Southport – Cyclone

Brewery –           Southport

Beer –                  Cyclone

Alcohol –            3.8%

Origin –               Southport, England

Style –                  Brown Ale

Season –             Autumn

Picked up this lovely ale from the Bargain bin at Chester Beer & Wine as it was pretty much past its sell by date (not that it really matters). Thought I’d give it a go as it’s not my usual cup of tea, but at £1.50 for the bottle who can resist!

At 3.8% I wasn’t expecting such a flavoursome,  and complex ale. Not just decent for a lower ABV beer, I mean thoroughly decent all round!

This ale is dark amber brown in colour, with a slight appealing cloudiness and a clean white head.

This beer is named after a rollercoaster at Southport Pleasureland and to be fair it fits the bill as the flavours in this ale are up, down, and all over the place!

Beautifully sweet and malty on the nose, develops into a biscuity sweetness at first taste. Then the fun starts as the flavours mix, twist and turn in the mouth. Hints of lemon sweetness, and woodland blackcurrant contrast each other all held in place by a good hoppy backbone, and again more malty notes playing on the tongue.

There is a developing bitterness in the finish, with more hoppiness and hints of treacle giving it yet more sweetness.

Smooth, Sweet, Complex and all in all a really enjoyable ale.

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Theakston – Old Peculiar

Brewery –           Theakston

Beer –                   Old Peculiar

Alcohol –            5.6%

Origin –               Ripon, North Yorkshire

Style –                 Strong Ale

Season –             Autumn

Claims it’s ‘ The Legend ‘… Wouldn’t disagree!

Dark Brown, Chestnut in colour this beer is bursting with fruity flavours. Take a sip and think Bananas!

It’s smooth, silky, and has a deep fruity finish. Just try it for the bananas!

Bananas

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Red Willow – Heartless (Chocolate Stout)

Brewery –          Red Willow

Beer –                  Heartless (Chocolate Stout)

Alcohol –           4.9%

Origin –              Macclesfield, England

Style –               Chocolate Stout

Season –            Winter

WOW!

When I first saw this beer in the Pied-Bull in Chester, the bar man told me that this wold not be ‘as chocolatey as I expect’.

Clearly this guy had not tried the beer because it surpassed my expectations and then some.

Most ‘Chocolate Stouts’ have a solid coffee backbone but this was extremely smooth, a slight bitterness from the chocolate, but incredibly easy drinking.

Silky velvety black, with a tan head, it tastes like a chocolate fudge cake, with lashings of double cream,

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G. Schneider & Sohn – Schneider Weisse

Brewery –          G. Schneider & Sohn

Beer –                Schneider Weisse

Alcohol –           5.4%

Origin –            Kelheim, Germany

Style –              Wheat Beer

Season –          Summer

A wonderfully smooth German Wheat Beer, golden and cloudy. Floral and light on the nose, it is smooth and silky on the palate with a hint of bananas and bubble gum and a light fruitiness throughout.

An easy drinking, exciting ale, full of fruity fun flavours. American style IPA’s have attempted to copy the beautifully soft sweet taste but have not mastered the fruity finish. A real must try!

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