I got chatting for a little bit with Sarah Howe from Adnams, and after I told her about my blog, and after she told me about things that were going on at Adnams, she kindly offered me a bottle of Ghost Ship - a beer right up my street really. It was unfortunate however that this bottle got smashed during the Pilsner Urquell dinner and so I a poured my sadness out in a few random tweets, not directly at anyone, just into the time stream. I'm not sure how but Sarah managed to see this and told me if I got my address to her she'd send me some more. "Very kind" I thought and obliged. A few days later a box arrived for me from Adnams. I didn't realise it would be a mixed selection of six bottles though... insert smily face here.
Here is the low down on what I received and what I thought:
Going off a different direction I had the strongest next; Broadside, 6.3% - It's a beer quite a few are familiar with. A couple of shades darker than the previous but with a beautiful amber brown with a red ruby hinted colour. The aromas in this one are all about the aniseed and pears. It's quite floral too, and it's a single hopped beer (cos they're cool) with First Gold making a big presence. The flavour is big on the toffee malts making it quite sweet in body. Slightly woody too, with hints of vanilla. Big on the fruit cake flavours with a touch of rum soaked raisins. Brewed to commemorate the battle of Sole Bay it warms the heart with it's boozy kick. I should also note that Sarah gave me a taste of their recent Adnams Spirit distilled from Broadside ingredients, and I must say without conviction that it was incredibly impressive.
After a bit of a break it was time for Explorer, 5% - In colour it's the lightest of the lot so far - a big Chinook and Columbus Pale Ale. The aroma is fantastic fresh lemon grass. Citrus fruits and honeycomb sweetness are also present. It's a great refresher, served chilled as is bottle requested. Grapefruit and lemon is the main presence with a little dry spice in the finish. It's just the kind of beer you want after a long shift.... and if that sounds rehearsed, I just finished my shift as I type this, and it's really hitting the spot!
And finally, the beer that brought me here, the one I was most looking forward to and the one I'd heard the most about... and the one that almost got away; Ghost Ship, 4.5% - 'A Ghostly Pale Ale'... how could I not like that? Am I right in saying that Citra hops were involved in this? It has a huge aroma of lemon and lime, lots of grapefruit and lemon sherbet, quite frankly in smells delicious. It's delicious too! Oranges, limes and lemons assault your tongue while the perfect balance of fruit, sweetness and bitterness interplay to create a beer that is so refreshing, so drinkable, so damn good, that I'm typing with one hand right now!
This Ghost Ship steals the whole show! And I have the pleasure of my bag smelling of this for a while now...
They say free beer always tastes better, and there may be some truth to that. It's still pretty obvious however, that Adnams can make some pretty fantastic beers: Regardless of whether or not I got these free, I should know - I've paid for many a pint of Adnams in the past, and my opinion of them has yet to change.
Adnams rock. Simple as. Ghost Ship is great, and Lighthouse and Explorer are great hot-day beers. A stupidly underrated Brewery. You tried thier Broadside Whiskey yet?
ReplyDeleteThis is a gud artikle. Maybe you like nice ladies as well as the bear? Come to Bennies in Beeston, very good with very nice ladies what can drink the bear and do othere nice things what the man likes.
ReplyDeleteTried the Ghost Ship at the Castle Inn in Cambridge on a recent visit down south. We had good beers everywhere in Cambridge, but this had to be the pick. I agree that there must be Citra in the mix somewhere.
ReplyDeleteWell done to Adnams for producing a hop forward beer.
"so damn good, that I'm typing with one hand right now" - that is too much information, Ghost!!!
ReplyDeleteHello matte nice post
ReplyDelete