Beer Weather

It really is beer weather out there

A late lunch in Horatio Todd's on the Newtownards road also was a nice surprise. I knew they covered a few beers but there was more choice here than I anticipated. Good to see another pub option in Belfast where you can at least try a few different beers (they also had Belfast Ale on draft, and the food was good!). During the visit I managed:

From the List

• Anchor Steam Beer. Style: Steam Beer/California Common. ABV 4.9%
  Description: An amber and sweet malty “lager”. Light carbonisation. Nice head with some lacing.
  Conclusion: As a said in “the beginning”, Anchor Steam was one of the brews that got me into beer. Lager like but dark and with sweet malts (technically its a hybrid - warm fermented with lager yeast). At the time it was like nothing I’d had before. Much better on draft in San Francisco, the bottles still travel well, and just popping off the cap and taking a sniff bring me back to a great holiday and memories.
  Score: 7
  
  
• Sam Adams. Style: Lager. ABV 4.9%
  Description: Another amber lager with lots more maltyness than we get locally. A head that lasts with some lacing. Biscuit and sweet malt taste.
  Conclusion: A bit of a surprise that Horatio Todd's had this on draft. Another fine lager, a bit like Anchor Steam but a little bit more traditional. Again this is one of the beers that showed me what was available out there. Always happy to grab a bottle or a pint – just a sip takes me back to the Warren Tavern in Boston!
  Score: 7

Others

• Headless Dog. Style: Amber Ale, ABV: 4.3%.
  Description: Poured from a bottle. Amber ale with a hoppy taste, some fruit and malt to finish.
  Conclusion: Solid beer, and a nice one to use to introduce non-hopheads to different beers. A little too mild to my taste but a perfectly fine ale.
  Score: 6.5

The Long weekend in Northern Ireland and, with this weather, a perfect time to sample some (cold, cold, cold) beers at home.

Not on the list:

• Snake Dog IPA. Style: IPA. ABV 7.1%
  Description: Bright gold in colour, poured with a little white head that disappeared pretty quickly. Fruit aromas, but a pretty bitter piney type hope finish.
  Conclusion: Big fan of most flying dog beers, and this one was as good as the rest. Quite a bitter hoppy finish that might be a bit much for some. Maybe too bitter for a summer night but a fine beer.
  Score: 7
  
  
• East India Pale Ale. Style: IPA. ABV 6.9%
  Description: Golden Amber colour with a fair amount of bubbles. Bitter fruit aromas and another with a pine hop finish.
  Conclusion: Again I'm a big fan of Brooklyn beers. This is another good one. Very similar to the Snake Dog, but maybe not quite as bitter a finish. Went down well!
  Score: 7

Cheers