I made a pilgrimage to BEER:shop St Albans, just on the other side of town, to get some interesting beers. Well why not, and it even had the wife's blessing because she fancied some good beer. The shop's only been open for three weeks, but it's very smart and carries a carefully curated collection. Some of it is really rather pricey, and with those prices on stickers at the back of each bottle it was a slightly frustrating experience. I'd see something interesting, pick it up, confirm that it did indeed sound like a cracker, then turn it around to find it was £15. I could have three bottles of wine for the price of that bottle of beer! But in the end I settled on eight to take home.
And now, time to sample a couple of them. First up, an extremely local number from The private brewery of BoB which is located only about a hundred metres from the shop as it happens. BoB Sherunkel is 3.7%, described as a "delightfully dark mild". And it really is, with a roasted flavour that lingers on the palette, whilst being incredibly easy drinking. Very pleasant.
Next, Bob Slayah, from the same stable, and thought it would appear to be an entirely different beer (5.2%, "premium bitter") it had overtones of the same roasty flavour, so it followed on nicely.
And finally, The Wild Beer Co's Epic Saison, 5% and as crisp, zesty and spicy as the label suggested. Using exotic American hops, it is quite fruity, almost a bit soapy to Mrs C's tastes. I wouldn't go out of my way to have another one, but it was perfectly pleasant. I also forgot to photograph it post-pouring. Whoops.