Tonight's Tipple.. Caledonian Brewery, Newcastle Werewolf

This bottle has been kicking around in the fridge for a little while and noone seems entirely sure who put it there, after a bit of research online it would appear that it was a 'limited edition' beer from 2011/2012?!? Although it definitely has not been in my fridge for that long!!

The labels profess a 'blood red ale' with 'mellow overtones of sweet berry fruit' then 'a bite of bitterness suddenly cuts through, long, deep and lingering'.

It delivered on the sweet berry notes at the start and there was a lingering bitterness at the end but I'm not sure the change was sudden and I found the bitter notes quite sweet.

I found it quite light and easy drinking on a warm summer's evening even though it's sold as a 'Fall' beer. I'm not sure it really has the body to get you through a Scottish autumn.

As far as red ales go, this one is fairly middle of the line. The rye malt means it's not overwhelming hoppy, which is all good by me.

Perfectly fine as a session beer, the flavours are light, it's inoffensive and at 4.5% it won't completely blow your socks off once you've had a few.

Tonight's tipple.. Atom Beers Dark Alchemy

Atom Beers' Dark Alchemy was absolutely delightful!

The fact that it has no hops made it especially endearing. As much as I love beer, I really don't love hops...

The label on the back promised "a complex malt bill with the bitterness and aroma from lots of cardamom & coriander to create a porter rich in body and brimming with character" and it certainly did not disappoint.

Smooth, light and very easy drinking..Full bodied and velvety chocolate on the palette with a slight hint of bitterness at the finish. The good kind of bitterness.. like eating 80% chocolate.. you want it to linger a bit so you can savour the flavour just that little bit longer.

Paired especially well with my slow cooked ribs in a slightly spicy BBQ sauce.

Will definitely be picking up more of this next time I'm at the bottle shop!

Tonight's Tipple... Drygate Brewery Outtaspace Apple Ale

For those of you who follow me on Instagram, you'll know that I often post a "Today's tipple" or "Tonight's Tipple", part of me things I should just jump on the blog and post a few tasting notes each time, as much as a record for myself as well as for sharing my thoughts on the things I'm drinking.. I was asked tonight on facebook about what I thought of tonight's tipple so here's we go..

Very, very appley on the nose and palate.. very sweet and quite sugary at the finish, then a slight hoppy bite at the end with a lingering sweetness in the mouth... Great for a sunny day though probably couldn't drink more than one with it being quite sugary and also slightly syrupy

As much as I enjoyed the Apple Ale, I think I prefer fruity beers that have a bit more tartness. I'm looking forward to trying more beers from Drygate and hopefully getting to visit their brewery in Glasgow soon!