cask in standing order ... dark brown ... thin tan head ... soft roast malt ... thin body ... watery ... light roast pealy wally ... nothing there ...

7th April 2010. Clear dark brown beer. Smooth light palate. Rich chocolatey malt with a light sweet coconut note. Some mild hop bitterness in the aftertaste.

12th April 2010. Clear amber beer. No head, low carbonation. Semi dry palate. Dry malt and then some balancing bittering hop that is orangey. Mildy bitter aftertaste. An unremarkable US beer reproduced in all it’s unremarkableness in the UK. What was the point again?

12th April 2010. Clear gold beer. No head, totally flat beer! Dry palate. Even malt - slightly creamy. Reasonably well balanced with some non bitter orange hop. Unfortunately there are also some distinct sulfur things going on here. What a shame! Still waiting for my first decent African craft beer. This one isn’t too bad though.

12th April 2010. Slightly hazy pale gold beer. No head and no carbonation! Light semi dry palate. Very light malt that is aromatic. Subtle orange and floral notes. A whsiper of banana. Finishes semi dry. I like the way that all the subtle flavours join up. Some carbonation would be good. A tiny bit of spice in the aftertaste.

[Gravity cask at the Back of Beyond, Reading] Black with a thin tan head. Coconut evident in the aroma but not in the flavour. Toasted malt and milk chocolate come through in the mouth, with a bitter, roasty follow-through in a very thick mouthfeel. Flavours not as strong as I expected, but it’s still a pleasing drink, and surprisingly easy-drinking. Banks do seem to do well with these guest brewers.

[Cask at Monks Retreat, Reading] Yellow with a slight white, negligible head. Sweet marzipan, followed by floral hints. Nice smooth refreshing mouthfeel. Flavours are a little muted, but it worked rather well for me - an enjoyable beer.

[Gravity cask at Back of Beyond, Reading] Amber. Tastes of green leaves and earth with a slight tingle of spice and a hefty, mouth-numbing bitterness. Felt it had more than a hint of the Shepherd Neame Fremlins Bitter about it, which made me wonder if either Sheps copied this for their own festival beer, or if Sheps actually had more influence over this brew than Goose Island (I haven’t tried the original Honkers Ale, so can’t compare on that basis). Either way, I disliked it.

[Gravity cask at Back of Beyond, Reading] Golden amber. Sweet honey, syrup and malt with virtually no balancing bitterness. Despite the sweetness, it,s not actually sticky. In fact, it’s quite pleasant, but given the sweetness may benefit from being served a little cooler than cellar temperature (and it’s not often that I say that about a cask ale).

Cask at the Monks Retreat (JDW), Reading. Black with a tawny hue and a tan head; earthy, woody aroma; oily texture and a strong woody flavour; with a dry finish. Interesting, but I wouldn’t really want a second helping of this.