Beer Review: 8 Sail Millstone

Name: Millstone

ABV: 4.5%

Style: Bitter

Brewery: 8 Sail

Location: Heckington, Lincolnshire 

Aroma:  Distinct malty aromas with jammy overtones and notes of marmalade coming though on the backend. 

Colour: Amber brown with a two finger buff coloured head, that is slow to disipate.

Flavour: Profoundly bitter, with grassy hoppy notes, a roasted malt background helps meld things together. Sweetness is kept to a minimum though there are faint whiffs of caramel and boiled fruits that are detectable. Medium- heavy bodied with a creamy mouthfeel, which suggests flaked oats were used in the brewing process.

Verdict: A refreshing bitter that lacks on sweetness, while the blend of American and British hops make for much of the character. It is let down by the choice of malt which lacks a distinctive character, and only seems to give a roasted aftertaste and little else. Though the creamy mouthfeel somewhat makes up for the shortcomings which makes it more pleasant to drink. On the whole its a one-dimensional and rather conventional session level bitter. 

Rating: 6/10

The Beers on the Bus

There’s no limit to where beer festivals can be held, from churches, rugby clubs, locomotive sheds, theatres and on-board rail bars, but until recently I never fathomed for a moment that one could be held in a converted bus. On the last Saturday of August, Ludo's who operate a bar based within a double decker bus in Wood Green, was the venue for the Drink Haringey Beer Festival. A micro-beer festival showcasing the produce of local brewers based within the borough of Haringey. Due to the limited space of the bus, only seven beers and one cider were possible, moreover it was a strictly keg-based affair, again due to the tight space which would have made it difficult to rack casks. The bus was originally a brewery tap for Earth Ales based in Abingdon before they sold it off in late 2021, and Ludo's opened for business the following April. It is a tight knit affair with seating areas on both floors and a converted bar at the rear. They only offer keg, though they do offer craft beers by independent producers; futhermore due to its lack of space hot food isn’t sold here yet crisps, nuts, olives and pickled eggs are available. The bar is also dog-friendly and its resident pub-dog Mag is a regular. In an addition to operating a bar, they also organise frequent stand-up gigs, quiz nights and film screenings, all within the tight confines of the bus!

The rain was starting to pour, and we were keen to sample some brews and find some shelter. We eventually made it to a convenient table at the back of the top floor, it was only mid-afternoon so trade was still relatively modest. The selection of beers on offer was primarily devoted to paler coloured beers, so I went for the sole dark ale, Luna (4.4%) by the Goodness Brewing Co,Based less than ½ mile away from Ludo’s, they were the most locally based brewery on showcase. Founded in 2018, by Joe Louis Sheasgreen, Mike Stirling, Zack Ahmed, and Damien Legg, who were initially home brewers before they teamed up and established their own commercial brewery and taproom the following year. The brewery sells to a number of independent pubs across London, including some Fuller’s and Greene King sites.  A traditional Irish style nitro-stout, this beer is named after the goddess Luna, in Roman mythology she is the divine embodiment and personificatioon of the moon. One of their regular core-range products, it is only available of draught; true to form it had a smooth creamy mouthfeel akin to whipped cream, with a one finger buff coloured head that showed little sign of subsiding. Upon tasting, a distinct bittersweet roasted malt taste was detectable along with notes of chocolate and coffee in the background. The brewery advertises this beer as being a transcendent experience, where one can sample the indulgent flavours of the brew and experience the epitome of a perfect stout; in this instance I can easily see why. At this point I needed to refresh my tastebuds, so I proceeded to quaff some Biere de la Mews (4.1%) by Muswell Hillbilly Brewers based in nearby Muswell Hill. The brewery was established by a trio of homebrewers (Pistol Pete, Mart Dude and Beer Bob) who initiated their commercial operations from a cabin in 2016. They now operate a three-barrel microbrewery along with a small tap-room from a back-alley in Avenue Mews. Their beers are produced with locally sourced ingredients including their own bergamot plant and N10 hops grown in local gardens.  This particular beer is sold in bottle as well as keg, its produced annually between April – September and is influenced by Belgian blonde ales, a popular beer style in the country known for their smoothness and light malt character which allows other flavours to flow through from the hops and yeasty esters like caramel, banana, coriander and bread. It's name it equally continental, the brewers took inspiration from a lithographic poster by Alphonse Mucha in 1897, that promoted a brewery based near the River Meuse in Northern France. Designed in the classic lithographic art nouveau style, it depicts a woman posing with a tankard of beer. The beer itself was pale in colour with an ivory-coloured head, it was refreshing with distinct notes of passionfruit and mango coming through while a gentle bitterness wafted in the distance, the mouthfeel was smooth yet biscuity with a sour aftertaste. Easy-drinking it was rather light on flavour-profile, fine as a session ale but something I wouldn’t normally go for. For my final drink, I went for Martina (4%), a session pils developed in Světlé (Czech Pale) style of lager. The brewery was originally based up the road in Bowes Park, it was founded by a pair of Czech expats Petr Skocek and Zdenek Kudr in 2017. They exclusively produce authentic Czech style lagers, with equipment imported from Czech Republic and the services of a Czech brewmaster Matej Kriziek, formerly of Brevnov Monastery Brewery. This particular lager is one of their core-range products, reddish gold in colour with a silvery coloured head an upon tasting I found it thoroughly moreish, a flavoursome blast of malt was immediately apparent on the forefront, which gave away to chewy, woody, caramel notes that lingered long in the tastebuds. I detected a faint note of hops in the background, yet the flavours were dominated by malt. The brewery describe this lager as tasting like baked bread with a growing bitterness leading off to dry spicy finish, I was able to detect these flavours as described, although I found the aftertaste rather refreshing, biscuity and a tad dry; while the spiciness was modest and not overpowering, blending well with the sweetness in the background. For a lager of this relatively low strength, it had heaps of flavour which carried on long after each sip, it would make an ideal accompaniment to smoked meats. 

As a veteran of a number of beer festivals, I found this one relatively diminutive in comparison. The lack of cask options was a bit of a letdown, and the selection strongly edged towards paler coloured beers, such as pilsners, sours, pale ales and IPA’s. Although keg craft beer is increasingly improving in quality, I’m still indifferent to it as the cold temperatures somewhat nullify the malty extent of the flavours and its gassy afterburn can lead to some gastrolienal discomfort after a few drinks. Yet in an area of London which lacks any major CAMRA beer festivals, I find it great that the owners of Ludo's have taken up the mantle to organise this festival and showcase the diverse range of brewers across the local borough. Perhaps this event will light the touch paper and inspire people to organise a large-scale beer festival in the future, finally putting this chunk of London back on the beer festival map.  

Beer Review: Burton Bridge Dark Shield

Name: Dark Shield

ABV: 5.6%

Style: Black IPA

Brewery: Burton Bridge

Location: Burton, Derbyshire 

Aroma:  Strong notes hops with citrus fruit coming through on the nose, washed down with caramel and a whisp of roasted malt and coffee notes in the background.

Colour: Dark with a thin tan coloured head. 

Flavour: A malty caramel base with hints of sweetness, a tinge of citrus fruits including lemons and oranges, offset with a bittersweet roasted malt background that has hints of dark chocolate, coffee and charcoal coming through. Medium bodied mouthfeel, its relatively high strength has a warming effect on the aftertaste.

Verdict: Almost two beers in one, mixing the hallmarks of a tradiitonal English IPA with the elements of a Porter. The distinctive flavours that made Worthington's White Shield so great are somewhat overshadowed by the agressive flavours coming through from the dark malts, though it is refreshing to see a Black IPA that isn't plundered with American hops for a change. A niceley balanced beer that celebrates the best qualities in British hops and malt. 


Rating: 8/10

Beers of the Air

With the 85th anniversary of the Battle of Britain now upon us when the RAF battled the might of the Luftwaffe over the skies of southern England during the Summer of 1940. It is pertinent to think that among the slew of tributes to our brave airmen, a number of breweries around the country have over the years developed beers, created to honour the efforts of our air-force during the course of WWII. While there are dozens of one-off products and seasonal specials out there, there’s a clutch of examples that have gone onto become regular core-range items, these beers are also available in bottle/can and have found their way into beer shops and supermarkets across the country. Here’s a potted guide into these well-known examples:

 

Spitfire (4.2%) – Shepherd Neame

First produced in 1990 as one-off special to commemorate the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Britian, it was named after fighter plane the Spitfire MK1 which played a pivotal role in the battle. The ensuing popularity of the beer ensured it’s continuation, it was soon regularly brewed and has become one of Shepherd Neame’s most successful and well-known products, winning a diverse range of awards ranging from International Beer Challenge – World’s 50 Best Beers (2008) to British Bottlers Institute Silver – Packaging (Silver). A traditional best bitter, it only uses Kentish grown hops (including Target, Challenger, East Kent Goldings, First Gold) to give its distinct bitter orange-marmalade peppery flavour, while malts help give its notable deep amber colour. Such was its local significance, in 1998 the Prince of Wales granted a Royal Warrant, giving it protected status as a Kentish ale. Though usually available in draught in pubs across Kent and in Shepherd Neame tied-houses, it is sold in bottle in supermarkets nationwide. This beer has endured a flood of marketing, in the late 1990’s a poster campaign was launched under the moniker ‘Bottle of Britian’. The poster featured tongue-in-cheek quotes such as “downed all over Kent, just like the Luftwaffe”, or “no Nazi aftertaste.” The posters even made their way onto the Underground where in early 2001 they attracted controversy when five posters were removed following complaints from German tourists. During the 2006 World Cup in Germany, the brewery collaborated with Viz cartoonist Graham Mellie, where he developed a series of comic strips under the title of “The Road to Berlin” which followed the exploits of a English footballer known as Tommy as he faced off competition from some surrendering Italians and a terrifying German super-sub called Fritz, the cartoons were featured in the Evening Standard. In 2013, comedy duo Armstrong and Miller featured in adverts promoting the beer, in the guise of their WW2 era RAF airmen characters that featured prominently in their sketch show series. The adverts proved to be immensely successful, gaining the brewery two British Marketing Awards consecutively between 2015-6. The beer continues to have a large following, its branding has featured on T-Shirts, Mugs and Glassware; more recently it has been joined by variants included Spitfire Gold (4.3%) and more recently Spitfire Lager (4%). And since 2010 it has supported the Movember campaign, organising a number of charitable competitions like their Mo-Beer (create your own beer) contest. 

Hurricane (4%) – Buntingford 

Named after the Battle of Britain veteran Hurricane Hawker P3717, which used to fly past the brewery’s former brewhouse. It was first brewed in 2001; it was only their second ever brew. It was originally called Hurricane Force at the time before it was later renamed. It became part of their regular range in 2012. Described on its pump clips as a strikingly good bitter, it’s a copper-coloured brew with First Gold hops, and a mixture of locally sourced Maris Otter and Chocolate malt from suppliers based in East Anglia, which in turn helps give the beer its malty toffee character offset by a fruity bitterness. Hurricane (4%) isn’t the only beer they produce with connections to WW2 fighter planes, another beer they produce 92 Squadron (4.5%) is named after a British fighter class that flew during the course of the war. Unlike it’s contemporary it is only produced on a seasonal basis. 

Battle of Britain (5%) – Chiltern

It was originally launched in 2001 at event held at RAF Halton, based in Halton Camp, Aylesbury. A traditional style old ale, dark and light malts are combined with a balancing hop input, in this case pale and crystal malts are utilised along with Goldings and Fuggles for balance that provides a complex flavour profile reminiscent of roasted chestnuts; in this case it could be argued that the beer is a homage to the Burton Ales that were prevalent before the postwar period. The beer has since joined their regular core range, although predominately it remains a bottle only release. From every sale, 5p of each bottle goes towards the RAF Halton charities, helping towards the efficiency and support of personnel and their families at RAF Halton; in 2021 alone, they raised £3,528,80 pounds for charity. Uniquely for a beer, veterans wearing their WW2 medals are entitled to a free bottle when visiting the brewery shop. Although generally sold only in bottle, for a limited basis during the Battle of Britain Day celebrations held annually on 15th September, the brewery sells it in draught form directly from its site, where visitors can also collect two- and four-pint containers.  In 2020, an amber ale using the same name was released by the brewery, made in conjunction with the Imperial War Museum to mark the 80th anniversary of the Battle of Britain.  While more recently the brewery has also produced Supermarine (4%), a traditional Bitter inspired by the Spitfire, one of the fighter planes that flew during the Battle of Britian. 

Spirit of Kent (4%) – Westerham 

One of their flagship core-range products, this beer is labelled as an a 9 Hop XXX ale, in tribute to the original beer that racked on the Spitfires. Following the D-Day landings, the RAF arranged with the Black Eagle Brewery (formerly based in Westerham) to rack their 18 gallon casks onto specially adapted bomb racks on their Spitfire’s, though in later flights, the beer was filled into auxiliary non-returnable petrol tanks, once refuelling facilities were established in France. The beers were labelled “XXX Joy Juice” and flown on specially chartered flights to airfields in northern France, in what could only be described as the RAF equivalent of a brewer’s dray. Similarly, this beer, is a golden ale produced with nine different types of Kentish hops, which include Target, Goldings, Pilgrim, Sovereign, Progress, First Gold, WGV, Bramling Cross and Challenger. Most of these are sourced locally from hop grower Ian Strang who runs a National Trust hop garden in Lamberhurst. The brewery uses original yeast strains from the Black Eagle Brewery which were donated to the National Collection of Yeast Cultures in 1959, Westerham re-cultured the yeast and acquired the licencing rights from Carlsberg, the brewers even use the same aquifer in a concerted push to emulate Black Eagle’s distinctive flavoured ales. First released in 2012, it progressively became their best-selling golden ale and became available in bottles and cans from 2018 onwards. Not only is this beer a frequent site among pubs around north Kent, recently Algar Lodge Butchery made a special Ale Sausage using Spirit of Kent in the mix.

Moonlight (4.3%) – Arkell’s 

It was first released in 2003, it was commissioned by (present chairman) James Arkell to mark the 80th birthday of his father (and predecessor in the chairman role) Peter Arkell OBE, to commemorate his involvement in a series of nighttime missions for the SOE during the war, where he flew low level sorties over occupied France in 1943, picking up agents and returning them to blighty. These assignments were undertaken during the full moon period, hence the name. A traditional session-bitter, it uses a combination of Fuggles and Susan hops along with a special hop mix to give its distinct golden colour, and lingering toasty flavour. Originally a one-off special, it is now a regular brewed beer and over the years it has acquired a number of awards including Taste of the West (2011), World Beer Awards 2015 - United Kingdom - Bitter 4% - 5% - Silver Medal, The International Beer Challenge 2018 – Silver and more recently it won Bronze at British Bottlers’ Institute Competition 2025. Last year, to mark the 80th anniversary of the D-Day landings 62 cases containing bottles of Moonlight beer, were flown on a Lysander aircraft from Draycott Airfield to Normandy for a commemorative dinner honouring the Allied and French Resistance heroes who helped liberate France. In recent times, the brewery has produced more beers with a connection to the fighter planes of WW2, with their keg-only releases Hurricane (4%), an amber ale; and Mustang Black (4%) a nitro stout named after the American fighter bombers P-51 Mustang. 

Lancaster Bomber (4%) – Marstons

Originally a flagship product from Thwaites brewery, it was developed by brew-master Steven Fielding. It was named after the Avro Lancaster, a heavy bomber produced by Avro who were based in Manchester between 1910-63, this aircraft manufacturer was of local significance for the Blackburn based brewery. A traditional bitter, it was described as a classic English ale, chestnut in colour, with full bodied flavour, enriched with a late hop character. Since it became part of the brewery’s core range of beers, it has gained a large following and has been widely sold in supermarkets across the country. The beer has won a number of awards including Europe Gold at the World Beer Awards 2007, 2011 and 2014. International Beer Challenge (Silver) in 2012, in the Pale Ales and Bitter category. Like its southern counterpart Spitfire (4.2%) it has been involved in mass advertising campaigns, in 2005 England cricketer Freddie Flintoff was signed up to front the ad campaign for the beer, as part of six figure investment following a 32% rise in sales. The product has also been used for charitable causes, in 2013 to mark the 70th anniversary of the Dambuster raids the brewery launched their Give A Dam campaign, in which 5p from every pint of this beer sold has been donated to Leonard Cheshire Disability – a charity founded by former Bomber Command veteran, Group Captain Leonard Cheshire. The following year, the beer was used as the official sponsor for a month-long tour of Canada’s only airworthy Lancaster bomber, as it flew from Ontario to RAF Conninsbury in Lincolnshire, stopping on the way at Goose Bay, Canada, Narsarsuaq, Greenland, and Keflavik, Iceland. It later featured at airshows across the UK including Eastbourne, Bournemouth and Shoreham etc. The same year the brewery closed their Blackburn site, and subsequently they sold off part of their company to Marstons, along with the rights to produce Lancaster Bomber (4%) and Wainwright (4.1%) in 2015 with a short-term agreement to continue featuring Thwaites branding on the bottles and pump clips. This arrangement has since been withdrawn and no trace of Thwaites appears on its promotions. In 2020, Marstons merged with Carlsberg, and a few months back they discontinued eight iconic cask ales, so Lancaster Bomber’s future remains in the balance.  

Hurricane (4%) – Wantsum

Although there are a number of beers out there that go with this name, only a few have a connection to the fighter plane, a few still are regularly sold. This example like its namesake at Buntingford, is another core range product. The brewery is based as St. Nicholas on the Wade, only five miles from RAF Manston where Hurricane’s once were a common site in the skies above the village where the brewhouse is now based. Despite these British connections, the beer is closer to an New Zealand IPA in character as it is brewed with Mosaic and Citra hops, which are well known for imparting a citrussy character, while use of oats in the mix helps give it a smoother mouthfeel and more body giving it a more refreshing aftertaste. This beer is among several produced by the brewery that follow a World War Two theme, others include their SS Richard Montgomery (4%), an APA brewed only with American Hops named after a US made liberty ship that sank in the River Medway, Dynamo (4.3%) a blonde ale named to commemorate the 70th anniversary of Dunkirk evacuation and Thunderbolt (6%) a stronger APA named after the Thunderbolts that flew for the USAF from RAF Headcorn. All these releases tend to be produced seasonally, and only Hurricane (4%) is regularly sold and also available in bottles. Since it appeared on the scene, it has also gained some awards including finalist at the 2021 Taste of Kent awards and more recently SIBA Independent South East Gold Award Winner (2023). 

Battle of Britain (3.9%) – Wolf 

Described a British best bitter, true to form it is a copper-coloured ale with plenty of bite, accompanied with a combination Goldings and Challenger hops that complement its malty undertones. It was first released in 2010 to mark the 70th anniversary of the Battle of Britian at an event attended by veterans. Since then, it has joined their core range and like their forebears at Chiltern, a donation of 10p is made from each sale to (R.A.F.A.) the RAF Association’s Wings appeal. The beer has also made its mark locally when in 2015 it was awarded Champion Beer of East Anglia (2015) – Gold (Bitters). Since it’s release, the brewery has also produced a string of one-off releases celebrating heroic personnel during the war, in 2011 they developed Lone Wolf (4.4%), a lager after Czech fighter ace Sgt Josef Frantisek who flew solo missions against the Luftwaffe in 1940, where he managed to shoot down 17 aircraft in one month. While later in 2014, they also released Monty’s Gamble (3.8%) to commemorate the 70th anniversary of the D-Day landings, where proceeds went towards the Norwich Normandy Veterans Association. 

Liberator (4.1%) – Tring

A more recent addition, it made it’s debut on draught in December 2023 before being sold in bottle the following April. It is named after the Consolidated B-24 Liberator, an American built heavy bomber known for its long range, high cruise speed and the ability to carry a large bomb catchment. Aside from its use in the USAAC, both the RAF and the French Air Force ordered a number of these bombers. The British adapted these planes, and called them Liberators due to their use in maritime patrols. In tribute to its American links, the beer uses Citra and Mosaic hops, while Citra brings citrussy flavours of grapefruit and pine, Mosaic brings a tropical infused mix of lychee, mango and passionfruit to the table. Through the more assertive flavours coming through from the hops, it can be seen as a homage to the classic American Pale Ale offset with home-grown British malt which inadvertedly reflects on the transatlantic links of its namesake the Consolidated B-24 Liberator. Due to the relatively new status of the beer, it hasn’t been used for charitable purposes as of late, though in 2016 the brewery supported the De Havilland aircraft museum in Hatfield as the charity of their choice that year. This beer joins an earlier release, their annual Autumnal special Squadron Scramble (4%) which commemorates the Battle of Britain.