330ml bottle from Waitrose, Wokingham. Chestnut with a ruby glow and a billowing caramel coloured head; intense aroma of treacle, caramel, burnt sugar and spice, rich and appealing. Syrupy in the mouth, but not as sweet as expected, lots of smoke and peat from the roasted malt giving balance and a slight sourness; the finish is long and lingering, starting with a espresso coffee and then developing a velvet chocolate fullness, and leaving a touch of sweet cherries on the lips, and a warming feeling suggesting a much higher ABV. An excellent porter, the best beer of the Lovibond range I’ve tasted so far.

[330ml bottle from Waitrose, Marlow] Over-priced at £2.09 for a small bottle of average ABV (and comparing with other beers in Waitrose and the brewery’s own website, this is definitely profiteering by the brewer rather than the retailer). Pours a deep reddish brown with a tiny yet surprisingly tenacious head. Some carbonation. Smells deeply vinous and a little smokey, and sniffing it made me feel oddly hungry. Initial taste is quite smokey, very dry, with some sourness behind. A little chocolate and caramel comes through, but is rather hidden by the other flavours. Not much change into the afterness - a dry, smokey sourness is the dominant flavour. Has the feel of a poor quality mild rather than a porter. It’s all a bit disappointing after the rather good Lovibonds Gold & Amber - the dark is definitely the worst of the bunch.

[330ml bottle from Waitrose, Marlow] Rather a rip-off paying £2.09 for an average-ABV 330ml bottle - and looking at the brewery website, it appears this is down to the brewer’s pricing rather than Waitrose. Pours a dark gold with a large and lasting foamy white head. Quite high carbonation for an ale, giving a prickly mouthfeel. Malt, citrus and tropical fruits in the aroma - a pleasant smelling beer. Flavour is strongly of citrus; sweet on the tongue but with some sourness following. A sticky mouthfeel means this is not as refreshing as many golden ales; could do with a little more bitterness (and it’s not often you here me saying that!). A bit of sponge cake and floral perfume in the finish. The more I drank this the more I liked it - it’s an interesting beer with a lot of potential, but just needs a little refinement and something to cut through the stickiness - and perhaps the carbonation could be taken down a notch, along with the price?!

[330ml bottle from Waitrose, Marlow] Lots of big chunks of sediment in this one, but quite easy to avoid with careful storage and pouring. Poured an odd slightly cloudy amber-brown, with a small but lasting white head. Good fresh malty smell that made me want to tuck in immediately! There’s an odd greasy mouthfeel, but the flavour is that classic English barnyard hay & straw, with some malt behind and a bit of pepper. There’s a fair whack of bitterness too (according to the website there’s 34 IBU’s, whatever that means) but it’s a fresh, uplifting bitterness that is perfectly balanced against the other flavours. Aftertaste is still that refreshing bitterness, although the greasy mouthfeel unfortunately remains to haunt it. Pepper comes through again strongly some time after finishing it. Overall this is a top-notch bitter with a delightfully fresh, modern taste; it’s a shame it only comes in a 330ml bottle (which left me feeling rather short changed!) - I do feel English beers need a 500ml bottle or pint to fully appreciate them.

33cl bottle from Waitrose. Brilliant amber with a loose off-white head; spicy plum aroma; malty body with more spicy fruit and a sharp bitter finish. Light and very drinkable.

Cask gravity at Reading BF 06. Golden/orange beer with no head. Slightly sticky aroma, bit of ginger. Some resiny hops and a bit of orange fruit