Flower Power Hippy Dippy All Things Pretty American Amber

Brewery: The Flying Dutchman Nomad Brewing Company

Supplier: Beer52

From a new (2015) brewery in Finland that embodies the hippy vibe. Similar to Mikkeller, the brewer Ronald de Waal is a gypsy brewer (or Nomad as he likes to call it), brewing in different breweries but being based in Finland. It's base on an American amber ale, using Centennial, Galaxy, Mosaic and Tettnang hops, but then matured on a bed of Hibiscus flowers, hence the name. I served this chilled.

Appearance: An orangy-brown colour, slightly murky. A slight off-white head that thins quite quickly. 

Aroma: Malty with a musky hint of hop resin in the back. 

Flavour: A nice light malt on the front with hints of caramel malt. Then a slight hoppy bitterness and resin on the back. 

Body: Quite light but there is a slight cloyingness. 

Aftertaste: A greater wave of hops with some raw malt notes, an a little bit of a stale ale note. Also some waxy notes develope with time

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 5, it's quite nice but not that special and I can't see the Hibiscus adds anything.

Price Range: Another from the box of 8 for £24 - so £3 for a 330ml bottle, too much for this as there are much better beers for the same or lower price.

Food Pairings: Something simple like a Tagliatelle al Ragu Bolognese.

Garden of Eden

Brewery: To Øl

Supplier: Beer52

I love fruity beers and IPAs so I thought I would do this for my 200th review. This beer is made with a cacophony of fruit including Apricot, Guave, Mango, Passionfruit and Papaya. It also uses the most fruitiest of hops, Mosaic. The malt body also uses oats that will give it a slight body. I served this chilled.

Appearance: An opaque gold colour, it's probably cloudy because of the oats. The head is a ever so slightly coloured white that starts out thick but thins quickly leaving a trace over the top. 

Aroma: Surprisingly not fruity at all in the nose. There are some savoury notes, though there is not much to it at all.

Flavour: A little hop resin on the front followed by some savoury malts

Body: Quite light with enough body to make it not watery.

Aftertaste: It develops into a savoury/tart fruit note, a big mixture so it's hard to place, but nice. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 8, a nice mixture of hoppy IPA and tart fruits.

Price Range: Another from the box of 8 for £24 - so £3 for a 330ml bottle, a good price for a nice and sessionable beer.

Food Pairings: A juicy burger with a good bunch of red onion in it.

Fuck Art - The Heathens Are Coming

Brewery: To Øl

Supplier: Beer52

Another from this Danish Brewery, this is the first Grisette I've had but it is meant to be similar to a saison. Like a saison this has a base of pilsner malt and unmalted wheat, but it also contains rye (maybe that's the Scandi element). The hops are Tettnager, Galena, and Simcoe. I served this chilled.

Appearance: A pale gold colour, turning to straw when held to the light. The head is thin, and thins to just a lingering film. 

Aroma: Lots of yeast spice with a little funk, grapefruit and some bread dough. 

Flavour: A light mix of subtle pilsner malt and hop resin, becoming slightly doughy towards the end. 

Body: Refreshing at first, but it's got a surprisingly thick body for such a light ale.

Aftertaste: A little more hop resin along with the spicy yeast notes, similar to those from Belgian yeasts. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 6, a bit of a mix of light refreshing flavours, and spicy full bodied notes.

Price Range: A box of 8 from Beer52 for £24 - so £3 for a 330ml bottle, a little on the pricey side but probably worth it.

Food Pairings: I think it would go well with a traditional pork roast, with plainly cooked vegetables.

Mochachocolata Ya Ya!!

Brewery: Electric Bear Brewing Co.

Supplier: Beer52

This Bath-based brewery was founded in early 2015. This is one of their main beers which is a milk stout brewed with coffee and caramel additions. It was awarded the best Chocolate and Coffee Flavour Category for UK in the 2016 World Beer Awards. I served this chilled.

Appearance: Black, turning to a deep brown when held to the light. The head is very thick and long lasting with light tan colour. 

Aroma: Very sweet nose but with some salty/savour notes similar to black olives. The sweet notes include caramel and sherry. 

Flavour: Slight sweetness with caramel and vanilla on the front. Cherries and peaans on the back. 

Body: Very smooth on the front with a medium-thick body, however the carbonation in the back is a little off. 

Aftertaste: Turns into a slight, green bitterness with lots of burnt toast and a little sweet coffee. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 8, really nice milk stout with a good sweetness that doesn't overpower and is nicely countered by a slight bitterness in the back.

Price Range: The last of the 8 beers for £14 - so £1.75 for a 330ml bottle, great price for this dessert beer.

Food Pairings: It's more of a dessert beer, so something sweet, probably Stroopwafel as it would go well with the caramel.

Dead Guy Ale

Brewery: Rogue Ales & Spirits

Supplier: Beer52

Whilst they list this as a Maibock, which is a lager, they also say it is an ale and they list the yeast which is an ale yeast; what I think has happened is that it used to be made with lager yeast but they then shifted to the house ale yeast using the same recipe (and keeping the lagering stage). This is one of their oldest core range brews, first brewed in the early 90's for Día de Muertos. It's made with a load of malts, Independent Hops, and their house yeast strain (all of which are Trademarked). I served this chilled.

Appearance: A murky amber colour with a white head that is so thin it's almost gone. 

Aroma: Unfortunatly there is the smell of both stale and unfermented beer like you often get in those typical British ale pubs, along with some apple juice. 

Flavour: Sharp sweet notes on the front following into a fruity sweetness similar to the apple juice on the nose. 

Body: Medium body with a little bit of a syrupyness. 

Aftertaste: This fruity sweetness turns into a malty sweetness. Some strawberry notes hang right in the back. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 6, sweet but not overly so, and quite fruity; simple but refreshing.

Price Range: Another of the 8 beers for £14 - so £1.75 for a 355ml bottle, for this price you can't knock it

Food Pairings: I think it would go well with something salty with strong flavours, something like peppered jerky.

Must Kuld

Brewery: Põhjala Brewery

Supplier: Beer52

Another from the Tallinn-based brewery, this one I had the time I was there. This is another of their core range, this one being a milk stout with the name meaning Black Gold. It's made of a huge mix of different malts along with two hops, Magnum and Goldings I served this chilled.

Appearance: Thick black, completly inpenatrable. The head is a latte colour, initially medium size but fades down to a trace. 

Aroma: Fresh blackberries with underlying notes of coffee.

Flavour: Wholemeal toast on the front moving into a sweet end. There is also a pleasant underlying mocha note.

Body: Slightly thick with some creamy notes, still quite fresh. 

Aftertaste: The sweetness continues then developes into a slight bitter from the hops, or into a blackcurrant note, this changes with each sip.

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 7, a sweet but not overly sweet for a milk stout with refreshing berry notes and roasted malt flavours.

Price Range: Another of the 8 beers for £14 - so £1.75 for a 330ml bottle, a great price for a nice beer.

Food Pairings: A nice sharp cheese and oatmeal crackers.

Uus Maailm

Brewery: Põhjala Brewery

Supplier: Beer52

I first had some beers from this brewery when I went to visit Tallinn last year and I was highly impressed with them; since then I've seen them around quite a bit. This is their session IPA (specifically a "San Diego session IPA") using a mix of new world hops (Galaxy and Mosaic). The name means " The New World", don't quite know what the shark represents. I served this chilled.

Appearance: Pale straw with a hint of gold. The head is pure white, but a little thin.

Aroma: A nice wiff of hop resin.

Flavour: Suprisingly a lot of ever so slightly sour grapefruit in the back.

Body: Just super refreshing with a nice medium body. 

Aftertaste: A little waxy notes with some orange juice notes

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 4, simple but unusual and not what I was expecting from the smell of it. The notes of orange juice and wax in the back put it off for me.

Price Range: From another case from Beer52 where I got 8 beers for £14 - so £1.75 for a 330ml bottle, a good price but the beer is only average - you can get better for the price range, including from Põhjala Brewery itself.

Food Pairings: Something light, like a salad, but with not too much dressing. Something like a mix of dark leaves with a vinegarette.

Vuur & Vlam

Brewery: Brouwerij De Molen

Supplier: Beer52

Another from the core range of this Dutch brewery, this being their IPA. Made with a simple malt base with a large mix of hops for both bittering and dry hopping, including galena, cascade, chinook, simcoe, and amarillo. The name of this beer translates as Fire & Flames, but I served it chilled.

Appearance: A caramalized orange colour with and medium off-white head

Aroma: Lots of hops on the nose including rose and citrus notes. 

Flavour: Sweet malty caramel with some cirtus notes.

Body: Very smooth and quite syrupy, but a little fresh in the back

Aftertaste: This is where it gets nice, the flavours develope into a nice floral notes with rose and lemon prevailing. A slight grassy bitterness developes with drinking. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 7, lovely to drink but maybe a little too sweet for an everyday drink.

Price Range: £2.55 (usually £3) for a 355ml bottle, a decent price for a decent beer.

Food Pairings: A syrupy dessert to go with the syrupy beer, maybe something like baklava.

Loose Leaf

Brewery: Odell Brewing Co.

Supplier: Beer52

Another core beer from the brewery with the best presentation; this is Odell's sessionable IPA. They market this as a regular drinking beer and, in keeping with Odell's theme, as a beer to take outside for camping, picknicks, etc. - thus they also sell it in cans. This one is made with different pale malt along with Bravo and Cascade hops. I served this chilled.

Appearance: Pale strae colour with a slight haze, the head is pure white and a little thin.

Aroma: Smells like lager malts with hints of grape.

Flavour: A  wave of smooth and understated mix of malt and grapy hops. 

Body: Quite light and thirst quenching. 

Aftertaste: It finishes with a slight bitterness coming from a mix of the hops and yeast, and a little pepper from the yeast. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 6, more like a hoppy lager, nice, refreshing and fruity to drink.

Price Range:  £2.98 (usually £3.50) for a 355ml bottle, I would definitely get it again as it's nice one to drink by the beach.

Food Pairings: The freshness would go well with a salad, something like a Salade Niçoise.