Whatcha drinking (2018-2022)?

Status
Not open for further replies.
The wine and kirsch we used for our fondue tonight:

53883


Both are excellent.
 
The batch of north-east beers (mentioned a while back) was intended for Christmas/New Year, but Yeovil interrupted. Never mind, the BB dates were well ahead, so no matter. We started on the first of four last night with Alnwick IPA.

A lot of so-called IPAs are perfectly pleasant ales, but don't really fit with my idea of what an India Pale Ale should be. This isn't one of them. It's a nice and robust hoppy ale with a vigorous bitter finish. At 4.5%, it's what I'd call mid-strength. Completely new to me and most enjoyable.
 
French sparkling wines produced outside the Champagne area can be tremendous value. I think they try harder because they can't use the "Champagne" name. This one is very modestly priced, but better than any budget Champagne at twice the price.
54594
 
While beer is the predominant alcoholic tipple in this house, we are not averse to a little wine now and then. Or indeed, a big wine. We got a 15-case of Italian wine for the princely sum of £80 recently. There were 3x3 reds and 2x3 whites. Thus far, we've tried one each of the reds and found them most palatable. We got them from Giordano, whose prices are generally pretty good. We've also had some odds and ends of food and beer from them and can't fault any of it. I'd have to say they're a bit slow when it comes to getting your order on the road, but in terms of what they turn out, I have no complaints.
 
We had this tonight:
54900



I'm not really a wine-head, so I'd never heard of these grape varieties. This came in a six-bottle sampler pack from a wine supplier.

I must say, it's excellent. Just delicious. I'm going to be looking for more of this.
 
The next of our north-eastern beers comes from the First and Last brewery in Elswood, right in the middle of Northumberland, on the edge of the beautiful and wild national park. Our beer is Reiver Best Bitter, a 4.2% ale that is an excellent example of an old-fashioned best. There is a little sweetness in the first mouthful, with a hint of toffee. Then the hops kick in and you end with a robust bitterness.

The name comes from the "border reivers" who raided along the Anglo-Scottish border from the 13th to 17th centuries. There were reivers on each side of the border. Their primary target was livestock.
 
A little more of the Reiver Best last night, the last alongside a drop of Jura malt that we acquired recently. I was going to get another bottle of Bowmore, but spotted the Jura at a very decent price, so went for that one. It's a typical island malt in many ways, with a hint of peat to it. You also get a touch of vanilla and lemon in the taste. Very nice, I thought.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top Bottom