Enjoyable but...
After bouncing around Scotland and Wales for a while we’re back
in England exploring what Surrey has to offer in the form of Hogs Back Brewery.
When I was doing the initial research, I almost excluded Hog’s Back on the
basis that I had seen their cider available commercially (and had drunk it as
well) which goes against the general ethos of this whole endeavour, to find breweries
I’ve not tried before and see what’s out there in the far reaches of the UK.
However, when looking at their beer list it soon became apparent, they had a
wide range of beers, I’d never heard of, so on the basis of a single cider I thought
it best not to preclude them. I ordered “The
Hogfather Part II” (Fantastic name) Mixed case 12 bottles which was priced at
£33.50, with a delivery charge of £8.50.
At time of writing this case is still available, but I should note that it appears there is some variety in what you actually get and what is advertised, for example I got some speciality lagers which were brewed for the European championships and my brother who also ordered, got something different entirely. On a personal note, this isn’t a huge issue, but if you were very particular, it could be something that would annoy you.
The brewery is multi-award winning, but i'm struggling to identify all of them through Google searches, their website does have a blog identifying a number of them, but putting them all together is proving to be an issue. I'd suggest if something takes your fancy, have a check individually. What i do like is that all of their hops are grown right next to their own brewery, what you'll find is a use the term British or English a lot in the tasting notes and i think it's really true reflection of the brewery itself.
So first thing I noticed is that as it poured it did not retain a head at all, which for a lager is slightly worrying, but to look at it, it doesn't appear to be flat. There is a really pleasing smell coming off it however so visually unappealing, to the smell very so let’s see how we go here. Ok this isn't your standard lager, to put this into context I did an audible mmmmmm in the room involuntarily.
This lager is packed full of flavour and I’d say is more akin to something like a golden ale, it has a real deep flavour profile which somehow maintains the lightness of a lager. I would say that if you came to expect a standard lager you would probably be disappointed, because it is a bit more challenging. I can't fully place the flavour, but it is certainly enjoyable and is doing a lot for me.
Bitters aren't really my bag so we'll see how this goes. Again, another beer that pours very flat with no head, which to me is just never visually appealing. So, this beer is pretty fantastically flavoured really rich caramel with a slight burnt undertone. It's main characteristic though is for a bitter its uncharacteristically light, but without compromising flavour.
However, first impressions quickly wear of for me. As the drink goes on though it becomes a bit over powering and the heaviness does hit a little bit. I think where this beer is going wrong for me is the aftertaste which is just too far into unpleasant for me, with the initial flavour being overpowered by the aftertaste which sits painfully on the palate.
To pour this one seems much more appealing as it maintains a bit of a head to it although it quickly dissipates. Now this is a really tasty beer. I rarely do this, but I took another angle of just the beer to show just how rich a colour this beer is.
Another beer that pours with a temporary head but at least there is one this time. Considerably lighter than the T.E.A and just by looking at it I imagine it to be lighter in flavour Again the nose is not giving an awful lot away and seems to be a running theme with the brewery in that all the flavour is carried by the taste.
This is another quintessential English golden ale, but at the same time there is very little to set it apart from others I’ve tried. What it is, is good sure but if you put it with 4 other Golden Ales, I’d struggle to pick it out of a line up. As I’ve said many times, I’m by no means a pro at this and it’s only my opinion. I do enjoy this beer; it just doesn’t have that WOW factor.
The very first thought that comes to mind with this beer is
that it smells VERY British. This is a special edition beer in honour of the European
2020 (1) championships and it’s fantastic. Another beer which got an involuntary
audible reaction of “oh wow”. The flavour wraps around you mouth and just hugs
you as fruity loveliness just goes all over the place.
I mentioned on the previous golden ale, that I could pick it out of a line up, I
think I could this. The only negative is that this is a limited edition run, Hog’s
Back Brewery should certainly consider making this one of their staple beers,
even if they have to do it stealthily and rebadge. Very citrusy and just a
lovely thing.
Surrey Nirvana - IPA 4.0%
Pours a beautiful colour, but like a good few of these keeps its cards quite close to its chest when it comes to the nose. I think this beer certainly benefits from being refrigerated to really add to the punchiness of the hops which linger on the palate and packs an awful lot of flavour which you would be forgiven for expecting this to be stronger than the advertised 4%.
What I like about this is that it marries flavour and lightness very well normally if something is too hoppy or flavourful it can sit a little bit too heavy, other times with a light beer it can be like drinking a brown water. This seems to have the mix just right. Very much an English IPA (if such a thing exists) in the sense it's not of the craft variety, as has been stated all hops from Hogs Back are grown right next to their brewery.
This beer pours like a mixture of treacle and coke and has the same look about it as well with a slight appearance of carbonation. As is well documented Dark Ale's aren't especially my bag, As before not an awful lot given away through the nose just a certain level of freshness, which is almost out of place in a Dark ale.
This freshness carries through to the drink itself, incredibly light and refreshing which often is not the case for Dark Ale's which can sit heavy and abrasive. With this beer the flavours are there, the slight treacle like darkness, hints of chocolate but it's all presented with that air of crispness which lets the drinker find the flavour rather than be bombarded with it. The flavours remain too, with a slight coating feel around the mouth and tongue that lets you process and go back. There is a lot going on with this beer, but I don't feel it's a bad thing at all. I think your Dark Ale lovers would take this even a step beyond in appreciation, so would highly recommend it to them.
I’ve only had 1 barley wine before when drinking at Fierce
brewery in Manchester but it was at the end of many drinks was absurdly strong
and my drunken notes were basically translated as it's not for me. This in sobriety however seems like it could
be different, to the nose there is a port under tone to it, again like with all
of Hogs Back beers it's subtle to the nose but it's certainly there.
My brother has been doing a number of these as well and recommended this at room temperature and very much a sipping drink (at 9.0% it makes sense). this is an incredible tasting drink to sip. Room temperature is certainly the way to go here, the warmth carries its way through the mouth and down the throat in a hug like fashion, the flavours are competing for room, a slight citrus flavour being pushed away from something deeper and richer. If I had to categorise Hogs Back brewery it would be your "farmer / countryside" beers, but this feels a higher level your lords of Downton Abbey rather than the staff, you feel a degree of elegance and importance drinking it for no apparent reason it just sort of hits you that way. It's not a drink for the long haul, but as a night cap I’d happily return to this again and again.
Gardeners Tipple - Bitter 4.0%
And so we reach the end of this batch. Now bitter has never sat too well with me, I think it stems from it being the first drink I ever had a low quality one at that. I have to be honest this isn't really for me. I can tell that it's an incredibly fresh bitter. But as is literally name in it's too bitter for me. It's unfair of me to really judge further because it's just really not for me sorry. I keep going back, keep trying the swirling around the mouth and I just can't deal with the bitterness. This is no judgement on the beer itself as I can tell it probably is a pretty good beer, as all the others have been. This is purely personal preference I can try to find something in stouts etc but just a pure bitter is a no from me generally.
Final Thoughts:
I started this with the title enjoyable but… and for me the but is this. As I looked back on the notes, I clearly enjoyed the majority of these drinks at the time, but they’ve left little to no impression on me, some beers just stay with you in the mind and make you want them again, but these felt very much par for the course good beers, nothing spectacular. There was a large majority of them that just seemed very samey and the although this is most likely their identity it just didn’t wow me. None of the beers had the extra something that made them stand out over a lengthy time period. I wouldn’t avoid this brewery, but similarly I probably wouldn’t actively seek them out in the future either.
Next Blog - A special "Brewers Choice" by Head Brewer of WEST Brewery
Next County: Surrey:
Next Brewery: Hogs Back Brewery - https://www.hogsback.co.uk/
