I was a
bit late to the Sainsbury’s GBBH party. In truth I was unaware it even existed
until this summer. But the more I heard about it, the more I liked the idea and
I was determined to try as many of the 20 finalists as possible once they
reached the stores – in the interests of experiencing more British beers. But
getting hold of all 20 of the entries proved to be a challenge as some of you
may have discovered for yourselves.
A
few weeks ago, our friend Steve* from The Beer O'Clock Show asked
for a volunteer to utilise his ticket for the Grand Final. I was pleased to
offer my services, partly because I was curious about the judging process (look
out for our upcoming post on beer judging) and partly because I knew I would
get to try ALL THE BEERS. Yay. Prior to the event I’d only managed to try 8/20
(two from each region). A couple were very nice, one was very bad, and the
others fell somewhere in between.
In the
week running up to the Grand Final the 20 finalists were whittled down to 12.
Now, here was my first issue with the organisation of the competition. I
searched long and hard online but I couldn’t find the list of the 12 FINAL
finalists anywhere. Maybe it really was there somewhere and I just missed it.
But even if that was the case that would still be poor organisation. We had
some discussion about two days before the grand final when some of us home
brewers met up (to exchange beers for the upcoming Beer O’Clock Show Homebrew
Special). Some of the brewers in the competition, e.g. Harbour, had announced
that they were finalists but there wasn’t no announcement from Sainsbury’s that
I’m aware of.
Oh, look! Here is the list of the
final 12. I swear this page was only updated after the final
- because I looked for it before that. Hard.
On a
damp, grey Friday morning as I hurried to get out of the rain and into the OXO
Tower, where the Grand Final was being held, the recurring thought in my head
was: but I don’t even know what the final 12 beers are! Level Two of the OXO Tower
is a lovely riverside venue with views directly out over the ugly brown Thames.
I arrived in between the judges and the brewers so was able to listen to the
organiser’s address to the judges. Beer judging is a subject close to my heart
for many reasons.
Only one
of the 12 beers (Devon Dreamer by Hunter’s) is bottle conditioned so there will
be jugs provided to pour this beer into... Is this because the beer judges
cannot be relied upon to properly pour a bottle conditioned beer? Or is it
because the intention is to resuspend the yeast into solution? I should have
asked. Now I will be forever curious. Unless anyone is able to educate me.
So, the
judging process – there is no marking to style guidelines. Beers will be marked
out of 10 based on:
- bottle dressing
- appearance
- aroma
- taste
- flavour
- aftertaste
- overall appeal
All beers
must then be ranked from 1 to 12 with no joint places. I also learned that a
judge from a previous year had gargled with a beer they disliked. Presumably
they REALLY disliked it. Gargling is frowned upon and will not be tolerated.
Judges
are permitted to collude if they wish. I went in to observe the judges judging
for a bit. It seemed a little oddly organised to me – all the beers were stored
on one central trestle table and the judges had to go up, pour a beer then take
it away and judge it before returning for another. Maybe this is designed to
make the judges focus on getting through the beers in a quick and focused
fashion (rather than being sociable) but it just seemed disjointed to me.
As well
as the 12 (final) finalists, the other 8 (initial) finalists were also
available for sampling in the dining area. I consulted my notes to check which
beers I had yet to try and made myself comfortable with some samples. Meanwhile
the brewers arrived and mingled while they waited for the judging to conclude.
The atmosphere was relaxed and jovial, far less tense than that in the judging
room.
Time to
begin my own testing: first up it’s Harbour’s IPA. Now, this beer seemed pretty
popular on Twitter but I hadn’t managed to source it in Sainsbury’s. I’ve had a
couple of really good Harbour beers on keg this year so levels of anticipation
were high, especially since I’d sunk a few halves of their delicious No5 Pale
earlier in the week.
So how
was it? Well, it was very easy drinking, fairly fruity on the nose, and
whatever hop bitterness was present was very mild. In other words it was more
like a pale ale than an IPA. Of course, the style description is irrelevant in
terms of the popularity of a beer, especially when it goes down this fast. I
love the little story about the octopus on the bottle label too. Makes me realise
it’s the first time I’ve had a Harbour beer from bottle.
More
brewers arrive and begin discussing the judging process. I scan my list to see
which I have yet to try. Sticking with a theme - are there are any other IPAs
in there? Why, yes, there are. So next up it’s Orkney Brewery’s Wayfarer IPA:
and you’ll be pleased to hear it tastes like an IPA. There is an appreciable
amount of citrus aroma – as you’d expect from a beer brewed with cascade hops –
and an appropriate level of hop bitterness in the finish. It’s golden and crisp
and I think I might like it best of all the GBBH beers I’ve tried so far. I’d
like to keep drinking it but there are more beers to be tried and I should
probably take it easy pre-lunch. I feel guilty about leaving these good beers
unfinished. :(
Rolling
on with the IPA theme, I select Maxim’s
American Pride. I’ve read the tasting notes already: ‘Special American hops give a modern
drinkable ale with a bitter nose and a dry mouthfeel on the palate. Great with
spicy foods.’ Bring it on. It’s the colour of Tizer, similar to many American-made
American IPAs brewed with caramalt; but unlike those beers it looks as thin as
water. The nose is barley sugar, all malt and zero hop character. But this
isn’t a complex malt character: it’s just watery caramel. The flavour is sweet
from the malt but, but, BUT, IT’S SO THIN. It tastes like someone dropped a
toffee into a glass of water. How can an American style IPA have a body like
water? I am appalled. I’m all for innovation and rejecting style boundaries but
why define your beer as a US IPA when it’s nothing like one? Also, if you’re
going to deviate from style, make something that tastes good. Not for the
first time in my GBBH tasting experience, I am compelled to ask: did someone really brew a beer like this on purpose?
There’s
another Maxim beer in the final 12 but I’m not feeling brave enough yet. I need
something to rebalance my palate. I go for Hunter’s Devon Dreamer. Tell you
what, this beer above all the others in the final matches its tasting notes
perfectly. It’s an inoffensive golden ale. Not my favourite style but much like
the Gower Gold, it’s a well made, well balanced beer. They are quite similar
beers, in fact, these two. But the main difference between them is that Devon
Dreamer has a more developed malt profile. ‘Smooth malt flavours with a light
hop floral finish.’ Precisely. I’d not bother seeking it out again on purpose
but that’s because of my personal taste preferences and not in any way a slur
on this beer, which is great.
At this
point I realise that there is a guy sat at my table taking notes in shorthand.
I’m feeling like an inadequate roving reporter at this point. In all honesty
I’m not even doing any roving. Sorry,
Steve. I’m just here for the beer. My
priority is ensuring that I sample ALL THE BEERS and decide which ones I rate
and which ones I hate. At this point I have a clear 1st and a clear
12th. But I’m not done yet.
After a
pleasant beer I’m feeling braver. I select The Honey Thief by Williams Bros
because I’ve had a couple of great beers from them (Joker IPA & March of
the Penguins) in the past and also because I didn’t really enjoy their other
two entries in this competition. So I figured that even though I’m not mad keen
on honey beers this one should have more going for it than Hipsway and Gonny
No Brew That (the two Williams Bros beers that made the final 20 but not the final 12). And
I’m right. In contrast to those other two beers this one is pretty good. The Honey Thief is pale gold and
light-bodied with a lovely nose. It has
well balanced bitterness and a crisp finish. Result. I’ve just realised I have
a bottle of this in my fridge at home.
Time is
ticking on now toward the close of judging. What’s next? I cannot face the Wolf
Lavender Honey. One honey beer is sufficient for one day. I boldly attempt the
Maxim Swedish Blonde. It’s...it’s... I can’t even. What is that? Corn? Rice?
This is like drinking Budweiser. I have a few more sips just to be absolutely
certain. Confirmed: it’s not as bad as
American Pride but it’s a near thing.
People
are taking their seats for the announcement of the winners. I have time to grab
one more beer to sample while we all settle into our seats and the presentation
begins. Which will it be? NO MORE HONEY BEERS FOR ME. That only leaves
Bateman’s B Bock. I do a swift tasting: it’s spicy, heavy on the malts, quite
pleasant overall; I think it would pair really well with substantial, spicy
foods.
Before
the winner and runner up are announced a certificate for reaching the finals is
presented to the representative present from each brewery. It’s a chance for presenter
Olly Smith, a wine expert with no discernible experience with brewing/beer, to
interact with each finalist. I’m keen to get a sense of what is most important
to each brewer so here are the keywords or themes I gleaned from this section:
- Batemans: INNOVATION
- The Wolf Brewery: SUSTAINABILITY
- Hunter’s:
- Harbour: GOLF
- Gower: TAME
- WILLIAMS BROS: ROMANCE
- Orkney Brewery: ?
- Hilden Brewing Co: BELFAST BAP
- Thwaites: “A MICROBREWERY WITHIN A BREWERY” & ‘MILD WAS OUR BUSINESS"
- Maxim: ‘Guys all want to take home a Swedish Blonde, don’t they? *Nudge, nudge, wink wink, say no more*
So, as
I’m sure you’re aware by now Thwaites Crafty Dan got runner up. I’m content
with that. It was a really nice, easy drinking fruity pale ale. Does precisely
what it says on the tin. Job’s a good un. First place went to Orkney Brewey’s
Wayfarer IPA! Ok, so it didn’t really. But it should have. Actually first place
went to Bateman’s for their B Bock. I feel totally ambivalent about that. It
was a good beer but in my opinion there were better beers in the competition.
But then nobody asked me to judge, even though I have a certificate and
EVERYTHING. Unveiling the winners
Immediately
after the winner was announced I felt utterly beered out and fatigued and,
though I was largely unaware at the time, I was busy incubating this stupid
virus. There was just time for me to tell Ian Fraser from Orkney Brewing that
his beer was the best before dashing off to jump on a train at Blackfriars. I
<3 the new Blackfriars so much. It has fantastic access: I went from Level
Two OXO Tower to sitting on my train in four minutes. BOOM.
And so we
are left to wonder where the remaining 10 finalists placed in the beer
hierarchy. And why some of the beers from the final 20 that were popular failed
to make the cut. Many have asked why Hardknott’s Infra Red didn’t even reach
the final round, when it should have seen off all comers. This was the only one
of the beers in the competition that I’d tried (on purpose) and liked before
I’d even heard of GBBH.
I
speculated as to whether that was due to conditioning, as many people reported
gushing. Even though I knew in advance and poured very carefully it was still
an issue for my bottle. Or possibly it was just too ‘different’ a beer to be
appreciated by the target audience?
Thanks
again to Steve for enabling me to attend the event. It was an enjoyable day and
a further learning experience in the area of judging beers.
*AKA some
random bloke from Twitter
1 comment:
haha, cocktoberfest
i really want Bateman's to do well, it's an unbelievably lovely brewery with open squares and many (if not all) of their beers are great
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