 Featured Brewery |
|||
July 2004 The Durham Brewery Bottled Beers The Durham Brewery was established in Bowburn, Co. Durham in 1994 Graduation ABV: 4.5% Light Golden Bitter The palest malts are bittered and aromatized by a complex addition of a unique blend of hops. English, Czech and American hops mingle throughout the boil to give a heady flowery aroma, and a dry citrus flavour, enhanced by a refreshing degree of bitterness. Despite its complexity this beer is clean and thirst quenching. Cloister abv 4.5%abv Light Golden Bitter A simple malt grist of Maris Otter pale malt and a small amount of crystal malt is bittered and aromatized by a complex addition of a unique blend of hops. English, Czech and American hops mingle throughout the boil to give a heady flowery aroma, and a tantalising peachy flavour, offset by a refreshing degree of bitterness. Despite its complexity this beer is clean and thirst quenching. Evensong abv 5% Deep Ruby Strong Bitter/Old Ale An uncomplicated bright bitterness is derived from a hop grist of Goldings. Lots of crystal malt blends with Maris Otter pale malt to produce a dark caramel quality. When young, the sweetness of malt sugars lends strong toffee notes which give way to the bitterness of the Goldings hops as the yeast consumes the sugars during maturation. Flavours combine and a decidedly vinous quality develops. Black Abbot abv 5.6% Dark Ruby Dunkel (dark lager) style. In some ways this beer might be confused with an English mild. Dark roast malts and gentle, low hop rates are similar but the main difference is the use of a bottom fermenting yeast. A clean, rather than fruity flavour gives the impression that the beer is not as strong as it really is. Specifically, this brew contains a complex malt grist of maris otter, lager malt, wheat malt, chocolate malt, black malt, crystal rye malt and munich malt which combine in a round toffee/roast fullness. The effect is full, gentle and smooth. St. Cuthbert ABV: 6.5% Light Golden India Pale Ale As it matures in the bottle, St Cuthbert becomes drier, allowing bitterness and alcoholic strength to come to the fore. A heady floral aroma is immediately apparent on pouring. Peachy fruit notes and a moderate bitterness linger on the palate long after enjoying a draught. Cantus ABV: 8.4%: Golden IPA/Strong Lager style Stunning first impression of ethanol and hops gives way to a more considered appreciation of a big malty body and the caramel like effect of a small amount of crystal malt. Some residual sweetness from malt sugars mitigates the intensity of an orangey hop bitterness, although with extended bottle-conditioning the beer will become drier and the hops will smooth. Benedictus ABV: 8.4% Rich Golden Barley Wine styled Historically, beers of this strength were normally sweet, the yeast not being able to process all the sugars in the wort. We use an extremely active yeast which renders the finished beer dryer than would be expected. Even so, there are still enough unfermented malt sugars that fill out body and mouthfeel. The first draught is surprisingly energetic. Peach and pear drops mingle with the shear weight of alcohol. Bottle-conditioning and a unique blend of hops balance the caramel flavour of crystal malt. The overall impression is of a fully integrated, characterful richness. Aroma is decidedly alcoholic. The finish is long and paradoxically bitter sweet. Imperial Russian Stout ABV: 10%: Black Russian Stout styled The roots of Russian Stout lie in the porters and stouts brewed in London prior to the advent of Burton pale ale. Thrale’s brewery is probably the most famous producer which, from around 1780, shipped the beer to the Baltic states and Imperial Russia. Trade continued by successive breweries for some 130 years until the Tsarist government imposed increased import duties in 1912. Crystal malt, amber malt, black malt and roast barley in generous quantities generate a deep black colour and flavours to match. Roast bitterness, coffee and liquorice notes combine in a velvety rich malt texture. A full and sweetish body is balanced by traditional Goldings hops. All the above beers are bottle conditioned. Care of Bottle Conditioned Beers For the greatest enjoyment of these beers it is important that they are served so that their qualities are enhanced. Leave the bottle to stand for a day to let the sediment settle. When pouring, if you want the beer crystal clear, proceed slowly and look through the bottle to see when the yeast starts to come through. Stop at this point. If you do not mind the yeast then it will not harm you but the beer will be slightly hazy. Because this beer is not filtered, and therefore retains all its flavour, it also retains qualities which will produce a chill haze. This becomes apparent at temperatures approaching freezing. This is quite natural and will disappear once the beer is warmed up again. Keep at room temperature and only refrigerate just before serving (if absolutely necessary) Refrigeration will make the beer too cold for your taste buds to recognise all of the flavours in these complex beers. Slightly warmer or even room temperature will enhance your enjoyment. Due to the nature of bottle-conditioning, a more mature beer may be highly carbonated. To ensure that the beer does not froth up too much on opening it would help to cool to about 10 degrees, especially in the summer. Have a glass close by just in case. | |||
Main Page