Beer of the month

April 2005: Old Engine Oil

Kevin Keeley, 7 April 2005

Old engine oil

What can we say? Dark, bitter, burnt caramel. A hint of gravy browning. A bit over-malted. The bottled says 'wickedly smooth chocolate' but the palate says not.

If this beer were an animal it would be a millionaire mole in a sheepskin: - dark, rich and furry. 'Best drunk alone' is a better appellation.

Whereas a Guiness is a tweed suit, Old Engine Oil (by Harviestoun Brewery, Dollar, Clackmannashire, Scotland) is a corduroy coat with leather elbow patches.

A mouthful approaches the sense of angst combined with manic optimism of Gryff Rhys Jones when he was just getting to the point of megalomania in 'Mine all Mine'. 6%.

Beer of the month: August 2004

Hefeweissbier

Wheat beers are an acquired taste. But a taste worth acquiring. Their depth of flavour, aroma and sheer satisfaction make them the kings of beer.

Many people are now familiar with Hoegaarden wheat beer - an excellent, thirst quencher. Yet the Weihenstephaner Hefe weissbier is in another league. Deeply complex. Strongly aromatic: the 'nose' of this beer is a treat in itself. The yeast ('Hefe') gives a bright, fruity scent with hints of summer flowers (elderflower perhaps).

When poured, this wheat beer doesn't go wild with its head. More controlled yet still well developed.

The first taste is crisp - comparable with that first crunch into an apple fresh from the bough. Slight acidity. A warmth. Clearing your palette ready for the next mouthful.

At 5.4% it doesn't take long before a pleasant glow develops in the mouth - perfectly balancing the strength of flavour. Being a wheat beer, Stephaner has extra 'body' - comparable with Guiness - but with that characteristic wheat lightness and brightness.

And the aftertaste? This beer is so special it not only has a delicious malty aftertaste but also has a lingering 'afterscent' - of summer evenings, watching birds flying before a golden sunset ...

It's not surprising that this beer has so much depth of quality: it is brewed by the Staatsbrauerei Weihenstephan which was founded in 1040 (a few years before the Norman Conquest). You can taste those centuries of experience.

Info about the beer at Weihenstephaner Brauerei.

Belgian beer

Some recommendations:

• Chimay Blau/Bleue/Blue. 9% However you spell it, one of the truly great beers. Rich in body, deeply satisfying. Lekker.
• Rochefort 10. 11.3% A beer not to be messed with. Best combined with the cheese from the same town.
• Westmalle Dubbel. 6.5% A good 'session' Belgian beer (and what a session!)
• Orval. 6.2% Unique. Special. In a category of its own.
• Charles Quint. 9% This extra splendid beer keeps alive the memory of one of the greatest keisers. Should only be drunk in a mug with four handles.
• Hoegaarden Grand Cru. 8.7% You've had the Wit/Blanche - now taste the 'real thing'.
• Barbar. 8% An excellent honey beer.
• Bourgogne des Flandres. 5% Typically rich Belgium 'bruin' beer.
• Brigand. 9% Robust and refreshing.
• Gulden draak. 10.5% Deeply satisfying.
• Poperings Hommel. 7.5% Perhaps the best honey beer.

Beer is great!

... that's all that needs to be said ... ;-)

Do you have a favourite beer that you can recommend? If so, please send an email to ed@brigglife.co.uk.