Playing cards at the Tower?

Pale and hoppy ales actually, not playing cards, though there is a connection, also a connection with the previous blog about 'black IPAs', starting off very obviously, though also about hoppy pale ales. Maybe trying to be too clever, and just trying to explain it to myself, but this blog starts by reporting a beer I drank early last week, Black Jack at the Tower in Hastings. Black Jack Shuffled Deck is a 3.8% pale bitter with a hint of fruit in the aroma, slightly sweet taste at first, drying out into a decent bitter, very much enjoyed by me and many others. 

Maybe not so obvious, but on Sunday the 4 ales pictured below were available at the Tower at the same time, "Four of a Kind"... From the right, Sussex brewer Dark Star's well known, and reported on in these blogs many times, American Pale Ale (APA, 4.7%), pale, hoppy, and gorgeous... Next, from further afield, Bristol Beer Factory's Nova, a weaker 3.8% 'session ale', a dry and pale bitter with decent body for the strength, and very refreshing too... 

The third ale, again from Sussex, is Burning Sky's response to Dark Star's APA and Revelation combined, though being closer to the strength of Revelation (5.7%) and with a significant use of hops, the Aurora (5.6%) also has already been reported on by me... but I am quite happy to make further comment, this is a stronger 'APA' style bitter, a pale amber, with much fruitiness, peach and grapefruit, in the aroma and flavour, with a dry and bitter aftertaste, and, quite frankly, it is gorgeous! 

The furthest on the left is another pale and hoppy ale, this time from the Kent brewer Caveman, their 4.1% Citra, which, as you'd expect from the name, and from the American 'Citra' hops used, is a pale strongly citrus flavoured bitter with a dry and slightly nutty aftertaste. So, four of a kind indeed... 

Another connection to the previous blog though? The Citra had replaced the very hoppy, but dark, Dark Star The Art of Darkness discussed in depth in my previous blog... See? It all comes together, cheers!  

Hastings and even more great ales!

So, starting with the Tower, London Road, St Leonards, and, as you can see, it is about to get a makeover, hence the scaffolding... Anyway, great to see Lousia behind the bar, always good to keep in touch and be aware of the local updates.  Because of the refurbishment, Louisa has put the price of ale up by 10p a pint, hardly bank breaking, and very understandable, Louisa, and you do keep your prices extremely competitive; great ales at great value prices still, so, what to drink this time?

Whilst watching England thrash South Africa in the cricket, I drank a pint of all the 4 ales on offer, starting with the 3.9% Hopback Hop Medley, a slightly biscuity flavoured and dry pale bitter, very nice and just £2.40 a pint. Then the 4.4% Bristol Beer Factory Sunrise, a dry pale golden bitter with plenty of body at £2.60 a pint, followed by a pint of the 4.7% near-regular here Dark Star American Pale Ale (APA), the brewery having certainly kept up the excellent quality of this ale in recent months, pale and very hoppy, and at a great value £2.50 a pint! Finally, another excellent ale, Triple fff Brewery Ramble Tamble, the most expensive ale here on Wednesday at £2.90 a pint, but for that you get 5% of a pale-ish bitter with plenty of body and a fruity aroma and flavour that smacks your palate into submission!  Great stuff again Louisa, cheers!

 

I sat outside the White Rock Hotel bar, looking at the Channel and pier, (it was a bit foggy over the sea) and I sampled 2 of the 3 local ales they were serving on Tuesday, all at £3.10 a pint; 1 handpump not being used this day. I ignored the ubiquitous Harveys Sussex Best (4%), and, as you will see from my photograph, I had a half of the Arundel Sussex Gold, a 4.2% "golden bitter", quite pale though, with a slightly tart flavour, very nice by the second mouthful.  I also had a pint of the 1648 Saint George, a slightly darker bitter with a sweetness to the initial taste, then dry, slightly malty and bitterness coming through with the aftertaste. Not bad at all, and I do like to sit beside the seaside!

Finally, at the Dolphin, where all the ales are £3.50 a pint, here in the posher end of town, there were the usual 4 regulars, Sussex Best, Youngs Special and Dark Star Hophead and APA, and the ale pictured above from Nottingham.  Castle Rock ales are being seen a lot more of down here these days; they also have Elsie Mo (4.7%) coming on soon, and it's like never having left the North, with beers from Yorkshire breweries too, notably Kelham Island and Rudgate, more of shortly.  Anyway, one of the guest ales was Castle Rock Preservation "Fine Ale", a 4.4% 'heavier' ale with plenty of body, sweetish to taste and then with a dry aftertaste, not bad, but... 

...I'd missed them having the excellent Oakham Bishops Farewell, sadly, as it is a favourite of mine, it must have gone down a bit too easily, but now, on the bar, there was the Rudgate Norse Necta, 4.3% of pale dry bitter, reyt easy to drink, so I did!  If you see it anywhere, and you have a similar taste to mine, go for it...

Cheers!

Albatross Club Beer Festival

OK, I made it to the 2nd Albatross Beer Festival eventually, so missed out on trying a few ales, it being the last day of the festival, though I did manage a few, despite having not slept for over 30 hours...

It would be easy to list all the ales and 'tasting notes', but I'll only talk about the ales I actually tasted myself. I started off with drinking halves, first, Mallinsons Aramis, a 3.9% very dry pale bitter with the aroma of the aramis hops standing out, very nice, and I only just managed to get a drink before this ran out. 

Not having many weaker ales, and, as the poster said "NO BLAND BEERS", I moved on up to Ascot Ales Red IPA, 5.5% of a darker bitter, hard to describe the aftertaste, I wish I could have worked out the hops used, but couldn't today.  I then moved on to the 'in your face' hops of the 6.5% Stringers Hop Priest, this was dry and bitter and lovely.

Then came the 6.6% Summer Wine Diablo, my favourite ale of the day, a dry hopped pale bitter, incredibly, with a tropical fruit aroma!  The I moved onto the one below, brewed by Dave ''Unpronounceable' and his mate in the brewery behind my old Sheffield local, na zdrowie!  Steel City Hopfenstraube, a 4.5% wheat beer, cloudy, as you'd expect from the type of beer, and oozing hops and bitter, as you'd expect from Steel City's ales, and a hint of orange in the bitterness, nice one...   

... and I tried the Ilkley Lotus IPA too, 5.6%, slightly dry aftertaste and bitter, and other good ale, then the Bristol Beer Factory Southern Conspiracy, 6.5% of a pale ale, finishing off with a pint of 7.2%Redwillow Ageless, and I have to own up, I think I mixed up my own notes, so shan't say anything more about the final ales, well, I had gone about 34 hours without sleep by now, and a few ales...

Anyway, good choice of ales at only £2.60 a pint, or equivalent, I like the Albatross Club and would visit more often if it were closer to home; pleasant company, good banter, pretty damn nice time overall, though knackered by the end of it, cheers!