10 Fresh New Craft Beers To Try This Week

Oli Meade

This week, we received the first of Azvex’s new beers. You know Azvex, right?

Just in case you don’t, Azvex is the brand new, Liverpool-based brewery spearheaded by a former head brewer of Neon Raptor!

So for sure, I was excited to try their launch beers this week.

Here’s what I thought – plus my comments on 9 more epic beer releases.

1. Azvex – Lava Lamp Encryption DIPA

Finally!

Neon Raptor alumni Azvex are fresh out the blocks as a brand new brewery, and we’re privileged to have cinched launch beers Jelly Jar Blackberry & Blackcurrant Sour, plus Space Telescopes IPA, and (especially!) Lava Lamp Encryption DIPA.

For me, this week, Azvex is a must-try, and the stand out brew is the thick, dank and murky Lava Lamp Encryption DIPA.

A classic hop combo taken to places rarely reached. Give these guys and whirl – you’ll be glad you did once you pour yourself one of these.

2. Left Handed Giant – My Paradise In Burning Russian Imperial Stout

Darks season is in full swing, and somewhere towards the top of the gargantan pile of new releases this week lies Left Handed Giant’s My Paradise In Burning Russian Imperial Stout.

This is the Bristol brewery’s take on a straight up Russian Imperial Stout, which means it’s big and strong and thick and rich.

The dark roasted malts do all the heavy lifting, turning this into a roasted chocolate treat that goes on and on – a gem

3. Low Key – Emergency Pod Rum BA Chocolate & Tonka Barleywine

Low Key’s Emergency Pod Rum BA Chocolate & Tonka Barleywine is next on the hit list.

You know how you try some 10% beers and go “well where are they hiding all the booze?!”?

Yeah, this isn’t one of those.

Through the oodles of whirling booze lies rich dark chocolate and indulgent tonka, both of which trade blows while fighting for top spot.

Pointlessly, obviously.

Because this is aged in Appleton Dark Rum barrels – and the rich rum is the flavour that wins out.

4. St. Mars of the Desert – Fumapapa Smoky Imperial Stout

I love how St Mars. of the Desert basically always completely ignore trends and hype and just go ahead and brew whatever they like, and their new Fumapapa Smoky Imperial Stout is their latest great example.

This is a big hitting impy stout full of chocolate, but SMOD mix things up with beechwood-smoked barley and peat- and oak-smoked malts, so it smokes and smoulders from start to finish. 

Barbapapa, meanwhile, is SMOD’s smokeless version.

5. Pressure Drop – It’s My Party & I’ll Cry If I Want To Maple Coconut & Chocolate Imperial Granola Stout

More into sweet stuff? Then Pressure Drop’s It’s My Party & I’ll Cry If I Want To Maple Coconut & Chocolate Imperial Granola Stout is for you. 

Rich fudge dominates, but there is of course an inherent hazelnut crunch, and dark chocolate thanks to bitter cacao.

6. Polly’s Brew Co. – Pura Vida Antipodean IPA

Polly’s have been experimenting with other styles this year, and then of course they released their new core range. Both were successes. But what Polly’s really do best is massive, juicy, thick, hopped-up specials, and my word have they delivered with Pura Vida Antipodean IPA.

This is what happens when one of the best breweries in the UK smashes together rare New Zealand and Australian hops – a tropical fruit salad of gooseberry, peach, pineapple and passionfruit.

Approching Back IPA is as good – but a celebration of Simcoe and Talus weighted in Simcoe’s favour.

These are Polly’s at their very best.

7. Northern Monk – Fresh From The North 007 TIPA

The new Northern Monk Fresh From The North 007 TIPA ain’t bad either. This adds earth notes to the otherwise straight-up juice-fest, plus a citrusy, sour lemon-lime edge.

8. Neon Raptor – Carol Hazy IPA

Finally on the hop-front, am I the only one that wants to compare the hoppy new Azvex stuff with that of Neon Raptor? All good natured but, for some reason, it feels a bit like violating some sort of unwritten code.

Either way, you could do much worse than pick up Neon Raptor’s Carol Hazy IPA this week.

Citrus leads, followed by a hint of orange, complete with a subtle bitterness. 

(Whether or not you also pick up any Azvex is entirely up to you…)

9. Howling Hops – Stocking Filler Fig, Lemon & Cherry Sour

I’m writing this on the 1st of December, which means it’s definitely OK to crack into the festive specials, and Stocking Filler Fig, Lemon & Cherry Sour by Howling Hops is a fine place to start.

It begins life lemony, but then a one-two punch of festive fig and juicy cherry give this a nice Christmas twist.

At 4.2%, it’s a wicked way to start the festivities.

Whoop whoop!

10. Northern Monk – OFS055 Mango Coconut Sour

Meanwhile Monk have once again served up a sour that’s dividing opinion in OFS055 Mango Coconut Sour. 

This is a sweet, salty and sticky sour served with a generous side of mango and coconut ice cream. It won’t be for everyone… but if it’s for you, you’ll know!

But wait – there’s more!

GF-ers rejoice, for I present to you Brass Castle! Whether you tuck into Snow Eater GF Chinook Pale or Vast Dreams GF IPA you’re on safe ground. Be sure to top proceedings with the excellent Christmas Kitty GF Festive Spiced Vanilla Porter – the best of the lot.

Sticking with the darks, the fact I’m only mentioning Brew York & Fyne”s Release The Cranachan Imperial Raspberry Oatmeal Stout down here goes to show how good the darks are at the moment.

Ditto Duration’s burnt-caramel-tinged Fortitude Imperial Stout.

And Northern Monk’s adjunct-free Rejoice! Imperial Stout, for that matter. To be honest, you can’t really go wrong with the darks at the minute – dive on in!
If it’s juice you’re after, Pressure Drop have got you: Future Steve NEIPA is as tropical as you like, while Keyboard Club NEIPA is all orange, pineapple and honeydew melon. Lorikeet NEIPA is a celebration of one of Australia’s fruitiest hops.

LHG jumped in on the hazies this week with A Straight Line Existsand Meet Me In Montauk. The former is the tropical punchbowl. The latter comes with resin (and an excellent name). Talking of fine names, Brew York’s Schooner Matata is a fruity DDH Pale I could drink and drink.

Northern Monk’s Visions Of Another Ale Tropical Imperial BIPA melds fruity pineapple and roasted malts, and Duration’s Ebb & Flow is of the same ilk, while OFS057 Vietnamese Coffee Imperial Brown Stout leaps into the sweet side.

And finally, for lager fans, we have Pressure Drop’s Premium Lager Beer, a crisp German pilsner that, even in the current freeze, just seems to make sense.

As always, I really hope you get to enjoy some of these wicked new beers this week.

Happy drinking!

Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)