over a night at a slower pace than maybe you’re used to. If you’re having one or two and nothing else then go hard and fast no problem. But because FBDIPA tastes so damn good and isn’t obviously the strength it is if you don’t stick to this then the drinker won’t even be saying Houston we have a problem…

They’ll be screaming, Houston we’ve got a pretty f*c#~ng massive problem.

Excellent job Odyssey.

Jymi’s Rating: 82%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 81.5%

MOB review next weekend: ROYAL RHA by BRONCKHORSTER BREWING COMPANY

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LONDON GOLD

BEER REVIEW: 80

BREWER: Young’s, South-West London, England

STYLE: Blond Ale

ABV: 4.8%

VESSEL: 500ml brown bottle

DATE POSTED: 20th April 2019

JYMI SAY’S…

This is a poor effort from start to finish from this iconic London brewery that has lost it’s soul over the past years and I have to say it shows in this beer.

I used to associate Young’s and their Ram Brewery with good quality no frills brews that just delivered time and time again. Young’s brewed possibly one of the first ales I ever consumed properly by way of purchasing at a pub. I was cutting about in Kew when the reason I wasn’t driving was not because I was drinking (if you know what I mean). I remember enjoying the Young’s run pub very much and chilling outside in a beer garden supping on Young’s ales and thinking, ‘this is bloomin nice you know’.

So to say I was disappointed with pretty much everything on offer here from London Gold was pretty accurate.

The packaging is limp and lifeless. Just because you stick a few silhouetted landmarks on the label doesn’t automatically mean the packaging will pass muster. Especially if those landmarks are geographically inaccurate as well looking like knock off imitations of what they are supposed to be representing. The colouring and fonts used are also a shambles. Where’s the effort? Where’s the passion? Where’s the soul?

The ale itself really is nothing special. In fact it is nowhere near special… it’s somewhere between very average and awful.

The nose though floral and zesty has a background hint of spilt petrol on a fuel station forecourt. Not too sure where that sits on the aroma wheel?

Once in further London Gold really did start to get to the point of letting me down. I’ll do a list (I love a bloody list I do)…

Harsh in mouth.

Faint taste of hops.

Faint bitter tone.

Faint citrus back drop.

Weak to finish.

Aftertaste almost non-existent.

If you’re looking for positives… there are none.

I can’t help but feel if this beer had been developed in it’s original SW London home it would never have made it off the testing table, out the door and to the consumer.

Not good enough.

Jymi’s Rating: 44%

SAMMY SAY’S…

In the glass, Young’s London Gold looks exquisite. However, to get to this stage, you have to overcome a bit of a tough psychological journey. You see, the washed out sky blue look with a silhouette of London and black lined gold writing is not what one might expect from the giant that Young’s is. I’m not sure where they are trying to pitch this beer, but it doesn’t work for me…and I’m not sure that it would work for my dad either…

But let us pick up from that look in the glass. The blonde colour is fantastic and its aroma is light on the nose, and while it doesn’t set the world on fire is very pleasant indeed.

But the real surprise with LG is that it is zesty and crisp on the palate. Where it’s pitched is somewhere in between a lager and a more traditional ale. It makes for very pleasant drinking, which is well balanced and not too heavy on the hops. It’s quite the surprise, and one which would be enjoyable one after another.

Young’s have produced a great beer in London Gold. It is well brewed and is incredibly light on the palate. It’s not quite marketed in the right way, and if this were to be nailed on, then we have a very strong beer on our hands. Unfortunately, first impressions are long lasting and the first impression with London Gold is a long way off of strong.

Sammy’s Rating: 71%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 57.5%

MOB review next weekend: FAR BEYOND by ODYSSEY BREW CO.

MUSE ON BOOZE

HOPADELIC

BEER REVIEW: 79

BREWER: By The Horns, South West London, England

STYLE: IPA

ABV: 4.3%

VESSEL: 330ml tin

DATE POSTED: 13th April 2019

SAMMY SAY’S…

Austin Powers would be down and groovy with a beer named Hopadelic. So would a rabbit that liked beer, come to think of it. But with Hopadelic the question isn’t one of Mike Myers or bunnies, but rather, has The Horns Brewing Company produced something that would be at home in the 60s with the psychedelic scene? Or is it more suited to be in the cup holder of Mystery Incorporated’s van alongside an oversized baguette (or sub)?

It most certainly fizzes up like it’s been on an erroneous ghost chase in the hands of crime busting goodies. The fizzy bubbles give off a strong hoppy aroma. And those same bubbles give a very refreshing feeling in the mouth. They would, however, leave you with the impression that you’ve polished off two companion, giant subs if you had too many Hopadelic’s in a row.

Although the hops are definitely there, it’s quite weak in the after taste and is more fizz than anything else. So the delic bit, is unfortunately well and truly absent.

In conclusion, I’m afraid it’s definitely not a beer for a long 60s acid inspired session!

Sammy’s Rating: 61%

JYMI SAY’S…

It must have been early November 1992 when the boy Jymi shared a set of earphones with his then buddy Ted. Ted had a walkman the lucky so ‘n’ so and not just any walkman no, he had the Sony Sports Walkman all dressed up in brilliant yellow. Ted pressed play and my world changed forever…

# WELL I’M SAILING #

It was the most unbelievable sound of Suck my Kiss by Red Hot Chili Peppers. I immediately fell in love. This prompted me to hassle my Mum non stop for a few weeks to buy me not only Blood Sugar Sex Magik (the album Suck my Kiss is on) but also the then recently released What Hits!? (a completion album made up mainly of their previous slightly lesser known work). Once me Mam eventually succumbed I got to work on flooding my intrigued little brain with these tunes. After some research it turned out that the tracks on the compilation album that I was most drawn to were the ones from the 1985 album Freaky Styley. This drew me to the producer of this album… George Clinton… and this drew me to Funkadelic (the band George was kinda involved in ;0) ) and ultimately funk in general.

The funk was in me and the rest as they say, is history.

It’s probably fair to say that I’m a fan of a hop too? I mean, I co write for a non multi award winning beer blog for s*#ts sake?!?

Now, I used to often lay awake in bed at night wondering what would happen if somehow, just somehow, Hops and Funkadelic could be combined….. and then after what seemed like an infinite wait, By The Horns sent the Mothership and delivered me and the world – HOPADELIC.

So I pulled the 1971 album Maggot Brain from it’s sleeve, cued up the track Wars of Armageddon and poured myself a glass of this session IPA…

Ok, first up there is no missing the incredible pineapple aroma that this beer emits… it is an absolute delight and basically says to the drinker, “Stop messing about and have a sip”. So I did as I was told and jumped right on in.

Baaaaam! Bags and bags of flavour coming from this cat. Hopadelic hits you up with a lovely dry mouth feel with a tour bus load of bitter but somehow with tropical hits that build to a classic IPA finish. You could drink this brew well into the night too and it wouldn’t miss a beat.

This brewery from South West London have taken the proverbial bull By The Horns and delivered an absolute funkateer of a beer, you hear!

Get it. Get it down. Then get on down.

Jymi’s Rating: 88%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 74.5%

MOB review next weekend: LONDON GOLD by YOUNG’S

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3 WEISS MONKEYS

BEER REVIEW: 78

BREWER: London Fields Brewery, East London, England

STYLE: White IPA

ABV: 5%

VESSEL: 330ml tin

DATE POSTED: 6th April 2019

JYMI SAY’S…

Its a tough life you know, being a beer reviewer…

After my relaxing Sunday is over Monday rolls around and with it comes all the hard work.

Typically of a Monday, once the children have left for school, I’ll visit the MOB beer cupboard and pull out the brew that is set to be reviewed next. I’ll then sit a while and take in any information that is offered up on the packaging.

What am I to expect from this beer?
What hops are used?
Any story behind the brew?
Any information at all?

Once this is done I’ll place the tin or bottle down in the middle of my breakfast bar and go and make breakfast (more often than not it will be scrambled eggs, sausages and hash browns served up with Encona Hot Sauce).
Once breakfast is down I’ll brew up a cup of Yorkshire Gold tea and sit back down at the breakfast bar and take a while to stare at the beer in question, absorbing the look and style of the packaging as well as the name that has been given to the brew by its brewer. Once the cup of tea is finished I’ll then begin to tidy the kitchen but whilst doing so I’ll make sure I regularly glance towards the beer, still absorbing, always absorbing. I’ll then leave the kitchen and set about some odd jobs around the house. Then, after a small nap and a sink wash I’ll return to the kitchen for one final look at the beer being reviewed before leaving to go and get the my girls from school. That beer will then remain in its position, being idly glanced at until Wednesday morning.

Once awake full rested after a relaxed Tuesday (after Monday generally taking it out of me), Wednesday kicks into gear by me placing the beer into a place for it to get to the correct temperature for consumption on Friday.
The wait until test day Friday then begins…

Once Friday lunch is over things start to really tee off! There are the small matters of glass selection, pouring, photographing, smelling, drinking and scoring the beer… and then I’ve got to write it up! And they say nurses have it tough, honestly.

And just when you think it couldn’t get any harder, 3 Weiss Monkeys shows up.

Now, the reason 3WM really put me to work was because I didn’t like it. Now, as a pro beer reviewer that then puts you in the situation of trying to establish if it’s a good beer that is just not to your taste, or a rubbish beer that just tastes… rubbish.

I’m going for the prior, just.

There is a heavy banana tone to this brew that doesn’t hang around for long at all but is very prominent up front. If the drinker is happy with this short sharp hit of bent yellow fruit then it’s not a bad beer at all. However if the drinker isn’t a fan of this approach to ale then it is probably one for them to avoid. This beer is refreshing, light and crisp and would fly down at a hot summer BBQ or with spicy ol’ grub from the East.

If you’re happy with these Monkeys bringing you bananas then give 3 Weiss Monkeys a go… if not, just say no.

Jymi’s Rating: 62%

SAMMY SAY’S…

The only monkey I ever knew wasn’t very wise. He heard lots of evil, saw lots of evil and spoke lots of evil. He was quite possibly distantly related the evil monkey that resided in Chris Griffin’s (son of Peter Griffin of Family Guy fame) wardrobe.

However, the crew at London Fields Brewery quite clearly know some wise monkeys and have cleverly used that link to name their white, wheat beer (it’s actually a hybrid of IPA and wheat beer). And so we have 3 Weiss Monkeys. These wise monkeys appear to very streetwise too. On first meeting they come across, as some kids say, on point. The real test though is to see if they have any substance.

These three primates certainly do pack a punch on the nose. But this punch is much more like an IPA than a wheat beer. The look in the glass though definitely fits the brief and appears to be a cross between an IPA and a wheat beer.

The flavour is interesting. It really is like an IPA brewed with some malted wheat. Part of me likes it and part of me isn’t sure. It’s almost like drinking a slightly watered down IPA. There is bags of fruity monkey flavour up front, which quickly subsides to give way to the wheat train. What this leads to is a beer a little short on length in flavour, but one which is very refreshing.

These three monkeys definitely have substance. They know what they’re about and together, they make for a different troupe compared to what we are used to. They are a little challenging, but without a challenging monkey or three, where would we be?

Sammy’s Rating: 80%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 71%

MOB review next weekend: HOPADELIC by BY THE HORNS

MUSE ON BOOZE

T.E.A.

BEER REVIEW: 77

BREWER: Hogs Back Brewery, Surrey, England

STYLE: English Ale

ABV: 4.2%

VESSEL: 500ml brown bottle

DATE POSTED: 29th March 2019

SAMMY SAY’S…

Most people are familiar with the late Terry Pratchett and his Discworld series. In that series, the world is on the back of a turtle. To cut to the chase and to make my ramblings clear, the label on T.E.A. follows a similar theme, with a Surrey Village (I’m guessing) propped on the back of a hog (a nod to the brewery name). A good theme, which is outlined by the distinctive green and orange colour scheme.

The strength of T.E.A. lies in its very English bitterness (and I mean the brewing style, not the ill feeling one might have to others). In the glass, you’re faced with the reassuring colour of good old English bitter. On the nose, well, it’s what you’d look for in a good old English bitter. And, yes you’ve guessed it, the drinking is like having a good old English bitter.

I don’t want to be insincere or unfair to T.E.A. or other bitters for that matter, but what T.E.A. is is exactly that. You know what you’re going to get and you know when you want to have it.

It’s a solid brew, which has its place in the beer world. O.K., it won’t set the world on fire but we all need steady eddies in our lives, even the fantasy Discworld had them.

Sammy’s Rating: 71%

JYMI SAY’S…

Dolly once spilt a cup a of tea on my back when I was just a wee piglet and I was being looked after by herself and my man Grampy Syd (who would have been 110 on this very day incidentally). There was a full panic flap about it I seem to remember, I learnt the word Scald for the first time, but I also remember being totally fine throughout the whole experience and enjoying the warm electric fire and dull lighting (plus the attention).

Syd, the husband of the aforementioned Dolly and my aforementioned man taught Jymi to never ever say no if offered a cup of tea or a cigarette. Seriously wise words at the time as so many of my endless friendships were founded on those two forms of relaxant.

Worthing, where the legends Fred and Ena relocated from West London to once upon a time. Jymi and the Ma, Pa and Sis (if she could pull herself away from embroidery club) used to venture there a lot. I remember check points (to monitor progress) and points of interest being mentioned so vividly on the way there.

We’re at the Devils Punch Bowl.

We’re past The Hogs Back.

Arundel Castle on the left kids.

I can see Amberley Chalk Pits.

Dolly, Syd, Fred and Ena were my Grandparents, just in case you hadn’t picked that.

When it comes to TEA by Hogs Back Brewery I have to say it pulls a lot of lovely memories back to me… Even though the beer itself has nothing to do with TEA at all (it stands for Traditional English Ale).

So praise be that this is an absolute belter of a beer!! A mighty fine glass of ale I have to say.

Up front there is a great amount of flavour. A large growing taste of almost fruity caramel envelops your moosh immediately and then it switches to a long softly fading aftertaste of what, flavour wise, can only be described as … Splendid.

I genuinely love this beer and everything it’s about. Even to the little passage on the side of the label:

All our Fuggles hops are grown locally here in Surrey, either in our own hop garden or 4 miles away on the other side of the Hogs Back. And whilst we enjoy the beer local hogs enjoy the spent grain from our mash tun… perfect harmony in Tongham.

Love it!!

Perfect harmony in Tongham.

Perfect harmony in TEA.

Perfect harmony in me.

Jymi’s Rating: 84%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 77.5%

MOB review next weekend: 3 WEISS MONKEYS by LONDON FIELDS BREWERY

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BOSTON TEA PARTY

BEER REVIEW: 76

BREWER: Bad Co., North Yorkshire, England

STYLE: New England Ale

ABV: 5.8%

VESSEL: 330ml tin

DATE POSTED: 22nd March 2019

JYMI SAY’S…

Other than Boston Tea Party tasting pretty good, everything else about this beer annoys the hell out of me, I’m sorry…

The Brewery name that play’s quite the part in the packaging of this ale is an acronym. Pretty cool… until you know what it stands for.

A misplaced trident.

A name that does not reflect the beer and a beer that does reflect that C18^th moment.

The zero effort put into the packaging other than the one retract only convertible tin.

Stuff this, I’m off… for another Boston Tea Party New England Ale as it goes, because as I said, it’s pretty good.

Bye.

Jymi’s Rating: 69%

SAMMY SAY’S…

The actual Boston Tea Party, as we all know, was a protest against the Tea Act, which allowed the British East India Company to sell tea in American colonies without paying tax. What the hecky decky has that got to do with a beer brewed in England you may ask. Well…I don’t really know…

Anyway, a point of interest is the way that the can opens. I’m not even going to enter into trying to describe it. The best way to find out is to get your hands on one.

Boston Tea Party is a lively little number and has an incredible colour, which is made all the more tempting by its natural, unfiltered haze.

In the drinking, Boston Tea Party is light and very pleasant. This is fully supported by its aroma, which is very fruity. What’s a little different about BTP is that it’s short on length in the flavour. Personally, I prefer something a little longer on the palate and a smidge heavier on the flavometer.

It doesn’t jump out from the crowd, but that doesn’t mean it’s not good.

Sammy’s Rating: 78%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 73.5%

MOB review next weekend: T.E.A. by HOGS BACK BREWERY

MUSE ON BOOZE

MALT COAST AMBER ALE

BEER REVIEW: 75

BREWER: Malt Coast Brewery, Norfolk, England

STYLE: Amber Ale

ABV: 4.7%

VESSEL: 330ml brown bottle

DATE POSTED: 15th March 2019

JYMI SAY’S…

Good ale this I have to say.

Very dark pour for an amber which took me aback. Also the nose though actually very pleasant was very, very faint. Add this to packaging that doesn’t draw the eye nor say to the consumer… GRAB ME.

So it wasn’t until I actually sipped this beer that I started to get excited. So light, so delicate, she is a delight. The taste is of semi sweet malt that is then finished off by a soft bitter hop after taste. What is clever about MCAA is that it would fit into the majority of drinking situations.

Hot Summers day? Yes, due to how light and soft it is.

Chilly Winters evening? Yes, due to the warming malty nature of the taste.

Swifty after work? Yes, due to it tasting great.

Long session in a rustic pub? Yes, due to it’s warming nature again but predominantly because it’s so light and smooth you could drink it for hours if not days or possibly even months.

Few quick ones in a snazzy bar? Yes, the taste though soft is great so three or four of these would satisfy the drinker due how generally enjoyable it is.

And I have to say, I was pleasantly surprised as the lead up was not inspiring.

The bottle though not at all bad hasn’t got a lot going for it. I like the art work however.

As mentioned, the nose is weak and the colour surprising.

So when it came to the drinking of this all round understated ale it was a very pleasant surprise indeed.

CALLING ALL BEER HUNTERS… Go find and consume, you will not be disappointed.

Jymi’s Rating: 77%

SAMMY SAY’S…

Some facts on Malt Coast and on one of it’s core beers, Amber Ale:

Malt Coast is not actually a real place, so don’t try to Google it.
The label on this fella is packed with loads of great facts.
There’s a painting on the logo. It might be by someone famous but it might not. It’s probably of a Malt Coast. But this is a beer review, so enough of that.
Amber Ale is described by Malt Coast as a sundowner. I assume they mean it’s great for drinking at sundown and not that it will actually make the sun fall out of the sky.
When in the glass, Amber Ale is definitely amber. I like that.
It smells nice and light and is definitely a great balance of hops and malt on the nose. Makes me want to drink it.
When I do start drinking it, I want to keep drinking it because it’s a very well balanced beer.
This is one of the best amber ales I’ve had. It bridges modern and old brews incredibly skillfully.
All beer drinkers should try Amber Ale by Malt Coast.
It’s a great beer.

Sammy’s Rating: 86%

MUSE ON BOOZE RATING: 81.5%

MOB review next weekend: BOSTON TEA PARTY by BAD CO.

muse on booze – since 2017