So now, I’m probably 4 years into a craft beer fuelled journey of excitement and wonder and I have tried a lot. There are up and down sides of trying a ‘new’ beer every time you wander into an unknown pub; I’ve had some incredible beers but also some incredibly underwhelming stale beers. There’s been gold, brown, pale gold, bright yellow, black even a very slight green all sorts in this journey and if it’s one thing I’ve learnt it’s that the most mental looking beer counts for nothing. It could mean they’ve packed as many hops as they can in it just to say they have ‘X’ amount, could mean someone went a bit mental with the food colouring or it could mean they’re being off the wall and trying to make their brand stand out because they know they have a solid product that the public needs to know about.
I’ve decided to conjure up this list (on the right is the short list) in a hope to narrow down the ever growing beer list to top quality crafts that will refresh, inspire and even excite. Now I have absolutely no idea how I’m going to narrow down all the beers I’ve loved into a list of just the 5 best so there’s gonna be some honorable mentions thrown in for the ones that didn’t make the list but for one reason or another stood out to me. I’ll do it backwards because you know, it's dramatic and stuff. Let's do this.
TLDR; I Bloody love beer, and you should drink Jackhammer, Resin, Snake Dog IPA, 13 Guns and Jaipur IPA.
5. Jackhammer - Brewdog
At five we have a entry (not the only one) from Brewdog, The crafters that kicked off my spiritual pilgrimage into the world of beer, it’s an amazing beer on the strong side but it’s just so flavoursome that the punch that it packs doesn’t even affect you because it’s just such a nice tasteful beer. Jackhammer, the ruthless IPA as described by the artists at Brewdog themselves is a 7.2% quite literally ruthless beer. Incredibly smooth for such a punch, that much so that when you have your first sip it’s like you’ve woken up all of a sudden and your mouth is having a little internal party like “come on pal get some more of that down you” it doesn’t taste like a 7.2% which is good but also incredibly dangerous for a long day. It’s so bitter and that might put people off but I cannot recommend this beer enough it’s like a kick in the face quickly followed up with love and affection. It’s almost addicting tasting this beer, the only reason it is this low down is because of the % drinking this is incredible but it simply couldn’t be an all day drink, even for me. Beer as we all know is also about being social and being with friends enjoying yourself and you definitely would with Jackhammer just not for as long as you would like to probably.
4. Resin - Sixpoint
At four we have another big hitter (certainly in terms of ABV %) it makes Jackhammer look like a… little hammer? As this beer packs in at a whopping, eye watering 9.1%, Resin from sixpoint across the pond, considering it is 9.1% they still sell it in a regular format of 335 ml Cans or even pint draught in some very very lucky places in America. Again much like Jackhammer it’s very easy drinking and smooth considering its ABV it doesn’t even really pack that massive punch that you’d expect. It’s so full of flavour and aroma it’s a real experience drinking this beer and you’re only going to want more of it, not that you can have a great deal of it before toppling.
I went to the local and it was there as a special guest craft section; naturally I tried it straight away drawn in by the pretty can (yes I’m still a marketing mug)
, as you can guess 4 cans later I’m tipsier than you should be after 4 cans, this is the moment I glance down to see the 9.1% ABV and it all makes a lot more sense. I really again can't recommend enough as it’s so smooth, it leaves really small head when poured (for quick accessible drinking) and there’s no stale taste left in your mouth like many beers leave, especially ones of this ABV. The one downside is that it’s so in demand over here in England it’s so hard to get your hands on, as soon as it’s in stock it’s gone again, for such a high demand it’s strange the demand hasn’t been met. To be in at 4 is no mean feat but again it falls down at the same place that Jackhammer does, it’s not a social day long drink otherwise this would be a lot higher on just taste alone it’s just incredible.
3. Snake Dog IPA - Flying Dog
Again a common theme here with ABV Snake Dog IPA comes in at 7.1% so again a bit high for all day drinking...unless you want it to be quite a short, glazed over day. Obviously as the name suggests we have an IPA here, it’s a different creature to the previous 2 in the list. It’s mad fruity, which is good it’s really smooth and there’s just a taste sensation going on with every second it’s in your mouth. It’s most notable taste is one of grapefruit, with a rich caramelly finish (that would probably be the caramel speciality malt used) we have a whopping 5 hops in there meaning it sits happily at the mount of hops included, now I know, I know I suggested in the intro that packing hops in is a simple novelty approach and rarely transforms into anything but a poor attempt at a marketing niche. Yet as you can probably guess with it being here on the list it’s a great great effort at shoving hops in there and you can tell they’ve put them together with a great deal of thought, Flying dog have made a great name for themselves within the Hoppy community and I for one hope they stick around for a long time if they make taste sensations like this on a regular basis. This beer really isn’t for everyone, if you’re an IPA lover you will love this but if you’re recently introduced into the craft beer world then it will probably be like marmite and could go either way. If you mostly like lager and only dabble in this world of craft then chances are you’re going to think it tastes pretty eccentric and quickly put it down. But anyone up for a bit of beer adventure, give this a go! And even if you don’t like it brag about the amount of hops you’ve drunk to your friends and look super cool.
Honourable mention goes to… Albino Squid Assassin - Brewdog
Albino squid assassin.. Do I need to say more? Well, yes! What a name firstly, secondly it’s one of the only Red Rye crafts that I have come across and actually liked. Usually I find Red Rye, any kind of Rye for that matter so fruity it may as well be a cider, which obviously has it’s place but as a non-cider drinker I’m far from impressed. It sits pretty at 7.4% which is a good ABV for a Red Rye, this is the wonder of craft beers they put so much thought into every invention, they don't just walk in and stick the conveyor belt on and see what comes out, they research, they test, they test, they test again, they fail, they test again and just keep going until they have a quality product. So if you’re looking for something really different to your normal craft beer experience, grab a can/bottle of Albino Squid Assassin and see what happens, you may just have found a new style of beer.
And you’ll never fail to be cool drinking something with such a bitchin’ name.
Here we are, down the big final 2!
2. 13 Guns - Crafty Dan
13 Guns, this is a tad different to the rest of the beers on the list it sits at 5.5% which for the sake of the list is actually quite low! But obviously this means great things in terms of drink-ability, in contrast to the rest of the list you can sit down and have more than 3 without feeling a bit jaded - we love an all day drinking session. It has a solid 6 hops in there which makes it more impressive how they compiled them in such a way to give this beer a medium body with a whitish tinged amber head. The smell is something heavenly, doesn’t smell of the typical citrusy, fruity aroma that most craft beers do, not that there’s anything wrong with that, but that is what makes this beer stand out - the smell of pine. This beer also stands out for another reason, it’s made here in the UK, in comparison to what seems like the rest of the world the UK was pretty late to the craft beer party. It being really low key and niche until about 2009(ish) when Brewdog really started to make their mark in the UK and woke everyone's taste buds up with a punch to the throat. Daniel Thwaites of Thwaites brewery is the founder and chief with the brewery actually having a record of producing beer all the way back to around 1807, so it’s fair to say they probably know their way around a brewery. With their expert knowledge spanning many a generation of the Thwaites family they decided they would create a crack team of experts to innovate and inspire the beer world, aptly timed with the craft beer UK revolution - thus ‘Crafty Dan’ was born. Now, they have a kick ass name they have more than enough knowledge and they birth us the beautiful 13 guns, the kind of beauty that can only be conjured up by many years of experience coupled with sheer innovation and love of what you’re doing. It really is a beautiful beer for ever sense from the pine smell to the medium sparkling yellow body topped with a little white afro the way it domes from central pouring, it would have every right to be #1 on many lists but it was beaten out by what is my favourite beer of all time, to date.
Now let’s make this super dramatic by throwing in another honourable mention before the big #1
Honourable mention - Punk IPA
Now an Honorable mention has to go to Punk IPA, it almost broke my heart leaving it out of the top 5 as it’s a staple beer in my beer fridge. It is a brilliant beer in every way, the smell is great, the colour is golden, the pour is fresh and the head is frothy but minimal. A mark of a good beer is when finished pouring the head still raises for another 5-10 seconds which is what Punk has that many don’t. Brewdog is now pretty accessible in UK bars and pubs with the vast majority of places having bottles and many now seeing the popularity and demand installing pumps, unlike most beers Punk actually tastes near enough the same whether from bottle of draft which is obviously as impressive as it is great. As I continue my beery adventure which I hope spans for the rest of my life, no matter how many I taste, what breweries go in what direction I will always have a special place in my heart for Brewdog and Punk. Not only did it start my personal craft beer journey but it bought craft beer to the masses, to the UK and in many ways paved the way for not only established brewers to try something different but the new kids on the block.
Brewdog showed that you can go from just 2 men, a dog and a shed to the pinnacle, from begging and pleading banks to fund your failing business to winning award after award, from an idea to a empire.
If you want to know more about Brewdog and their journey I can’t recommend enough Business for Punks written by James (Elvis) Watt, it’s as much about sticking a big middle finger up to doubters as it is about the Brewdog journey. I got the book for my personal indulgence and interest in Brewdog but came away from it with a newfound understanding of business, finance, startups, human nature, funding, a whole host of different useful life skills. So this is as much an honorable mention to Brewdog as it is to a beer.
1. Jaipur IPA - Thornbridge
This is it, the beer to end all beers, if I only had one beer I could drink for the rest of my life (probably the worst kind of hell) this would be it. Jaipur IPA is something extraordinary, at 5.9% it’s in the middle of all day drinkable and 3 cans jaded. Something very special has been produced with this beer, the gas is basically non-existent which makes it all not only drinkable but also very pleasant and smooth. I have no idea if they use a different brewing method, ferment for longer/shorter, let it sit in a different container who knows but it works. In contrast to 13 Guns it’s quite standard in aroma, citrusy and sweet, it has a very, VERY subtle oaky smell to it but unless you’re sat there with your nose in it or bathing in it you probably wouldn’t notice it. For months upon months I drank Jaipur IPA and absolutely loved it but couldn’t really put my finger on why, didnt know what made it different and like some beer soaked epiphany drinking from the bottle one day I got it, I finally realised the ‘secret’ ingredient. Of course I could have just looked on the back of the bottle or Googled it, but where’s the fun in that? It’s honey. It pours well into a really deep yellowy/gold, a lot darker than most other beers it almost looks like cloudy lemonade, the head is incredibly minimal (a result of the very minimal gas which is magically removed somehow). The taste is bitter initially not fruity as you’d expect from the aroma it’s not to some people’s taste, the bitterness but to mine it works just perfectly as if I wanted something fruitier I’d either have a Rye or a cider. The best part of drinking Jaipur IPA comes when you’ve actually swallowed it, the hops are released almost like slow burning, all of a sudden you mouth and throat is overcome with that really special hoppy flavour which is what most people drink crafts for. The after taste is earthy, which is something I find purely whimsical about craft beer and one of the traits which really fuels my passion for it, it’s almost like you can taste how much effort has been put into it, how they’ve taken something fundamentally filthy from the ground and made it something special. Maybe my love of this beer is something fantasized but if it is I’m fine with that because that’s the reason I drink beer, for something really special and enjoyable. The one downside to this beer is that it’s just not that accessible, it’s in very few bars and pubs in all the bars and pubs around the country I’ve been into I’ve seen it in 2 pubs. In 1 of the pubs it’s a staple and is always there which is brilliant and obviously one of my favourite pubs to go to, whereas the other was in a bar as a guest craft which was there for 2 weeks and then shipped on luckily with me visiting within those 2 weeks on pure chance. Another excellent bonus is that again much like 13 guns, it’s produced in the UK by Thornbridge and you can even go on a brewery tour and see it being made!
If you are lucky enough to stumble across Jaipur IPA in a pub or bar don’t think about leaving it to a later date as it’s probably disappearing in a couple weeks, so quickly have as many as you can before you’re stumbling around and finding it hard to pronounce Jaipur.
So there you have it, the best beers I have come across in the last few years since starting my beer fuelled journey, so if you come across any of these have them, order them, buy as much as you can. I know I’ve waffled on for a long time, so if you have stuck it out to the end, thanks! And we should probably get a beer together sometime, I know a few good places.
#IBloodyLoveBeer.
After the awkward encounter, I wander away with my beer, we’re back on track. And here it is: First thing I noticed was the complete lack of head, I thought to myself ‘oh no, I’ve only gone and got an old man ale’ there’s no gas which usually means 1 of 2 things, it’s either an old man ale, or it’s a still cider, both of which I really do not want. Secondly go in for a big ol’ whiff, of which there is none, brilliant, now I really am up shit creek without a paddle, a headless, aroma-less beer… So only one thing to do, embrace it and take a big gulp. To my surprise - It’s pretty good, oaky is the stand out flavour, it’s definitely a grower! At first taste I thought it was pretty good but by the end I was loving it! It’s a beer that knows what it’s about, a 4.2% ‘zesty blonde ale’ with a solid 3 hops in there, 2 aroma based and 1 bitter hop. So not the most hoptastic of beer but from the taste of oak rather than earth you could guess that. 
