Young's Kew Gold

Young's Kew Gold (4.8% abv) is a pale spritzy bottle conditioned bitter from Young's. I had the pleasure of getting my hands on this bottle at the Young's tied Coach and Horses on the edge of Kew Green. The beer is brewed with hops that are inspired by the varieties found in nearby Kew Gardens. My amateur hop detecting nostrils can detect styrian goldings (sorry no east Kent Golding's here) and maybe pride of ringwood. It tastes a little bit like coopers pale ale, ad pours a similar colour, however the beer is more harsh and has a strong carbonic bite as it is overcarbonated. This acidic bite makes the bitterness harsh and the beer not very refreshing. The beer is also bottle conditioned, so it qualifies as Real Ale under the conditions set out by CAMRA, but not that CAMRA's guidelines mean anything in the real world.

Basically I am a little underwhelmed by this beer. It seems like Young's have attempted to brew a basic lager under the disguise of a Real Ale, possibly in an attempt to convert lager drinkers into Real Ale fans? Anyhow, I still suggest that you check this one out, purely as its still an intersting beer (once you let it warm to ale temp and let the gas die down).