Seasonal Halloween Beers

As the days draw close to Halloween, or historically known as All Hallows Eve, breweries up and down the country batten down the hatches and fire up their cauldrons as they prepare their annual mystical brews to ward off the evil spirits. In more common sense terms, it’s been a well-known fact that a number of breweries over the years have created seasonal beers in order to cash in on the Halloween season.  When we think of beers that have links to the supernatural, nightmare and other tropes of the horror genre, immediately the likes of Ghost Ship (4.5% - Adnams) and Trooper (4.7% - Robinson’s) come to mind, yet this a lazy assumption, since these examples are sold all year round, and are frequently retailed in many supermarkets and shops. There are a number of beers of this nature that fit into this bracket, like well-known regional examples like Exmoor Beast (6.6%), Pendle Witches Brew (5.1% - Moorhouse’s), Grim Reaper (6% - Keltek) and Hamster of Doom (5.8% - Ridgeway) for instance, they may be mistaken for Halloween themed beers yet these examples don’t count as these are brewed and sold throughout the year. To truly inhabit the title of a genuine Halloween beers, these releases are generally only sold during a limited period during the Autumn months. Little is known about these elusive ales as they are generally regional specific (sold in a limited area), sold primarily in cask only and on the whole haven’t seen nationwide coverage, particularly in the festival circuit. Yet in the dark nooks of the country’s floorboards lie a treasure trove of intriguing examples that celebrate the spookiest season of the year. 

Most breweries tend to stick to conventional subject matters like witches, werewolves, ghosts or even the humble pumpkin when it comes to naming their beers, witchcraft seems to top the list with examples like Hop Pot (3.8% - A.J.’s Ales), a wry title that is reflected in the pump clip which features an amusing pump clip featuring three witches boiling hops in a cauldron; Broomstick (4.2% - Evans, Evans) once described as a spookily dark amber beer; Hubble Bubble (4.4% - Charnwood) that echoes the iconic scene in Shakespeare’s Macbeth, 3 Witches (4.4% - Oakham) which was first brewed in 2005, the pump clip features three staff members from the time appearing as witches peering over a steaming cauldron; and Witch’s Brew (4.3% - Grainstore) which the brewery’s marketing department labelled as "a magically hopped beer, whose secret combination is known by few. Ghoulishly golden brown with a mysteriously pronounced aroma designed to bewitch the most hardened of drinker keeping away deadly spirits! Ghosts are also another popular subject matter with the likes of Phantasm (4.5% - Acorn) a suitably eerie Pale Ale brewed with New Zealand hops that was notably once sold of House of Commons bar in October 2018; or White Lady (4% - Lincoln Green) whose name is inspired by the ghostly apparition that is usually in seen in rural areas and is often associated with tragedy, such as murder, suicide and betrayal; even brewing giants like Greene King have cashed in on the act with their noteworthy Halloween staple Gangly Ghoul (4.2% - Greene King) that has been haunting pubs for over a decade. Werewolves also frequent the pump clips like Complete Howler (4.3% - Nethergate), a beverage seemingly inspired by ancient brewing traditions combined with modern innovations to create a timeless brew, Ravening Wolf (5.9% - Wantsum), whose nickname was given to Odo, Earl of Kent and half-brother of William the Conqueror, who was tried for defrauding the crown and Howler (4.2% - Wolf), which the brewery describe as a terrifyingly flavoursome golden ale, one of a wolf themed beers produced by the company.  Pumpkins are another popular draw for breweries, a notable example is Farmer's Jack O' Lantern (4.5% - Bradfield) a light hopped bitter that has been doing the rounds on a annual basis since 2010, and has since become available in mini-kegs and more recently in 330ml bottles.

Sometimes breweries stray away from these common themes and come up with intriguing names like Neewolah (4% - Salopian) which is basically Halloween spelt backwards, Harry Porter (5.2% - Milestone) a cynical take on the name of the main character from the series of popular children’s books and films; Strange Brew (4.1% - Twickenham Ales), a dark golden ale made with five different hops that intially resulted from the wrong malt going into the brew, Cornish Scream (4.3% - Skinners) once described as the original Cornish beer of Halloween, meanwhile the likes of Merlin's Ale (4.2% - Broughton) takes it's name from the claim that the legendary wizard lived in the Caledonian Forest and was buried in Broughton; Tormit Heed (4.9% - Firebrick) is inspired by the old Geordie slang for Turnip (pronounced Tormit) and until the late 18th century, Turnip Heads were used a jack o' lanterns before Pumpkins were widley adopted; whilst Frightfully Pale (4.3% - Rudgate) goes against the grain by presenting an exceptionally pale beer and Witch Hunt (4.2% - Bishop Nick) which strays away from witchcraft and instead memorialises the imprisonment and execution of Bishop of London, Nicholas Ridley who was burnt at the stake in 1555 for charges of heresy, whom happens to be the ancestor of the brewery’s current owner Nelion Ridley; whilst others tend to echo the spirit of the season like Treacle Treat (4.2% - Wadworth), a dark ale flavoured with treacle that conjures up childhood memories of walking down dark neighbourhood streets on the prowl for handfuls of sweets. Pumpkin spiced ales have increasingly become a popular draw since they were imported from the US, though breweries in the UK initially tended to stray away from their transatlantic cousins and combined elements of this style with local brewing traditions. Pumpkinhead (4.2% - Bridgehouse) is a notable early example first released in 2011, a copper coloured beer with an even bitter-sweet flavour profile and a dash of pumpkin; Warlock (4% - Dorset Brewing Co.) which first appeared in 2014, a traditional best bitter brewed with fresh pumpkin in the mix, latterly in 2016, New River Brewery marked their 50^th brew with the release of Pumped Up! (4.2% - New River), a golden ale flavoured with pumpkin, spices and subtle hop flavourings. Although a vast number of these Halloween themed seasonal beers have appeared in beer festivals throughout the UK, only a small proportion have been met with success. In 2013, Gothic Stout (5.2% - Enville) won a couple of plaudits including 1^st place at the Stoke-on-Trent Beer Festival and West Midlands Beer of the Year, Complete Howler (4.3% - Nethergate) was awarded gold medal at the Norwich beer festival in 2016, Hocus Pocus (4.6% - Loddon) won Silver in the Dark Bottle Beers category at the SIBA Beer Competition 2012, Gold (Bottled and Canned Dark Beers) at SIBA Midlands 2018, Gold (Old Ale and Strong Mild) – Gold in the Champion Winter Beer of Britain 2020; and more recently Stonedead (6.66% - Lymestone) won the Platinum Service Award from Best of British Beer. Perhaps the most high profile example is Black Cat (3.8% - Moorhouse’s), a legendary black mild which has been met with much praise since it first clawed its way onto the scene, it has won a number of awards over the years, including Champion Beer of Britain – Bronze (1998), Champion Beer of Britain – Gold (2000), Champion Beer of Britain (Mild) – Gold (1998 & 2000), Champion Beer of Britain (Mild) – Bronze (2002),  International  Brewing Industry Awards – Gold (2004), Gold (2011), Bronze (2013) to name but a few, proving that even Halloween themed beers can top the charts.

 

Over time most of these breweries tend to only have released one Halloween themed beer on a seasonal basis, though occasionally some have multiple examples in their books like A.J.’s Ales whom boast the likes of Hop Pot (3.8%) and The Devil Made Me Do It (5.2%), Salopian whom seasonally showcase the likes of Neewollah (4%) and Voodoo (4.5%) in their yearly schedules, or Milestone who feature such examples like Harry Porter (5.2%) and Wicked Witch (4.5%) in their books. Moreover, the Brentwood Brewing Co. have a history of producing Halloween themed seasonal beers such as Devil’s Dyke (4.8%), Haunted Holmes (4.4%), and their current release Spooky Moon (3.8%). Occasionally, breweries have produced alternative versions of their iconic brews, building on the success of their Gothic Stout (5.2%), they have also produced Ginger Gothic (5.2%), Cherry Gothic (5.2%) and a rare Summer only version called Summer Stout (5.2%) in 2016, all using the same base recipe. Meanwhile, Leatherbritches have developed a higher strength release of their Scary Hairy (5.9%) with a 7.2% export version, and Loddon have produced Hocus Pocus – Spiced (4.6%) an alternate version of their flagship old ale Hocus Pocus (4.6%) with the addition of cinnamon, clove and orange peel, which debuted in 2019. Yet Moorhouse’s has to claim the title for the most revisions of an existing beer, in this case  their flagship release Black Cat (3.8%) which includes the like Black Cat Reserve (4.6%) brewed with Junga hops, Blacker Cat (4.1%), a strong version also called Black Cat Reserve (7%), and a rare bottle only release (5%) to name but a few. Although many of these Halloween beers are uniquely produced, some rather cunningly are rebrands of established well known-beers, marketed as seasonal limited edition releases where in fact they are not. Obvious examples like Old Spooky Hen (4.8% - Moorland) are clear to see, whilst more opaque instances like Skull Attack (4.2% - Brains) is just a rebrand of the brewery’s flagship beer S.A. (4.2%), and Scary Mary (3.5% - Ilkley) similarly is a Halloween version of the brewery’s most notable product Mary Jane (3.5%). Sometimes brewers utilize existing core-range beers as the basis for their seasonal Halloween releases, such as Halloween Scream (4.7% - Kent), a special version of their flagship release Lemon Scream (4.7%) which debuted in 2021, it turns the original recipe on its head by turning it into a Black IPA with the addition of chocolate malt into the mix, or Fruit Bat (5.5% - Green Jack), first released in 2008, a strong bitter based on the brewery’s earlier release Gone Fishing (5.5%), but with the addition of plums to give off a sweeter and fruity flavour. The latter example is intriguing to note, as despite the fact it’s generally sold only around the Autumn months, the brewery offers to brew and sell it to consumers throughout the year on request. There are other examples of this hybrid approach, Ravening Wolf (5.9% - Wantsum) is available in bottle and mini-keg throughout the year despite it being only seasonally available on cask during October/ November, the same goes for the likes of Hocus Pocus (4.6% - Loddon) and Scary Hairy (5.9% - Leatherbritches) which are sold in bottle all year round, despite only being sold in cask around the Halloween period.

 

The variety of seasonal Halloween beer that are produced by breweries based all over the country are an intriguing bunch, whilst many feature original recipes, some are basically straightforward rebranding’s of core-range beers but with a different pump clip and name, though occasionally breweries push the boat out and develop new beers based on existing and established releases and thrown in some added ingredients to jazz things up like Fruit Bat (5.5% - Green Jack) or Halloween Scream (4.7% - Kent), for example. A large number of these seasonal releases tend to revolve around styles like Bitter, Best or ESB for instance and there’s nothing spooky about that. Yet there is a growing number that have increasingly diversified in there styles, from Black IPA’s, Porter, Old Ale, Blonde Ale, Stout and even Mild. There has been steady increase in the number of Pumpkin spiced ales, and even Red Ales are gaining proliferation, beers like Wicked Witch (4.5% - Milestone), Hubble Bubble (4.4% - Charnwood), Grim Reaper (5.5% - Wantsum), Blood Moon (4.3% - Derby Brewing), Poltergeist (4.2% - Elgood’s) and most recently Witch Hare (4.5% - Moon Gazer) are brewed in this manner and are suitably the colour of blood, which perfectly suits the spirit of the season. The success of these ‘established’ seasonal releases has not only led to a slew of awards for these beers, but building on their popularity, breweries have since released many of these beers in bottle conditioned or mini-keg form, with some examples going onto being sold all year round, due to their longer shelf life than cask. The production of seasonal Halloween beers goes back to at least the 1990’s, whilst many greats over the years have vanished into oblivion, others have remained, indeed established stalwarts like 3 Witches (4.4% - Oakham), Black Cat (3.8% - Moorhouse’s), Voodoo (4.5% - Salopian) and Fruit Bat (5.5% - Green Jack) have returned to the hand-pumps on a seasonal basis for over 15 years, and a number of breweries mentioned have brought back these seasonal Halloween themed releases on an annual basis more or less since they were first released. Moreover, the development of new and upcoming seasonal beers continues apace with examples like Hellfire (4.3% - Tring), Newsome Nightmare (4.3% - Great Newsome), Fallen Angel, Black & Chrome (5% - Church End), Bloodhound (4.4% - Nethergate/ Greene King) and Reaper’s Wish (4.3% - Oakham) being released this month. This evidently shows that clamour for new Halloween themed beers has not flayed away and will continue to creep around pubs for years to come.

 

The Rise of Fruit Beers (Part 2)

With the coming of the new Millenium, Fruit Beers were beginning to make an impression on the festival scene, at the 27^th Cambridge Beer Festival in May 2000, a number of fruit beers featured including Lemon & Ginger Spiced Beer (4.7%) – St Peter’s, Raspberry Wheat (5%) – Iceni, Damson Stout (4.8%) – Bartram’s,  Orange Wheat (4.2) – Green Jack, which has since become a regular part of the brewery’s range, Red, White & Blueberry (4%) – Iceni, Cherry Stout (4.8%) – Batrams, which was awarded beer of the festival. At the Darlington Beer & Music Festival that Summer, the fledgling Humpty Dumpty Brewery met with early success when their Lemon & Ginger (4%) was awarded overall champion. As the year 2000 drew to an end, in November, J.W. Lees released Plum Pudding (5%), a dark brown beer made with plums, it was initially sold as a seasonal special in pubs around Manchester, yet its ensuing popularity ensured it’s continued survival and is now released seasonally around the Christmas period by the brewery.  Early in 2001, St. Peter’s released Fruit Beer - Grapefruit (4.7%) essentially a wheat beer with added Grapefruit flavours, the Beerly described as “it’s just an already well-designed beer that happened to have grapefruit added to it. And it’s actually the light malt body, high carbonation and mild yet flavourful yeast and hop notes that make the beer. The grapefruit is certainly there, and it adds uniqueness, nuance, and a bit of sweetness.” [1] The beer subsequently became a regular part of their bottled range and would go onto win a slew of awards. Later that year, on the festival circuit saw the likes of Takin the Pith (4.3%) – Leatherbritches, a wheat beer brewed with orange peel appearing at the Derby Beer Festival, whilst Iceni won a Best Speciality beer award for Raspberry Wheat (5%) at the Cambridge Beer Festival, and the microbrewery Fernandes in Wakefield released Blackberry Way (4.6%) and Black Cherry Stout (4.1%) as seasonal/ one off releases that year. Meanwhile, over in Ingleby, Lloyds Country Beers was making itself heard with its wide range of fruit beers including the likes of Wild Cherry May (3.8%), Peach Wheat (4.4%), Mandarin Porter (4.5%) and Pineapple Ale (4.4%), with some of their beers even appearing at GBBF that Summer, although the brewery ceased production the following March. The year 2002 marked a turning point with several major players making their debuts, in February, Burton Bridge Brewery released their first fruit beer, Bramble Stout (5%) which uses a combination of their established Top Dog Stout (5%) with the addition of blackberry juice to add sweetness. Sam Cohen described it as “the initial flavours are a surprisingly refreshing blend of blackberry and chocolate malt, which gives a definite astringency to the beer.  Fruit flavours are controlled, and blend well with the use of dark malts, but certainly dominate the aroma.” [2] This beer quickly became a popular draw for the brewery, subsequently becoming a regular part of their range, which is still sold till this day. The following month, Wells debuted their Banana Bread Beer (5.5%) at the London Drinker Beer Festival, an amber ale made with bananas; it was subsequently voted beer of the festival. Steve Plumridge wrote at the time of its release “this flavoursome pint retains the qualities and style of traditional bitter but with the subtle (or strong, depending on your tastebuds) flavour of Britain’s biggest selling fruit, being made by adding real Fair Trade bananas to the mash.”[3] Although its ABV went down to 5.2% in 2005, the beer continues to be produced and sold till this day, and is one of the most successful British produced fruit beers sold abroad. The same month, Salopian released Lemon Dream (4.5%), initially a one-off special at the Wetherspoons Spring Beer Festival. A golden ale made with real lemons, which adds the brewery describes “adds beautifully subtle zesty aromas and a citrus filled fruity finish.” The beer was well received, and subsequently became a regular fixture in their range and continues to be sold in cask and bottle. In the Summer, Fuller’s dabbled with fruit beers with Honey Dew with Cranberry (5%) made with real cranberry juice, Beartown released Strawbeary (4.5%) and Pandamonium (4.5%), Iceni debuted Raspberry Wheat (4.5%), Clockwork Beer Co. launched their Hazy Daze range of fruit beers and around this time and Coach House in Warrington became one of the first independent breweries in the North-West to release fruit beers including the likes of Passion Fruit, Cranberry, Ginger & Lemon and Raspberry (all 5%).

 

The following year saw a slew of releases, Belhaven released Classic Fruit Beer (4.6%), initially sold in bottle form only, Kelham Island debuted both Lost My Cherry (4.5%) and Gone Bananas (3.8%) at the Stockholm Beer Festival, Meantime Brewery in Greenwich released Raspberry Wheat (5%) in cask and bottle, it was later sold in branches of Sainsbury’s, and a stronger Grand Cru version was released a couple years later. Cwmbran launched Pink Panther (4.5%), a fruit beer flavoured with raspberries, later that year it was shortlisted for the Champion Beer of Wales award. Whist Liverpool based brewer Cains released two beers Sundowner (4.5%) a golden ale produced with lemon peel; and Fine Raisin Beer (5%), which is brewed with American raisins and Goldings hops. Roger Protz described it at the time as “the copper-coloured beer has a rich vinous aroma underscored by spicy hops. Raisins, juicy malt and peppery Goldings dominate the palate, while fruit continues into the long, complex finish with rich biscuity malt, and hops add a deep layer of spicy bitterness.”[4] Initially sold in bottle, in August the beer won Tesco’s Autumn Beer Challenge and it was subsequently sold in 650 stores throughout the UK, quickly becoming a major seller for the brewery. Meanwhile at GBBF the same month, Banana Bread Beer (5.5%) won top prize at a Women’s only tasting panel, later that year Cwmbran's raspberry flavoured beer Pink Panther (4.4%) made its debut and was soon and in October, Hydes released Firkin Fruity (4.5%), a seasonal Autumnal red ale flavoured with raspberries; it was soon voted joint 1^st place at the 23^rd Booze on the Ouse festival. In January 2004, Burton Bridge released their 2^nd fruit beer, Damson Porter (4.5%) which used a mixture of their classic Burton Porter (4.5%) with Damson juice, it quickly became popular and continues to be sold as a regular part of their range. Moreover, Downton released their first fruit flavoured beer Raspberry Wheat (4.5%), Muldons brewed Mulberry Harbour (4%) exclusively for that year’s Cambridge Beer Festival. In March, B&T debuted Fruit Bat (4.5%), a bitter brewed with raspberries, it would subsequently become a regular part of their range. Leatherbritches’ Spiced Berry (4.6%) featured at the 2004 Derby Beer Festival. It was an early version of their Spiced Berry Mild (4.4%) which would succeed it five years later; Zerodegrees produced their first fruit beer, Wheatbeer Mango (4%), it was soon followed by Strawberry, Elderflower, Raspberry and Apple versions. In June, Meantime released Strawberry Ale (4.8%), whilst Church End Brewery entered the fruit beer scene with Mango (4.2%) and Raspberry Porter (4.5%), the latter being a one off special, Whitstable Brewery debuted their Raspberry Wheat Beer (5.2%) available in both cask and bottle; and at GBBF that year, the newly opened Eastwood & Sanders brewery (later known as Elland) releases Up the Kriek (4.3%), a limited-edition cask only special created in the style of a Kriek, though the general response at the time was far from favourable. Commenting on the flock of British fruit beers on the scene, Brian Bosworth (head brewer at Rockingham Ales) commented at the time “the use of fruit in English style ales is notoriously difficult to get right as you need to balance the sweetness with some sourness.”[5] The same year he produced Fruits of the Forest (4.3%) which contained a complex mix of berry fruits, herbs and spices, the later directly sourced from Belgium; the beer managed to achieve joint 2^nd place at the Cambridge Beer Festival that year. Other festival successes followed, Fine Raisin Beer (5%) was voted Beer of the Festival at the Liverpool Beer Festival that year, and Belhaven met with a string of success for their Classic Fruit Beer (4.6%), winning both Overall Winner and 1^st place in the strong beers category at the Eastleigh Beer Festival; it was also voted the best beer by a panel of young drinkers (aged 18-34) at GBBF, organiser Mark Bridges told Pints West “the Fruit beer was liked by all of the panel and most of them were pleasantly surprised that real ale can be so fruity.”[6]  Robin E. Wild attributed its success as “most fruit beers have, I fear, too much fruit flavour, but this beer tastes like beer but with a magnificent aftertaste of those tinned travel fruit sweets.” With such a fruitful year coming to a close, in October, Hydes in Manchester released Over the Moon (4.3%), a seasonal special as part of their ‘Feeling Fine’ range which they described as “special warming seasonal ale, brewed with just a hint of natural berry juice”.Whilst their local competitor J.W. Lees unveiled Crackerjack (4.7%), brewed a combination of malts to give off a nutty flavour and Brambling Cross hops for fruitiness, along with a slug of blackcurrant. 2005 saw more releases, Green Jack released both Cherry Popper (8%) and Raspberry Blower (8%) as a seasonal specials, Leatherbritches strong ale Blue (9%) made with berries made a good impression at a Food & Drink event in France and Raspberry Belter (4.4%) makes its first appearance that Summer appearing at GBBF; meanwhile Nethergate released Lemon Head (4.1%), a seasonal made with lemon and ginger and Greene King dabbled with Ruddles Orchard (4.2%), an ale blended with apple juice, unfortunately it was met with a mixed reaction. Meanwhile on the festival front, Belhaven won Bronze for their Classic Fruit Beer (4.6%) in the Specialist category at the Cambridge Beer Festival. And in September, Burton Bridge gained a series of awards, winning Bronze in the Speciality Beers category for their Damson Porter (4.5%) at the Nottingham Beer Festival, and later the same year Bramble Stout (5%) was awarded the coveted 1^st place title as S.I.B.A. National Bottled Beer of 2005. The subsequent year saw a continued run of success, at the Aberdeen Beer Festival, Pandamonium (4.5%) was awarded beer of the festival, and Orange Wheat (4.2) won Gold (Speciality Beers) at the Peterborough Beer Festival. The year also saw the release of several significant examples, Meanwhile, at the Cambridge Beer Festival in May, Moonshine Brewery featured Red Watch (4.5%), a bitter made with blueberries that would go onto win multiple awards and remain a regular fixture for the brewery, and in August William Bros brewery (formely known as Heather Ales until 2004) released Roisin (4.2%), a beer made from tayberries that could be described as being a cross between raspberries and blueberries. Shortly after its release, Boak & Bailey noted “like other British fruit beers — notably Cain’s excellent raisin beer — it’s an ale first, and a fruit beer second. You can taste the malt, and particularly the hops, and is only slightly redder than a standard bitter.”[7] They added “the hop bitterness is perhaps rather overpowering, although it seemed to mellow as we got down the glass. It has a very pleasing fruity aftertaste.” This beer continues to be sold as part of the brewery’s regular range. With 2006 drawing to a close, Downton debuted Elderquad (3.9%), the brewery described as “a pale, generously-hopped session beer, hints of sweetness and a subtle elderflower aroma offer a terrific balance to the hops, a real thirst-quencher!” Initially sold as a one-off special, it quickly gained a following and was soon sold as a regular part of their range (which continues to this day).

 

As the year 2007 dawned, it was becoming clear that Fruit Beers were on an upward trajectory in terms of industry recognition. At the World Beer Awards that year, Fine Raisin Beer (5%) won the award for World’s Best Fruit Beer, Fruit Bat (4.5%) won Best Speciality Beer at the 21^st Stockport Beer & Cider Festival, and Fruit Beer - Grapefruit (4.7%) won a pair award including Best Speciality Beer at the Cambridge Beer Festival, and Bronze (Speciality Beer) at GBBF that Summer. The increasing popularity for fruit beers was questioned that year when Pints West Magazine launched a survey of which beer styles were preferred by Women or Men, and interestingly Helen Featherstone noted at the time “the pundits had something right. Nearly 47% of women like drinking fruit ales, while only 24% of men do.”[8] So, it seems coincidental that brewers were increasing their output of fruit-based beers, to cash in on the increase in Women beer drinkers. The same year saw a handful of notable beers making their debut; Milestone Brewery debuted their Raspberry Wheat Beer (5.6%), which soon became a regular fixture in their range, Downton released a number of fruit beers that year[9] including Apple Blossom Ale (4.3%) and Chocolate Orange Delight (5.8%) with the former becoming a regular part of their ‘specialist’ range and the later sold as a Winter seasonal. At the Saltaire Beer Festival, the newly opened Saltaire Brewery (which had been in production for just over a year) trialled their 1^st attempt at a fruit beer with Apricot Ale (4.2%). Later that Summer, Coach House released their first regular fruit beer Blueberry Classic Bitter (5%), a pale ale made with blueberries. It would go onto win multiple awards, and become a permanent fixture in the brewery’s main range; although initially sold in cask, it was released in bottle in October 2008 sold in supermarkets like Morrisons and Tesco, becoming one of the most widely sold fruit beers in the country. Later that year, Buntingford Brewery dabbled with fruit beers for the first time with Cherry Red (4.7%), whilst Badger (Hall & Woodhouse) launched Poachers Choice (5.7%), a strong ale with notes of hedgerow fruits including damsons, that Stephen Sinfield quoted as “a true gem of a beer. Beautifully rich auburn in colour, with a fruitcake twinge of aroma, it slips down like a velvet dream. Malty and full of deep red fruits, the aftertaste is smooth and mellow with a hint of cherry and vanilla.”[10]  It went onto become a regular part of their range, renamed as Cranborne Poacher in 2018, and has since won a number of awards for the brewery.

 

Although the world was in grip of a financial crisis in 2008, the steady release of fruit beers continued unabated, in March the fledgling Dunham Massey Brewery which had been open for five months, started selling Chocolate Cherry Mild (3.8%) as a bottle only beer at their beer shop. Later that year, it made its cask debut at the Stockport Beer & Cider Festival where it won Bronze. In it’s first year alone it won a batch of plaudits including Beer of the Festival at Chelmsford & Mid Essex Camra Branch Festival, Double Gold at Huddersfield Octoberfest including Gold for overall Beer of the Festival and 1^st place in the Mild Section, and Beer of the Festival at the Rochdale, Bury and Oldham Festival. Beer Manchester described this beer as a deep red brown beer with a chocolatey floral nose, noting “initial chocolate on the tongue, followed by a layer of tart cherry, light bodied but really smooth and an easy drinking beer that you could do all day. The fruitiness of the cherries leads to a light bitterness in the finish. A beautiful beer.”[11] In subsequent years as a regular part of their range, the beer would win more awards for the brewery, becoming one of their most popular sellers. In May, Saltaire Brewery released Blackberry Cascade (4.8%), a pale ale flavoured with blackberries, which goes onto be a seasonal release for the next few years. Later that same year, Art Brew then based in Holsworthy, Devon; debuted their Blackcurrant Stout (4.8%), it went onto to becoming one of the few fruit beers to appear in ‘The Bottled Beer Guide’ by Jeff Evans. In October, Wentworth released Strawberry Silk (4.2%). Moonshine debuted Chocolate Orange Stout (6.7%) which went onto be a regular fixture in both cask and bottle, and won beer of the festival at the Elysian Beer Festival that year. Meanwhile, Iceni won a Gold Award for Raspberry Wheat (5%) in the Speciality category at Peterborough Beer Fest; and Green Jack released Fruit Bat (5.5%), which subsequently was sold as part of their seasonal range in the Autumn months. The final year of the decade saw continued success on the fruit beer front, Chocolate Cherry Mild (3.8%) sustained it’s run of awards, achieving Bronze at the Stockport Beer Festival and two gongs at the Woking Beer Festival including Best Mild and Beer of the Festive. Meanwhile Amber Ales’ Chocolate Orange Stout (4%) won Bronze in the specialist beer category at GBBF, it will go on to win on two more consecutive years in Gold and Silver respectively. Downton Brewery won a pair of awards, including Silver at SIBA South-West for Apple Blossom Ale (4.3%) and Silver (Specialist) as voted by the Norwich & Norfolk CAMRA branch for Chocolate Orange Delight (5.8%). At the Cambridge Beer Festival that year, both Fruit Beer – Grapefruit (4.7%) – St. Peter’s and Chocolate & Orange Stout (6.7%) – Moonshine, won Silver and Bronze awards in the specialist category. And Pink Panther (4.4%) was awarded beer of the festival at the Tredegar House Folk Festival. There was a slew of releases that year, in February that year Hornbeam released Blackcurrant Stout (4.7%), Meantime debuted Elderflower Maibock (6%) as a seasonal special in cask and bottle, Art Brew release their 2nd fruit beer Happy Fruit (4.9%) which featured at the Egham Beer Festival, Saltaire released several fruit infused beers, including Cherry Stout (4.7%), Eldeflower Blonde (4%), Strawberry Republika (4.1%) and Raspberry Blonde (4%), the latter beer becomes a regular in their range.  In the spring Buntingford released both Peach Highwayman (3.6%) and Mango Lightning (4.4%) as seasonal specials.  In June, Brentwood Brewery unveiled Chockwork Orange (6.5%), a strong ale made with real oranges; once described as one of life’s guilty pleasures in a Telegraph article, this beer has since been designated as the official beer for the book ‘A Clockwork Orange’ by the Anthony Burgess Foundation who described it as “their acclaimed Chockwork Orange beer is a deep chocolate, malty beer brewed with oranges and matured to create a classic ‘old ale’ style. ‘Milk-plus’ strength at 6.5%.”[12] Later that year, the beer won a pair of awards including Best Strong Ale at the Chelmsford Beer Festival, and Silver at SIBA East, the beer would continue to win a slew of awards for the brewery and continues to be sold as part of their regular range. Meanwhile, in August, Phoenix launched their Phoenix Fruits range of Fruit Beers beginning with Strawberry (4.2%) and quickly becomes a hit with drinkers; it is only sold in keg only form, Passion (4.3%), made with passion fruit follows on soon after. As the decade drew to a close, Waen Brewery debuted Blackberry Stout (3.8%), it became one of their more popular beers sold in both cask and bottle; and in December, Sharp’s released Winter Berry (4.3%) as a Winter seasonal, and the same month Hydes first sold Berry Good Ale (4.5%) as a cask special for Winter 2009-10, it was re-released in 2012. The Noughties were a pivotal period for the development of fruit beers in the UK, as their growing success helped shake off the negative publicity they endured in the previous decade. Though the next few years would see even greater success, as home-grown fruit beers cemented their reputation as recognised and revered beer style.

References

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[1] ‘St. Peter’s Grapefruit Beer’; The Beerly, c.2012

[2] ‘Bramble Stout – Burton Bridge Brewery’ by Sam Cohen, Sam’s Brew’s, 9^th November 2011

[3] ‘Banana Bread Beer?’ by Steve Plumridge, Pints West, No. 54, Apr-Jun 2002

[4] ‘Down in One – Cains Fine Raisin Beer’ by Roger Protz, The Guardian, 8^th November 2003

[5] ‘Classic Beer Styles - Part 7: Lambic and Geuze’, Beer Around ‘Ere, Issue 114, Christmas 2003

[6] ‘Young people do like real ale if only they knew it’; Pints West, Issue 63, Autumn 2004

[7] ‘The August Session – Blackberries & beer’ by Jessica Boak, Boak & Bailey, 5^th August 2007

[8] ‘The Fem-Ale debate’ by Helen Featherstone, Pints West, No,76, Winter 2007/8

[9] Other fruit based beers, Downton released in 2007 included Orange Chocolate Stout (4.5%), Double Cherry Draught (4.5%) and Logan’s Berry (4.4%), all were limited edition one-offs.

[10] ‘The best of this year's bottled beers are put to the test’ by Stephen Sinfield, Staffordshire Live, 11^th November 2017

[11] ‘Chocolate Cherry Mild’; Beer Manchester, 21^st April 2014

[12] ‘A Chockwork Orange, by Brentwood Brewing Company’; The International Anthony Burgess Foundation, 4^th October 2012