#bath ales

[hop-and-malt]

[my1001beers]

863. Lansdown IPA. Bath Ales. 01/02/19.

Not on the official list

ABV 5.0%

7.5/10

Beer of England

A draught pint at Pier House, Charlestown at lunch time.

They say:  The hops do the shouting with the bitter and juicy profile of our loud IPA.  The all-star cast hop is led by Mosaic and Simcoe.

I say: Poured a mid amber colour which took a minute or two to clear to reveal a pleasant looking pint. Not too much aroma but the flavour is typical (if slightly understated) for an IPA. A slight hoppiness and touch of pepper, Plesant but not a great example of the genre.

www: https://bathales.com/beers/lansdown/

[my1001beers]

835. The Hood. Bath Ales. 12/09/18.

Not on the official list

ABV 4.3%

5.5/10

Beer of: England

A draught pint at the London Inn, we had popped in to see Troy and wish him a happy 18th birthday and there was an untried brew on draught so I felt obliged to try it.

They say: A classic, very English, malt-driven bitter that is smooth in body and sweet in taste.The Hood features native Minstrel hops to impart subtle spiced berry flavours.Minstrel hops provide depth of flavour and add complexity to this wonderful bitter.

I say: It poured darker than I expected and with a minimal had so that was a good start. It didn’t clear fully and when I tried the aroma there wasn’t anything stand out. Taste wise I didn’t really get any strong malts, but it was a bit sweet, which didn’t sit well. Kaye and Lisa both turned their noses up at it, I thought ok, but nothing special.

www: https://bathales.com/beers/the-hood/

[my1001beers]

826. Summer’s Hare. Bath Ales. 23/08/18.

Not on the official list

ABV 3.9%

7.5/10

Beer of: England

Purchased as a draught pint from the Falcon Inn at St Mawgan when we visited for a meal with Barry & Teresa.

They say: Balanced flavour and a golden colour make this beer a Summer must have! A full, malt flavour and a fabulously fruity bitterness makes Summer’s Hare the perfect ale for when you are sat outside on a warm summer’s evening.

I say: This has a sharp aroma and I initially thought it would be a typical citrussy light summer ale. It isn’t, it had a hint of that in the aroma and the back taste, but there was more, much more. A mix of maltiness which you don’t find in the usual summer brews and more depth in the colour. So, a bit summery, but more body and more depth.

www: https://bathales.com/beers/summers-hare/

[beersidrank]

Bath ales amber ale. The beer of my tears. Pretty good. I'd drink it again. Nice crisp finish with a hint of spice

[northvsouthpodcast-blog]

Beer and pie ready for the review on tonight’s podcast.

[stormyskiesahead]

Stick Yer Shower Beers, Try Some Bath Ales

Once upon a time, not so long ago, I was ambling along the aisles of this remarkable shop kinda thing that instead of selling just say, meat, or fruit and veg, or fish, or trumpets, sold a bewildering array of stuff that made me go all o_0 so yeah 'twas well good. Srsly, if you see one of these places be sure to venture upon it, you'll be well chuffed. Ummm. I'm pretty sure I had a point to make... Oh yeah! 'Twas here that I first laid eyes upon the charming stylized leaping leporid of Bath Ales, memories of Watership Down and the Black Rabbit of Inlé immediately surfaced and I just had to have the bottle of amber ale it decorated. As it turns out, the critter in question wasn't a rabbit at all but a hare, and was designed to resemble ancient English hill carvings. Fair enough. It also turns out that Bath Ales aren't located in the pretty spa town of Bath at all, but rather the nearby town of Warmly, on the outskirts of Bristol. Okay. The beer was however, delicious, and became a frequent visitor to my humble abode along with others from the same brewery, so after all this time I thought I'd share a trio of their more readily available examples with you.

All three of the above beers are traditional-ish English pale ales, and I'll start with Golden Hare (4.4% abv), a super refreshing and mildly bitter golden ale that's floral and zesty up front thanks to the Goldings used, and delivering a long lasting nose bag of sumptuous, delicious, caramelised honey roast nut-like finish from the floor malted Maris Otter barley. Lovely stuff. Gem (4.8% abv) is the beer that caught my eye all those moons ago, a beautiful amber coloured bitter that's zesty and mildly spicy from the Goldings and Challenger hops with *Mmmmm* inducing toffee and roast nuts flavours from the malt. A mild early sweetness develops into a decent bitterness as it goes down, the silky smooth mouthfeel an absolute delight. The dark bitter, Barnsley (4.5% abv), rounds things off. Whole bramble bushes with their dark fruit and woodsy flavours tantalise the tongue courtesy of the wonderful Bramling Cross hops, and lead into predictably delicious, luscious, nutty, and lingering Maris Otter malt finish. It's moderately bitter at the end, balanced and restrained throughout.

As much as I love an intense beery flavour bomb there are times when I just wanna relax with a few easy drinking beers, and quite honestly, in all my world wide beer adventures I've never found session beers I prefer to a good homegrown English pale ale. Whether it's golden, amber, tawny, brown, bitter, or mild, if it's done right, with balance the key, it's a winner in my book. And these guys do it right. Cheers!