Beer – #532 – Hawkshead – Cumbrian Five Hop
Five hops, hip hop, hop scotch and hopping to it.
“..a highly hopped aroma of tropical fruit and a blend of traditional and modern hops”
Hawkshead Cumbrian Five Hop, a beer gifted to me.
A 330ml bottle, 5% ABV, 150 calories in the bottle, and this wold be 1.3 standard drink units in NZ
Brewed by Hawkshead in the style that is Premium Bitter/ESB and they are from the home of the Mint Cake, Kendal, England
a gift that made me smile
Well hopped golden ale made using, as the name suggests, 5 different hop varieties; Goldings, Bramling Cross, Fuggles, Citra and Amarillo.
Flavours of tropical fruit, orange marmalade and herbal hop aromas are balanced by a juicy malt character.
A strong, golden pale ale, with a highly hopped aroma of tropical fruit and a blend of traditional and modern hops, giving a full flavour and long, dry finish.
What could go wrong?
Grassy lemony citrus aroma on opening, almost like sherbet.
A really pretty color orange brown, but without a head, which means the old me is back on pouring duties. Still lots of lemon and citrus in the aroma in the glass.
And a mouth-party of flavours, sweet through the middle and a dry finish, that was all a bit sudden and urgent.
So a melange of flavours but unmistakably British with the Fuggles and Goldings in there, a lot of malt too. Makes this an interesting mix of hop tastes, some sweetness and as I mentioned the towards dry finish.
As a gift of a beer I thought this was excellent. It’s a nice summery afternoon drinking beer, the lemon/orange/pineapple thing going on makes it pleasant in the mouth, but it is counterpoint to the finish and linger.
The pdubyah-o-meter rates this as a 7 of its things from the thing. A bit too much going on for me, but that isn’t to say that it isn’t nice, it might be a beer for a time and place. I just don’t think that place was right here, right now.
The double dip review
- Am I enjoying it? Sort of.
- Would I have another? On the right day this probably is a cracker of a drink for what ails you.
- Would I share with a friend on a porch and set the world to rights? Depends on if this post something or as a take-to party thing. I’d be happy to chug one after doing a chores, I’m note sure I’d take a 6 pack.
I lied about the hip-hop, I mean seriously, Instead though, right at the other end and with Post-Rock Ambience and Atmos, I have “The Echelon Effect” on the music machine.
This is “Watching Over The Headland” from the album “Pacific”
Which I found to be a bit good.
PREMIUM BITTER/ESB
In England, many breweries have a number of bitters in their range. The style that has come to be known as Premium or Special Bitter generally includes the stronger ( 4.6%-6.0%) examples. These are mostly served in the traditional way from the cask, but some are also found in bottle form where the extra malt allows them to stand up better than the more delicate ordinary Bitter. In the US, the designation ESB is common for this style, owing to the influence of Fuller’s ESB, the London brew that was among the first to be exported to the States. In the US, some ESBs are made with American hops and a clean yeast, but the alcohol range is the same, as is the range of bitterness, usually between 25 and 35 but occasionally creeping higher.
A life just as ordinary 