Abbey Ales Bellringer

After a few pints of the delicious Barnstormer at The Porter, I decided to move onto the next pump which was serving up Bellringer (4.2% abv) from Abbey Ales. Bellringer is a pale ale style bitter which has a dominating citrus flavour which actually works really well with the biscuit like malt flavours that are coming through. The bitterness level is similar to that of the Alligator Ale I posted about last week, and it tastes pretty similar as well. As most regulars will know, I am a big fan of well balanced APA style beers and this beer falls into that category. According to an old chap I got talking to at the bar, this beer is hopped with a mystery variety from Worcestershire.... in that case this is one of my favourite English hop varieties then! Actually the website mentions that Bellringer is hopped with Challenger for bittering and uses Fuggles and Worcester Goldings for aroma/flavour. More info is available from the Abbey Ales website: http://www.abbeyales.co.uk/

Abbey Ales have been brewing in Bath since 1997.

Bath Ales Barnstormer

Over the bank holiday weekend I escaped from London and headed out Bath, a town steeped in history which pre-dates the Romans. After a morning exploring the Roman Baths and an afternoon relaxing in the new thermal pools, it was time for a beer. Being a Sunday, most of the inter sting pubs were closed and after a couple of false starts (read quiet and quaint on the outside, disco boombox on the inside) we finally settled on a cosy little pub with a student like feel called "The Porter". This pub was slightly alternative and only sold vegetarian food, not really a problem as I had eaten anyway but the best part was the pub was serving up local beer. Upon inspecting the pumps I decided to go for a pint of Barnstormer (4.5% abv) from Bath Ales. Barnstormer is a fruity dark ales, which roughly falls under the style of Porter, but only just and that is a very loose interpretation. By taste it is very much a bitter, however it does have some chocolate roastiness. A well balanced and satisfying ale!

Bath Ales are actually not located in Bath itself but in Warmley, Bristol just a short hop west of Bath. Since commencing operations in 1995, the brewery has slowly expanded and commenced distribution to major supermarkets UK wide after setting up a bottling facility in 2007. You can find out more about Bath Ales, and Barnstormer in particular at this website.