September included another trip up to Newcastle (this time for the Great North Run) another trip to Sheffield (for the 10k run), and a bout of flu which made beer tasting tough. We did manage to fit in a few new brews at home and revisit one of our favourite beers. But the beer highlight of the month was a trip down to London for The Craft Beer Channel’s Love & Beer Festival.
This month’s top five new brews
Here’s a rundown of our favourite new brews for September 2024.
Northern Pale by Hadrian Border Brewery (Newcastle)
Pale Ale (on cask) 4.1%
After Alex got a Great North Run PB, we had time to pop for a pint before getting our train home. This lovely local pale ale was on cask at The Centurion (Newcastle-Upon-Tyne’s station pub). It was a very good beer. Nice and light with the creaminess you’d expect from cask – very easy-drinking.
Brewer’s note: A crisp, light pale using Amarillo hops to deliver mellow citrus and grapefruit tones in aroma and on the palate, with a pleasant lingering bitterness on the way down.
Brewer’s website: Hadrian Border Brewery
Red Berry Rhapsody by Siren (Reading)
Fruit Smoothie Sour 6%
We found this in Marks and Spencer and grabbed a couple of cans as we love Siren beers. It’s a solid fruit beer with lots of fruity flavours and a nice balance of sweet and sour.
Brewer’s note: If you thought big fruited sours were just for Summer – think again. We’re bringing berry and cherry vibes, with a thick smoothie body, a medley of sweet and tangy red fruits and just a hint of balancing sweetness. It’s tart, juicy and refreshing.
Brewer’s website: Siren Craft Brew
Death by Amaretto Sour by Vocation (Hebden Bridge)
Amaretto Sour 4.5%
This was a new brew we tried while full of flu/cold/who knows what so the sourness may have been a little muted. However, the flavour was lovely. Neither of us are big marzipan fans, but the marzipan flavour was subtle enough to be enjoyable. We’ve tried a few “death by” beers from Vocation (we tried three in our Vocation beer battle) and we’ve enjoyed them all so far – this one was no exception.
Brewer’s note: This ode to a classic, combines tart morello cherries with bittersweet marzipan notes, before a hefty dose of citrus cuts through to balance out this sweet and sour brew.
Brewer’s website: Vocation Brewery
Faithful Transcendence by Wilde Child (Leeds)
Yorkshire Bitter (on cask) 4%
This was our Sheffield 10k post-run beer and was a wonderful cask ale. It had a lovely caramel sweetness and didn’t have the overpowering bitterness on the finish that some bitters can have. Very smooth and perfect for a post-run pint.
Brewer’s note: None available.
Brewer’s website: Wilde Child Brewing Co.
* BEER OF THE MONTH *
Love & Lemons by Pastore X The Craft Beer Channel
Pink Lemonade Sour 4%
We’re huge fans of The Craft Beer Channel so we were very excited to attend their Love & Beer Festival in London this month at Hackney Brewery. There were so many homebrews to try that we didn’t get chance to try all the specially brewed festival beers, but we did buy a good selection to take home. However, one of the beers we did get chance to try was the beer they brewed with Pastore and it was fantastic. We love sour beers, but this one was next level. It tasted just as the description would suggest – like a sour pink lemonade. And the great thing about this beer was that the sourness didn’t dissipate – even the last few mouthfuls still made you pucker. A fantastic sour and unquestionably our beer of the month.
Brewer’s note: A pink lemonade sour, fermented with our fresh sour mixed culture & conditioned on Sicilian lemons & Scottish raspberries.
Brewer’s website: Pastore – Brewing & Blending
Honourable mention
These new brews didn’t quite make it into our top five, but we still feel they are worth a mention.
Heady Topper by Alchemist (Vermont, USA)
American Double IPA 8%
Heady Topper is one of the original New England IPAs and is renowned as one of the world’s best double IPAs. We were lucky enough to get a taster at Love & Beer. The only reason this beer is getting an honourable mention and not a place in the top five is because we only got a small taster. But the taster we did get confirmed that it’s worthy of its hype.
Brewer’s note: Our interpretation of an American Double IPA is meant to saturate your senses with the flavours and aromas of dank cannabis.
Brewer’s website: The Alchemist Brewery
Holy Smokes by Oyster Boys
Smoked lager 5.7%
One of the most surprising things about Love & Beer was the quality of homebrew beers being served up and the range of styles. Tasters of all homebrews were included in the ticket price and we made our way through a fair few.
We both agreed that the smoked lager from Oyster Boys was the best homebrew of the day and definitely worthy of a mention.
Brewer’s website: Oyster Boys Brewing Co
Revisited
Not a new brew but a beer we’ve revisited recently because it’s one of our favourites.
Faith by Northern Monk (Leeds)
Hazy Pale Ale 5%
“What’s your favourite beer?” – it’s a tough question, but Faith is definitely up there as one of our top brews.
When we heard they were lowering the ABV we were worried it might not be quite as good. And this month, we finally got around to finding out.
Fortunately, the slightly lower ABV hasn’t impacted the flavour – it’s still one of our favourite beers.
Brewer’s note: A Modern Hazy Pale Ale packed with soft fruit flavours. Smooth, tropical and juicy. You’ve got to have Faith.
Brewer’s website: Keep the Faith – Northern Monk
Northern Pale by Hadrian Border Brewery (Newcastle)
Pale Ale (on cask) 4.1%
After Alex got a Great North Run PB, we had time to pop for a pint before getting our train home. This lovely local pale ale was on cask at The Centurion (Newcastle-Upon-Tyne’s station pub). It was a very good beer. Nice and light with the creaminess you’d expect from cask – very easy-drinking.
Brewer’s note: A crisp, light pale using Amarillo hops to deliver mellow citrus and grapefruit tones in aroma and on the palate, with a pleasant lingering bitterness on the way down.
Brewer’s website: Hadrian Border Brewery
Red Berry Rhapsody by Siren (Reading)
Fruit Smoothie Sour 6%
We found this in Marks and Spencer and grabbed a couple of cans as we love Siren beers. It’s a solid fruit beer with lots of fruity flavours and a nice balance of sweet and sour.
Brewer’s note: If you thought big fruited sours were just for Summer – think again. We’re bringing berry and cherry vibes, with a thick smoothie body, a medley of sweet and tangy red fruits and just a hint of balancing sweetness. It’s tart, juicy and refreshing.
Brewer’s website: Siren Craft Brew
Death by Amaretto Sour by Vocation (Hebden Bridge)
Amaretto Sour 4.5%
This was a new brew we tried while full of flu/cold/who knows what so the sourness may have been a little muted. However, the flavour was lovely. Neither of us are big marzipan fans, but the marzipan flavour was subtle enough to be enjoyable. We’ve tried a few “death by” beers from Vocation (we tried three in our Vocation beer battle) and we’ve enjoyed them all so far – this one was no exception.
Brewer’s note: This ode to a classic, combines tart morello cherries with bittersweet marzipan notes, before a hefty dose of citrus cuts through to balance out this sweet and sour brew.
Brewer’s website: Vocation Brewery
Faithful Transcendence by Wilde Child (Leeds)
Yorkshire Bitter (on cask) 4%
This was our Sheffield 10k post-run beer and was a wonderful cask ale. It had a lovely caramel sweetness and didn’t have the overpowering bitterness on the finish that some bitters can have. Very smooth and perfect for a post-run pint.
Brewer’s note: None available.
Brewer’s website: Wilde Child Brewing Co.
* BEER OF THE MONTH *
Love & Lemons by Pastore X The Craft Beer Channel
Pink Lemonade Sour 4%
We’re huge fans of The Craft Beer Channel so we were very excited to attend their Love & Beer Festival in London this month at Hackney Brewery. There were so many homebrews to try that we didn’t get chance to try all the specially brewed festival beers, but we did buy a good selection to take home. However, one of the beers we did get chance to try was the beer they brewed with Pastore and it was fantastic. We love sour beers, but this one was next level. It tasted just as the description would suggest – like a sour pink lemonade. And the great thing about this beer was that the sourness didn’t dissipate – even the last few mouthfuls still made you pucker. A fantastic sour and unquestionably our beer of the month.
Brewer’s note: A pink lemonade sour, fermented with our fresh sour mixed culture & conditioned on Sicilian lemons & Scottish raspberries.
Brewer’s website: Pastore – Brewing & Blending
Honourable mention
These new brews didn’t quite make it into our top five, but we still feel they are worth a mention.
Heady Topper by Alchemist (Vermont, USA)
American Double IPA 8%
Heady Topper is one of the original New England IPAs and is renowned as one of the world’s best double IPAs. We were lucky enough to get a taster at Love & Beer. The only reason this beer is getting an honourable mention and not a place in the top five is because we only got a small taster. But the taster we did get confirmed that it’s worthy of its hype.
Brewer’s note: Our interpretation of an American Double IPA is meant to saturate your senses with the flavours and aromas of dank cannabis.
Brewer’s website: The Alchemist Brewery
Holy Smokes by Oyster Boys
Smoked Lager 5.7%
One of the most surprising things about Love & Beer was the quality of homebrew beers being served up and the range of styles. Tasters of all homebrews were included in the ticket price and we made our way through a fair few.
We both agreed that the smoked lager from Oyster Boys was the best homebrew of the day and definitely worthy of a mention.
Brewer’s website: Oyster Boys Brewing Co
Revisited
Not a new brew but a beer we’ve revisited recently because it’s one of our favourites.
Faith by Northern Monk (Leeds)
Hazy Pale Ale 5%
“What’s your favourite beer?” – it’s a tough question, but Faith is definitely up there as one of our top brews.
When we heard they were lowering the ABV we were worried it might not be quite as good. And this month, we finally got around to finding out.
Fortunately, the slightly lower ABV hasn’t impacted the flavour – it’s still one of our favourite beers.
Brewer’s note: A Modern Hazy Pale Ale packed with soft fruit flavours. Smooth, tropical and juicy. You’ve got to have Faith.
Brewer’s website: Keep the Faith – Northern Monk
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