Take your Fentimans

Fentimans Dandelion & Burdock Drink (England) – My first, and possibly my last, note on a soda. No alcohol here? No. I know it’s shocking. But the floral and complexing bitter/medicinal notes here are rather extraordinary. Frankly, I’d love to taste a version of this in which the sweetness was entirely abandoned, but then we’d be talking about some sort of non-alcoholic amaro. Which would be fine with me. This is absolutely one of the best sodas I’ve ever tasted. (4/10)

Fentimans “Curiosity Cola” (England) – Yes, this is a soda note. But I think it belongs here anyway. A bitter slosh of herbs and amaro-like anti-sugar complexities, with just – barely – enough sugar to compensate, though this is decidedly on the not-sweet side of sodas. I completely love it. (6/10)

By gham

St. Peter’s Sorgham Beer (England) – Beer people are always surprised when I say that I don’t like lager. Well, I don’t, much. There’s just something watery and unsatisfying about the style, no matter how well-executed, unless it’s in contrast amidst a tasting or present on a very, very hot day. All the reasons I don’t like lager apply to this, an ale that will find its principal audience among the gluten-intolerant. I applaud the effort. I can’t applaud the beer, which is bitter, watery, and insipid. (4/10)

Ale be seeing you

Fuller’s 2007 “Vintage” Ale (England) – Strident and uncompromising; the upshot is that I’m not at all sure I like it, but it sure is very much what it wants to be: bitter, raw-grain zing in drinkable form. I’m tempted to say this is brilliant, except that it’s hard for me to be so positive about a beer I really, really struggle to take in more than single-sip quantities. Still, I have to believe that this is a personal issue, and those who like this sort of thing will find it an ale for the ages. (10/08)

Wilfred Brimley

Young’s Oatmeal Stout (England) – Slightly bitter, nothing sticking out (or up for itself)…just basically sitting there, fitting the barest possible definition of “stout.” Ambitionless. (4/08)

Ebrewneezer

Wychwood “Bah Hambug!” Christmas Ale (England) – Dense, dark, and spicy, yet neither Christmas pudding nor Scotchy flavors intrude; this is a heavy, but quite decent, brew. (1/08)

On the left hand side

Wychwood “Duchy Originals” English Ale (England) – Very, very good…refreshing at first, but with a pleasantly bitter bite following, and then refreshing once more. I could drink a lot of this. (1/08)

The Pendle, um, swings

Moorhouse’s “Pendle Witches Brew” Pale Brown Ale (England) – Brown ale is not my favorite style, as it always seems like sort of a half-effort towards one endpoint or another. That said, this is a good one, with a fine balance of grain sweetness and bitterness marked by supple waves of froth. (1/08)

Have you any wool?

Black Sheep Ale (England) – Stiff but sophisticated, showing burnished hops and a amber-waves-of-grain character. Very good, if exactly the life of the party. (12/07)

Black Sheep “Riggwelter” Yorkshire Ale (England) – A little less restrained than its basic ale counterpart, with a somewhat more exuberant suggestion of spice and stone…though it eventually gets around to a certain embarrassment at its outburst, and retreats to a more refined comfort zone. Beer that wears a suit, but can still be enticed to tell the occasional off-color joke. (12/07)

Peter principle

St. Peter’s Winter Ale (England) – Bitter, strong, and yet somehow watery, with a tremendous amount of classicism and intensity undone by a fundamental lack of conviction. Every sip is the same: “I really like this…oh, wait…no, I’m not sure,” so I guess the key is just to keep drinking it, without pause. (12/07)