Posted on 23/09/22
It was a HUGE week this week on the beer front – especially on the hoppy side – but the best of the best of the best of the best this week include…
I went a bit overboard on the beer intake this week and we seem to have ended up with TRUCKLOADS of new brews for ya, including a heap of hoppy bangers. It really is a feast this week in this section and it’s hard to know where to start! Maybe it’s sensible to pick out the Pomonas first…
After a small lull, the Manchester outfit are back with a bang. From the return of many people’s benchmark TIPA (Ego Tripping at the Gates of Hell), right down to their session brews these guys squeeze every possible drop of flavour into their beers.
I Loved You in Wall Street is probably my pick of the pales and IPAs with a cracking hop lineup that’s smooth yet punchy but you can’t go wrong with any of the 7 new Pomona Island brews we have in.
Get involved!
We’re also equally as excited to grab some Glasshouse for the shelves.
The obvious basket addition is the DEYA collab Croc Encounters, but for goodness sake don’t swerve the Alkin Road to Unruin IPA.
Pure pineapple juice heaven.
Elsewhere there’s a Huge DIPA with honey (but only the merest hint of extra sweetness) in Overtone’s Mosaic I’m Home Honey.
A must-try for big ABV fans.
Much like the hoppy section we went a tad mad this week on the sour and crispy boi smorgas-selection. At the top of the tower, I present to you lashings of new stuff from the one and only Vault City.
Expect every base covered, from big spicy monsters like the 7.5% Pineapple Habanero Sour and the latest Dark Fruit Dreamcake to sessionable collabs with Full Circle and Mash Gang.
The big boys here are both real sippers, especially the Habanero and the collabs are super easy to smash, so it’s win-win and really just depends on the mood you’re in.
Also don’t skip on the Overtone Summer Fool this week – this pours like a smoothie full of raspberry and gooseberry flavours, but as you glug away it’s still really sharp and tart.
A real belter if you’re still desperately hanging onto summer by your fingernails!
In the lagers section, I’ve dug out some brews from two breweries that are not particularly known for lager largesse.
First up, Polly’s have delivered a classy little number in Hive Colour. It’s just the right side of malty and spot on with the finish.
That said, Burnt Mill Pils just pips it for me. It’s probably just personal preference, but for me this was a tad easier drinking with great head retention…
But let the record show, both Burnt Mill’s Pils and Polly’s Hive Colour are refreshing beauts.
Dive in ASAP; I’m expecting these to fly.
A small but BRILLIANTLY formed dark list for you this week peeps.
Beak tend to stick to hoppy perfection but with Paste Maple Imperial Stout they lay claim to be masters of the dark matter too.
It’s a big treacle-laden ooze-fest of gloopy liquid. Awesome work from the Lewes legends.
The sidekick this week to the headline is a beer that would normally be nibbling at it’s toes for top billing.
Northern Monk’s Dark & Wild Vanilla Mochaccino stout has them team up with not just Three Hills Brewery but Nerdbrewing too!
It’s boozy and big and unapologetically bold. There’s lashings of vanilla and a big roastiness of coffee that punches through at the end. Not bad for a sidekick, eh?
Alcohol-free! I love going out each week and restocking the no/low section. 18 months ago it was slim pickings and even the stuff you did manage to source didn’t sell… but now the boozeless scene is utterly thriving and it’s down to guys like Mash Gang that this has happened. Always pushing the boundaries, this week I managed to snag 4 of their utterly bonkers new 0.5% brews and they’re as daft as they sound…
There’s retro toaster fodder inspired Cryo Pop Tarts full of berries and vanilla, breakfast cereal laden Cap’n Krunk and sweet shop Sour Batch Hop! Call me a traditionalist (ha) but the Mangonada Mango Pilsner was my pick. Either way, all are perfect for a night off the sauce while still exploring the madness of modern brewing.
Back to our normal additions… There was so much going on in the hoppy section this week it would be easy to miss (but also a crime to miss) the new Pressure Drop IPA Home Taping is Killing Music. Columbus, Idaho, Mosaic and Sabro – what a hop combo, and it delivers. We also have two more muted ABV offerings from them in the shape of Dreamlife and Catamaran. Both are rebrews but for pales in the 5% zone these always sell very fast because they’re just really, really good.
There’s also a double dry hopped ale from Northern Monk you should check out. As a proud Yorkshireman I loved it. Yorkshire Til I Die uses truckloads of traditional hops to create a modern bitter on steroids. Expect a hoppy beer where the English hops have been made to work to the MAX.
There’s fresh Beak just in too – anyone not grabbing Beak’s Talk IPA at under a fiver needs to have a word with themselves.
We also managed to grab Monk’s latest crazy fruited ale as well in Turbo Bonbons which is crammed with berries and cherries and all things good from the sweet shop.
A huge haul of beer for your shopping delight I hope you agree? Enjoy picking.
As always, thanks so much for your support!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Step 1
We trawl the globe tasting great beer
