Brown 500ml bottle with an evil looking dragon’s head on the front label, nicely packaged beer. The beer was best before the end of June 2011, it was poured into an Abbot Ale tankard and reviewed on 20th Feb 2011. Dull golden amber in colour, the head a full white foam covering. Fuggles Hops are used in the brew and they come through in both the smell and taste, the beer leaning heavily towards being hoppy more than a malty brew. Sharp and well carbonated, easy to drink, very refreshing and certainly hoppier than most English Ales.

Brown 500ml bottle, best before the end of Aug 2011, drank and reviewed mid July 2011. What a lovely beer, just as good as it’s cask conditioned version. Looks and tastes great, the head producing some heavy lacing as the beer level sank. Just a joy to drink and for more information read my cask review because the bottles are super too. Second part of my writings: Cask Pint: Reviewed at the excellent White Hart pub in Shifnal, Shropshire (Sep 2007). Good ruby red dark colour with a biege foaming head which stayed the distance. The beer was pulled into a pint sleeved glass. I just stared at it for a good minute, because it looked so fine. Chocolate malty aroma, burnt toast as well. The taste followed the smell, chocolate and toasty, the hops used are fuggles, but I couldn’t detect any hop flavours. The beers flavours hung around in the mouth and it is quiet thick and heavy for a 3.7% English Mild. Very drinkable, this isn’t the first time I have had this beer and I was surprised to find I hadn’t reviewed it, or any of Holdens beers before.

Sep 2011: Hand pulled in my new local Wetherspoons pub, a pint in a sleeve. I’ve had this lovely beer many times, but never reviewed it before for some reason. All Holdens beers look good and this one is ‘really good looking’; great amber body, clear and rich, the creamy off-white head sticking to the glass like a wet net curtain. No huge aroma, a mix of malt molasses and yeasts, with hints of hops as the beer warms. Malts rule the flavours as well as the smell, this is a semi-sweet Premium Bitter, the type I prefer, the malts allude to a toffee liking feel. Almost creamy in texture, but remaining true to its roots, this is a classic West Midlands (Black Country) Bitter and long may it be so.

The Holden’s Brewery owns two of my favourite pubs. Their beers in cask form are superb but I rarely review in bars, this is being done at home and is in bottle form. Brown 500ml, best before end of Feb 2010, drank and reviewed early Dec 2009. Poured into an ’Old Speckled Hen’ vase shaped pint glass. Almost lager like in appearance, pale gold and clear, with a pure white head. The aroma tells you straight away it isn’t a lager though, great wafts of hops and yeast fill your nose. This is a proper English Pale Ale. The hops from the aroma also add their bitterness, or maybe they have hops for each sense as many brewers do? The beer is refreshing and imparts a sweet bitterness in the first instance, before becoming more harsh and dry in the aftertaste. The 4.4% ABV is evident and sits well within this very balanced beer. Holden’s do seasonal beers and I am sure most start off as this brew in the Mash Tun and they then play with it to produce the changing occasional beers. Very drinkable session beer and even better in cask form (if well looked after). Got round to reviewing a cask one at last (Oct 2011): I have this so often when out it seemed a shame not to review it, in fact I’ve started to review more cask ales while out now (when the wife isn’t with me). This is a great brew and although the bottle version is fine a well looked after cask one is superb and a joy to drink: just add superlatives where you wish.

From a carry out container from the Bitter End, Bromley. Golden/amber pour with a white head. Strong vanilla nose with a light malt character. Vanilla and light fruit flavour. Bitter-fruit finish.

cask at GBBF 2011 ... Golden yellow ... soft light eggg lemon nose ... soft dull fruit hop front ... ok

Cask @ Volunteer Arms, GBBF 2011. Pours a golden color with a small off-white head. Has a fruity malty caramel aroma. Fruity malty caramel flavor with hoppy hints. Has a fruity malty caramel finish.

Handpull at GBBF 2011. Golden colour with a white head. Flower hoppy aroma. Fruity and hoppy flavour, but a very low carbonation spoiled it.

Gravity cask at the Wandsworth Halloween BF 2011. Pours dark brown with a small, white foam head. Toasty malt nose, hints of caramel. Light to medium sweet flavor, toasty malts, bread, light grass, light cocoa. Light to medium bodied with fine, tingly carbonation. Faintly dry finish, light roast, light cocoa, mild dark sugars. (3.5)

Cask at The Great Western during the RateBeer Black Country Bus Bash. Pours clear brown with a light, white foam head. Wet earth on the nose, some light cocoa. Light sweet flavor with moldy earth, brown bread and mellow chocolate. Light bodied with fine carbonation. Light sweetness to finish, further cocoa and mild bitter earth. So so. Condition might be lacking. (2.9)

Cask at GBBF 2011, Day 3. Pours clear amber with a soft head. Bready, yeasty aroma with some rich, dark fruits. Very sweet flavor, lots of dark fruits and brown sugar. Medium bodied with soft carbonation. Lightly warming finish, plenty of sugar, rich bread, slight booze, caramel and darkened fruits. Very solid.