Thursday 20 September 2012

Beer Review: Iceberg

Following on from a hard slog at work I decided to get a beer for the evening.  Imagine my happy surprise when I saw that there was some Titanic Iceberg there, fondly remembered from the Cultural Exchange a while ago.  Of course, I bought it, and so it seemed wise to review it too.


Opening the bottle reminded me of the heady hoppy smell that it had and the pleasing feeling it brought with it.  Reminiscent of evenings off and time spent doing enjoyable things rather than work.  There was nothing really in the way of citrus to it, or to the taste of the beer itself.  Lovely and golden when poured out into a glass and with the hint of pubs of my youth.  Indeed, it put me in mind of some rather nice Thwaites stuff in the way that it went down.  A strong hoppy and spicy taste begins matters, followed by a mellowing and then a nice warm feeling as it passes down to the throat.  There's autumn in this beer, something like crisp leaves underfoot and a musty smell of burnt wood hanging in the air - it sounds hoity toity but it's the best I've got to fully describe the taste.  It performed well and I like it.

I imagine this is one of those beers that tastes better on tap in a bar, the carbonation was at a low enough level that it didn't smoke as I opened it but fizzy enough to be seen and tasted.  I get the idea that there is more of a creamy texture to be had from the beer that is lacking in the bottled variety.  Not sure what to make of that, I'm not generally a fan of creamy ales, but I think this one, for all that I enjoy it and will probably have it again, would benefit from a creamy texture to augment the overall mellow-ness of the taste.

At 4.1% ABV it around the mid-point of my tipples as they are developing and thus would probably be able to be repeated - something that would be a good thing.  Drink this around the dog-days of summer through the beginning of winter and you won't go wrong.  Drink in company of friends and people with whom you want to strike up a friendship.  It can be repeated, it can be shared and it probably won't be the most expensive pint on offer.  You won't be disappointed.

No comments:

Post a Comment