Cask at Shrewsbury Arms, Stafford. Pours golden amber with minimal almost white head and good lacing. There’s floral hops and citrus n the aroma. In the mouth it is quite sharp but with a tropical juiciness, and some bitterness becomes evident later. Flavour has tangerine, marmalade and floral hops plus hints of pine and citrus. Finish is slightly dry. This is decent.

Cask at Shrewsbury Arms, Stafford. Pours almost black with a medium sized foamy tan head and good lacing. Roasted malts to the fore in the aroma alongside honey and biscuits. There’s some sweetness in the mouth, but plenty of sharpness too. Texture is a little watery. Dark fruits are the most prominent flavour plus roasted malts and hints of liquorice. Some spice and currants come later. Still a little sweetness in the finish. This is decent.

Cask at Sun, Stafford. Pours golden amber with a small foamy off-white head and good lacing. There is a muted aroma of just hints of malts and floral hops. In the mouth it is sweet with a creamy texture but with some underlying bitterness that gradually increases. Flavour is initially floral hops and marmalade being augmented by mango and some nutty hints after a while. Finish is quite bitter and slightly dry. This is reasonable – but not really my cup of tea.

Bottle from my brother – drank at home. Pours almost black with a sizable frothy beige head and good lacing. The aroma has a basic sweetness with oats, honey and roasted malts. In the mouth it is initially quite sharp with coffee and liquorice, but this soon mellows, to reveal flavours of dark fruits, oats and roasted malts. Traces of honey and vanilla come later leading to a fruity finish. This is quite decent.

Bottle at Hops, Crewe. Pours a hazy lemon yellow with a small frothy white head and good lacing. The aroma has spices, coriander and yeast. In the mouth it is quite sharp but with some sweetness in the creamy body. Wheat is the dominant flavour with healthy contributions too from banana, yeast and spices with hints of bubblegum and cherries coming later. Sharpness lasts into a quite spicy finish. This is a top quality witbier.

Cask at Alexandra, Derby. Pours a dark (almost very dark) reddish-brown with minimal off-white head. There’s roasted malts and herbs in the aroma. In the mouth it is sweet with a creamy texture, but also a little underlying sharpness. Flavour starts off with malts and chocolate with cola, lactose and herby hints coming through later. A little spice in the finish. This is decent.

Cask at Alexandra, Derby. Pours a murky orange-brown with minimal off-white head. There’s alcohol, malts and nuts in the aroma. In the mouth it starts off slightly sweet with a creamy texture, but bitterness gradually increases to dominate. Flavour has mixed hops and autumn fruits plus hints of alcoholic strength. Traces of spice and apricot later on as well. Finish is slightly sweet and boozy. This is reasonable.

Cask at Standing Order, Derby. Pours almost black with a small foamy tan head and good lacing. Roast malts to the fore in the aroma alongside chocolate and lactose. In the mouth it is sweet and smooth with a creamy texture. Roasted malts and chocolate again in the flavour plus hints of raspberries leading to a slightly fruity finish. This is quite nice - the fruit are both there but don’t overwhelm.

Cask at Smithfield, Derby. Pours golden yellow with a small foamy off-white head and good lacing. Yeasts are to the fore in the aroma, along with floral hops and hints of bubblegum. In the mouth it is on the cusp between bitter and sweet with a creamy (almost cloying) texture. Flavour has yeasts, continental hops and malts with increasing spiciness. Traces of alcoholic strength and barley sugar come later, leading to a slightly boozy finish. This is decent. Not quite as distinctive as yer actual Belgian Tripel – but it’s dangerously drinkable !