Barnet Heritage Pub Walk

After a day full of feasting and drinking, I sought to give myself some much-needed isometrics with my annual Boxing Day walk. After much deliberation on where to go, I settled on the Dollis Valley Green Walk which is a green chain walk in North London that goes along most of the confluence of the Dollis Brook, it is a 10 mile walk that stretches from the northern extremities of Mill Hill to the fringes of Hampstead Garden Suburb. Now I was in no mood to do the entire 10 mile stretch so I began my walk in Mill Hill East with the aim of going to some pubs along the way towards Chipping Barnet. This stretch of the trail up to Totteridge is mostly flat with very few gradients, along the way I went through parkland, allotments, playing fields and outdoor playgrounds. By the time I reached Whetstone, I was feeling a bit out of shape so I strove up to my first pub The Griffin. An imposing looking building situated on the High Road, the pub was formerly a Coaching Inn dating back to the 16^th century, in 1837 it was taken over by Meux Brewery and turned into a pub. The exterior is a combination of Tudorbethan timber work and mid-Victorian engineering with a touch of the gothic, the multi-turreted chimney stacks are a particularly notable feature. The interior has wooden flooring and the walls are partly wood-panelled with teal blue bare panels adorning the rest, most of the interior was renovated in the 1930’s although some remnants of the original building remain including the brick lined double fireplaces, the matchboard panelled celing and the doors to the former stables yard. The pub has three front doors which used to lead into the public, off-sales and saloon bar areas respectively, but have since been knocked through with the central bar now taking pride of place; although the place is listed as a Heritage Pub by CAMRA, it is not a listed building. On the day of my visit there were hardly any cask ales available, so I had to settle for Landlord (4.3%) by Timothy Taylor’s, it was well kept and rather refreshing with pleasant hoppy overtones and malty notes that denoted a hint of syrupiness with a lingering bitterness. I've had this beer quite a number of times on cask, and I have often found it to be a reliable drink, especially when the cask selection was limited.

 

By the time I finished my drink, it was getting close to 3pm and since it was on one of the shortest days of the year, time was of the essence, so I quickly hotfooted back onto the trail. My plan was to walk up towards Barnet Lane in order to reach Chipping Barnet before nightfall, the last stretch of the trail was hardly eventful apart from the multiple bends of the Dollis Brook and a double footpath to contend with. Before long I had reached Barnet Lane and was soon on my way up the hill towards Chipping Barnet, a historic market town situated along the Great North Road. Understandably the high street has a large number of pubs, with a good proportion dating back a few centuries or more. On this occasion I sought much needed libation at the Ye Olde Mitre, the oldest and most architecturally intriguing pub in the town, it dates from c.1533 and is a former Coaching Inn. The interior has exposed beams and brickwork, it is rather narrow with multiple levels leading towards the seating areas at the back of the building and the adjacent courtyard. A number of knick-knacks and brewerania adorn the walls, it also has a good selection of board games and vintage books, including a 1976 edition of the CAMRA Beer Guide. The bar area is wood panelled with an fascinating stain-glass motif above the area that features the name of the pub, it also has an extensive cask ale selection (perhaps one of the most extensive in the local high street) boasting around eight hand-pulls and even some real cider. Understandably the building is Grade II listed and has been awarded Pub of the year by the Enfield and Barnet CAMRA branch on several occasions. Although the pub has plenty of seating, it can get rather busy quite often at peak times; so it is easy to see why its cosy interior is attractive to visitors as one feels like stepping back in time to a quaint bygone age before bland corporate modernity took over. With it being Christmas season, there was a large array of festive themed ales on offer and after much deliberation I settled on Good King (4.9%) by Vale Brewery. A cracking winter warmer, it was dark ruby in colour and replete with flavours of plums, figs, raisins and spices that sum up the spirit of the season; it was rather fruity yet a notable roasted bitterness present in the background.

Dusk was encroaching as I departed from the pub and walked through the maze of Victorian era suburbs towards my final destination on my walk before heading home. Nestled on a quiet back-street is The Seabright Arms; although currently a McMullens house, the pub itself dates from 1891 around the time when much of the local residential area was built, and is one of two surviving examples of neighbourhood pubs in the locality (with The Lord Nelson being the other). Rather uniquely for a pub in this day and age, it still has separate public and saloon bars, which are only accessible via a small hallway by the entrance. Despite some modern renovations, much of the original late Victorian features remain including the wood panelled bar, although for a pub dating from this era it is still relatively spartan in its appearance through its lack of ornate architecture and bare painted walls, it effectively has the look of a quiet country pub despite being nestled within the middle of a bustling neighbourhood. Moreover there is a good amount of seating in both areas, a large beer garden at the back and a pool table to while away the hours. The pub has gained a popular following with locals and in 2016, Trevor and Martina Kinsella took over the then ailing pub and turned it into a communal hub for the local area, with quiz nights, live music gigs and family fun days becoming a regular fixture. The support for local causes and charities is of prime importance, and was quite evidently present in its cask ale selection. Due to the diminutive size of the pub, it only supports enough space for three hand-pulls, although only two were available that day including AK Mild (3.7%) and a guest beer, Sebright Ale (4.3%), a limited-edition brew produced by a local charity, it was a rather sessionable number with a fairly bitter aftertaste and a trickle of hoppy notes coming through in the background. The beer had a rather malty and pleasant character, although rather quaffable it was nothing to shout home about. Feeling a bit peckish I sought nourishment from a pack of Ox flavoured crisps and a complementary mince pie, which suited the beer rather well.

Overall, my walk was festooned with a variety of pubs that boasted long-standing heritage status, each of the places that I visited had intriguing, distinct and unique architectural features that are seldom seen in most pubs. As a keen walker, I have always been on the look out for quality pubs for much rewarded refreshment, often in search of the finest ales the local area has to offer. Wherever or whenever you arrange your walk over the Christmas and New Year period, I would implore you to visit and include a few pubs of heritage value into your itinerary, you’d be pleasantly surprised and intrigued by their historical background and links to the local area.  

Beer Review: Harvey's Christmas Ale

Brewery: Harvey's

 

Style: Barley Wine

 

ABV: 7.5%

 

Location: Lewes, East Sussex

 

Colour: Dark red ruby colour with a tuft of off-white one finger head, much like Santa's hat.

 

Aroma: Plums, cherries, brandy, figs, leathery notes, a strong wiff of alcohol comes through in the background.

 

Taste: Sweet and sour, with a bitter backtaste. Flavours of raisins, plums, figs, spices, brandy, whisky comes through. Its gives off a strong aftertaste, not a drink to down in a hurry, but light enough not to be too heavy and cloying. Due to the strength of the beer, its gives a warming effect after a time.

 

Verdict: A true winter warmer of the old school, the brewery have excelled themselves here with what is effectively a liquid Christmas pudding. The flavours are well balanced, while it's rather fruity, the hoppy bitterness helps offset it and remind the drinker that this is a beer after all; and the sweetness is present without being too forceful. Its strong ABV gives an almost liquer like effect, fooling the drinker it believing they are sampling a spirit. It is easy to see why this beer has been brewed since 1972, a true Christmas classic.

Rating: 9/10

Christmas Classics

When it comes to Christmas beers, a good deal of breweries put out the marketing on overdrive with such pun inducing names like Santa’s Sledgehammer, Prancer the Dancer, Festive Totty, Evil Elf, Christmas Crackling, Tinsel Toes, Scrooge’s Revenge, Reindeer Droppings, Santa’s Little Helper and Merry X-Moose to name but a few. Paul Bailey laments “far too many of today's festive offerings are pale in colour (sometimes even golden!), low in strength and low on taste. The only thing Christmassy about them is the name on the pump clip, and all too often that is a silly pun or spoonerism with a dubious Christmas connection.”[1] Sometimes, these drinks are plastered with spices and other sickly ingredients, Fairytale of Brew York (4.9%) by Brew York is a well-known offender of this practise; with its annual seasonal offerings differing each year, their latest iteration is a milk stout that claims to emulate the Stroopwafel through a dizzying combination of caramel and ‘subtle’ cinnamon spicing. Mark Dexter sums this up “the end of year market becomes flooded with all manner of daftly-named, garishly-labelled bottles, most of which are filled with beers that the head brewers (who have also been temporarily replaced by infant gibbons) know will hardly be consumed after December 25^th, so they really ought not to be the finest ales their company will ever produce.”[2] On that basis then, Christmas beers seem to look crude on the outset, and rubbishy at their worst; in contrast to the great continental Christmas beers produced in Belgium, Norway and Germany which are revered around the world for their excellence and quality, from that viewpoint the British produced examples pale in comparison.

 

Yet the rush for tacky, pun inducing, poor quality festive beers is only a recent thing, Boak & Bailey notes “the idea of marketing ‘winter warmers’ as Christmas beers really took off in the increasingly competitive real ale scene of the 1980s.”[3] Christmas Beer, or Winter Ales they were better known were not always known for overblown vulgarity, in the distant past Christmas beers produced in the UK were once revered for their quality, and often met with much acclaim when they became available on cask around late November. Martyn Cornell notes “these seasonal beers, generally at 5% to 8% alcohol by volume, have an emphasis on darker malts and sometimes use spices alongside hops, recalling the old heated spiced ales.”[4] Many of these Christmas themed ales were influenced by the warming concoctions developed by publicans during the Winter months, such as Ale Posset which consisted of warmed Ale, bread, milk, ginger and nutmeg; Lamb’s Wool which featured spiced hot ale and apples, and Egg Flip which included hot mild ale mixed with eggs, brandy and nutmeg. The essential premise for Winter beers as Beer Nouveau notes “as autumn and winter approached breweries would brew strong, more full-bodied ales with a bit more of an alcohol flavour to them to help keep drinkers warm through the colder months.”[5] These principles have been maintained by breweries when it comes to producing Winter/ Christmas Beers, albeit to a lesser extent on some cases in more recent times. A few years after the founding of CAMRA, during the early years of the craft beer boom, Christmas themed beers were still relatively scarce. In the book ‘Beer Drinker’s Companion’ by Frank Baillie published in 1973, they were Winter Ales listed, although they didn’t have gimmicky names nor had festive imagery on the pump clips or labels. Boak and Bailey notes “while these beers were all relatively strong and dark, none of them seem to have been dosed with spices”(3) in stark contrast to the slew of heavily spiced contemporary examples. Although many of these classic beers of Christmas past have gone up the chimney and never to be seen again, if you look hard enough, they are some Christmas classics out there that help fly the flag for premium quality British produced beer, here’s a potted guide to a few choice cuts.

 

Christmas Ale (7%) – Shepherd Neame

First brewed in 1956, it could claim to be the oldest Christmas beer currently produced in the UK. Shepherd Neame state “the seasonal ale boasts warming notes of fruits and spices”[6], it is made with a blend of pale & crystal malts with a combination of Target and Challenger hops for bitterness, along with Goldings for aroma, the recipe is a rather simplified one in terms of ingredients but at 7% ABV it rather strong and is believed to be initially marketed as a Burton style ale when it was first released.  The beer is complex and full of character, when enquired about this Mike Unsworth, head brewer at Shepherd Neame noted “Christmas Ale is one of our favourite traditions, a full-bodied, complex beer with hints of spice and mulled fruits.”[7] Indeed, Roger Protz described it as “it has a glowing amber colour with a snowy collar of foam. The deep, crisp and even aroma offers pear drops, marzipan, candied fruit, spicy hops and sweet malt,”[8] whilst Brew Report state “sweetness hits the tongue first, sugary rather than malty. Alcohol warms the palate, enriching the dark plum notes as they emerge. The mouthfeel is syrupy, not gloopy but thick enough to feel satisfying. The finish is spiced and warming: more clove, perhaps allspice.”[9] Despite its great age, this beer continues to win a slew of awards such as winning Gold at the International Brewing and Cider Awards in 2021; and with its timeless Dickensian labelling, this notable beer has outlasted its competitors and is a great survivor of a vanished beer style, the beer is available in both bottle and cask, although the latter is sold at a weaker 5% ABV and is generally only available in Shepherd Neame owned pubs.

 

Winter Warmer (5%) – Young’s

Although it was first released in 1971, it was actually a rebranded version of Young’s Burton Ale which makes the oldest beer on our list despite only being branded as a festive themed ale since the early Seventies. A ruby coloured beer, it has been a described as a true winter classic that embodies the spirit of the season. In order to get its unique flavour, it is made with a combination of Maris Otter and Crystal malt combining with Fuggles and Golding hops, and Young’s unique sugar cane mix which is added to the boil. Cornell describes it as a ruby-brown classic produced in the style of the Burton Ales that used to be produced in Burton upon Trent, he notes it as “well-rounded, mellow, old-oak dark, 1055 OG, but only five per cent ABV, and with a brown, fruity sugar tang (from the “YSM”, Young’s special, proprietorial mixture of brewing sugars that go into the copper along with the wort) offset by a hint of bitter undercurrent.”[10] KmFlett adds “the fact remains that there was a time in London when the arrival of Young’s Winter Warmer in Young’s pubs was eagerly awaited and celebrated.” [11] Every year, the brewery creates plenty of fanfare when the beer is first released to the public, back in October the inaugural barrels of Winter Warmer were delivered by dray horse to The Lamb within Leadenhall Market, for a celebratory breakfast. With such importance “the Lamb is the sole venue in central London to be holding the first tastings – with the White Cross in Richmond the only other location in the UK.”[12] Despite all the prestige, this beer is only available on casks and is only sold in Young’s pubs on a limited basis, so you’ll have to be quick on the mark to even have a chance of quaffing this elusive brew.   

 

Twelve Days (5.5%) – Hook Norton

A festive themed porter first released in 1992, it’s malty and nutty complex brew is achieved by the combination Fuggles, Goldings and Challenger Hops that are aided with a mixture of Pale, Crystal, Chocolate, and Enzymic malt that adds to intriguing flavour profile. Real Ale Craft Beer describes it as having a warm toffee aroma with a little bit of spice in there, giving you a big hug that aroma comes through in the taste. Simon adds “Spicy, nice and bitter on the back end. It’s not a thin beer, it’s not a beer that you’d want to neck just to refresh yourself”[13]. Although it is relatively low in strength compared to some of other beers on the list, The Beer Nut notes “it's only 5.5% ABV but could pass for a lot more. There's a warmth and a spice to it which, alongside the full smooth texture, is almost reminiscent of Belgian dubbel. The nose is chocolate and figs, with quite a bitter oranges-and-lemons foretaste, settling on the finish into sweet plums and buttery toffee.”[14] Whilst Tim Hampson notes it’s a strong dark beer with the colour of a Christmas pudding, noting “this beer sparkles in the glass and on the tongue – rich fruity notes of cherry and dates parry with nut brown, caramel flavours, but nothing is overpowering.”[15] Some could argue it’s a commercialised example of a regional beer, indeed by the time this beer was first released breweries were starting to take advantage of the commercial potential for Christmas beers which may have improved their marketability but marked the beginning of a downfall in quality. This beer comes from that transitional period, yet it is easy to why from judging by its quality why it has gained awards over the years, including Gold Medal at the International Beer Challenge 2009 and the UK’s Best Strong Dark Beer at the World Beer Awards 2015 to name but a few. This beer is available in both bottle and cask, although the latter is generally limited to Hook Norton owned pubs within the Oxfordshire area.

Christmas Ale (7.5%) – Harvey’s

One of Harvey’s signature seasonal beers, it is also one of their longest running, being first released back in 1972. At a hefty 7.5% it is also the strongest beer on the list, Harvey’s describe it as “a traditional barley wine exudes biscuity malts and rich vinous fruits, all balanced by a strong hop bitterness.”[16] It is known to be heavily hopped with several different varieties of hops, utilizing roasted malt and pinhead oats towards developing its iconic flavour profile. The beer is said to be highly reminiscent of the strong stock ales of the 18^th and 19^th century, with the likes of Des de Moor noting “the aroma is relatively restrained, with pronounced fruity and toasty malt notes. A rich, sweet and oily but all too drinkable palate has cherry fruit, with light wood hints and emerging almond flavours.”[17] It also has notes of dark prunes, port and cherry as Tim Hampson once proclaimed “it has some vinous qualities – but underlying it is an entrancing caramel malt character, the hallmark of some of the world’s best beers.”[15] As a barley wine, it is usually expected to be strong, malty and be seen as the finest example of the brewers’ craft, on the subject of its strength Two Thirsty Gardeners state “Harvey’s Christmas Ale, although strong and boozy, is relatively light on alcohol at 7.5% ABV but it certainly packs a Santa-sack-full of complex flavours into each tiny bottle. It has lovely rich, malty flavours, robust fruity hedgerow hop notes and a slightly sweet, tart taste.”[18] A number of commentators have also described an underlying smoothness that helps add to the complex flurry of flavours present, which have been described by the brewery’s head brewer Miles Jenner as “a liquid Christmas pudding.”[19] Over the past half century, it has won at least 30 awards, with one of the more prestigious being the recipient of Finland’s Olutseura Olviretki award for ‘excellently’ fulfilling “The Christmas Beer Regulation” as described in Alexis Kivi’s novel ‘Seven Brothers’. This highly decorated beer is available in both bottle and cask, although the cask version is generally limited only to Harvey’s pubs and the occasional beer festival around this period, such as The Pig’s Ear Beer Festival in Clapton, which was held a few weeks back. It has been noted that bottles of this beer have be seen in several notable London department stores and has even it made to parts of the US.

 

Stronghart (7%) – McMullen

First released in 1993, it was actually a successor to an earlier Christmas themed beer produced by the Hertford based brewer that has been operating in the town since 1827. Made from malted East Anglian barley and whole leaf English hops, the brewery describes Stronghart as "a beer that is rich, dark and exceptionally smooth, demonstrating the very special skills of Hertfordshire's Independent Family Brewers.”[20] Roger Protz once described it as “one of the pleasures of winter drinking was to regularly sip a small amount of Stronghart in the nearest Macs pub and marvel at the way in which the beer matured and deepened in complexity as the weeks past.”[21] The late great Michael Jackson (not the singer) wrote in 1996 “this claret-coloured brew is very smooth and slightly syrupy, with port-like flavours, rounding out in a dryish finish.”[22] Whilst, SpectreUK observed a liquorice taste, noting “the beer had a sweetened, black treacle edge that in no way tasted syrupy. Both these flavours worked perfectly together with the hops and malted barley to create a luxurious richness to this almost black beer.”[23]  This beer has won a number of awards including Gold at the 1997 CAMRA Champion Beer of Britain awards in the Barley Wine and Strong Ale category. Although this beer used to be sold widely on cask, McMullens have since it dropped it from their cask range and replaced in the much weaker Boot Warmer (5.2%), yet very occasionally Stronghart is still sold on cask on a very limited basis. Predominately it is now sold in bottle form, and can be brought directly from McMullen’s Brewery Shop or in a number of their pubs situated around North London and Hertfordshire. This type of beer embodies the spirit of a Winter Warmer, it has that distinctive warming feeling with a great depth of flavour and wide range of aromas, that wants to give you a big hug and feel better after drinking it. 

Winter Welcome (6%) – Samuel Smith’s

The only Northern beer of this list, and one of Samuel Smith of Tadcaster’s signature releases, it debuted in 1990 and although it’s only available on bottle, every year the brewery issues a new bottle label design that is decorously illustrated, which makes these bottles highly collectable with every passing year, with this year’s vintage marking the centenary of the iconic steam locomotive The Flying Scotsman.  The name for this beer comes from on old folk tale about an old man named John who welcomes his old friend on a cold Winter’s day where they share a drink together. Upon drinking the beverage, his friend retorts “That’s a fine welcome, John. I enjoy it immensely every year.” Although the ingredients are closely guarded secret, it is brewed in fermented in the brewery’s signature Yorkshire squares which helps gives its unique taste. Dow Scoggins describes it as “Honey-amber colored, creamy head of small bubbles, floral aroma and delicious caramel malt flavor with great finesse. Fine hop aroma finish and a fruity note from fermentation in open-topped stone Yorkshire Squares.”[24] This highly quaffable beer, is one of the few Christmas beers made in the UK that is sold extensively in the US, along with other beers in the brewery’s extensive range. It had gained a small following stateside, with Nick Carr noting “the taste brings sweet malt, mostly caramel, and some spiciness at the front. Mid-palate the fruit pops up with lingering memories of pear, apricot and muted apple; along with some floral notes, and slight bittering and more spicy earthiness. At the back before swallowing the sweet malts reassert, but can’t quite overpower the hop play.”[25] Whilst its bevvy of flavours brings another level of intrigue, the Brew Club mentions “this beer is supremely smooth and highly drinkable.”[26] Again, at 6% ABV, this beer is no booze slouch, but the alcohol flavours don’t take center stage in the taste at all.  You certainly feel the warmth, but the alcohol flavours play nicely with the other good stuff.” This is beer is fine example of a winter warmer, although it is shame that it has seldom been released on cask and gained more recognition on home soil.

 

Old Winter (5.3%) – Fullers

One of Fullers Brewery’s more elusive beers, this seasonable number is normally sold during November – December. Fullers describe it as a strong beer with a malt, cookie and liquorice aroma, which is neatly balanced with the combination Target, Challenger and Northdown hops, whilst Crystal Malt adds a counterpoint of sweetness. Real Ale Craft describes this beer as having “a one to two finger off white head, good levels of carbonation, it’s a dark chestnut coloured ale that has great clarity to it.”[27] When it comes to aroma, a flurry of scents come through ranging from plums, figs, prunes, crème brule, fruit cake, rum, liquorice and winter spices, just about everything the encompasses the winter months Real Ale Craft adds. And when it comes to flavour, Reuben Gray describes it as “there is enough residual sweetness to balance the bitterness making this one of the types of beer I enjoy most. Dry, bitter with a hint of sweetness in the background to balance the bitterness. Carbonation is perfect giving you an almost chewy mouthfeel.”[28] Whilst Roger Protz notes the use hops “add not only a deep bitterness to beer but notes of pepper and spice.”[29] Real Ale Craft Beer gave it a favourable mention “biscuity, bready, nutty, chewy, caramel flavour just wrap around the inside of your mouth on your palate, there is a touch of liquorice that is quickly followed by bitterness.”[27] A 5.3% this beer is more sessionable in nature, and some commentators have noted that it’s relative lack of strength holds it back from radiating more potential. Over the years, this beer has also been sold around the world including Sweden, Germany, Norway, Finland, Spain and even Japan! This beer is sold in both cask and bottle although it has been unavailable for some time, yet recently Fullers announced its return however its only available in bottle form from their brewery shop and website whilst stocks last.

 

On the whole from looking at this selection of classic British produced Christmas Beers, they’re premium examples of the brewing craft and live up to the standards and ideals that characterised the Winter Ales produced many decades before with the essential premise as a stronger and more full-bodied beer designed to ‘warm’ the punters up during the coldest months of the year. The beers in this list, could be more than a match on the world stage with iconic Christmas themed beers from overseas such as Christmas Ale (10%) – St Bernadus, Christmas Ale (7.5%) – Great Lakes, Noel (10%) – Delirium, Stille Nacht (12%) – De Dole, Celebration Ale (6.8%) – Sierra Nevada, Cuvée de Noël (9%) – St Feuillien, Jubelale (6.7%) – Deschutes and Jule Malt (15%) – To Øl, to name but a few, and indeed some British produced Christmas have won international awards like Christmas Ale (7.5%) – Harvey’s, Twelve Days (5.5%) – Hook Norton and Christmas Ale (7%) – Shepherd Neame, so there is potential. However, to make it clear, Christmas themed beers are not a specific beer style as such like Stout or Pale Ale, as Beer Sapiens note “winter beers are not a specific style of beer, but are made with beers of different styles, from bocks, Belgian dark strong, to of course Imperial Stouts or Baltic Porters.”[30] But the underlying themes remain consistent as Jeff Evans adds “higher alcohol is still a key feature of most, but there’s no set style as such. Some brewers even try to enhance the flavour by throwing in Christmas Cake spices or the odd slice of fruit.”[31] Yet many breweries particularly in the UK in more recent decades have diverged from the practise, to create weaker and more sessionable beers where the only things Christmassy about them are the odd touch of spices, and the pun laden titles. Yet if you look hard enough there are some great examples of premium British produced Christmas beers out there, even from just looking at the list of classic beers mentioned. So, from that outlook, it would be naïve to merely just dismiss Christmas Beers as crude, tacky and a gimmicky marketing ploy made by breweries to sell more beers over the Christmas period; there are instances of breweries across the UK who produce wonderful Christmas themed beers that showcase the brewers’ skills and talents, it’s a shame these have been often overlooked in the face of negative publicity. So, this Christmas let raise a pint or a half to these great British produced Christmas beers, that help bring out the best in what these ‘winter warmers’ have to offer.

References

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[1] ‘We Don’t Do Christmas Ales Properly in this Country’ by Paul Bailey, Bailey’s Beer Blog 28^th December 2021

[2] ‘Day 153, Beer 153 - Shepherd Neame's Christmas Ale’ by Mark Dexter, The Bottled Beer Year, 30^th November 2021

[3] ‘Where Did Christmas Ales Come From?’ by Boak & Bailey, 17^th December 2014

[4] ‘The Oxford Companion to Beer definition of winter ale’ by Martyn Cornell, Craft Beer & Brewing

[5] ‘Winter Warmers’ by Beer Nouveau, 10^th January 2018

[6] ‘Christmas Ale’ by Shepherd Neame

[7] ‘Gold medal for Shepherd Neame’s Christmas Ale’ by Beer Today, 26^th November 2021

[8] ‘Christmas Ale, Shepherd Neame’ by Roger Protz, Protz on Beer, 29^th December 2011

[9] ‘Shepherd Neame Christmas Ale’ by Brew Report, 6^th December 2020

[10] ‘Come-back for the Burtons’ by Martyn Cornell. Zythophile, 8^th October 2007

[11] ‘Young’s Winter Warmer: still a survivor from London’s beer drinking past’ by KmFlett, 8^th November 2021

[12] ‘Young’s Winter Warmer’ by Leadenhall Market

[13] ‘Hook Norton Brewery Twelve Days Christmas Ale’ by Real Ale Craft Beer, 6^th December 2015

[14] ‘It's beginning to taste a lot like Christmas’ by The Beer Nut, 22^nd April 2010

[15] ‘Hoppy Christmas: the best festive beers’ by Tim Hampson, The Telegraph, 11^th December 2015

[16] ‘Harvey’s Christmas Ale’ by Harvey’s

[17] ‘Harvey’s Christmas Ale’ by Des de Moor, Beer Culture with Des de Moor, 16^th January 2012

[18] ‘BOTW 51: Harvey’s Christmas Ale’ by Two Thirsty Gardeners, 1^st December 2015

[19] ‘Harvey’s Christmas Ale 50^th Anniversary’, Harvey’s Brewery, 30^th November 2022

[20] ‘McMullen Stronghart’ by McMullen’s Brewery

[21] ‘Wither Winter Beers? The Big Chill...’ by Roger Protz, Protz on Beer, 1^st March 2005

[22] ‘Winter Ales’ by Michael Jackson, The Independent, 28^th December 1996

[23] ‘Bah Humbug and McMullen Stronghart [Festive Beers] (Morrisons)’By SpectreUK, Foodstuff Finds, 24^th December 2011

[24] ‘The 30th annual release of Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale’ by Dow Scoggins, Beer Info, 6^th October 2019

[25] ‘Winter’s Welcome from Samuel Smith’s Brewery’ by Nick Carr, Kegrator, 8^th February 2016

[26] ‘Samuel Smith’s Winter Welcome Ale’ by The Brew Club, 20^th December 2010

[27] ‘Fuller's Old Winter Ale By Fuller's Smith & Turner’ by Real Craft Beer, 6^th December 2021

[28] ‘Fullers Old Winter Ale & a Victory for monkeys’ by Reuben Gray, Tale of Ale, 21^st February 2010

[29] ‘Beer column: A toast to warming beer during autumn’, by Roger Protz, The Herts Advertiser, 20^th October 2022

[30] ‘Winter beers: the drink of the solstice’ by Beer Sapiens, 22^nd December 2021

[31] ‘CAMRA's Good Bottled Beer Guide’ by Jeff Evans, CAMRA Books, 2013

Beer Review: Grainstore Ten Fifty

Brewery: Grainstore

 

Style: Bitter

 

ABV: 5.0%

 

Location: Oakham, Rutland

 

Colour: Dark amber, to reddish brown with a one finger white head.

 

Aroma: Strong fruity and toffee hints, malty, a touch of plums comes through.

 

Taste: Profoundly malty, with a strong bitter backtaste, some fruity notes in the background, a hint of caramel sweetness helps offset the bitterness. Heavy and cloying, some creaminess present in the mouthfeel.

 

Verdict: This a premium ale to take time over. Strong potent flavours coming through, not one to drink in a hurry. The ingredients are decently balanced, without being too overwhelming and leaves a satisfying aftertaste. Although its at the 5% mark, it seems like a stronger beer than what its worth. The brewers have put out all the stops to make this a quaffable drinking experience. 

Rating: 8/10

A Whiter Shade of Stout

When it comes to beer styles, White Stout is perhaps one of the most confounding of the lot. It may look like a golden ale yet it has the flavour and mouthfeel of a stout. Its existence has baffled drinkers the world over, since they came on to the scene just over a decade ago. The basis for this style as Josh Weikert explains “the consensus seems to be that White Stout is predominately a blonde or golden ale of moderate-to-somewhat high alcohol strength that also exhibits traditional “stout” flavours such as coffee and chocolate.”[1] In order to get that stout flavour, various adjuncts need to be added to brew, such as green coffee beans, vanilla and cocoa nibs, “they add obvious coffee and chocolate flavours, but also some astringent and acidic notes that work just fine in the recipe”  Weikert adds. White Stout’s generally use Pale Malt as a base, although some darker malts kilned at lower temperatures are sometimes used in the recipe. Around 85-95% of the brew is made of pale malt, small amounts of crystal and chocolate malt are added for additional flavour, without influencing the colour. Though occasionally “some brewers also add smoked malt to mirror the roasted chocolatey finish that is found in traditional Stouts”[2], Drift Mag notes. Furthermore, Weikert states “these more bitter additions impart the flavour components of darker stouts without the dark colour.”[1] Moreover, in order to achieve the thick and cloying mouthfeel, flaked grains of barley or oats are added. Occasionally, lactose is sometimes used instead of flaked grains, as it gives off a fuller and heavier mouthfeel, but due to it sweetness, it shouldn’t be overdone. As a beer style, White Stout is relatively controversial, as Drift Mag highlights “this is one style of beer that invites two kinds of crowds: people who are fascinated by this style, and those who completely cringe at the thought of it.”[2] Some will argue that is merely a strong golden ale that is trying to mimic a stout through the use of gimmicky flavours, whilst others would claim that is an accurate recreation of a stout without the colour. Weikert notes that some naysayers have criticised White Stout as being oxymoronic at best and heretical at worst. But this argument is baseless, as Weikert argues “we’ve all more or less accepted names such as Black or Red IPA, which are frankly and flagrantly oxymoronic.”[1] Yet, like IPA, there any many various of Stout out there, and it shouldn’t be merely classified as a Dark Beer. Indeed, the likes of Pastry Stout, Barrel Aged Stout or Fruit Stout could be argued as an abomination on tradition, yet there are not. White Stout is merely another variation of this beer style that in itself has over a dozen substyles. Yet, the common consensus is that a traditional stout needs to be dark to jet black in colour, with robust roasted flavours and a heavy cloying mouthfeel. Yet this theory is nonsense, as Ron Pattison rightly notes “Stout only acquired its definition as a specific type of dark, hoppy beer in the early 19th century. Before that, it was a much vaguer term, denoting a strong beer of any style. What we know as Stout today was initially, and more accurately, called Brown Stout, a designation that still lives on in beer names around the world.”[3] Ironically enough, the origins of White Stout go much further back than expected, in fact it predates the common dark ‘brown stout' we associate with the style today.

 

The common consensus with the origins of White Stout is that it was accidentally established following an April Fool’s Day prank in 2010 when Greg Koch, CEO of Stone Brewing Company and James Watt, MD at Brewdog Brewery, came together and released a fake review video where they tried out the newly developed ‘Luciferin Golden Imperial Stout’. This incidentally sparked a wave of interest for this newly invented beer style, yet the joke was on them as White Stout was actually an extinct variation of Stout, known as Pale Stout which had died out at some point during the late 19^th century. Its origins go as far back to the 1740’s at the very genesis of Stout production, as Martyn Cornell elaborates “Truman’s brewery in East London had both brown and pale stout in stock in 1741, for example. Whitbread was selling pale stout in 1767, at a third more per barrel than regular porter. Barclay Perkins of the Anchor brewery in Southwark was still brewing pale stout in 1805, made from 100 per cent pale malt, at an original gravity of 1079.”[4] In the early decades of its existence, Stout was merely an adjective to describe a strong beer, and its established image as a strong dark beer hadn’t been developed yet. During the early part of the 19^th century, there were incidents of Pale Stout being exported to the India market along with more commonly known export IPA. Cornell notes that in Ireland in 1843, a Bavarian Pale Stout was commercially sold by Beamish and Crawford from the Cork Brewery. And at the Great International Exhibition of 1862, a Pale Stout was being sold by Richardson, Sanders, and Co; which was stated in catalogue at the time as Pattison notes “it is said to combine the properties of both ale and stout, without producing the heaviness or headiness of either the one or the other. It contained 6.62 per cent, of absolute alcohol.”[5] In the ensuing years that followed, the enthusiasm for Pale Stout diminished as brewers switched preference to developing darker brown stouts, and it joined the pantheon of forgotten beer styles. In the early 2000’s, Steve Koch of Stone Brewing was gaining a reputation for his yearly April Fool’s Day pranks, where he issued press releases for fake beers to his email subscribers. The first instance occurred in 2002 with the release of Lemony Lime; in subsequent years the pranks became more elaborate such as Stone Monolith, a gargantuan brew measuring at 27.3% ABV retailing at an equally gargantuan price; or Stone Justification Ale, a curiously impossible low carb beer that defies the laws of brewing with its ‘deep, rich and satisfying flavours.’ Following the press release of their ‘Black IPA’ in 2008 (which too subsequently became an established beer style), a sarcastic comment from one of their reviewers suggested that they should release a White Stout, which inspired Koch to develop his next fake press release; so on April Fool’s Day 2010, Koch released a fake review video where he announced the crossover collaboration with Brewdog, for their limited edition ‘Luciferin Golden Imperial Stout.’ It was effectively wry dig at the craft beer industry at the time as Anthony from Life Is Brewtiful notes “the whole idea was to make fun of the crazy cross pollination that was happening at the beer movement at that time.”[6] Far from baffling his followers, unexpectedly Koch was contacted by several people who thought White Stout was a good idea, despite the obvious prank, and soon the wheels were set in motion for the development of the real thing. Later that same year, Rodger Davis then head brewer at Triple Rock Brewery at Berkley, CA; developed the first commercially released White Stout of the modern era. Soon other breweries across the US and Canada were releasing their own White Stouts, even Stone Brewing got in on the act and produced Master of Disguise (9.7%) as part of their Stochasticity Project series. In 2013, its status as a beer style was elevated with the release of JP Casper White Stout (6.1%) by Whole Hog Brewery as it “was a huge significance in the world of the White Stout because it was one of the first White Stouts that saw nationwide near nationwide release”[6] Anthony notes. This curious looking beer fooled many, with one reviewer noting “the beer looks like a lager—straw yellow and apparently thin—but its lactose sugary body and sizeable additions of coffee beans give it a flavour and texture much more reminiscent of dark ale.”[7] Subsequently, this beer became a big success with drinkers and helped cement the popularity of White Stouts. In the ensuing years it won a number of awards including Gold Medal at the Denver International Beer Competition 2017, and Gold Medal at the US Open Beer Championships 2020, one of the most prestigious accolades in the country.

 

Over the years, there have been examples of White Stout being brewed in a number of countries across the world, including the likes of Australia, Poland, Spain, France, Ireland, New Zealand, Norway and the UK. On home soil, several breweries have dabbled with White Stout, including the likes of White Stout (7.2% - Durham), Hoodwink (5.2% - Mad Squirrel), Kitsch (6.7% - Brass Castle), Jet Set Radio White Stout (5.4% - Elusive Brewing), Flat White (7.4% - Dexter & Jones), Invisible Deck (5.9% - Siren/ Thornbridge), White Milk Stout (5% - Bristol Beer Factory) Paradox (12.7% - Ossett), Footplate (4.8% - Broadtown), White Affragato (6% - Stewart Brewing) and White Stout (8% - Brew York/ Feranando & Filipino­). Perhaps the most controversial, and game changing example of them all has to be Sinistral (4.8%), it was developed by Sue Hayward and Gazza Prescott from Team Toxic, notably dubbed as Reverse Guinness, with its milky white body and black head; the development of this beer took 5 years of trial and error. It made its debut in September 2019 and very soon gained a popular following wherever it was retailed, markedly it sold out in one pub in Norwich within 30 minutes, another batch in Poole barely last an hour. When enquired about this inspiration behind this beer, Hayward responded “I got fed up with seeing releases of white stouts that were, well, gold or pales, I've never seen a white stout that's white! From there I decided I needed to make it an actual reverse of the look of a Guinness—purely as it's the archetypal stout in appearance and very iconic.”[8] This beer has been criticised for being gimmicky, and not being a genuine White Stout due to the way it served through the addition of its black topping. When approached about this, Hayward admitted “the gimmick is the black head which ironically is what everyone talks about. It did a good job of grabbing attention but is in reality a gimmick”.[9] Although this beer has been sold on a very limited basis in a few pubs across the country, wherever it has been sold, it has been grabbed enthusiastically by punters wishing to sample this curious brew, so far from sullying the reputation of White Stout, it has helped to promote it. The initial rush towards White Stouts seemed to have subsided by 2015, although breweries still continue to develop it, albeit on a limited or seasonal basis. One of the more potent examples out there currently has to be Dragon Milk White Stout (6%) by New Holland Brewing, it is sold nationwide across the US and upon its launch in 2019 it rapidly became a major success, acquiring industry accolades such as gold medal in the Barrel Aged Pale Ale category at the US Beer Open Championships 2020. Although traditional in White Stout standards, it has garnered an edge over its competitors, with one reviewer noting “the flavours are familiar, yet almost unexpected, with strong hints of vanilla, cocoa, coffee roast, and oak, as well as that smooth, velvety mouthfeel you would expect. This pours with a beautiful hazy golden hue, and a large creamy white head.”[10] Indeed, New Holland’s own press release for this beer aimed to promote a lighter but no less full-flavored—drinking experience to the table. Their remit was to equally appeal to traditional stout drinkers, as well as those looking for a satisfying, well crafted drinking experience. This gamble worked handsomely, and this beer has become a flagship for the White Stout movement, which continues to be sold till this day and it is retailed all year round unlike many of its competitors.

 

White Stout could very easily be dismissed as a gimmicky Golden Ale plastered with a number of flavour adjuncts. Yet to merely dismiss this outright is naïve, as Anthony from Life is Brewtiful notes “there so much you have to do to get this to feel like a stout and that takes a lot of skill and brewer’s knowledge.”[6] A lot of development has gone in producing White Stouts from the meticulous mixture of specific malts, flavour adjuncts such as cocoa nibs, vanilla and green coffee beans, to the addition of flaked grains or lactose to help give that familiar thick and cloying mouthfeel. Tim Suttman, head brewer of Industrial Revolution Co, sums up the process “the Blonde Stout was a brewer’s challenge: to brew a stout with the flavor but not the color of a stout. We brewed a stout with all of the grains that make a thick rich stout except the roasted grains that would give it its dark color. We then replaced the flavors of the roasted grains with cold-brewed coffee, cocoa nibs and vanilla. The beer may not taste just like a stout, but it gives the impression of a much darker beer.”[11] Yet despite these efforts, White Stout is still not recognised as an official beer style by leading industry bodies such as Beer Judge Certification Program or Brewers Association, and has been criticised for putting the sanctified status of Stout into disrepute. Yet from a historical perspective, Stout has never exclusively been just a dark beer, Weikert notes “stout as a term referring to beer was typically referring to its strength, and the word itself has no particular connection to a predicted colour. I can recognize that when we see “stout” in the modern beer age, we’re assuming it’s dark, but counterintuitive and oxymoronic are not synonyms.”[1] There are no limits to what constitutes a stout despite what the staunchest cynics might argue, as long as it conforms to the minimum requirements as Beer expert Kirrily Waldhorn states “Stout has a characteristically complex flavour profile with rich chocolate, coffee and roasted nut notes.”[12] At not one point does she mention about colour, and the examples of White Stout sold out there have successfully achieved all these objectives. Outside the US and Canada, White Stout is seldom produced by breweries and where it is sold, its generally sold on a limited basis and is difficult to find. Even in the UK, one of the bastions in real ale innovation, White Stout has barely made a dent on the market and hasn’t acquired plaudits on the festival circuit thus far. If more brewers saw the commercial opportunities and dismissed the crude assertions of White Stout as being oxymoronic and merely a flash style, then there would be more chance for this beer style to thrive. Perhaps if a brewery would put a White Stout as part of their range on a national or regional release, or even as a seasonal ale released around Christmastime, then would its fortunes improve. Therefore, it shouldn’t be disregarded as a gimmicky whiter shade of stout, but judged by its own merits.

References 

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[1] ‘Considering the White Stout’ by Josh Weikert, Craft Beer & Brewing, 2^nd May 2018

[2] ‘White Stout for Beginners’ by Draft Mag, 4^th June 2022

[3] ‘Pale Stout’ by Ron Pattison, Beer Advocate, April 2013

[4] ‘Pale Stout’ by Martyn Cornell, Zythophile, 6^th September 2007

[5] ‘Pale Ale at the Great International Exhibition of 1862’ by Ron Pattison, Shut Up About Barclay Perkins, 22^nd February 2011

[6] ‘The White Stout Origin Story’, Life Is Brewtiful, YouTube, 5^th April 2021

[7] ‘Stevens Point – JP Casper White Stout’ by Rahn, Constructive Consumption, 7^th December 2013

[8] ‘This 'Reverse Guinness' Stout Is a White Beer with a Black Head’ by Mike Pomranz, Yahoo, 8^th October 2019

[9] ‘Reverse Guinness, a pub phenomenon’ by Emily Hawkins, The Morning Advertiser, 20^th December 2019

[10] ‘New Holland Brewing – Dragon’s Milk White (6%)’ by Two Thirds Beeer

[11] ‘Golden Stout: Oxymoron or Legit Beer Style?’ by Atalie Rhodes, Craft Beer.com, 25^th March 2015

[12] ‘Dreaming of a white stout winter’ by Ioni Doherty, Drinkstrade, 13^th July 2022