Beer #367 - Adnams Jack Brand Dry Hopped Lager

This dry hopped lager from Adnams is available from Morrisons which, having tried it now, is flipping fantastic news. I'm a big Adnams fan (as I say every time I post one of their beers) and 'Jack Brand' appears to be their attempt to crack the 'craft' market using modern hop varieties. This is precisely the sort of lager that people should be drinking. The grassy, hoppy aroma is absolutely gorgeous. In flavour it is much more subtle, its a really nice light yet wonderfully crisp lager with the Galaxy hops providing a hint of citrus bitterness. It could be better, it doesn't quite compare to Sixpoint's The Crisp for example, but it is a really great beer nontheless and hell, it's available in Morrisons for well under two quid. Nice one, Adnams.


Brewery: Adnams
Country: United Kingdom
ABV: 4.2%

Beer #308 - Adnams Mosaic Pale Ale

Adnams's Jack Brand Mosaic Pale Ale has been cropping up on keg in pubs across London over the past few months and I thought it was high time I gave it a try. I really like what Adnams do and in terms of traditional British beers I think they’re on of the best breweries around, so I was interested to see what they could do with a flavoursome, modern hop variety. The beer pours a clear golden colour and has a strong hoppy aroma of tropical fruits. The hoppy flavour is not quite so strong although pleasant with tropical fruit flavours; it’s slightly sweet to begin with and has a bitter but not overpowering finish. It’s a good effort from Adnams, very easy to drink and refreshing as most of their beers are, but it does lack the robust hop flavour that the UK beer scene is increasingly coming out with.


Brewery: Adnams
Country: United Kingdom
ABV: 4.1%

Beer #280 - Adnams / The Alchemist Enraptured

This is another beer brewed as part of Wetherspoons' ongoing 'American Craft Brewers' Showcase. The premise is simple; US brewers visit UK breweries to produce a cask beer for exclusive sale in the Wetherspoon pubs. I've featured a few of these beers before, including one that was brewed at Adnams by the Brewing Crew of Stone Brewing. Enraptured was a collaboration between Adnams and John Kimmich of The Alchemist brewery of Waterbury, Connecticut. The Alchemist is famed for its almost mythically good douple IPA Heady Topper. A quick glance of the RateBeer entry for Heady Topper will give an idea of the esteem this beer is held in. It seems unlikely that I'll be trying that anytime soon so the chance to try this beer was one I really felt I should take. The beer pours a deep amber with an off-white head, the aroma is delightful with pine and tropical fruits prevalent. On the palate its extremely bitter, cripes is it bitter. Now I've worked hard to get into hoppy beers and I feel I've made good progress over the last year or so but this is a step too far for me at the moment! The flavours are good, think resinous, earthy hops with bitter, bitter grapefruityness that blows everything else away.

Brewery: Adnams / The Alchemist Collaboration
Country: United Kingdom
ABV: 5.5%  

Beer #121 - Adnams Old Ale

I think I may have a new favourite Adnams beer (until the next one I drink). This is one of the brewery’s oldest recipes, first brewed in 1890, which arguably goes to show that sometimes you just shouldn’t mess around with things, beer included. It’s a seasonal brew, available between October and January annually and I strongly urge you to seek it out. It pours a clear yet dark brown with a slight creamy head. It’s a beautifully robust beer that belies its 4.1% ABV. It’s a malt-forward beer and with strong caramel and fruity tones and a vague hint of spiciness. Absolutely lovely and perfect for this time of year when the cold weather is starting to set in.





Brewery: Adnams
Country: United Kingdom
ABV: 4.1 %

Beer #102 - Adnams/Stone Supremely Self Conscious Black Ale (Wetherspoons Autumn Festival Special!)

When browsing the beer list for the festival this one immediately caught my eye. Stone is one of the States’ most highly regarded craft brewers and Adnams is one of my favourite UK breweries. This beer follows the recent trend (and misnomer) of black IPAs, a heavily hopped IPA style beer that is more like a porter in appearance. I recently read an interesting article on the emergence of the black IPA on the Guardian which can be read here. Supremely Self Conscious Black Ale pours a deep black and the smell is absolutely heavenly. As you’d expect with something from Stone there are some big hoppy flavours here but they aren’t too strong nor overpowering. Really enjoyed this.     

 

Brewery: Adnams/Stone Brewing Co. Collaboration

Country: United Kingdom

ABV: 5.0%

Beer #20 - Fat Sprat

Finally the final post of last weeks beer exploits, fortunately I've not been to the pub this week so I'm now more or less up to date! Another Adnams pint, this one at The Crown Tavern in Clerkenwell, another pub in that area that normally has a good range of ale on. This is one of Adnams' seasonal ales for this summer, Fat Sprat is a very nice amber ale, a solid English bitter from one of my favourite breweries. They so rarely get it wrong. Whats more it's produced in support of The Marine Conservation Society, although to what extent I can't quite ascertain. Still, a beer that supports charity has to be a good thing!





Brewery: Adnams
Country: United Kingdom
ABV: 3.8%

Beer #7 - Sole Star

I’m a bit of an Adnams fanboy. I know they get a bit of criticism from some quarters but in my eyes they produce solid, if unspectacular, beer which you can always rely on for a decent pint. Sole Star was first produced by the brewery in 2011, a ‘pale amber ale’ coming in at just 2.7%. Despite my love of Adnams beer I didn’t get around to trying it until early this year, when on a cold April day I tried a bottle. I must say I was largely unimpressed, the beer seem incredibly light (even for such a low alcohol content) and I was left wondering if I needed to revise my opinion of Adnams after all. Fast forward to this weekend, with the thermometer nudging 30°C and ensconced in my parents garden, I gave Sole Star another chance. Slightly chilled and in a brilliant summers day this beer really comes into it’s own and on this occasion I’m happy to say I really enjoyed a couple of bottles.


Brewery: Adnams
Country: United Kingdom
ABV: 2.7%