Glastonbury beer

Just what beer do you take to a summer music festival?

With Glastonbury only a few days away there’s a big supermarket trip around the corner to stock up on all the liquid lunches we’ll be needing over the 5 days we spend wallowing in mud, Carlsberg cans and the reverberation of  thumping speakers.

But what is the perfect festival beer?

What's the perfect festival beer?

At Glastonbury you can take what you want. Unlike other festivals, once you’re in, you’re in, and you may freely waltz around with your chosen tipple without fear of eviction. Last year one chap had 3 cans of Stella strapped to each limb with duck tape. He was never without a beer.

The perfect drink has to be light. Multiple car trips are not good so you need to be able to pack it in a rucksack, pop it under your arm or balance it on your head for the long walk from car park to chosen pitching ground.

The perfect drink has to be refreshing. If the sun comes out it needs to revive; if the mud rises up it needs to make you feel fighting fit to grapple through the bodies and lost wellies.

This enigmatic tipple mustn’t be too strong. No-one wants to miss the single unmissable act of the day, not drink too much and earn themselves an early retirement to the tent. You want to be up from 11am until 4am, with perhaps a mid afternoon nap in a quiet folk tent near the tippees.

You need to be able to drink all day and never feel under the weather.

And this magic beer (or other alternative beverage) must be passable, nay even enjoyable when warm.  In a perfect world it will chill quickly too and never warm up, if nature or some fancy technology (aka cool box) gives you the opportunity.

We could try lager. Widely available in lightweight cans of various strengths. It’s refreshing when hot which ticks an important box, but crucially though, it’s a bit rubbish when not ice cold.

So in case of warm conditions perhaps we should take some ale. Bottled conditioned is an absolute no-no, and even simply bottles are a bad idea. Stone’s Bitter or Tanglefoot anyone? A choice between garish orange or red, unless you want to risk Smoothflow, of course.

Then there’s the alternative solution, cider. Before you conjure images of vagrants and teenagers on a park bench, just remember the criteria.

Lightweight.

Not too strong.

Easy to carry.

Drinkable warm.

Suddenly Strongbow seems more appealing than ever…

The usually quiet fields of Pilton in Somerset are normally full of cows and green, green grass. But for a few days they'll be home to us and 140,000 other revellers (as the meeja like to call festival folk).

Birds & Bees by William Brothers Brewing Co

On arrival at Sainsbury’s to peruse the finalists in their 2009 beer competition, Birds & Bees immediately caught my attention. The label is modern and playful and stood out from the crowd.

I loved the colour and the illustration and it fell into my basket (placed very carefully I should say) without further thought.

Birds & Bees & Beer: this is a playful ale with citrus and honey flavours

Originally I was going to save this beer but it on an indecisive evening with the light not fading until late into the night, it was this that grabbed my attention again and I plucked it from the shelf.

Not 100% sure what to expect I took care opening it and poured out the golden liquid. It had a light hoppy aroma, and light fruity taste. Turns out it’s a light golden ale! Swill this around and the colour, aroma and the taste combine to make a really appealing golden beer.

The gentle fruit and floral aroma (looking at the label that must be the elderflower and the Cascade hops) is really refreshing. Honey and lemon blossom on your tastebuds and there is a malt finish that adds an unexpected bitter tang to the beer, which is just enough to make you want another sip and makes this an enticing session beer.

Trying this it was actually one of the first summer ales I’ve had and I wish I’d been able to get my hands on some in May or June as this might just have been my proverbial soundtrack to the summer (that typical over in a flash summer we usually have!)

I’ve only tried the bottle  but I can only imagine the cask version of this is the perfect pint on a sunny afternoon.

Honey Dew – Fuller’s

Fuller’s Organic Honey  Dew Golden Beer – 5.0% Vol

Me and Jack looked at each other with a mutual look surprise as we took our first sips of this beer. Not at all what we were expecting. It was not the sweet sensation I was expecting and someone else here has informed me that the draft version is far sweeter.

I must admit that I went to the trouble of pouring this into a glass to see if it appeared more golden that it tasted and I have to say that it did. In fairness this Ale may be golden for regular drinkers of strong ales and porter but for my young pale loving taste buds this juxtaposition of a stronger ale with the dark, syrupy, (not sure if that’s a word) raw sweetness doesn’t really float my boat.

I must say the bottle, particularly the bottle tops, are awesome…

Brakspear Oxford Gold Organic Beer

This is an ale that is increasingly common on UK supermarket shelves and one that you should not overlook this summer, whether it rains or shines. Brakspear’s Oxford Gold pours a golden amber and starts with the scent of honey. It tastes citrusy and gently sweet. A great accompaniment to an alfresco evening after a long day in the office.

Another fine ale from Oxfordshire!

Acorn Brewery Summer Pale

Acorn Brewery Summer Pale

I’ll be honest, despite being mid-May, there is very little summertime feel in the Leeds air. This may have been the overarching appeal of ’summer pale’ as it shone amongst the pumps at the excellent Victoria Commercial Hotel.

And the colour of the ale certainly shines; a nice clear blonde is probably one of the palest of beers I’ve ever seen, and would certainly appeal as a summer evening beverage.

A fairly sweet aroma complements the name again, and once in the mouth, a light carbonisation tickles the tongue.

The body of the beer remains light throughout, although the aftertaste is something of a bitter surprise, leaving the back of the throat feeling warm and content, much like the evening sun on an august evening.

Breweries often pride themselves on finding a fitting name to give an expectation of their ales. The folk at Barnsley’s excellent Acorn Brewery have done it again, with this terrific seasonal brew that knows it’s place on the calendar and achieves it’s purpose well.

Acorn Summer Pale

Batemans Combined Harvest

Batemans Combined Harvest Multigrain Beer

The label of this beer claims that ’subtle, smooth bitterness’ makes it ‘a beer with equal appeal to male and female drinkers and also younger drinkers’. I would have to say that I agree with them.

This beer is light and golden as you would expect from a harvest ale but has floral, fruity, almost citrus, flavours and I cannot imagine too many better experiences than sitting out on a warm summer night with good friends and a few bottles of this.

Many of the younger readers of this blog will be used to drinking lagers such as Corona or Sol with a slice of lime as a refreshing drink, this ale is a genuine alternative if you want traditional British refreshment through what I hope will be a scorching summer in 2009.

4,7% ABV
Brewery: Batemans
Brewed with: Malted Oats, Rye, Wheat & Barley
Awards:
Best Speciality Beer ~ Gold Medal Winner at The International Beer & Cider Awards 2002
Best Harvest Pale Ale ~ Style Trophy
Beers of the World Magazine – WBA (World’s Best Beers) Competition 2007

Batemans Combined Harvest