A rare pleasure today. Beers with Ian Harrison; half the brains behind pubsandbeer.co.uk, upstanding member of ratebeer.com, 2006 winner of the Best Bloke To Share Mead With In A Reading Travelodge Award and possessor of one of the keenest palates I know.
Who found a German pils to be like "licking walnut shells on the outside".
Who nailed "strawberry cherry" as a malt descriptor.
Who brings out the best and worst in me. And our shared tasting notes.
Mr Grundy's Lord Kitchener wasn't just toffee and banana. It was, specifically, banana-flavoured Toffo.
Derby Malt Teaser was 'malt water'.
Poretti didn't just taste of cardboard. It was 'enough cardboard to build the homeless a mansion. But enough lemon to reset your palate'.
Which led us to this epic conclusion:
Poretti is the Control-Alt-Delete of beer.
Malt Teaser is the Blue Screen Of Death.
You know, tasting notes are all bollocks. But in that moment, the fuggy beery moment when you blurt them out loud, it's like you've finally comprehended constellations as alien code. In the moment, they make absolute sense.
Which is why, looking back through notes of old, you wonder how you know a beer has the aroma of "a pair of pants pissed in and abandoned in the dank corner of a poorly ventilated stable".
Ah, they were the days...
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#1: Earl's Court: Not Depressing
Walking in there for the first time and thinking: Wow. Yes, there's over twenty-three thousand square metres of concrete flooring. And Olympia has a nicer roof. But it wasn't as depressing as some people had made it out to be. Anyway, at a beer festival the atmosphere isn't painted on the walls - it's the punters that provide the colour and shape.
#2: How To Lose Your Deposit
Full marks go to Ian Harrison of PubsAndBeer.co.uk for his perfectly executed reverse sweep, resulting in the unmistakable sound of glass shattering on concrete. And it wasn't even his glass.
#3: Blood. Sweat. Tears. Menno.
A month ago, De Molen beers were a mystery to me. I've been able to try a few since then and have been hugely impressed. So it was a true highlight when I got to meet the brewer, Menno Olivier, and enjoy the ridiculously-tasty, Bruichladdich-casked smoked beer, Bloed, Zweet & Tranen. Menno has a softly-spoken passion for his beers; I suspect he's as happy to talk about them as people are to listen to him.
#4: US IPA: It's not all hops, hops, hops
Some of them were balanced and smooth; assertive and flavoursome. But, truth be told, my favourite was in-your-face, up-your-nose, down-your-throat hoppy. My first sip of Captain Lawrence Captain’s Reserve Imperial IPA was heaven. How could it get better? By buying another glassful. And then another one. And another one. Although mixing it with an imperial stout wasn't the smartest move...
#5: Brewerspotting
At the table I shared with various RateBeerians, a healthy chunk of our day was spent pointing at brewers and then inviting ourselves over for a chat. To the left, a gaggle of Thornbridgers. At the bar, a greater crested Amber, resplendent with its orange plumage. Circling, a Justin Hawke. There were a few bearded tits, too.
#6: The Hop Hiccups.
Too much mash, eaten too quickly after bolting back a DIPA. Result - the hiccups with a creamy hop flavour. Which made me laugh, which made be hiccup more.... Truely, a gift that kept on giving.
#7: Making a Twitterer of myself
With a fair few people Tweeting, #gbbf became a virtual tasting table. It was great to gain feedback on beers right across the venue, in real time. And with prizes on offer for moments of sublime Tweetness, there was banter aplenty. Those charming men in the press office deemed me worthy of a couple of tokens, which I redeemed for a pint of Welsh cider. Yum.
#8: Crabs and mashed potato
No, not at the same time. I wasn't that pished. The sausage and mash stall served up enough potato to build a sandcastle with. With a moatful of gravy. And the Cromer crab I had, alongside a glass of the Captain Lawrence IPA, was one of the freshest beer/food combo's that I've tried.
#9: Shock - UK Cask Beer Not Actually That Bad
The naysayers told me that UK cask quality at GBBF was indifferent. A couple of brewers tried their own beers and found them to be OK, just not in lip-smackingly perfect condition. But the proof of the pudding is in the, er, drinking.... so I forced myself away from the foreign muck and bought some White Shield P2 (Czar's Imperial Stout). It was in fine form, all those liquid Christmas pudding notes were there. I'd have tried more, this being the Great BRITISH Beer Festival, but the lure of those US DIPAs was too strong...
#10: The Joy of an Early Train Home
My last beery trip to London ended with a mad taxi dash to the station and a missed train. This time, the plan was masterful. A relaxed Tube journey across London (yes, you did read that correctly), plenty of time at the station to take photos (as St Pancras is one of the architectural wonders of the world) and onto the train early. I'd bought a few bottled beers from the festival and thought I'd treat myself to one to round out the day.
As we set off, the steward approached. "Would you like a coffee, Sir? Or are you happy with your beer"? My beer was Dogfish Head 90 Minute IPA. I was, indeed, hoppily happy with my beer.
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The beer wot I brewed. Well, the beer I weighted out hops for and then watched the brewer Matt Clark do all the hard work. And then watched my mate Ian Harrison clean out a mash tun. Whilst I drank a Thornbridge/Dark Star collaborative brew...
Julius is a citrus-inspired Summer Ale, full of Thornbridge grown herbs including Tahitian Lime Leaves, Lemon Balm, Lemongrass, Mint and Coriander seeds. Light and lemony on the nose with a hint of spice and honey. Biscuit characters dominate the mouth, with a hint of ginger and a soft mouthfeel. The finish is lightly bitter, a little dry and wonderfully thirst quenching.
Funnily enough, an exhaustive review wil feature here in the very near future ;-)
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