Be Excellent To Each Other

So you know the bottled beer section in the supermarket? What do you guys recommend/buy regularly?

I'm basically working my way through all of them at the minute, buying a few per week. Fursty Ferret was nice.

On a cold night, nothing beats Hobgoblin.

In summer (or, indeed right now) I love Old Hooky. I'm quite partial to Fuller's Bengal Lancer as well. For a cheap session ale, both the Tesco and Sainsbury premium own brands are surprisingly tasty.

Grabbed a Hobgoblin tonight!

Also, question: some have a recommended drinking temperature on the label, many don't. Is there a rule of thumb for beer bottle refrigeration? For example, I know Black Sheep is nice warm, but I wouldn't drink an IPA warm. I know that much, but little else...

I like the Meantime London Stout which is widely available and much better than Guinness.

Innis & Gunn. I like me some Innis & Gunn.

Never let me down yet: Hobgoblin, Tanglefoot is the best of the Badger set, London Pride.

Spitfire's a good session beer, but lighter than the above, but if you shop at Sainsbury's eir 'Kentish Ale' is relabelled Spitfire, and occasionally cheaper.

I try 'em all though. I'd be better at this if I were stood in a supermarket. Temperature wise most things I have slightly below room temperature, maybe a half hour in the fridge an hour before drinking. Cans of the above brews I have cold, as they tend to work better that way. Bombardier is often four quid for four cans, and nice and light to boot.

Remember that pub Hobgoblin is a percent weaker than home stuff, know your dosage and don't make the same mistake I often do

I used to drink Hobgoblin (and "Dogs Bollocks" by the same brewery IIRC?) when I was a student in Bath, many moons ago.

Awesome stuff, pretty strong - but used to send me to sleep during that afternoon's thrilling M&E Services lectures, as well as resulting in quite the most potent farts imaginable, every time.

I wouldn't really class it as a novelty/speciality beer though, it's pretty mainstream in that part of the world. Or at least it was 20 years ago...

I like to mix & match, but here are the ones that stick in my head...

Holt's "Maplemoon"
Like Innis & Gunn, but nicer.



Williams Brothers' "Fraoch"
Heathery goodness.


Arran Brewery's "Sunset"
Best drunk on the island, preferably while camping at the start of autumn*.

*There are bits of the island that have a certain smell & work magic with this stuff.


Temperature? Unless the label says otherwise I think they're all best after being left a wee while half submerged in a highland stream. Failing that the temperature they end up in when I leave them in the cupboard next to the back door works well too. (Cooler than room temperature, but not fridge cold because they all start to taste the same then)

The Aldi wheat beer is quite nice - you'd have to come to Germany to buy it mind (or do they have it over there?)

Room temperature hobgoblin is good. American ales you need to chill as they overly hop them. ale room temp, lager chilled. Black sheep is ok, but it does depend on how you like your beer. i like mine at room temp between golden and ruby in color, cascade hopped at the moment.

So where does IPA sit amongst those? It's more lager-y by my estimation, right? So chilled?

room temp.

that heather beer was fucking gopping, btw.

buy some beer and try it cool or room temp. everyone is different. enjoy it

Drinking Innis and Gunn right now in the pub, mmmm. I'm drinking the original stuff though which is nowhere as nice as the delicious Rum Cask flavor. I'll do some proper beer posting tomorrow, although it'll be heavily weighted towards the deliciousness that is German wheat beer in general.

I'd happily second Maplemoon. I'm also a fan of Bath Ales (especially the amber one) and Hogs Back Brewery's TEA and HOP, despite the brewery's hideous new labels.

I like Badger beers. Got 8 types from there last time we went.

I will look in a bit.

All the Badger ones are good. Golden Champion is best.

Everything that the Williams Brothers do is delicious. Even types of beer I don't usually like are good from them.

I can't see it without thinking about Craster and chuckling.

That's true of most things.

I maintain that Abbot Ale and Broadside are best.

https://www.morningadvertiser.co.uk/Art ... s-eviction

Cloudwater under threat due to reasons like having g to move, expand and tax relief.

Shame. Cloudwater are one of the very best in this country.

Mikkeller are one of the very best microbreweries in the world, and I've tried two of their non-alcoholic beers tonight and been absolutely blown away at the quality of them. For the first time I don't have to say, 'this is nice for a non-alcoholic beer' as they are just excellent beers full stop. Both 0.3%, the first I tried came in a tall can and is called Weird Weather. It's a modern hazy New England-style IPA, and it's delicious.

Drink in the Sun comes in a bottle and is an American-style wheat ale. It's a bit sour and those are the beers I miss the most.

If all NA beers tasted like these I would be quite happy never to drink again!

In May I went to Copenhagen, to the Mikkeller Beer Celebration Copenhagen. They've got four bars and a restaurant in town and the MBCC is an annual weekend of beer tasting from breweries around the world in a big hall that's really good fun. It's still not really my style of beer, but they do a good range.

There was an entire event in Glasgow the other day to showcase NA booze:

https://mindfuldrinkingfestival.com/

Ooh, there's one in London in Jan.

Those sound like beers I should get in immediately.

You really should. Beerhawk do them!