The Search for the Holy Grail

A friend of mine sent me a link to this last week, thinking that she had trumped me. “I bet you never had this beer!” Sorry, girlie, you can’t trump the beer girl. But really, I have to credit my youngest brother for introducing this one to me.

The label is all about Monty Python, stating that it is tempered over burning witches. If you are as dorky as me and most of my family, this is enough to make you buy it, regardless of taste.

BEDEVERE: What makes you think she is a witch?
VILLAGER #1: Well, she turned me into a newt.
BEDEVERE: A newt?
VILLAGER #1: I got better.
VILLAGER #2: Burn her anyway!
VILLAGER #1: Burn!
CROWD: Burn her! Burn! Burn her!...

Thankfully, it tastes pretty darn good, no matter your opinion of Monty Python. This is solid example of an English style pale ale. The English pale ale can be traced back to the city of Burton-upon-Trent, a city with an abundance of rich hard water. This hard water helps with the clarity as well as enhancing the hop bitterness. This ale can be from golden to reddish amber in color with generally a good head retention. A mix of fruity, hoppy, earthy, buttery and malty aromas and flavors can be found. Typically all ingredients are English.

This is a very drinkable beer, with enough character to be interesting, but not so complex as to remind you to drink it slowly. It is a copper colored ale, that pours with a frothy white head. It is a very balanced malt/hop combo, in my opinion, and has a very welcome snap, almost peppery. My husband’s exact words after taking a sip were, “Ah, fall beer! It is almost October, isn’t it?”

If you don’t like it, you can just go cut down the largest tree in the forest. With a HERRING.