Dirty Bastard

Brewery: Founders Brewing Co.

Supplier: Beers of Europe

Bought this from the Beers of Europe storehouse for a reduced price as it has a best before date of May 2014, but it is my experience that Scotch ales get better past their "best before date". Another one (and I believe the last for me to try on this) of the Founders Year-round range, this is their Scotch ale and Silver Medal Winner at the 2010 World Beer Cup in the Strong Ale category. I served this at room temperature.

Appearance: An thick off white head with a hint of rust colour and small bubbles; the body is quite dark with some maroon light coming through when held to a source.

Aroma: Initially some musky and unpleasant notes, but once it breaths there are some sweet malty grape notes synonymous with this style.

Flavour: Hits you with a malt and grape/raisin sweetness with some biscuit and roasted notes. This sweetness settles with some drinking allowing some wood notes to come through, developing from a sweet into a savoury drink in one glass. 

Body: Not a thick as you would expect, as you would expect syrup, probably just the right level for this beer

Aftertaste: This sweetness turns into a slight salty tart flavour which still has some of the raisin and roasted notes. Maybe a hint of the peat smoke at the back but it might just be because I read that.

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 8, but only just, it has some nice simple notes that are out there in full whack, I pushed it to an 8 as the flavours develop whilst drinking making it an interesting drink throughout the glass. I would recommend that you let this breath and that you only drink it if you have a sweet tooth.

Price Range: A reduced price of £1.75 for a 355ml bottle, probably one of the best prices I've paid (although this particular one my parents bought for me).

Food Pairings: A nice strong cheese board with some rustic oatmeal crackers.

Karel

Brewery: Kaapse Brouwers

Supplier: Beer52

Been a way for a while, now I'm back and doing another one from the Beer52 box. This one is from Rotterdam in Holland and is their pale ale (although it is labeled as an American Bitter), and it is also labeled as pasteurised. I served this straight out of the fridge.

Appearance: An amber gold colour with plenty of bubbles and a huge and persistent off-white head. 

Aroma: Lychees, hop resin, and a hint of musk. Very fresh smelling and very appealing.

Flavour: Some sweet malt notes and then lots of fresh lychee.

Body: Not too thick, but not overly thin, perfect for a pale ale, with nice small bubbles giving a good carbonation. 

Aftertaste: Some biscuity notes and then some hoppy bitter notes 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 7, a nice simple hoppy pale that is easy to drink.

Price Range: Part of the box of 8 I got for £12 (usually £24), so it works out at £1.50 for a 330ml bottle; great price, if saw this at that price again I would definitely get some.

Food Pairings: Maybe this is a craving, but I think this would go well with a nice juicy marbled steak with some home cooked fries.

Premium Dark

Brewery: Bohemia Regent

Supplier: Beers of Europe

Bohemia Regent is a Czech family owned brewery set up in 1379. This is there tmavý ležák 12 (Dark Lager 12° - where 12° refers to the density of the beer before fermentation). This came second in its category in the  "Ceska pivni pecet Tabor" (Czech Beer Seal Camp). This uses only Saaz hops and water from their own artisan wells. I served this at room temperature.

Appearance: Quite dark but lets light through when held to it. A thin off-white head that dissipates quickly. 

Aroma: A mix of Marmite and liquorice, weird but strangely intriguing. Some fruity notes.

Flavour: Creamy on the front with some roasted notes, leading into a salty
liquorice taste. These develop into a constant vanilla creamy note with a hint of toast.

Body: Very smooth and perfectly carbonated. 

Aftertaste: A Marmite taste which turns into a more roasted and creamy note.

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 6, nice malty notes with no hops, decent to drink but nothing special.

Price Range: £2.49 for a 500ml bottle, an OK price for what it is, worth it.

Food Pairings: I think it would go well with a Charcuterie platter, or with a spicy stew with chorizo.

Hadouken

Brewery: Tiny Rebel Brewing Co

Supplier: Beers of Europe

Named after a finishing move from Street Fighter, this is the IPA from the small Welsh brewery using massive amounts of three American hops. I served this straight out of the fridge.

Appearance: Golden with a hint of amber. The head is thin and has an off-white colour.

Aroma: Lots of hop resin with some slight toasted malt notes in the back.

Flavour: Lots of refreshing hop notes with some grainy notes at the back.

Body: Quite syrupy but actually quite refreshing

Aftertaste: The taste becomes sickly sweet with hops, too much in my opinion.

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 6, but just as it is nice but too much in a lot of cases.

Price Range: £2.78 for a 330ml bottle, an OK price for what it is.

Food Pairings: Quite a strong beer with sweet taste so I would say this would go best with some heavily marinated pork, in something like a BBQ sauce or a Jamaican Jerk sauce.

Meduz Blanche

Brewery: Brasserie Artisanale Meduz

Supplier: Beer52

Another from the box, this one is from a French brewery in Uzès of Southern France. This is their lighter range beer that is listed as a Bière de Garde in Untappd but is described as more of a wheat beer, using wheat malt and orange peel, although I don't know if those terms are mutually exclusive.

Appearance: Very clear golden colour with a thin but sustaining pure white head

Aroma: Smells like bread dough with a very slight hint of citrus right at the back

Flavour: Classic wheat fruitiness on the front coupled with some more typical beer notes.

Body: Quite light but way too fizzy.

Aftertaste: A clean finish with just some bitterness that builds at the back

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 4, nice enough but has some rough edges.

Price Range: Part of the box of 8 I got for £12 (usually £24), so it works out at £1.50 for a 330ml bottle; probably about right if not a little too much. I wouldn't get it again though.

Food Pairings: Such a clean flavour that nearly anything would overpower it, I would suggest something fresh with a bit of sweetness such as a fruit salad.

Hoppeditz

Brewery: Freigeist Bierkultur (an offshoot of Braustelle)

Supplier: Beer52

A third from the Beer52 box, from an experimental offshoot of the the Braustelle brewery based in Cologne. This is their Doppelsticke Alt (the Altbier version of the Doppelbock), and is an attempt to update this historical beer style. I served this at room temperature.

Appearance: Brown ale with a maroon tint. There is a beige head that dissipates almost instantly. 

Aroma: Malty with a hint of saltiness like Marmite. Some fruity notes, a bit like cassis. 

Flavour: Just like it smells, very salty with some maltiness. 

Body: Reasonably viscous with not too much carbonation. 

Aftertaste: A slight bitterness with a hint of soap. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 3, It has some nice flavours but is too salty and has some other not too nice flavours.

Price Range: Part of the box of 8 I got for £12 (usually £24), so it works out at £1.50 for a 330ml bottle; too much for not a great beer.

Food Pairings: The saltiness would go quite well with some white fish such as in a  fish and chip meal.

Indian Tribute

Brewery: Oppigårds Bryggeri

Supplier: Beer52

Another from the Beer52 box, this is from a Swedish brewery; it is their IPA made with Centennial and Cascade, and dry hopped with Cascade. It has won gold at the Stockholm Beer & Whiskey Festival four times (2008, 2010, 2012 and 2013). I served this straight of the fridge.

Appearance: Pale with a ruby red hint. A thin off-white head that dissipates quickly.

Aroma: Smells just like a big barrel of dried hops, with lots of fresh grapefruit notes.

Flavour: Sweet with a lovely hop resin note, some malts support in the back. The hoppy notes tend to disappear quickly

Body: Thick with a syrupy note.

Aftertaste: A bit more of a hoppy bitterness, with a lot more of a grainy malt back.

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 7, lovely hoppy notes and a thoroughly drinkable beer, close to an 8 but the flavours tend to go.

Price Range: Part of a box of 8 I got for £12 (usually £24), so it works out at £1.50 for a 330ml bottle;  more than worth it, a great price for this.

Food Pairings: One of the few times I agree with the food pairing, chicken curry would go great with this.

Mica Oro Ale Premium

Brewery: Cerveza Mica

Supplier: Beer52

The first of my Beer52 box that featured mainly European beers (not from UK). This comes from a little village in Spain which is is one of the few places in the Iberian Peninsula where the mineral Mica is contained within the soil. The barley that is used in this beer is produced in this area taking in the mineral and used a freshly as possible, creating a unique taste

Appearance: Golden with hints of amber, very cloudy almost like a hefe. Medium off white head which thins but stays.

Aroma: Some unripe-apricot/apple notes coupled with a sweet malt and a very German beer note.

Flavour: Very sweet fruity notes on the front followed by a more German beer note. The turns more into a apricot flavour with much less sweetness. 

Body: Medium body but with a bit too much carbonation

Aftertaste: Quite bready but with hints of the fruits before but with some slight off notes

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 6, bus so close to a 7 that on another day it might have been. Nice and fruity but with a bit too much sweetness at some points and some slightly odd notes. But definitely the best Spanish beer I've had by a long way

Price Range: Part of a box of 8 I got for £12 (usually £24), so it works out at £1.50 for a 330ml bottle; definitely worth the price and I would get it again.

Food Pairings: Some plain pork chops, preferably with a bit of a char to them; the apricot and apple notes would go really well with this meat.

Dragon Stout

Brewery: Desnoes & Geddes

Supplier: Beers of Europe

This is a Stout from the people who bring you Red Stripe (owned by Diageo PLC) , but despite this I have heard good things about it. This Jamaican porter uses European caramel and roasted malts as well as brown sugar. I served this chilled.

Appearance: Black with maroon edges when held to the light. It has a thin mocha head that dissipates but leaves a lingering amount around the edges of the glass. 

Aroma: Some grapes with a little metallic notes, some banana notes as well.

Flavour: Very sweet with a little roasted notes, lots of vanilla, and a hint of banana. There is some unpleasant metallic notes coming through as well.

Body: An OK body but very over carbonated. 

Aftertaste: A little less sweet with some of the bitterness coming from the roasted notes coming through. Some caramel notes as well.

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 4, nice but a little too sweet and the over carbonation and metallic notes aren't nice.

Price Range: £1.79 for a 284ml bottle, an reasonable price for an OK beer.

Food Pairings: Despite having many of the same flavours I would say this would go quite well with a banana split

Summer Ale

Brewery: Brooklyn Brewery

Supplier: Beers of Europe

Seeing as we have passed the end of summer and the days are getting colder I thought it's about time I drink this. This is their seasonal summer pale ale made with German Perle and American Cascade, Fuggle and Amarillo hops. The only make this to become available between March-July, the the best before date is in March 2015 so all is good. I served this straight out of the fridge.

Appearance: Pale with a hint of gold, a medium white head that thins but stays.

Aroma: Some German malts coupled with some very strong honey notes.

Flavour: Quite crisp with some malty notes, nothing much else.

Body: Medium body but quite refreshing.

Aftertaste: some honey notes coupled with some herbally hops. 

Overall: Therefore this gets a rating of 6, clean with some nice flavours in the aftertaste.

Price Range: £1.89 for a 355ml bottle, good price for a good beer.

Food Pairings: A substantial salad, with some strong leaves like watercress and rocket.