Craft Beer: More than 100 of the world’s top craft beers. Dominic Roskrow

approach to making beer, along with a healthy respect for the environment. All ingredients are sourced locally, and spent grains are given to farmers for animal feed. Nothing is out of bounds and the duo are experimenting with ageing, maturing their beers in all types of wine, bourbon, cognac, and whisky barrels. Beers include tripels, barley wines, stouts, IPAs, and a range of sours made with blueberries, peaches, and other fruits. This beer has aromas of flowers and citrus fruits on the nose. Grapefruit and lemon are found on the palate. The finish is powerful and hoppy, with a pleasant lasting bitterness.

Audit Ale

      PRODUCER: Westerham Brewery

      AREA OF ORIGIN: Westerham, England

      VARIETY: Bitter

      ABV: 6.2%

      WEBSITE: www.westerhambrewery.co.uk

      Westerham is in Kent in the South East of England, a county known as the garden of England and home to intensive hop growing. Westerham Brewery was set up by Robert Wicks in 2004 and naturally uses locally produced hops. In fact, Westerham is very much about reducing food miles in the supply chain, and is intent on reproducing many of the much loved beer flavours of the Black Eagle Brewery, which closed in 1965 after the widespread consolidation of the industry by the big brewers. Audit Ale is an award-winning strong ale made to a 1938 Black Eagle recipe. It has a fruity, hoppy, and malty nose. On the palate there is toffee and caramel, and a tangy and earthy note, with dried fruits, hops and some bitterness. It has a smooth mouthfeel and dry bitter finish. Very drinkable.

Axe Edge

      PRODUCER: Buxton Brewery

      AREA OF ORIGIN: Buxton, England

      VARIETY: IPA

      ABV: 6.8%

      WEBSITE: www.buxtonbrewery.co.uk

      From small acorns do big oaks grow – though, to be fair, Buxton isn’t that big an oak just yet. The founders clearly remember brewing their first pale ale – 40 litres of it – on New Year’s Day in 2009. It was enough to spark a passion to take their home-produced beers and bring them to a broader public.

      Over the following months, recipes were tweaked, altered, thrown away and revived before they launched to the public. Axe Edge is a flagship beer for Buxton and was first introduced early on, in 2010. It is a tribute to American West Coast IPA beers and is a weighty 6.8% ABV. It’s named after the moorland to the South and West of Buxton. This is a full flavoured, strong India Pale Ale, which is now hopped with Amarillo, Citra and Nelson Sauvin. Its complex flavours include mandarin orange, schnapps, pineapple, and juicy tropical fruits. It is warmingly alcoholic with a dry finish.

Backyard Lazy Daze

      PRODUCER: Backyard Brewery

      AREA OF ORIGIN: Manchester, New Hampshire, USA

      VARIETY: IPA

      ABV: 6.2%

      WEBSITE: www.backyardbrewerynh.com

      Backyard Brewery is housed in a bar. The beer is brewed by Paul St Onge, who is on a mission to create artisanally made beers for all to enjoy, in an atmosphere of friendliness, camaraderie and community outreach.

      ‘My vision is that of a traditional English Public House – high-quality beer served in a place of community gathering where strangers, locals, regulars, and everyone in between can chat amongst themselves over a pint or two.’

      Backyard Lazy Daze is an example of his passion for brewing IPA-style beers. He uses slaked wheat and oats to give the beer a full-bodied mouthfeel. Lazy Daze is double dry hopped with six different hops and hop powders at different points of conditioning. Fresh citrus, mango, and pineapple flavours burst out of the glass on the nose. On the palate there is a restrained bitterness, with lots of big hop flavours and aroma.

Bam Noire

      PRODUCER: Jolly Pumpkin

      AREA OF ORIGIN: Michigan, USA

      VARIETY: Sour farmhouse ale

      ABV: 4.5%

      WEBSITE: www.jollypumpkin.com

      Brewery founder Ron Jeffries and his wife have a strange sense of humour. Having planned their business for months, they were faced with coming up with a name, so they poured some beers and had a brainstorming session.

      ‘Many great names were suggested but we kept coming back to Jolly Pumpkin,’ says Ron. ‘It encompassed everything we wanted to express about our brewery. Fun and quirky, all that needed adding were the last two words; “Artisan Ales”, and the description of the brewery’s products and mission: the creation of fantastic beers of truly outstanding artisan quality.’

      They keep everything small and simple here, and focus on great beer. This sour ale is a beauty, and is enriched by two months in oak. It has the aroma of worn leather and cool autumn nights. There are notes of sweet plum and toasted raisin, hints of coffee and cacao. The finish is lingering, tart and refreshing.

Battledown Original

      PRODUCER: Battledown Brewery

      AREA OF ORIGIN: Charlton Kings, England

      VARIETY: Chestnut beer