Burton Porter

Burton Porter and some mussels on the hob

Smelling this beer from Burton Bridge brewery as I wait for a plate of mussels and pasta, I think to myself I’ve made a mistake. Not about Burton Porter (it’s excellent) but on this pairing). It smells of treacle – sweet and sticky – and compared to Sarah’s white wine seems too thick and dominant for the creamy seafood dish. A quick taste an there’s chocolate, with a hint of fruit, perhaps from hops.

But on tasting I change my mind, it might just work. A long, hefty sip leaves me wanting more, it is dark in colour and flavour but not to the detriment of drinkability. This isn’t smooth like Guinness but it might as well be, the ease is such as it glides own your throat.

It isn’t as sweet to taste as it first smelt, it’s different, tobacco, charcoal and smoke coming to the fore. It’s heavy with the mussels, but I love dark stouts with this particular meal, it changes it from something light and fresh to something rich and earthy.

Burton Porter was a bit of a surprise buy on a trip to Beer Ritz. My younger brother had wanted a selection of South American lagers so we headed up after a Leeds match. I wasn’t planning on buying anything but such is a trip to Leeds’ infamous beer shop that it’s unheard of to leave empty handed. I’ll certainly be back for more Burton Porter once the inevitable short British summer has done teasing us in 2010.