BrewDogging #20; Bashah

Bashah was one of my standout beers on cask at this year's Nottingham CAMRA Festival. Indeed, when it ran out on Friday afternoon, I was forced to drink something weaker and less hop-pronounced; Thornbridge Jaipur. And there are few beers that keep my away from a pint of Bakewell's finest.

There's a lot going on in the bottle; a nose of wet tar, fresh shag tobacco, chocolate with orange suddenly at odds with oily citrics. Pine sap gives way to darker raisins, squashed berries, slavvered in ginger-itching alcohol. Towards the finish, grassy hops clash with coffee and liqorice.

It's one hell of a beer. There's almost too much happening. But Bashah doesn't fall into the trap of being an over-hopped, over-hyped experimentation. I can't wait to see if those uberhops mellow with age and make a nearly-great beer into one that's pure world class.