TASTING NOTES: Brewdog Dogma

Time for a quick one before rest. Brewdog's Dogma is another eclectic little brew from the Scots, 7.8% abv along with heather honey, kola nuts, poppy seeds and guarana. Interesting additions to a hefty malt bill and mix of US and English hops, Bramley Cross and Amarillo.

330ml bottle, served chilled. Pouring with an amber body, little maroon hints on the edges. Bubbly fluffy head, settling to a fine whisp.

Spicy honey sweetness on the nose, almost some malt extract before it goes in the boil. Oily almost buttered toast along with fresh lavender and some beefy hops.

Taste is herbal with a touch of heather followed by a good wallop of meaty, dry hops followed once again by a chunky malt character. When I first tried this it had reminders of Stone's Arrogant Bastard and I noted that Amarillo hops are big on the bill in this ale also. A slightly vinous note and a little bit of sweetness and caramel on the finish.

A warming strong ale. The additions are noticeable but certain don't push this into 'heather ale' territory, the hops make sure they have their rightful place. Go and try some...

BEER TRAVEL: The Rattle N Hum, NYC

The Irish Are Coming...

There is nothing better than trying beer in a foreign land. Having a completely different selection available is as freeing as it is exciting. The Rattle N' Hum was the main stop on a recent (by recent I mean February) to New York. A city that has its fair share of top of the line brewing, most notably Brooklyn Brewery.

The 'Hum is located just across from the Empire State, so after appropriate tourism you can visit this superb little bar.
Owner Patrick Donagher, originally from Donegal has really tried to cram every aspect of US microbrewing into this little bar.

A long sloping bar on the way in, some 40taps offering some of the country's finest range of beastly hopped and mildly refined ales.

On our three visits while we were the rotating list stayed pretty much the same, unforntunately we missed the IPA-a-thon they had the following week but I'm being pedantic. I had numerous big bold IPA's and Imperial Stouts. Stone's Arrogant Bastard, a favourite of mine (now available here and I have the bottles in my cupboard to prove it) oak aged.

Storm King stout on tap. A truly glorious beer which never disappoints. Beers from Weyerbacher, Brooklyn, Dogfish, Goose Island, Rogue, Smuttynose, Sixpoint.... the list goes on, however I was there on a purely recreational level and inebriation may have kicked in.

A really interesting place to go a beer, they now have a small cask bar and a bottled list comprising some very hard to get brews. I left with a handful of great brews courtesy of Patrick, Nogne Imperial Stout, Stone 12th Anniversary, Peche Mortel and Smuttynose Old Brown Dog

They also do a 'beer flight', 4 8oz servings of tap beers for $16. A great way to try as much as possible while you are there.

TASTING NOTES: Brewdog Chaos Theory IPA

This Scottish brewery has really made a name for themselves in the last year or so. The range of output is phenomenal and they don't appear to have typical reservations around abv, hop bills and brewing techniques. Chaos Theory is one of their many takes on an IPA, 7.1%abv and contains a firey hop bill.

330ml bottle, served chilled (in the same glass I've been using for all my beer notes over the last week or so, I will dip into the collection and change things a little)


It pours with a rich, slightly hazy amber body. Whispy off white head soon settling to a modest half finger.


Not a huge nose, English hops beefed up with an almost pilsner-esque Sazz aroma. A touch medicinal but only very slight, some fruity notes too but nothing overpowering

On the palette. huge biscuity dry lingering hops. A whack of quinine and grapefruit acidic notes, followed by a lasting pleasing dryness on the finish. Backbone of pale malt with a touch of alcohol too. Not big on aromas but hugely hopped bitterness on the palette. Some esters lingering around the mouth punctuated by bills, ballsy bitterness

This would be a great accompaniment to anything hot and spicy. A big bowl of chilli, anything Thai or cajun.

BeerAdvocate.com Reviews

My backlog of reviews can be found on the BeerAdvocate.com site, haven't been as active the last year or so but there are some 600 odd tasting notes on there, early ones having varying degrees of accuracy and literacy :)

TASTING NOTES: Terrapin India Style Brown Ale

After a pleasingly short trip across the Irish Sea from online retailer

Beersofeurope.co.uk I received a heaving parcel of fine beer. Two beers from Terrapin struck my attention, the first is their 'Brown' IPA and their Rye pale ale which we will get to at some point in the very new future

355ml bottle, served chilled

The brewery based in Georgia has created an American styled IPA with British brown ale influence. Essentially that means lots of fresh hops (five varieties in total) and no less than seven malts, including chocolate and dark munich.

Its a lively pour, creamy off white head forming immediately, soon settles to a thick whisp though. Rich dark ruby hue, it really surprising to see such a dark yet hopped brew at this abv of 6%

Huge zesty nose, unctuous fresh citrus hops followed by heaps of mango. There's a dry buttery diacetyl note in there too which backs up the brown ale aspect. Touches of lavender and purple violets.

The very first flavour is a thick malty kick, surprising for anything this hopped. Its buttery and somewhat vinous. Then come the hops, crisp and fresh, zingy on the palette all finished off with a whack of biscuit malt crunch on the finish. Dry acerbic hops on the finish and tiny hint of alcohol on the breath

All in all a very interesting departure within the style. Hard to say whether its a hopped brown ale or an IPA with a whack of dark malts thrown in but it is a superbly drinkable little offering.

Style: American Brown Ale/IPA

First post

This is the first post of the beer blog thus far, having beer trying to get my own up and running for sometime I've finally got round to it. The plan is.... talk about and write numerous tasting notes for beers of many different descriptions. I have in one form or another beer writing about beer for six or seven years but its finally time I have my own little morsel of web bravado, to get writing and tasting fabulous brews from all over.

The plan is simple. I need to explore and examine beers for my own edification, however I also want to inform and share knowledge with other alike. Hopefully to educate and be educated.

Sláinte !