Well, it’s been another fine month for real ale around Sheffield! This time, all three featured beers come from local brewers, showcasing what a great selection we have around the Steel City. Here they are, in no particular order:
What: Cold Conscience (4.5%) – Abbeydale (Sheffield)
Where: Head of Steam
This mango and lychee pale ale was the third in Abbeydale’s series of collaborations with Brewdog Sheffield. A hazy beer with a thin, white head and a distinct aroma of tropical fruits, the mango content in particular was very evident. New Zealand hops cut through the fruit to give a slightly bitter finish to make for an extremely refreshing beer that would be perfect for a sunny day (unfortunately, we didn’t have too many of those!)
What: Nutty Ambassador (6.0%) – Little Critters (Sheffield)
Where: Fox & Duck
I’m not usually a huge fan of milk stouts but this one might have changed my mind! Now part of Little Critters’ core range, this was a deep black colour with an intense aroma of hazelnuts and chocolate. The beer was extremely easy to drink, with the wonderful nutty flavour complemented perfectly by the chocolate and coffee hints from the roasted malt, the sweetness from the lactose and the smoothness of oats.
What: Chipping Hammer (4.5%) – Toolmakers (Sheffield)
Where: The Forest
Another stout, but this time a bit more conventional. A very dark brown colour with a slightly creamy off-white head, the aroma was filled with the classic coffee notes of a beer of this style. The flavour was well-balanced, with a mixture of malts giving a pleasant roasted coffee taste. All in all a nice example of a traditional stout.
If you’ve had enough of reading about my favourite brews, get in touch with your top three beers of the last month and you might get the chance to see your choices featured in the next edition of Beer Matters!
Dominic Nelson
There are many things I took from my time living in Bristol, a love of cider was not one of them. To this day that has always surprised me. My summers were spent sat in the garden with my friends trying every type of cider produced in the South West. Yet much to their dismay my preferred choice always seemed to be ‘anything with blackcurrant’. With that I found cider became a firm fixture on my ‘no go’ drinks list. However, this past July two events came up in Sheffield CAMRA’s diary that made me think I really should give cider another chance; these being the Wetherspoon’s Real Cider Festival and The Cider Pub of the Year presentation. After sampling many, many different ciders I found a preference towards the medium-sweet varieties as I found they had a much fresher taste, perfect for the summer weather. I also preferred cask to keg – probably why I’d never truly taken to cider before as shop-bought is almost always fizzy. The cask ciders tasted had a smoothness that I didn’t experience with any of the keg varieties, which made them a lot easier to drink and allowed any tart flavours to come through the fruit. Although I tasted many ciders which were tasty and well-rounded (Scrummage by the Bottle Kicking Cider Company comes to mind), my top three reflect the ones that I found perhaps a little too easy to drink! 1) Slack Alice 4.6% – Celtic Marches: Over the course of the evening at the Cider Pub of the Year presentation I found myself continuously coming back to this drink. Described as a medium cider, I found it to be well rounded with semblance to a fresh apple juice, if not a little tarter. 2) Strawberry Cider 4.0% – Barbourne Cider Company: Noted in the tasting notes as being voted cider of the festival at the CAMRA Worcester beer festival 2016, this strawberry cider tasted in The Sheaf Island certainly did not disappoint. Unlike a lot of the other fruit ciders I tried it was not overly sweet and was extremely light and palatable. 3) Thundering Molly 5.2% – Celtic Marches: Also tasted in the Harlequin, Thundering Molly is a well-rounded medium cider. With a strong apple aroma, it tasted both fresh and fruity and overall was a solid cider, if not a little better after a few minutes left to settle in the glass.Poppy
I’ve been thinking for a while about starting a new column where CAMRA members can write about their favourite cask beers from the last month. The idea was first brought up at the branch meeting back in June, but I’ve never got round to starting the ball rolling until now. So, here they are, in no particular order, my three favourite real ales I have tried in Sheffield over the last few weeks:
What: Hallertau Blanc + Ekuanot Pale (4.1%) – North Brewery (Leeds)
Where: Devonshire Cat
This beer was sampled as part of North Brewery’s recent tap takeover event at the Devonshire Cat. With its combination of German and American hops, the pint was attractive to the eye and the nose with a good-sized white head and a fruity, tropical aroma from the Ekuanot. The flavour had defined citrus notes imparted by the Hallertau Blanc hop, without being overly bitter. A good, sessionable pale.
What: Drop O’ the Black Stuff (4.0%) – Springhead (Laneham, nr Retford)
Where: Sentinel Brewery
I’ve always been a fan of darker ales, and this porter was no exception. Not quite black but a very deep brown colour, the aroma was packed with chocolate, liquorice and malt. Fortunately, the taste wasn’t nearly as sweet as the aroma might have suggested, with a delicious coffee bitterness from the roasted malt providing an excellent balance of flavours.
What: Brewers Reserve (5.0%) – Kent Brewery (Birling)
Where: The Drink Inn
A little stronger than the other entries on this list, but no less drinkable. Poured a rich, clear golden colour with a clean white head. The nose had a strong hoppy character, with notes of citrus and farmyard. The beer was very easy to drink, with the bitterness of the hops complimenting a strong malty flavour. You’d have to be careful not to have too many at this strength though!
Have you tried any outstanding real ales around Sheffield lately? Send in your three favourite beers for the next issue of Beer Matters.
Dominic Nelson
