Benefits of shared labour
In the last year I have seen more and more collaborations between breweries, some producing outstanding results where the whole is undoubtedly more than the sum of its parts while others have unfortunately been a case of too many cooks spoiling the beverage.
This week brought a flood of collaborative efforts on to the shelves, and as many of them involve some of my favourite breweries I thought now was a good time to look at some of the finest fruits of shared labour.
FYNE ALES/ CANEDIGUERRA DEVINE
I find that Fyne are often at their most interesting when working with other people and this partnership with Italian brewery Canediguerra is in keeping with that theory. This “grape ale” – apparently a traditional Italian style – is very vinous on the nose with a good malty backbone. Refreshingly sharp on the palate, with flavours of sherbet, sparkling grape juice and light florals giving way to a lovely earthiness in the finish. These tiny bubbles definitely make me happy, make me feel fine.
TEMPEST/FALLEN/ PILOT/CROMARTY RHUBARB & CITRUS SOUR
Four of Scotland’s finest are teaming up to make four collaborative beers to represent the seasons, and this spring offering is a strong start. Zesty aromas with a lovely bergamot note at the back, there is even more citrus in the flavour initially before the rhubarb makes itself known on the mid palate. That zest lasts in an unbelievably long finish, zingy with a wonderful sherbet prickle.
HORAL OUDE GEUZE MEGA BLEND 2017
The Toer De Gueze is a free yearly event where Lambic producers open their brewery to the public. In celebration of the tour, several breweries create and bottle a “megablend” of their finest beer for HORAL (the High Council for Artisanal Lambic Beers) and as 2017 is the 20th anniversary of the tour I expect this to be special. The gueuze is a blend of old and young from the great and the good, including 3 Fonteinen, Boon, De Oude Cam, De Troch, Hanssens, Lindemans, Oud Beersel, Tilquin and Timmermans. I’m saving my bottle for a special occasion but, having tried previous vintages, I can confidently say this will be one of the best beers a Lambic lover can taste.
NORTHERN MONK/ ALEFARM PATRONS PROJECT 7.01 DDH SAISON
A well-hopped Saison from this Leeds lot (teaming up with a Danish brewery that we don’t see nearly enough of over here), this is a juicy tropical treasure with a little bitter grapefruit and plenty of that telltale spicy yeast character to remind you that this is indeed a saison as opposed to an IPA.
NORTH BREWING CO/ HET UILTJE DIPA
More from Leeds, this time working with Het Uiltje from the Netherlands for a big DIPA. Pine, mango and soft citrus mingle nicely on the nose. Some beers in this style do their best to mask the high ABV but that is not the case here with the warming alcohol apparent from the first sip. That’s no bad thing, as it adds a real richness to proceedings and helps all the flavours that the nose promised linger in the finish.