Wales. Cymru. The land of my fathers, rolling emerald hills, song, rugby, and other stereotypical descriptions.
Wales has been known as a country of drinkers, mostly ales, and mostly bitter.
Growing up, I can remember birthday parties in workingman’s clubs, and I remember the distinct livery of two main ales in almost every pub or club I visited.
The red crest with white lettering of BRAINS (usually SA).
And the white, green bordered badge of Allbright Bitter.
Both of these were beers I tried when first venturing into the world of alcohol. SA isn’t a bad pint, but it doesn’t stand out, either. It’s been around for ages, and is alright. Just, alright.
Allbright is an old-fashioned ale. From what I remember. Because I haven’t drunk it in many years. I found it watery, lacking flavour, a hit of bitterness, and hardly any ABV at all (3.3%) so it made it pointless to drink, really. No enjoyment, and you had to drink gallons of the stuff to get any effect.
When I became 18 and ventured (legally) to the pub, there seemed little on offer, in terms of ale. Lager was the staple.
Times, however, are changing.
It may be my interest is leading me to more locally based breweries.
It may be consumers tastes are changing.
It may be that a revolution in beer is happening.
I think it’s all three.
Not only am I enjoying beers more, but it seems like the country is.
Lager sales have been on a decline for many years. The counry appears to be moving toward wine and ales more.
Whilst pubs are closing, there seems to be more microbreweries popping up. And some of the breweries are using this catalyst to develope more intriguing and appetising ales.
So what I plan to do with this blog, is to write entries on specific breweries and (several) of the ales they produce.
First up, is The Celt Experience.
It’s not been running too long, since 2007, but they are producing some of the finest Welsh ales around at the moment. The branding is eye-catching, displaying a mix of traditional Celtic typography, with bold colours over a black background. It gives an air of luxury, it’s a treat. Enjoy it.
Golden Ale. 4.2%
At the top of the page, Golden on the bottle, golden in the glass. It glistens. The head is good, but fades after a short while. On the nose, it’s fresh and zesty, a little sharp, waking the senses. On first taste, it’s lightly carbonated, and follows up the zesty aroma with flavours of citrus running through it, lemon, lime, hint of orange sweetness. Then it finishes. Sharp, crisp, bitter. Really good ale.
Bleddyn. 5.6%
Bleddyn is a mighty fine IPA, coppery in colour and foamy of head. Floral aromas escape the glass, enticing you in. It’s packed full of flavour too, malty sweetness to begin with, followed by typical floral and grapefruit flavours, and a cleansing bitter finish. This is one of my favourite IPAs, strong flavour, punchy, good clean crisp finish.
Bronze. 4.5%
Bronze by name and colour, a rich, caramel ale that smells of rich sweetness. When drunk, you get flavours of raisin and malt, sweet but not overly so. This is followed by mince pie spices, cinnamon, nutmeg, a touch of anise. The ale finishes off with a bitter end, cleansing the palate.
Silures. 4.6%
The final tincture is a pale ale, the colour resembles lightly toasted pine nuts when poured. On the nose, there is grapefruit, mango, and passionfruit. Very tropical. The inital taste is a little bitterness, followed quickly by a malted sweetness, with hints of oak and vanilla. Then come the tropical flavours first noticed in the aroma. Grapefruit, pineapple, passionfruit and finally the distinct, almost perfumed mango.
Four of my favourite beers from a great brewery. Each bottle has a little description of Welsh history, to balance the modern design. A nod to the past, but definitely looking toward the future.
As we sometimes say in Wales, iechyd da, or good health!
Ale Odyssey 