The sun is out as I write this, which almost never happens round these parts, so if you want to kick back with some wicked beer in the sun this week, you better be quick!
Here are a few of my personal recommendations…
While Beak never really get the hype that some breweries get, their beers always fly off the shelves here, and if you get to try Bobber IPA at some point you will understand why!
This is just textbook Beak: super soft and fluffy thanks to oats and wheat, then a juicy hop combo that smacks of tangerine and quenches for days. Immense!
And yes, you are seeing correctly, Pomona Island have rebrewed Chevron Action Flash TIPA! An OG of the TIPA scene, this is even smoother and more tropical than ever before!
It’s full of ripe mango, loaded with papaya and has a lovely soft coconutty sweetness going on. There’s a reason this murky hazebomb has such an outrageous score on Untappd!
Elsewhere, I was delighted to take in a mega haul from Elusive earlier this week, and had to go for Sing You A Song West Coast Pale Ale first and foremost.
The five different hop varietals in this combine for something clean and citrusy with a lingering bitterness, just as you’d expect. This is an exemplary take on the now classic style – get involved!
Also on the hop front, we have a very limited number of Verdant’s Fruit Car Sight Exhibition DIPA in cans!
For those that haven’t tried this yet, it’s a citra showcase, full of grapefruit, then juicy melon, then sweet lychee – it’s one of Verdant’s best!
Only 3 of these left at the time of writing, so I hope you get one for yourself!
Yeah, this is labelled a TIPA, but it’s loaded with so much fruit I think it belongs in the sour category!
The guava, pineapple, and passionfruit infused make this a tropical fruit punch that ascends to smoothie heights. Full of juice. Lovely tang. This hides its ABV well – take care (there’s only 1 left in stock as I write this – so if you miss out, Vault’s bonkers luminous green Apple Soor is a formidable runner up!).
Brick and Pastore are two of the UK’s best sour brewers, and in Two Ways they’ve united for a real face scruncher.
You get tangy citrus that takes centre stage, then an almost dry finish which is presumably from the gooseberry.
Apparently, this won a Gold at the SIBA awards. (Oh, and if you’re wondering whether or not Brick really are one of the UK’s best sour beers, try Double Strawberry & Cucumber Sour and Grapefruit, Lemon & Orange Sour – you’ll soon see what I mean!)
With all the seriousness above, Play Brew Co. are on hand to remind us brewing is fun – which this week they’ve done via their Fried Egg Lemon Meringue Sour!
I was actually a bit gutted to see they didn’t actually use fried egg sweets to make this, but quickly forgave them when I tucked in. It’s like a lemon tart with powdered sugar; a fun beer to enjoy in the sun!
Sticking with Play Brew Co., there’s more fun to be had thanks to Marshmallow Toast Spread Hazelnut Stout.
Let’s call this what it is – Nutella on toast topped with those little marshmallows that melt in hot chocolate, just in beer form!
Next up on the dark front, this week Amundsen got together with Vocation to release the outstanding Monkey Business Imperial Pastry Stout.
This was aged in Buffalo Trace Kentucky Straight Bourbon Barrels, which has infused it with all the good stuff you’d expect – vanilla, toasted coconut, and oaky notes plus sweet bourbon. As if that wasn’t enough, the brewers then added toffee and coconut to really dial this up!
A silky smooth body tops things off – and probably makes this my stout of the week.
Finally, there’s the wicked new donut series from Three Hills to explore! Whether it’s the straight up gooey Chocolate Donut Imperial Pastry Stout, or the (lower ABV) Chocolate Coconut Donut Pastry Stout you go for, you’re in for a treat.
(If you want to collect the whole set, snap up the Chocolate & Raspberry Jam Donut Sour and Chocolate & Strawberry Jam Donut Session Sour too!)
Elusive weighed in with a sexy dark treble this week, which included Road to Darkness Export India Porter, the chocolate-laden Morrisman Double Chocolate Dry Stout, and multi-award-winning Shadow of the Beast Cascadian Dark Ale.
Brick added to their sour power with a Baltic Porter, their classic ESB, a sweet Dark Lager (I’m loving these at the minute!) and a solid Citra & cashmere NEIPA. Brick, I think, are underrated.
Brew York definitely deserve an honourable mention for Salted Caramel Tonkoko, as do S43 for their 10% Coconut & Pecan Pastry Stout.
There’s more madness from Play and Amundsen in White Skull White Chocolate & Strawberry White Imperial Stout and Triple Morish Dream Imperial Pastry Stout respectively, while Mash Gang’s NesKveik, Strawberry & Vanilla White Stout has to be the most interesting low-alc beer ever made!
Mash Gang also joined the hop-furore this week, with lager/IPA fusion 0.5% Nothing But The Snow Cold IPA, while Northern Monk brewed an AF of their own in 0.0% Bradford 2025 Mango Cardamon Kulfi Pale Ale.
Monk didn’t stop there, obviously: Break The Bias Hazy Pale Ale is a beer that does good, while Double Jungle IPA is so packed with fruit you could slice it with a knife.
S43 couldn’t stay away from the juice game this week either – Juicier Cannon NEIPA is an ampred up version of the beer that put S43 on the map. A formidable hop bill brings the joose and lactose keeps things creamy. Uncanny Valley NZ IPA, meanwhile, is the taste of New Zealand!
Really though in this weather it’s sours that excite me most, so I leave with you this week Neon Raptor’s Hydra Fight Mango, Passionfruit & Pineapple Imperial Lassi Gose to explore at your own leisure, and, of course, this Pineapple & Coconut Pina Colada Sour from Play.
As always, I hope you get to enjoy some of these epic beers this week, ideally while the sun’s out. Spring is herreeee!
Cheers and happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
I tend to write a round up like this every week – but this week things are a bit different!
That’s cause this week I went on a Pretty Woman style shopping spree, gathering up all the best beers from all the sh*t-hot breweries I’ve never before been able to get in – so there’s tons of new stuff below, check these ouuuuut!
When a new brewery opens up by ex Cloudwater head brewer James Campbell, what do you do?
Here’s what I did – I beat a path to its door, gathered up every beer I could get my hands on, drank way more than I intended and, like everyone, I haven’t stopped talking about the quality ever since!
If you’re wondering what all the fuss is about there are two pale ales to dig into online, plus a gorgeous NEIPA and Bring Me The Head of John The Accountant DIPA. I think my favourite is the DIPA – but then the NEIPA is so keenly priced, if you’re on a bit of a budget beeline for it. (Update: we’ve been ransacked, and these are now unfortunately out of stock. To be notified first when we get new beer in, sign up to our mailing list below.)
While the Sureshot beers were always going to be great, the story of Baron couldn’t be more different. Basically, it seems like one guy, from absolutely nowhere, just went ‘yeah, I’ll brew some beer’, and has somehow ended up with two of the best hoppy beers of 2022 so far!
Hot Hands Pale Ale is loaded with orangey tangerines and has this silky smooth texture that’s hard to describe… but Matterbaby DIPA? This is a thick tropical soup that’s so creamy it coats your mouth then just refuses to leave – it’s an outstanding beer that really does merit the current Baron hype.
500ml cans too. Win!
Next up, Gravity Well, who I’ve wanted to get in for a long time now, but who never have enough beer to go around – which goes to show the quality of their operation!
Quantum Chaos DIPA is a thick and juicy mango and pineapple medley with squeeze of lemon, while Relativistic Beaming NEIPA all passionfruit and coconut with a bitter, vinous, gooseberry finish.
I’m showcasing the NEIPA here, but if you can, get both – these are ace!
With the amount of new breweries in it’d be so easy to overlook the usuals this week, but Track’s Sunset Trains Pale Ale demands attention as another belter!
With a smooth body, a biscuity sweetness, juicy pineapple jam with a little bitterness – it’s got it all!
Meanwhile, Pomona Island’s The Riddle Of Steel WCIPA carries the West Coast IPA flag wonderfully.
It’s an alluring amber in colour with not a drop of haze, then packed with resinous pine and a biting, hoppy bitterness – this is one hell of a WCIPA!
(Update: Our best beers sell out quickly and unfortunately, this is now out of stock. To get first pick of all the best stuff in future, just join our mailing list.)
It’s the battle of the Dark Milds – Boxcar are in competition with themselves!
Double Dark Mild you already know how good it is – a Cadbury’s fruit and nut with a smooth, thick, creamy body.
Just when you think they’ve achieved perfection Triple Dark Mild takes things up another level – with that same smooth, silky body, more chocolate, juicy plum, and warming booze from the 9% ABV – absolutely immense!
Polly’s are known for their hops, but you might have also noticed that recently they’ve been owning the Black IPA scene.
B-Side: Spur Black IPA is as good a black IPA you’re going to get all year long – Citra, Simcoe and Azacca combine for the joooooose, while dark roasted malts handle the roasty, chocolatey backbone. Oh yeah.
For those on their own no-holds-barred shopping spree, there’s Track’s BA Black Is Beautiful Double Coffee Imperial Stout.
After almost two years in rum barrels, expect a vanilla, almond and sticky date caramel-treacle, all topped up with fresh roasted espresso. Guaranteed to age well – if you can resist!
While some brewers are for some reason holding back on sours at the minute, Pastore clearly haven’t got the memo, for which we can rejoice, cause Margarita All’ananas Pineapple Margarita Gose is as good as it sounds!
It’s not a thick gloopy number by any stretch – that is not what this is trying to be!
It’s more like a beautiful palate cleanser made of pineapple, zesty orange and sour lime. The pineapple is what lingers, before a lovely hint of salt finishes things off – a proper gem!
Pomona Island have been souring stuff this week too – in the form of Literal Vampire Potbelly Goblins Sour DIPA. Sour IPAs don’t get much love, but if they’re your thing, this is a right treat.
Brew York’s Blood Eagle Blood Orange IPA revels in citrus, while Polly’s Tiger Bliss NZ Pale Ale blurs the line between pale ale and IPA.
There’s more of fan-favourite Locals IPA from Beak just in too, and a DIPA that really should get more airtime in Overtone’s Cutting Shapes DIPA (juicy mango & coconut with lingering bitterness – lovely stuff).
DEYA’s Routes To Remember IPA amalgamates juicy berry and pine, and there’s another wicked WCIPA awaiting in the Track/Sureshot collab Arc WCIPA.
Elsewhere, there’s dark fun to be had in Brew York’s Viva Flori-Ever! Cinnamon Bun & Coffee Pastry Stout, Left Handed Giant’s Fake Empires Blueberry, Cherry & Honeycomb Stout is as indulgent as it sounds, there’s a popular pilsner just in from Drop Project, there’s a Dry Hopped Pilsner from Track and Left Handed Giant’s Feedback Loop Hazy IPA is an IPA full of peach.
This week though it really is all about those new hype brews, so get dive in, get acquainted and find yourself a new favourite brewery to explore.
I hope you get to try some of these monsters this week.
Cheers and happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
It’s been a busy week here at CMHQ as we’ve been flat out building a brand now taproom!
That doesn’t mean I haven’t had a chance to crack a few beers post-build though. So as always, in this post, I’m going to recommend the best new beers I’ve managed to unearth.
Only one place to start, obviously, because this week, Neon Raptor released Abandoned Dragons!
Neon Raptor’s thumping 13% Maple and Hazelnut Imperial Mega-Stout was one of the beers of the year last year, and when the dust settles this year you can bet Abandoned Dragons is going to be right up there once again!
So thick and so chocolatey, this is a big glass of melted-down dark chocolate ferrero rochers, only with a swirl of deliciously sticky maple syrup topping things off. The price has gone up annoyingly, but from where I’m sat it’s still very much worth it so get involved!
This week also saw the release of three new beers from a new brewery that’s fast becoming a contender for brewery of the year – Azvex!
For me, Unfinished Bridges DIPA is the best of the bunch.
An adventurous hop profile (Vic Secret, Mosaic and Loral) makes this multi-dimension, with things starting thick and tropical before becoming floral and fruity then swinging back to base. Absolutely immense!
Elsewhere, Northern Monk’s latest Fresh From The North 010 DIPA is magnificent, filled with chewy fruits thank to Azacca, but it’s also more coconuty than previous versions thanks to the Sabro, which will turn some people off and turn some people on – I’m in the latter camp!
Only 6 left at the time of writing; be quick!
Brew York have also got a few people murmuring this week following the release of Duo Lipa Double Lactose IPA. There are two delicious defining characteristics here – a huuuuge hop profile for hop-forward scrumptiousness, and a massive helping of lactose which takes this thing to pillowy soft cloud-floating territory.
It’s a combination you rarely see in IPAs, but you’ve got to ask why cause this is magic.
I hope we get to see more as the year unfolds!
Sticking with the hops, Beak impressed with a new double serving, starting with the lemony, citrusy, grapefruit and orange-tinged Supp Citra IPA.
It’s a celebration of citra and a pure joy, plus a welcome departure from the more tropical NEIPAs favoured across the board right now.
Abandoned Dragons aside, Tartarus won the battle for this week’s dark crown and you can see why just from the name of Slenderman Cookies & Cream Imperial Stout.
Crunchy Oreos dunked in cold milk with a chocolate backbone 🤤🤤🤤 Charon Pecan, Maple & Vanilla Imperial Stout has actually proved more popular, but for me the former is the one to go for (assuming you can’t go for both!).
The final beer I want to highlight this week is Kirsch Russell Cherry Pie Pastry Sour, which is one I’m recommending for sour beer fans.
Brew York used a mammoth 750kg of cherry juice when creating this, and you might think it’d be too much, but it’s actually perfect cherry tartness well balanced by a sweet, crumbly finish. Yes!
As always, I hope you get to try some great new beer this week.
Cheers & happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Oli Meade
West Coast IPAs are back and better than ever, and we’ll introduce two new beauties below.
Still, this week, I need to start this list with the obvious.
Verdant are back, with a beer you can’t ignore…
It’s back!!
This has got to be one of the most glorious, most popular, most thick and BEST DIPAs regularly available in the UK – it’s as good as it ever was, whether you’re yet to try it or you’re a seasoned vet, snap your can up and rejoice, for Allen is back!
I whimped out of ordering Fermenterarna Skeleton Party DDH DIPA a week or so ago, frankly because I’d never tried the brewery’s beers before and wasn’t sure what to expect, but after trying Fermenterarna’s outstanding IPAs I had to go back and get this.
I honestly haven’t tried it at the time of writing but it’s high on the agenda and I’m fully expecting to be blown away by the trademark smooth-yet-full-of-fruity-hoppy-goodness I know Fermenterarna can produce – only dialled up to DIPA extremes!
Aaand over on the West Coast front, two new beauties in this week, and I honestly can’t decide which is better – Pressure Drop’s Bosko IPA or Anspach & Hobday’s The West Coast DIPA.
The former harks all the way back to the initial IPA invasion and is all rich and bitter and malty, while The West Coast DIPA is a bit more fruity, a bit more spicy and a little bit more earthy.
I sound like I’m backing Anspach & Hobday’s version for the win, but there’s just no way I can decide – these two are both gems, with beers like these it’s little wonder West Coast IPAs are making such a comeback!
The can art on Frau Gruber’s new stouts is enough to tempt anyone in, and the one I reached for first was that Banana Split Impy Stout.
Now what really stood out for me was how natural this beer was.
Usually with banana beers they can taste like those foam banana sweets you used to get, but this was the real deal, it even leaves a banana pulp in the glass, proper smoothie style, and the chocolate isn’t sugary milk chocolate but the decadent and grown-up dark stuff… all in all this is a decadent delight.
Collecting the whole stout set – including Shakerato and Black Forest Chocolate Cake – would not be an error!
Elsewhere this week there’s new barrel aged goodness on offer from Kees!
If you’re into your whisky then Barrel Project Laphroaig 2022 Peated is the one I’d recommend; if it’s dessert stouts you have a penchant for, get stuck into Caramel Fudge Stout Wild Turkey Edition – take your pick!
Lifestyle Guide Lychee, Guava & Mango Sour is Pressure Drop sashay-ing into the fruit smoothie sours, and is a great effort.
You know those Solero ice creams?
Well pciture that. Soured. And as a beer. Good right?
That’s what you should expect from this gem!
As always, I hope you get to try some great new beer this week.
Cheers & happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Oli Meade
This week, there’s been there’s some huuuge dark releases (King Of The Woodland, anyone?) and some crazy sour stuff, but I’m going to have to start with hoppy beers – because Azvex are back with a new round of goodness!
I have to start with the brewery of the moment Azvex, whose entrance into the beer world has just been outstanding!
They’re back with three new hoppy beauties, and you cannot fail to enjoy any of them, but my tip this week is Torus Earth.
This is a swampy, gloopy, murky, juice-fest whose strata-and-vic-secret hop combo mean it’s properly tropical, properly dank and properly dangerous… so, so good – get involved!
Then over in the left corner, we have reigning champions Verdant, who are back with two new IPAs that are surely at least as good as Putty – especially Your Limitation, It’s Only Your Imagination DIPA.
Think crushed grapefruit and fresh orange juice with lingering sweetness and, of course, the trademark Verdant cream.
This week also saw our good friends Northern Monk unleash new Double Heathen Imperial IPA, their magnificent signature NEIPA, only bigger, bolder, and (probably) uncut!
A mega fruit punchbowl of a beer that’s so resinous you could dig in with a spoon. Take care on this – it’s 10%!
Yonder don’t get as many headlines as they should, but the murmurs this week that their stuff might actually be better than Vault City basically says it all.
I can’t say why they’re overlooked, but what I can say is Blueberry Cheesecake Pastry Sour (and the new Apple Blackberry Toasted Oat Crumble Pastry Sour) are the UK’s answer the fruit smoothie sours we’re now seeing in the USA.
This particular monster is a thick, creamy, decadent fruit smoothie, expertly balanced with a gorgeous sweet edge – the lingering vanilla goes on and on.
Elsewhere, Neon Raptor’s The Endless Blackness Of Space Forest Fruit Sour isn’t as thickas the smoothie sour above, but it’s no less worth adding to your shopping list.
As a black forest gateaux-inspired beer, it’s packed to the rafters with dark, tart and juicy cherries, and rich cocoa notes to top things off. Immense!
Next up, Northern Monk & Mash Gang’s Turbo Rave Love Love Hearts Sour Ale.
A love hearts sour?!
Yep. With juicy strawberries. And candied orange. And sweet sherbet. And also a zingy sour edge!
It’s a bit of a shame it’s low-alc, but I think that can be forgiven, cause to be fair we all need more low-alc beers in our roster, and this is one that also reminds you craft beer is fuuuuuun!
Lager lover? Do yourself a favour and get in on Northern Monk’s OFS066 Ceylon Rice Lager.
Lager hater? Good. Do yourself a favour and get in on Northern Monk’s OFS066 Ceylon Rice Lager – it’s just £3.15 a can, it’s delicate and smooth, and it will make you question why you’ve been so quick to write off lagers in the past.
Be warned though, this is a red pill – it will kickstart a love affair with craft lager that you’ll never be able to shake.
On the face of it, Azvex’s Irregular Crop Circles Coffee & Cacao Imperial Stout isn’t particularly exciting… but from the first pour of this thick, creamy and alluring 10% impy stout you know you’re in for a treat!
Rich, warming coffee. Liquidy chocolate. And a velvet soft body. It’s what an imperial stout should be.
Left Handed Giant’s King Of The Woodland Imperial Stout is back for 2022!
Now this is a stout that just keeps getting better and better!
A rich chocolate base is enhanced by a generous helping of cinder toffee, and a truckload of nutty, salted pistachios bring things home. (12.5%!)
Now this is just chocolate, chocolate and even more chocolate!
Decadent, rich and (somehow!) vegan, Neon Raptor have achieved next-level chocolate goodness in this by adding cacao shells, chocolate powder and chocolate essence to the already chocolate-rich malt bill. Bring on the chocolate!!
Starting with Verdant, there’s more People Money Space Time, more Neal, more Lightbulb, more Marylou, more Headband and more Sharks just in. I’m calling it: Verdant make the best core hoppy beers anywhere in the UK.
Beak! The Beak stuff always sells out, so if you want to try new Willo IPAor Fables Pale Ale, it’d be best not to hang about. Boxcar’s Storm Bird IPA, meanwhile, is so good Charlie convinced me to get a keg in.
Rounding off Northern Monk’s OFS exploration of Hong Kong you’ve got the sweet OFS065 WC DIPA and the experimental OFS064 Black Sesame & Miso Black IPA. Do you dare?
S43’s Maris The Dank Engine Dank IPA is a beautiful beer with beautiful can art. Neon Raptor treated us to the dependable Singles In Your Area DDH IPA and the magnificent ode to Darkplace One Track Lover IPA… a collectors edition!
Polly’s Brew Co’s A Passion for Fashion Lime Gose is a refreshing delight, Overtone’s sexy Paradise Crush is selling fast, and there’s a dark lager from Verdant that’s worth checking out.
Drop Project’s Choppy is a down the line stout, Overtone’s Praline Stout takes things up a notch, Phantom’s Strawberry, Coconut & Cocoa Just Desserts is even more outlandish, and Northern Monk’s The Lovers Soft Centre is of the same ilk.
And then there’s S43, whose Cinnamon & Vanilla Sugar Milk Stout is brewed with no fewer than 10 different malts, plus vanilla, cinnamon and Muscovado sugar. A cracking little brewery that just does not hold back.
As always, I hope you get to try some great new beer this week.
Cheers & happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Oli Meade
There’s been a fine smattering of hoppy releases, sour releases and dark releases in the craft beer world this week – so no matter what your preference, there’s no way you will be disappointed.
That said, there’s only one place I can start my roundup this week… because Empress Tonkoko 2022 is finally here!
We all know Brew York’s dark game is their strongest, and these new Empress Tonkoko stouts are among the best and most fun stouts Brew York have ever come out with.
Empress Tonkoko Tonka Bean Chocolate Milk Stout is the OG we all know and love, packed as it is with the customary metric ton of coconut, tonka, chocolate and vanilla. And that’s just the starting point!
Nitro Empress Tonkoko Tonka Bean Chocolate Milk Stout is a nitro version, which Brew York have somehow made softer right there on the canning line.
Then there’s the barrel-aged greatness!
BA Wild Turkey Empress Tonkoko has been silently resting for a year now in Wild Turkey bourbon barrels, which has added a rich velvet smoothness to the beer that’s hard to pin down.
BA Baton 1792 Empress Tonkoko is, if anything, another gear up. Here, you get rich oak notes, rye and an almost spicy, fiery edge.
Simply choose your favourite and get stuck in! Or if you happen to be reading this when no-one else is looking, do yourself a favour. Collect the whole set!
This is just in and it’s already in danger of selling out and it’s little wonder why – Coffee Poached Pear Praline Crumble is basically a cake in sour beer form!
The poached pear and smooth coffee probably shouldn’t work but they just do – most likely because Vault City have added in rich chocolate and soft praline notes that bring everything together.
There’s a sour fruit edge, but it’s subtle – this is immense.
As we’ve come to expect from this relatively young brewery, Holy Goat’s Citrus Crusher Winter Harvest 2021 is craft excellence.
250 litres of blood orange and clementine juice makes this zip and zing, and if that wasn’t enough Holy Goat added a full 50kg of whole, pulpy citrus fruits to the mix before bottling.
This has been aged for a little over 3 months already. Be sure to afford it the respect it deserves!
So the last sour I’m going to highlight this week is Play Brew Co’s new Big Iron Irn-Bru Sour.
Vault City’s version might be sold out everywhere, but that’s not necessarily such a bad thing, because this is maybe a little bit sweeter than Vault’s, and for me it’s even closer to the real deal.
Has Vault City’s version met its match?!
Moving on to the hops, it would be impossible to start this section anywhere other than with the new Toffee Apple & Cinnamon Milkshake Pale Ale from Play Brew Co.
Is this a beer?
A cider?
Proof that numbers at Play Brew Co’s 2021 halloween party were lower than expected?!
What I really like about this is it’s a pale ale first and foremost – but with sweet and fun toffee-apple edges. If you’re looking for something other than the customary hazy NEIPA, try this out!
Next up: Three Hills, and their two new single hop beauties Amarillo Session NEIPA and Galaxy Session NEIPA.
Single hopped beers are always a great showcase of the flavour profile of just one hop, and with single hops there’s absolutely nowhere for bad brewing to hide.
Amarillo and Galaxy hops are both, obviously, up there with the very best. That said, of the two, Galaxy Session NEIPA is the one for me – it’s thick and murky and full of tropical mango and juicy peach with intermittent bursts of passionfruit – it’s basically sunshine in one glorious can.
Finally on the hop-font, DEYA’s Big Loose Plan IPA is the Cheltenham haze-specialists at their finest.
Simcoe Cryo, Vic Secret and Idaho 7 hops turn this into a hazy dank tropical concoction complete with pineapple and juicy cantaloupe melon, and there’s a candied orange peel lurking too.
DEYA have done something different by adding hops mid-fermentation, which may explain how they’ve packed so much flavour into this – it’s great!
On the dark front, I have to start with Nerdbrewing’s Barrel Series 011 Bourbon BA Imperial Oatmeal Stout With Vietnamese Coffee.
Just the sight of this is enough to get your heart fluttering – you can see in an instant how thick and smooth it is, and the burnt-caramel tinged head confirms how rich this is going to be.
The cold-brewed Vietnamese coffee encases everything, but it’s the bourbon infusion from Heaven Hill bourbon barrels that makes this so brilliant.
010 was one of the best beers I got hold of last year. 011 follows suit.
Next up, for the uninitiated, meet the magnificent Estonian brewery Pühaste!
I’ve got not idea how to pronounce it either, but I do know their stouts are bleedin beautiful, and we’ve just got two in in the form of Trinity in Black Imperial Milk Stout and Beans and Biscuits Imperial Stout.
Trinity in Black is the more popular of the two – it’s thick and creamy with tonka, vanilla, cacoa and cinnamon.
Still, don’t write off Biscuits & Beans: it’s coffee piled on crunchy double-chocolate biscuit and, at 11.2%, it’s decadent and boozy. I can’t pick between the two – so you’ll have to decide this one for yourself!
As you may have seen, Three Hills released more of their famous BPAVK series last week. But apparently, the best was yet to come – because BA BPAVK Raspberry Chocolate Cake Imperial Pastry Stout has only just landed, and it’s absolutely magnificent!
This is Three Hills’ classic rich dark chocolate stout, only aged in Speyside barrels, which brings indulgent layers of caramel, currant and vanilla to the beer.
Soft raspberries take this to properly decadent territory. Could be the best BPAVK yet!
Rounding off the darks this week, Three Hills’ Smoked Plum Baltic Porteris more berry than chocolate and more tobacco than vanilla – but that’s what makes it such a joy to drink.
Elsewhere, Play Brew Co. proved they can also do sweet darks well with Cereal Milk, Chocolate, Marshmallow And Coconut Beer, and Beak renamed Oompa Jurgen Imperial Stout after that man with very hairy eyebrows from Great British Bake Off. Meanwhile, Nerdbrewing added to 011 with Implements Imperial Chocolate Truffle Stout: Salted Almond.
I couldn’t mention Pomona Island’s new sours above which is criminal, so please check out Kodama Little Yuzu Sour (just £3.50 a can!) and In A Gadda De Vida Sour IPA. Holy Goat’s Unicorn Wizard White Peach Golden Sour is also great, and uses brett fermentation to really dial up fruitiness.
Then let yourself loose on the hops! There’s Beak’s Bello IPA, there’s Neon Raptor’s Van-Tam Taskforce, there’s a whole host of lovely new Polly’s and there’s a citrus-marmalade-and-lychee DEYA pale that’s as sexy as you’d expect.
High Five is this week’s best hop-forward WCIPA, there’s Unlucky Charms by Mash Gang on the AF front, and there are two lovely new Frau Gruber’s in Simcoe Single Hop DIPA and Green Soaked Imperial IPA.
Oh, and of course, a Pomona Island hoppy foursome, including the magnificent The Man In The Gabardine Suit Double IPA.
As always, I hope you get to try some great new beer this week.
Cheers & happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Oli Meade
This week, there are new BPAVK imperial stouts out from Three Hills, Overtone’s latest TIPA is out and there’s something very special from Low Key stout fans will find hard to resist.
So without further ado, let’s discuss the best new beers to try this week!
Breaking news… WE GOT HOLD OF A LIMITED NUMBER OF THE LATEST LOW KEY WAX TOP EARLIER THIS WEEK!
Unravel Raspberry & Chocolate BA Imperial Stout is everything we’ve come to expect from this lauded brewery and more.
It’s sweet, it’s complex, it’s rich and layered, with soft raspberry and smooth dark chocolate encased in subtle smoke that brings everything together brilliantly.
This is glorious brewery, glorious brewing. (Limited to just one bottle per customer to make sure as many people as possible get to try this.)
That’s right, Three Hills are back with their latest round of mammoth BPAVK’s – and it’s a case of choose which most appeals to you.
With BPAVK: Vanilla Custard Tart Imperial Pastry Stout and BPAVK: Almond Pain Au Chocolate Imperial Pastry Stout both to choose from, choosing is harder than it sounds!
The former is slightly more dessert-y, the latter a tiny (tiny) bit more serious. And if they’re sounding too strong for you?
There’s always the beautiful Baby BPAVK: Hazelnut Cappuccino Pastry Stout to fall back on…
Overtone’s Night At The Disco TIPA! I was so excited to see this released I snapped up both the cans and a cheeky keg for our taproom – and it definitely isn’t just me that’s loving this monster.
Thick, rich and unctuous, this is such a murk-bomb it’s borderline brown.
Filled with passionfruit and mountains of peach, and then there’s lovely gooseberry finish, this has got to be the best IPA released this week – get involved!
It was sad to see earlier this week that Weird Beard, a brewery that has a special place in my heart and the hearts of so many of us, has been put up for sale.
I’m really hoping their beers live on, and to support that the best thing any of us can do is actually buy their beer – which is exactly what I went and did when I heard the news.
So, while none of the above are new, this week, get yourself some Mariana On Mango DDH Mango NEIPA, or a can or two of West Country Boy WC IPA, and raise a glass in support of Weird Beard. Follow up with Black Perle Coffee Milk Stout too – which is probably my favourite of the lot.
Beak. No-one really makes much of a fuss about their beers – least of all the brewery itself – but my word, how they can keep knocking out such good hoppy stuff is beyond me.
The latest incarnation, Blub IPA, is yet another rendition of their murky, fruity, bitter loveliness – this one is filled with Simcoe and Eclipse, which brings sweet, candied orange to the forefront. It’s lovely stuff.
This week, we got hold of Elusive’s Oregon Trail WCIPA (a beer that’s gained cult fame in cask) in cans!
Oregon Trail is a proper West Coast classic, filled with Simcoe, Chinook and Columbus for malty, piney, clean and bitter brilliance.
The boys over at the Craft Beer Channel reckon we might be seeing West Coast IPAs rise in popularity as 2022 unfolds. With stuff as good as this hitting shelves, I really can’t see why not.
Anspach & Hobday are just the masters of bridging old school and modern brewing, and The Sour Dry Hop proves what a winning formula their approach is.
This modern Berliner Weisse is a lactobacillus-soured face scruncher that’s all lemon, lime and fruit thanks to the citra dry hop – if you’re after winter refreshment, this is it!
Overtone also got in on the Berliner Weisse game this week with Pretty Weisse Sour Cherry, Boysenberry & Red Currant Berliner Weisse.
A mammoth addition of winter fruits turns this a violent violet, and the resulting taste-party is a see-saw of tangy acidity and subtle sweet cherry, with the tangy acidity winning the battle by a clear margin.
Finally, for fellow lager fans this week, my lager tip is Neon Laga German-Style Lager. This is a touch darker than you’d expect, and full of sweet, malty, bready goodness – while retaining the lovely refreshing crispness you’d want in the style.
Neon Raptor know what’s what.
We took in a load of new stuff from Anspach & Hobday this week, which is always some of the best value genuine craft beer you’ll find anywhere in the country. Those into their lagers should check out Eine Kleine Kölschbier, for those into darks I’d recommend Chocolate Brown, for those yet to try A&H – dive on in!
Over in hop town, there’s more Polly’s just in which is just as good as ever. In fact, did I even mention a DIPA in the hoppy section above?! DIPA is where it’s at. Try Ghost Voices Simcoe DIPA and tell me otherwise.
Left Handed Giant went all nostalgic with Schwarzbier. The same brewery have also elevated Helles to their core range – which proves how popular it has been.
There’s more tropical hoppy goodness to be found in Neon Raptor’s Glad That’s Over NEIPA, and a wine-and-goosberry laden single-hop WC IPA courtesy of Burnt Mill’s Get The Jade WCIPA.
And finally, this week, treat yerself to some of the new hoppy Overtone – which is just about as good as hoppy UK beers come.
As always, I really hope you get to try some of these new beers this week.
Happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Oli Meade
Hops. Sours. Darks. Lagers!
Craft brewers have really come out of January swinging, releasing beers of such quality you wonder where they might go from here.
As always, here’s my round up of the very best.
It’s no secret that US beers from the likes of Other Half and The Veil are world-leading… so Polly’s Brew’s decision to try to replicate their beers was always going to be of interest, and I’m absolutely delighted to report their new Oaty DDH Oat IPA is about as close to the belters as you’ll get, and without the import price tag too!
A full THIRD of the mash here was oats, which is how Polly’s have made this so unbelievably fluffy, then they called on their hop expertise for mountains of juicy mango, tangerine and fresh-cut pineapple.
Believe the hype – this is it!
Now the new Track / Bagby Collab Managing Expectations WC IPA might be labelled West Coast, but do not be fooled! It’s hopped to the high heavens with Centennial, which means dank chewy fruits all the way through.
Think marmalade, think lemon peel, think jelly babies, think dank cherries.
A biscuit base and a little bitterness round things off; this is a monster, how on earth they’ve labelled it an IPA I’m not sure – definite DIPA territory, it’s magnificent!
There’s a new brewery just in that I have to mention too… mostly because their hoppy numbers are going down a treat in our taproom in Penge!
If you haven’t yet heard of Fermenterarna you soon will. Both Urban DDH IPA and See You By The Cranes Hazy IPA are tropical delights.
Get in on Some Fermenterarna early – you won’t regret the ‘gamble’!
And my final hoppy hat-tip this week goes to Pressure Drop’s Alligator Tugboat Simcoe IPA, which is back and is tasting as outstanding as ever.
Tropical juice meets piney dankness for a brew that just makes absolute sense – I love it, and so does everyone who ever gets a can. Get involved!
The sour releases were so strong this week pretty much any of them could make my list of top hitters, but I have to start with Pastore & Vault City’s Cieli Notturni Dark Pastry Sour.
Two of the UK’s greatest sour breweries have teamed up here, and the result is nothing short of magnificent.
This is almost a chocolate milkshake on the nose, then BANG – tart blackcurrants and raspberries one the palate, before the sweet honeycomb and luxurious vanilla drift in. Heaven!
You don’t actually see too many orange sours knocking about, which just makes Pomona Island’s Start Again Imperial Orange Sour an exceptional exception.
How this is 10% I’ll never know. Orange after orange, thick and zippy goodness.
It’s a beery bucks fizz with welcome acidity. Great work!
What the hell is up with To Øl’s CHAAARGE! Nitro Dry Stout rating?! It cannot just be me that absolutely loves this – a liquid blend of roasted chocolate biscuits all covered in thick cream.
It is just 4% – which might explain things. But for me, that just means you can drink two. Which – fair warning – is something you will very likely want to do.
Brew York are in on the nitro game too this week, with the brilliantly named Big Toucan Nitro Stout.
This is as smooth, silky and creamy, as they come, with welcome waves of bitter dark chocolate.
The deliberate lack of sweetness will please purists – even if it is entirely unlike the Brew York MO.
Flip this 180 and pour fast and hard. Enjoy maximum cream. (Flake optional.)
If, like me, you are into the crazy boozy sweet and sticky stouts, don’t panic! Pomona Island’s Ti Esrever Dna Ti Pilf Imperial Jamaican Ginger Cake Stout is off the charts, and Kees’ Catch Me By The Coconuts Imperial Pastry Stout is a luscious chocolate bounty bar masquerading as a beer (11.9% – take care!).
If you’re easing your way out of Dry January we’ve got you: a whole host of new-in table beers prove low ABV doesn’t have to mean low flavour profiles. Drop Project’s Scoff Table Beer is particularly profound, and Wildflower’s complex Table Beer is on another level.
Over on the lager front… who doesn’t love a bit of Beak? They just do not brew anything bad, and Mousse Rustic Lager doesn’t let the side down. Oh, and we’ve also just taken in Verdant’s German Pilsner too. Spicy, herbal and dry, it’s how the style should be.
On the hoppy side, there’s new stuff from Beak to explore, a Mosaic IPA from S43 and Pressure Drop’s Morning Person NE DIPA. There’s some lovely stuff just in from Pomona Island too, and Polly’s, obviously. There’s also a double hop drop from Verdant, including 10 Watt Moon… which fans won’t want to miss.
In darksville Pressure Drop’s popular Black Treacle Stout is back, there’s an interesting new BBNo CBD Coffee Porter and Howling Hops’ Jack In The Basket 9.5% Impy Stout awaits. Northern Monk add to the foray with Culinary Adventures Yorkshire Parkin Porter, and To Ol have offered up something different in their Nitro Red.
As I say the new sours have been superb this week… I’ve been as impressed as ever by the new Pastore sours, and likewise for Pomona Island too. Kees were even in on things with Berry Fruity, Brew York’s Cherry Kola is great fun, as is To Øl’s Piña Gose.
There’s always far too much to name so just dive in and have a rummage, see what you come up with, try new things, enjoy!
(Oh, and check out the description for Odyssey’s Fiendish Breakfast Imperial Smoked, Salted Breakfast Stout With Treacle. How ace does that sound?!)
As always, I really hope you get to try some of these new beers this week.
Happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Oli Meade
This week, Verdant released Putty 2022, DEYA released something similar, and the first Emperor’s F**K Cancer Beer Project Collab finally arrived!
How are they all drinking?
Let’s find out…
There is only one place to start my pick of the best new beers out this week… and that’s with release of Verdant’s Putty 2022!
This is the single biggest beer release of the year.
It’s the beer release beer fans await white-knuckled with clenched jaws and stomachs. Even those that try to downplay it HAVE to try it when it’s out – and this year, I’m pleased to report, Putty is drinking just as it should – as one of the finest IPAs the UK has to offer.
Tasting notes wise, I can’t say it any better than Verdant themselves – this shines ‘like a satsuma in a pint of double cream and hopped to hell and back with Galaxy, Mosaic and Azacca. Dank and sweaty, but oh so fruity with it too! Deep mangoes, apricots and freshly cut grass pervade your senses. As always we’ve layered up the malts with an emphasis on Golden Promise and wheat malts for a bread crust base, sacks and sacks of flaked wheat and oats bump up the creamy density further.’
It’s juicy, it’s fruity, it’s creamy, it’s the biggest hoppy beer of the year! If it’s still available when you read this, get yours now!
(We have a limit of one per customer to try to make sure as many people as possible get to try this one – but I’m stiil pretty sure this is gonna sell out quick! If that’s the case, sign up to our email list below for future announcements of big beer releases.)
I’ve mentioned Full Circle’s Looper IPA twice already in these weekly posts… and now, for the first time EVER, I’m going to recommend it a third time!
This glows bright orange and tastes like a big bowl of them – there’s a ton of juice as you’d expect, but what categorises this is the sweet lemon and lime citrus that stamp it out as unique.
Looper is as good as core IPAs come, from a very good brewery bossing it right now – get involved!
Next up, this week, we took in two new DEYA IPAs that are both off the charts!
If you’re looking for a Putty comparison, I’d go with Elevator Music IPA – which was specifically designed to ‘squeeze as much goodness out of Galaxy hops as possible’ (just a coincidence, right?!).
There’s Idaho 7 and Enigma poured all over this too, which means sweet lychee and tart passionfruit trade blows as you sip, with the gloriously sweet lychee winning the war.
Oats add creaminess. This is a brilliant brew.
DEYA’s We Laugh Legitimately IPA, I’m delighted to report, is something quite a bit more different – brewed with a sprinkle of rye for much more malty sweetness.
Motueka and Idaho 7 add lime and pineapple, and Riwaka – a hop that quite a few brewers are playing with right now – adds a huge citrus aroma.
To see what all the fuss is about, scoop this up.
Finally in a bumper hop month – I want to mention Boxcar as a brewery that kinda fly under the radar but really shouldn’t!
In actual fact, Emma’s Colour IPA currently outscores both the DEYA stuff mentioned above on Untappd (at the time of writing at least).
This is lovely, bright and fruity. Personally I think it’s the deliberate, subtle bitterness that’s making this such a hit.
It’s effing freezing as I write this… but I’m more than happy knowing the Emperor’s / Loch Lomond F&%K Cancer Collab Bacta Imperial Stout is this evening’s ideal upcoming solution!
This is brewed with honey, hazelnuts, coffee, and cocoa and a whole gigantic heap of dark roasted malts that dial the ABV all the way up to 12%.
So rich, so dark, so complex – so great!
(Bacta Impy Stout is actually one of four wicked big darks brewed as part of the F**K Cancer Beer Project. Not only are they great beers – they’re part of a project doing great things too. Fair play, that’s something we can all get behind.)
In other news, the insanely popular Boxcar’s Dark Mild is back with a switched-up malt base – which means it’s better than it’s ever been before!
This first rose to prominence during one of the early lockdowns but has proved such a hit Boxcar are pretty much obligated to continue brewing it.
It’s fruit and nut chocolate, this time a shade darker and with a more complex flavour. It’s alluringly sweet and Boxcar have crafted some wizardry with the water for a creamier mouthfeel.
Just £3.85 a can. WTF?!!
Nothern Monk’s OFS Series has reached Canada… which means OFS063 Canadian Breakfast Imperial Pancake Stout!
While some breweries tend to reign in the maple sweetness in their pancake stouts while hoping for universal appeal, experimental artists Northern Monk have done nothing of the sort.
This is a sweet, sticky maple syrup dessert stout with vanilla, rich brown sugar and a maple-smoked malt backbone!
Some will want to share it – but if dessert stouts are your thing, giving any of this away would be absolute sacrilege.
I’m going on a bit here on, but before wrapping up I also want to highlight Lapsing Into Heresy Russian Imperial Stout – mostly because I love the style and I don’t think you see enough Russian Impy Stouts around!
There are no adjuncts whatsoever here. Instead, 9 months of tank maturation have developed the dark chocolate, cinder toffee and dried fruit flavours all mixed in.
The warming booze is as prominent as you’d expect, too, which makes it perfect for a frosty winter eve.
Those who like the sound of Full Circle’s Looper will have fun getting to know the brewery’s other hoppy beers – from a massive new haul there are APAs, session IPAs, Oat Pales, Fresh Hopped collabs and Double IPAs all on offer, and, trust me, Full Circle are doing some great things with hops!
Northern Monk’s other Canadian celebrations are interesting too. A Cinnamon-Apple Pastry Pale? Sign me up!
There’s more new Burnt Mill just in in Into Gold IPA – I can never really get these in as fast as they fly off the shelves.
The fresh Polly’s haul is signature Polly’s. You just cannot go wrong with a can adorning the Polly’s name.
Wylam are the latest brewery to explore fresh hops with Mission Strata CY21 DIPA. Wylam’s Over The Mountains IPA sounds absolutely incredible as well. And if the Russian Imperial Stout is too much for you?
There’s always this chewy, creamy Oat Porter to get into.
As always, I really hope you get to try some of these new beers this week.
Happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Oli Meade
Beers fans on the Dry Jan train will already be chomping at the bit to get into their first ‘proper’ beer of 2022, and this week there are some monster contenders for what that might be.
So in no particular order, here’s what I’d recommend from the new releases this week…
From the mammoth new Dig haul this week I plucked out Cafe Kinda Nice to try at random, and what a choice it turned out to be!
I could bang on about the bright pineapple and mango that lasts for days, but what impressed me the most is, in typical Dig fashion, this isn’t just another variation of a New England Pale with slightly varied hops.
Dig kinda have their own unique MO when it comes to hops that’s hard to put into words – but it’s on full display here.
Cafe Kinda Nice is epic, bright, juicy work.
Beak obviously have their own hoppy MO too, and unlike Dig, the secret is already out!
That’s why they’re already on Locals Version 5 IPA – which is as soft, as juicy and as comforting as it’s ever been.
Expect passionfruit and tangerine this time around – with added gooseberry and pear thanks to the addition of Nelson Sauvin hops.
Beak’s outstanding popularity is also why we’ve just restocked the Beak/Verdant collab Teamwurk IPA (to be fair, the fact that it’s a collab with Verdant also had something to do with it!).
In an unusual movefor a hoppy beer, the brewers here use lactic acid not for acidity but to make sure the hops still shine despite COLOASSAL hopping rates.
Huge grape, tangerine, orange and then subtle coconut – what more could you possibly ask for?!
What do you do when a new brewery pops up and it’s branding is suspiciously similar to your own?
When it happened to Alpha Delta, they decided to make a beer in celebration!
Xevza Fresh Hop Pale is Alpha Delta’s response to the launch of Azvex, and Alpha Delta have clearly pulled out all the stops to show the world how good they are.
Fresh frozen Simcoe and Mosaic, then Citra cryo, Idaho 7 and Columbus – for a super fresh pale ale that reeks of tropical fruit, oozes juicy mango and is all topped with lemon-laced pineapple.
Best. Response. Everrrr!
Neon Raptor’s Clusters Peanut Butter & Chocolate Stout has been putting smiles on the faces of dark drinkers for ages.
And this week, the brewery have released a sexy new vegan version – every bit as immense, just without the lactose!
How they’ve done it I do not know, but you wouldn’t know it was any different to the dripping-in-peanut-butter-chocolate outstanding original. Plus without the milk sugar, it’s got to be healthier, right?!
We should all be upstanding this week as Kernel, proper OGs of the dark renaissance, have released a new round of their lauded dark treble.
It’s so damn hard to choose between these stouts I’m not even gonna bother… my tactic is just to start with Export Stout 1890, a beer full of rum, raisin, rich dark fruit and leather and smoke, then move on to the indulgent and decadent Raspberry Export Stout.
And on a cold, dark, winter evening, it’s hard to beat the warming toffee, alluring chocolate and boozy warmth of the famous Imperial Brown Stout 1856.
Everyone loves Kernel – and these beers show why!
Finally, for something a little less serious (but equally great in its own way), how does the new Milk Plus Cookies Oreo Stout from Dig sound to you?
It’s a chocolate-laden stout to begin with, which Dig then swirls with creamy lactose before conditioning the whole concoction on a truckload of crushed Oreos!
Cookies and cream and biscuit and beer.
Dig are definitely underrated.
(Milk Plus, by the way, is Dig’s more down-the-line version!)
Alpha Delta are on the warpath. As part of their herculean new effort of late, they recently teamed up with one of the finest makers of stouts anywhere in the world – Nerdbrewing – to create a humungous imperial stout laden with chocolate and chilli.
In the brewery’s eyes, this is hot chocolate in a literal sense.
It’s smooth, it’s full bodied, and it comes with just the right level of subtle, warming chilli.
Into this Alpha Delta poured 2 tons of grain in a double mash – the most amount of grain they’ve ever added to the beer. As well as creating more chocolatey flavours, the massive grain bill amped up the ABV all the way to 13% – take care!
BBNo are just climbing from strength to strength, and despite their growth the wheels aren’t falling off. On the contrary, in fact: their brews just seem to get better and better.
Their latest New England IPA is soft, hazy, full-bodied and sweet. It’s citra-dominant, so it’s on the zesty side, but when paired with sabro the citra releases all kinds of tropical fruits – think ripe mango, passionfruit and, obviously, a little creamy coconut.
A tropical IPA that’s both delicious and refreshing.
Newtown Park’s After Hours Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout deserves more airtime than I’ve given it here – a brewery on the up drinkers should really get to know.
The dark game is actually mad this week. As well as all the above, Dig are out with a Pineapple & Coconut Black IPA, Polly’s A Shot In The Dark Coffee Stout is treat and Brew York’s Rock E Road Star Milk Stout lives up to Brew York’s solid, silly rep.
And then just check out the new-in hops! There are way too many new releases to namecheck, so you’ll need to go searching by brewery for the new stuff from Alpha Delta, and also Dig (SIX new hoppy lines!), and Newtown Park and Howling Hops, and Overtone, and Polly’s, and BBNo – it’s a mahussive new haul!
Beers that I particularly like the look of are Overtone’s exquisite Azacca Reboot and Capes of the Dune by Howling Hops, but as always just dive on in and see what takes your fancy.
As always, I really hope you get to try some of these new beers this week.
Happy drinking!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Step 1
We trawl the globe tasting great beer
