Posted on 09/11/22
It’s service as normal this week after last week’s postal strikes, so get your fastest finger ready to snag some of these new releases…
I have to start with the Northern Monk 9th Birthday beers.
The first is an insane collab with monsters of brewing Stigbergets and Garage – Ethel Tropical IPA is just that – a fruit monster! Full of mango, papaya and passionfruit, it’s treading that line between beer and fruit juice and slips down in record time!
The beer that got everyone (even more) excited was the IPA with Finback and Vitamin Sea: Once, Twice, Three Times a Dreamwhale. It’s a 7.4% DIPA and throws so much tropical creamy hops at your face you just want another.
Very limited so don’t mess about!
Baron continue to be the hype-hop brewery at the moment. We literally have to order cases on sight as they disappear faster than a kölsch on a hot day!
This week we bring you Baron Dojo IPA and Baron Wheelbite Pale Ale. Both of these gems are insanely well balanced and rounded, but full of flavour and smooth as well. No faddy fireworks or craziness.
Just always brilliant.
Also on the highlights reel this week is Polly’s Spur. Seems only a few months ago we first stocked this but it’s such a belter we HAD to reorder the rebrew.
It’s where Polly’s really excel – the 7-9% IPA/DIPA range – and this is fast becoming classic.
Azacca, Citra & Simcoe work in harmony for a beer with bite as well as all that stone fruit.
Our 4-5% shelves seemed a bit scant early this week, so I dialled up Howling and they sent a truck-load to us. (To be fair I actually emailed… but the order did come in a truck!).
Pick of the bunch for me was Howling’s Thunderball Express, which leans on a new and rare hop in Triumph.
Get ahead of the nerds and try the latest gear on the scene!
Matt from Unbarred dropped in last week. He’s someone that’s shared a very different journey to me in craft beer but someone I’ve consistency worked with. I was thrilled when he gave me some samples for this week’s mailer and I hoovered up their wares without a blink.
Unbarred Bueno Shake is an absolute classic and I’m thrilled to have it back and The Unbarred Caribbean Quad was good with a subtle barrel edge to it but staying fairly true to it’s quad roots.
All that said… the Unbarred Chonka was the big winner. 4+ ratings on Untappd, and with good reason.
There’s cherry there, but it’s not sickly sweet or too in-yer-face. Then the tonka does the same, enough to make it work but not just lashed in and overpowering. The Oatmeal brings enough body to thicken it up without being a 9.2% challenge you just can’t take on alone.
A winner!
We also have three monsters from Stigbergets: Peanut!, Cacao and Midnight Special.
All very much on the same theme here, but this brewery bloody nails this kinda thing so if you love peanuts, chocolate or hazelnuts (doesn’t everyone?!) then check these out!
CM beer slinger Charlie doesn’t do lagers. He’s normally found happily ingesting the best hoppy brews the world can supply and impy darks that’d make your toes curl.
So when he says “I like a Früh Kölsch”, you sit up and take a LOT of notice.
Affordable, complex and slammable, this 100% classic beer is a belter. It has the bite and cloudy haze in it’s body to really carry it up a level, so so good!
We also have the Christmas beers starting to reach us like the Omnipollo Imperial Julmalt Holiday Sour which is based on a classic Swedish winter drink.
As intriguing as it is odd, it’s based on a recipe of unripened berries and spices. Think Gluhwein but on acid!
Don’t miss the latest sour from Pressure Drop either as the last one sold out super-fast.
Green Means Go is an elusively green-fruited sour with gooseberries bringing the tart twang.
Elsewhere don’t skip the Unbarred Apple Pie Sour, which has cinnamon and fruit to die for, and the very clean and light Northern Monk OFS089, which is a zippy little Cherry & Lemon sour.
We also recently went to brew a beer at Beak (you may have seen the excited images on socials) and talked Czech beer with Kat who works there. While I don’t have her level of knowledge (and I’m sure she would frown upon a brit-made Czech Pils) I loved the OFS088 Pils from Northern Monk – everything I could wish for in a refreshing brew.
While we’re talking Beak then grab a can of Beak Hymns IPA, all the soft juice from the Lewes legends and easy to drink for the ABV, as always!
Also if you’re feeling brave grab a can of the 13% Northern Monk Tom Joy For Coco BA Speyside Imperial Stout. Scarily big and unapologetic, this one’s a sipper!
As always enjoy your shopping and thanks for supporting our small business!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Step 1
We trawl the globe tasting great beer
