Sunday 26 May 2013

Taste Test: Young Henry's Real Ale

A beer I first discovered on a drunken night in Newtown, Young Henry's Real Ale is a fantastic example of an English Bitter with an Aussie Twist. Having tried it from a bottle, on tap and from a hand-pumped tap at the brewery, I can say it's great in all three iterations, but today we have a review of the bottled variety

The bottle, in all it's 640 mL glory
As soon as you crack open the bottle, you know you've made a good choice. Right from the get go, you have a cloudy, reddy amber pour, with sparse off-white head, and it 100% looks the part

Pictured: Terrible photo of a glass of beer

The aroma isn't strong, but bready notes are complemented by spicy, earthy hops and hints of toffee sweetness. The initial taste is a sweet, biscuity hit at the tip of the tongue, followed by a slightly orangey, yet still toffeeish and sweet body, and a final bitter hop that lingers for just the right amount of time. It's medium bodied, and has a carbonation that's minimal, but enough to let you know it's not flat.

Pictured: A better photo than either of the ones above
Overall, at 4% alcohol you have a very sessionable ale that has me coming back for more every time. A good example of an English style bitter ale, which is often overshadowed by the American styles of ales in the craft brew world. I'd give it an 8/10, and will definitely be picking some more up soon. Might do a brewery roundup too, seeing as they're fairly close to uni


Young Henry's Real Ale is available from a range of Bottle shops.

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