Real Beer, or Ale as it where...

[The Big Lebowski]

Been trying a few ales lately... (not just tonight)

Bishops Finger, Old Peculiar, Courage Directors and I managed to work my way through the menu of a micro-brewery a few months back, in pleasant surroundings of a Mid-Wales hotel.

Any pointers for something off the shelf?

TBH, it all tastes pretty good

Cheers! al.

 

[tobes01]

Anything from St Peter's Brewery: http://www.stpetersbrewery.co.uk/

Love the stuff, you can't go wrong with it (except their Ruby which I find a bit rich for my tastes).

 

[shaggystu]

i tried sainsbury's own "taste the difference" london porter for the first time this evening, lovely pint (although not overly strong for a porter).
hobgoblin's good, black sheep also.......
i've just started compiling a list of good real ales in my head and quickly realised that i could end up typing all night so i shall leave you with those few for now! all good, dark, heavy, bitter ales, manly drinks!

stuart

 

[lannyman8]

i like my home mede pale ale, dead easy to make.....lol....

1 x tin of larger mix (any will do, cheaper the better)
2 x bags of mid brown spray malt

add the above together and some water into a big pot, then add a good handful of "fugalls" (sorry for spelling) hops and boil for 30-40 mins.....

5 mins before the end add another handful of the hops, boil for 5 mins then add cold water, strain into brewing vesel (40 pints in total) add the yeast to the tepid not hot mix.....

brew and bottle etc etc as normal.....

leave for 1 month before drinking after the brew has been bottled, if you can wait that long....

regards...

chris.....

 

[British Red]

Try anything from Badger....Tanglefoot and Golden Glory are good. Anything from Wychwood or Shepherds Neame are good too.

 

[EmmaD]

I like Enville Ale or Waggle Dance. I luuurve honey.

 

[resnikov]

Banana Bread Beer is interesting.
Cropton Brewery http://www.croptonbrewery.com/ make some brilliant beers but they can be a bit hard to find.

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Some good suggestions already with thanks...

Nearly bought some black sheep tonight. Out of the three bottles above, the Shepherds Neame/Bishops finger was rather good! But the others where nearly as enjoyable.
I do like a pale ale, and stout, but cant remember the last time I seen any. Making something may be a future project, for now I'll just open and enjoy

One more question if I may, what sort of serving temps should ale be?
I gave the bottles half an hour in a chest freezer, they were nether warm or cold really.
Would be tempted to give them another 15, but I didn't want to spoil the flavour.

Regards, al.

 

[resnikov]

My opinion on temp to server beer is "its all down to personal taste" Do what you think tastes best for you and stuff the rest.

 

[whats wrong with you all]

get hold of some Tribute if you can!

 

[slowworm]

Fullers' beers are well worth trying, London Pride is best served in a pub but the bottle is fine, their ESB is good and their 1845 but that could be a tad rich for someone getting used to bitter.

I tend to keep them somewhere cool and perhaps pop them in the fridge for a 30 mins if it's very warm.

Even if I do say myself, the Porter I brew with my own hops is rather good.

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Porter sounds interesting

As Enville Ale or Waggle Dance... Honey gooood! I may have to cruse the ale section tomorrow and work my way through some of these suggestions LoL!!

Tried (on a basic level) from light to dark so far, and it all seems to be pleasant with subtle to quite complex tastes (rich). One on the micro-brewery list tasted like dark chocolate, and was simply stunning.

I think I'm well and truly converted.

al.

 

[slowworm]

Porter sounds interesting

IIRC Shepherd Neame brew a London Porter for Sainsbury's 'Taste the Difference' range and it's worth trying, it looks like it's 2 for £3 again. Their Kentish Ale is also worth a try...

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Good call!

Just stopped in Tesco's today, 3 for two at £1.88 a bottle on quite a large range, dont remember seeing a Porter or Kentish Ale though, so Sainsbury's it is, thanks

al.

 

[Asa Samuel]

Sheapards neame, wychwood, old tom, innis & gunn (my favourite), Timothy Taylor's Landlord! That's just a few of my regular ales.

 

[Bigfoot]

Watch out for beer deals at Lidl. From memory they regularly do Hobgoblin, Spitfire, London Pride, Martson's Bitter and a few others for £1 a bottle. All very nice.

Also check out stuff from the Black Sheep brewery - they are regulars on most supermarket shelves. The black sheep bitter is lovely and the RiggWelter will put hairs on your chest

 

[jungle_re]

Fersty ferret, old empire, otter ale and not forgetting a pint of 'cooking' (youngs original) are among my favourites

 

[Geordie9]

I like a nice bottle of Doombar. Have to agree with the others selections Banana bread beer is nice although only a couple in 1 sitting and tribune is a nice tipple.

 

[treadlightly]

Some good suggestions already with thanks...

Nearly bought some black sheep tonight. Out of the three bottles above, the Shepherds Neame/Bishops finger was rather good! But the others where nearly as enjoyable.
I do like a pale ale, and stout, but cant remember the last time I seen any. Making something may be a future project, for now I'll just open and enjoy

One more question if I may, what sort of serving temps should ale be?
I gave the bottles half an hour in a chest freezer, they were nether warm or cold really.
Would be tempted to give them another 15, but I didn't want to spoil the flavour.

Regards, al.

Despite our reputation for warm beer, real ale should be cool enough to have some bite. I think cellars should be kept at around 55F but stand to be corrected on that.

 

[The Big Lebowski]

Laughs... I guess we do have a reputation for warmer beers!

I would be happy to go colder than it was tonight, guess as resnikov posted, its all down to personal taste.

Looks like all the recommendations above should keep me busy for a while, appreciated. Regards, al.