My NI Faves of 2016

In case you hadn't noticed, it's that time of year again.  Apart from continuing the strange ritual of putting trees in our living rooms and seeing plenty of overweight men in ill-fitting red polyester/velvet outfits, mid December means a review of our favourite Northern Irish beer of the past twelve months.  Of course I didn't have every single beer that was locally brewed this past year - though I did have a fair few - so this list isn't exhaustive.  It's also my opinion, yours will be different.  And that's good, so don't be gurning if your favourite isn't listed.

Best Porter -  KINNEGAR in collaboration with The Sunflower Pub - CAGE FIGHT

Celebrating the Belfast bar's independence from Diageo et al.  Although Kinnegar hails from Co Donegal, this has an NI influence as the bar staff helped in the brewing so it counts in this list.  Also available in keg but I preferred the bottle (yes I did have both to make a comparison).  A bitter chocolate start with the faintest of sour cherry but this is swept aside soon after with a lingering chilli heat that stays on the better side of tasty rather than overpowering. 

Best Stout - LACADA - UTOPIAN STOUT 

A cracker of a stout from the north coast co-operative, this appeared as part of Lacada's Limited Edition Salamander Series range.  Rich with hints of chocolate and coffee.  It's also available in cask sometimes if you're lucky - I prefer it in cask just marginally more but others prefer the bottle.  More on this later...

Best IPA - FARMAGEDDON - MOSAIC IPA 

This is also available in bottle form but it's a much better beast in cask, and I had the privilege of enjoying plenty of it in the Ulster Hall where it won overall beer of the Belfast Beer and Cider Festival.  Lots of smooth passion fruit and mango up front with a delicious bitterness that reminds you this is a beer, not a fruit juice.  Praise also for their Citra and Gorse IPAs earlier in the year.

Best Pale Ale - ARDS - HIP HOP 5

Ards Brewing Co from Greyabbey in County Down turned five years old this year (in 2011 Northern Ireland had 5 breweries compared to 30 today) and to mark the occasion, brewer Charles created - in my humble opinion - an improved version of his Hip Hop pale ale.  This one was brewed using five different hop varieties which made the beer a touch sweeter and more aromatic than the original.

Best Red - FARMAGEDDON/RENEGADE - RED EYE 

Collaborative brew between Farmageddon and English outfit Renegade Brewery.  Slight citrus fruits at the start give way to a great Columbus/Galaxy/Centennial hop bite with a slightly sweet biscuity malt remaining constant throughout. 

Best Amber - MOURNE MOUNTAINS - COAST 2 COAST

Mourne Mountains Brewery in Warrenpoint brewed this amber to celebrate the race event of the same name that starts in Co. Sligo and ends in the Mournes in Co. Down.  Tasty chewy hoppiness with a light caramel and butterscotch aftertaste.


Best Speciality - LACADA - IVY HONEY

Another one in the limited edition Salamander Series range, this was launched at the Belfast Craft Beer Festival at Custom House Square.  Shame it was in short supply as I found this to be an outstanding beer with the addition of ivy honey from brewer Laurie's own bees.  Could another one be on the horizon for 2017?

Best Irish But Not Northern Irish -  McGARGLES - FRANCIS' BIG BANGIN IPA

There have been so many great beers from across the border in the past year, coming from the likes of Galway Bay, Yellowbelly, White Hag, Brehon and Eight Degrees among others. But for me McGargles Big Bangin' IPA blew me out of the water.  Hoppy as you like with an aftertaste that oozes subtle citrus fruit - superb.

Overall Best Northern Irish Beer of 2016 - LACADA - UTOPIAN STOUT

If you're drinking this in the company of someone from Portrush and they turn to you and say "it's a wheeker, sham" then it's a good beer.  When I first had this in January I described its qualities as bitter, then sweet, then chocolate.  I've had it quite a few times since and still stand by those words.  A great stout from the Lacada co-op and deserves to be in its core range in future.

This is just a small cross section of the range of styles now available in Northern Ireland.  As well as the list above, expect saisons, sours, wheats, smoked oaks and many more.  And fair play to all the brewers brewing them.

Again I emphasise this blogpost details some of the best Northern Irish beers I had in 2016, there are plenty more.  Go find them!  

Ulster Newbies - from Mourne to Muff

Some new releases recently so let's get wired in.

From Portrush's co-operative brewery Lacada, branded as a North Coast IPA and recently pouring from cask at CAMRA's Belfast Beer Festival, Devil's Washtub.  5.2% ABV and actually a black IPA (perhaps this should be on the branding so not to scare anyone who's expecting a golden coloured IPA?)  As with most black IPAs there's a decent malty base with an aroma and subtle taste of smooth dark fruits.  The hops seem to be lurking in there somewhere but you'd need a torch to find them.  A decent enough beer and highly drinkable but needs a whack more hop action to satisfy the IPA hopheads out there.

Photo courtesy of Paul Donaghy

From east Belfast, Knockout Brewing upped its game considerably at the festival. Six beers were supplied - a stout and two variants (choc and orange/ginger) and a citra IPA and two variants (Vic Secret and Sorachi Ace).  I liked all six - I know, I know, think what you like - but for me the Sorachi Ace IPA really stood out above the rest.  It exudes a lemony bitterness but is counteracted by a soft, smooth orange flavour.  Joseph McMullan is the first craft brewer in Northern Ireland to put his brews into cans (it's the future folks) and hopefully this will see its way into them too.  Go on Joe, you know you want to.

Away from the festival, Warrenpoint-based Mourne Mountains Brewery ran a competition back in April 2016 to create a flavour for their new brew.  Andrew Hamilton was the lucky winner with his suggestion of Whiskey and Vanilla, the beer was duly made and poured into a whiskey cask in July.  Four months later it's in bottles.  I think at least a couple more months in the cask would have been beneficial as I'd have liked a bit more vanilla - you have to look for it but the whiskey is closer to the mark. Not overpowering at all and very subtle for this 8.2% ABV winter warmer. Nice one.

Next, practically sat astride the NI border is Bog Hopper Brewery from the Co. Donegal village of Muff.  So let's dive in *cough*.
Technically speaking their Hairy Bullocks American pale ale isn't a new beer.  It launched the brewery in late 2015 but it's the first time (I'll resist saying virginal...oops) I've been able to grab as bottle as it's just starting to become available outside of Inishowen.  So there.

First off this 5% ABV pale claims to be hop forward but I get more malt than anything.  Maybe the good folk of the area are unused or afraid of a good hoppy beer but this has the potential to be so much better.  It just left me wanting something....anything more.  Some slight citrus elements in there, granted, but just not enough to make me rush to Muff for a second one.  (Did I just say that?)  The label artistry for all Boghopper beers is fantastic though.

Finally for now, from Bullocks to Bullhouse Brewery near Newtownards, and Willy Mayne's newish barrel-aged Quest for the Milky Whey.  This first saw the light of day at ABV Beer Festival in early September and was greeted with critical acclaim among the beer fraternity.  I missed out as it was only on for one session but now it has returned, like some sort of pink coloured panther in the guise of a French detective.  This 10% ABV imperial milk stout made its way into 500 wax-sealed bottles... so find one if you still can.  There's little in the way of carbonation which results in a tiny head but the whiskey aroma comes through nicely as does a good whacking dollop of liquorice and datey-molasses on the first sip, followed by a generous milky-lactosey second sip. Another tip of the hat for the artwork.
If you're on Facebook, the history of QftMW can be seen here .

Fair play to all the breweries mentioned for continuing to expand their range.

Portrush - Land of Barry's, Chips & Beer Festivals

Make no mistake, I love Portrush.  It's where the family would take day trips when I was a child and it's where I now take my family for the same - driving the dodgem cars and sliding down the helter skelter at Barry's amusements, eating a 10% meat (probably) sausage supper in a chippy and generally enjoying life.  Life got even better last weekend when the town's co-op brewery Lacada hosted the 1st Portrush Beer and Food Festival in the impressive town hall. As well as the host, north coast local breweries Northbound, Glens of Antrim and O'Connor were present alongside Farmageddon, Knockout, Co. Donegal's Kinnegar, 8 Degrees from Co. Cork and Yellowbelly from Co. Wexford.  Add to that Bushmills and Long Meadow cider.

First was an interesting new brew released for the festival.  Lacada already have a sour, Eldersauer, but Sauer Beans has the addition of coffee beans in collaboration with Portrush's harbour cafe, Babushka.  Putting it gently - beardy hipsters look away now - I'm not the greatest fan of sours, but Sauer Beans (4.2% ABV) ticked some of the boxes that most sours don't tick for me.  It wasn't overpowering and there was a gentle belly tickle of coffee.  Mrs W really liked it and I must confess I sort of liked it too - it was interesting mix of light gooseberry and coffee bean (is there another Irish coffee sour on the market?)

It was great to see three well respected southern breweries represented and fair play to the organisers for securing them.  Kinnegar from Rathmullan in Co Donegal already have a very visible presence in Northern Ireland but less so Yellow Belly from Wexford.  The brewery lies beneath Simon Lambert & Sons pub and they brought a seriously impressive range of nine beers with them - from fruity sours and pale ales to imperial IPAs.

My choice of Yellow Belly's was the cask Imperial IPA Queen Lizzie (8.3% ABV) - a single dry hopped English ale. Some hints of citrus fruit at the start following on with a welcoming dryness. Congrats to Yellow Belly for their branding - every one of their pumpclips is, literally, a work of art.

It was also great to see County Cork's 8 Degrees at the festival.  Co-brewer Scott is from New Zealand and I wonder how much influence one of Lacada's founders, Kris of Kiwi's BrewBar in Portrush, had in their appearance?  Anyway, on tap when I was there on the Friday were the Amarillo IPA, Kolsch style Going Out Out, DIPA Supernova, which I'd tried at the recent Irish Beer Festival in Dublin, and the always tasty Full Irish - brewed using 100% Irish malt.

A tip of the hat to Michael O'Connor of O'Connor Craft Beer near Greysteel for the Game of Thrones inspired A Beer Has No Name.  He confessed that after brewing the amber he still didn't have a name shortly before the festival started.  However his GoT loving brother came up with the title, much to Michael's confusion as he doesn't watch the show.

Again congratulations to all involved with the creation and smooth running of the 1st Portrush Beer and Food Festival.  I've only mentioned a small snippet of what was available so if you fancy seeing more I'm sure the organisers are already planning 2017's festival ... aren't they?

It's great to see another reason for heading to the Port - man cannot live by chips and roller coasters alone.

Old Kid on a Different Block

The first Belfast Craft Beer Festival took place recently at Custom House Square.  Run by the same folk who are responsible for the Irish Craft Beer Festival at the RDS in Dublin, it was good to see another festival in our capital.  Great to have so many Irish brewers from both north and south of the border all in one place - as well as beer, cider and whiskey there were some tasty food selections on offer too; pies, curries, burgers, pizza, cheese. That'll do nicely.  Thankfully the rain stayed away although it was still baltic! Maybe next year have an enclosed marquee?

Below are a few of my highlights of the festival...included in the list but minus photos are Farmageddon's cask Impy Porter and keg Wolf IPA .

First up and on cask, a new barrel aged red from O'Hara's.  As you would expect, smoother than the standard red with lots of vanilla up front.

O'Hara's Barrel Aged Irish Red - 7.5% ABV

Next, another new one from co-op brewery Lacada in Portrush.  Made with the addition of ivy honey from the brewer's own beehive.  Some honey beers have a hint of sweetness, not this one.  Boom!  Honey to the fore, a real cracker.

Lacada's Ivy Honey - 7.5% ABV

Another corker and at this strength, a triple red IPA to be greatly respected.  So called as it's the first brew by new Galway Bay head brewer Will and last by outgoing Chris.  A total hopbomb.

Galway Bay's Change of the Guard - 11.5% ABV

One of the few bottles I had during the fest and I was so happy to see this as I'd been wanting to have it for a good while.  From Carrickmacross in Co Monaghan, Brehon's Shanco Dubh porter is as smooth as Roger Moore's Bond with lots of coffee and dark chocolate going on and a hint of sweetness.  More please!

Brehon's Shanco Dubh Porter - 7.7% ABV

From just outside Derry/Londonderry (whatever, ffs) another wee hop sensation.  70 represents its IBU bitterness (as do all Northbound beers - 08, 26, 33, 34, 47 & 70)

Northbound's Magnum 70 - 6% ABV

Bar of the tent goes to Hillstown Brewery.  

Again congrats to the organisers and thanks to all the brewers for the craic and pints.  Here's to 2017.

A St. Patrick's Day alternative

It's been an interesting couple of months in the Northern Ireland beer scene.  Newcomer Bullhouse Brewing near Newtownards launched its first two beers, Boundary had its first birthday, Lacada released a cracking limited edition stout and there's also a hot chocolate from Mourne Mountains?

Bullhouse is so called as the brewery used to be...a bullhouse.  But you knew that was coming, right?  Brewer Willy Mayne has been adventurous by starting off with an imperial coffee stout and a Comber potato infused saison!  If there are other spud based beers in Ireland, let me know as I don't know of any.

Because I've never had a spud beer before I didn't really know what to expect.  It's of saison ilk, pours golden-amber and certainly one for the summer days ahead.  I got some slight potato-starchiness but I'm not sure if that was the placebo effect taking hold.  Anyway, Über Tuber is a great name for a spud beer.

On to the 8% abv El Capitan stout and this is great stuff.  Good body, slight coffee aroma and the coffee continues into the taste.  A good start from Bullhouse, and I love the artwork on the labels.

Co-operative brewery Lacada from Portrush also launched the first of their new limited edition Salamander Series: Utopian Stout. I had the privilege to taste this from cask when it was launched in Portrush town hall and I'd go as far to say this is one of my favourite new NI beers this year.  A very tasty stout - hints of chocolate and coffee with a slightly sweet edge.  The cask version was only available for the launch night, though it is available in 8% abv bottles around the north coast and in selected Belfast locations.

Mourne Mountains' new 6% abv Chocolat Chaud is another dark hit.  Again as you would expect, choc and sweet coffee notes on the nose but this South Down stout has a very distinctive taste of clove and orange that mix well with the chocolate.  It reminded me slightly of their recent Pumpkin Porter but with a fuller stout body.

So this St Patrick's day, there's more of a stout to experience than just Guinness.  Give your taste buds the break they deserve and try one of the above.

2015's New Brewers

I would imagine that Northern Ireland's beer scene has never experienced the like of it before.  Five years ago we had 5 micro/nanobreweries.  At the start of 2015 we had the impressive total of 15 breweries selling beer.  Now at the end of the year that stands at 26.  Eleven have appeared in the past 12 months - crazy but fantastic.  Here's a quick roundup of those making an appearance in 2015.

The biggest entrant has to be BOUNDARY co-operative from East Belfast who launched with an export stout, IPA and American pale, followed by loads of festival and seasonal specials such as Berliner Weisse and sour ales.  At the moment if you look really hard you might find Tis the Saison (a collab with NI's Shortcross Gin)

KNOCKOUT BREWING, also from East Belfast, launched in January with an IPA and red ale. Along came an American pale Ale late in the year and there are plans for a wheat beer in 2016.

BARRAHOOLEY from Martinstown near Ballymena currently have a red, black IPA, pale and dry stout on the market.  Production is small scale at the moment with plans to upscale soon.  Look out for a new oatmeal stout hitting the shelves shortly. At present bottled output is found mainly in the Ballymena area and Kiwi's Brew Bar in Portrush.

Heading up to the north west and May saw the opening of the brew-restaurant WALLED CITY. The Ebrington Square establishment sells its own numerous brews onsite from tap including pale ales, IPAs, wheat beer and one off specials such as the fantastically named fruit beer Cherry London Cherry.

Similar to that, BREWBOT bar opened on the Ormeau Road in Belfast this year. Most of the beer sold is from other breweries but they occassionally brew limited edition specials such as imperial red ales, pales and Baltic porters.

The second co-op to launch in 2015 was LACADA from Portrush.  Their golden ale, IPA and porter is available in mid and north Antrim with more stockists being added further afield in Belfast, north Down and mid-Ulster.  The man behind the magic, Laurie Davies is in the process of brewing a 'proper big stout' which should be available early January.

NORTHBOUND from Campsie have had a good festival presence this year - being represented at Belfast Beer & Cider Festival, Sippy of Culture, ABV, Irish Craft Beer Festival in Dublin and others.  They currently have a kölsch-style, sticke alt, pale and IPA for sale.  Head brewer David Rogers says a smoked wheat beer is conditioning at the moment and expect to see some more German session beers as well as a bit of Japanese influence!

Not far from them is very small brewer O'CONNOR from Faughanvale who produces a blonde ale. There may be a red or porter from them later in the year.

At the other end of the country in Warrenpoint in County Down is MOURNE MOUNTAINS brewery.  They first appeared in the spring with a wheat beer, then red and golden ale - followed soon after with bottles of pilsner and American IPA.  They've also produced seasonals such as a pumpkin porter and a Christmas spiced lager.

A word on a couple of beers not currently produced in Northern Ireland but are registered here.
NIGHT CAP BREWING brew under the GALLOPERS brand and currently produce a golden ale which comes from Sadlers Ales in the West Midlands.  Declan from Gallopers says he hopes to expand their product range in the spring.

SAILORTOWN (representing the old dock area of Belfast but brewed by Carrig in Co Leitrim) have a trio of beers at the moment -  a red, pale and pilsner.

Now on to a few in the pipeline for 2016. BULLHOUSE brewery near Newtownards hope to open in the next few months with head brewer Willy Mayne unleashing a farmhouse saison, imperial porter and hoppy session pale ale while there could also be an IPA and golden ale in the spring from The Speckled Hen pub in Derriaghy near Lisburn...

Good luck to you all in the coming year especially those dealing with the export market.

Happy Christmas!

Northern Ireland's Gypsy Breweries

At my last count there are now 25 breweries from Northern Ireland.  Or are there?

It's difficult to keep up with the wave of new beers and breweries coming from Northern Ireland over the past few weeks and it's great to see but not all NI breweries are in NI.  I've no problems where a beer is brewed: Belfast, London, Timbuktu, wherever - as long as it tastes good.  World class Danish brewers such as Mikkeller and To Øl fit into the 'gypsy' category and I don't hear anyone complaining about them ... for very good reason.

A couple of the newest brewers are registered here but come from outside our wee country - and that's grand.  The newest one I've come across is Sailortown Beer. Named after the historic port area of Belfast, this Czech-style pilsner is made by Carrig Brewing Company from Co. Leitrim - also expect a pale ale and red ale soon.  Pils and lagers aren't my cup of tea (?) due to them traditionally being a bit thin and very mild on taste (as Sailortown Beer is) but it will, no doubt, appeal to the lager drinkers and hopefully entice them to try something different.

Something I was more pleased with and has also just been released is Gallopers Golden Ale.  Declan Holmes (Eamonn's son) is the man behind Night Cap Beer Co. and at the moment this is brewed by Sadlers Ales in the English West Midlands.  By Declan's own admission he's appealing to the non-craft drinkers - it's light and slightly citrussy and it has to be better than drinking any of the macros out there.

On to a seasonal belter of a beer now.  Mourne Mountains (definitely brewed in Northern Ireland!) released the Pumpkin Porter and in my humble opinion it's one of the best local beers I've tried this year.  A very mild coffee aroma, good body with a slight, but not overpowering, taste of chocolate and spice.  Pumpkin/Hallowe'en beers are a tricky tightrope for brewers and this one is very impressive.

Finally a word on the new co-operative brewery from Portrush, Lacada.  Conceived along the same publicly funded lines as Belfast's Boundary Brewing, Lacada have a trio of new brews: a golden ale Sorley Boy's Stash, Giant's Organ IPA and Stranded Bunny porter.  Cracking names.