Skip to main content

Beer Advent Calendar Window Six - Southwold Christmas Ale



In the spirit of the season that brings us all together, Window Six on the Advent Calendar brings about a famous ongoing collaboration between two giants of the British beer world: Adnams... and Marks and Spencers. 

As with Adnams main line of beers, I personally find the range Adnams do for Marks and Spencers that will be considered the more "traditional" series to range from average to swamp water. However, just as with Adnams main line of beers, I personally find the range they do for Marks and Spencers that will be considered the more "craft" series to do a decent job. Sorachi Saison is probably the best beer in the "brewed for M&S" range and possibly the best beer I've had from Adnams. 

I know it is a controversy, and as a fairly large brewery complete with distillery, Adnams manage to maintain a reputable name amongst bloggers and beer personnel alike. However, even from a young drinker, who only discerned whether he liked his supermarket 4for£5 real ale bottles with the descriptor of "It's good/crap," I've never really enjoyed the very distinct yeast flavour present in Adnams beers, including their spin-off Jack Brand range.

However, I noticed in October there was a new Southwold Christmas Ale amongst the beer shelves I've been searching for. Since then, it has been repeatedly sold out in two local M&S' suggesting it is doing well for itself. Eventually I grabbed one of only three bottles left on the shelf in Marks and Spencers Sale, just in time to feature in this Advent Calendar. Credit to Adnams that they've made the Southwold brand in this supermarket almost as famous as their own brewery name. 


"It's Christmas Eve. It's the one night of the year when we all act a little nicer, we smile a little easier, we cheer a little more. For a couple of hours out of the whole year we are the people that we always hoped we would be."


Southwold Christmas Ale - brewed by Adnams for M&S 4.2% 

I have to say this is an attractive bottle and I can understand why it flies off the shelves. Although I know those light-lit barns are supposed to represent beach huts, they remind me a little of the nativity scene lit-up and that makes me feel festive. Great colour choices too. 

To the beer, that is a murky brown and swamps in your glass. The nose has that familiar Adnams flavour I don't get along with - something like Westmalle yeast mixed with dirty dishwater. The taste is as uninspiring as I sadly assumed. There's hints of Christmas cake, with a dry biscuity fruitness throughout. Lots of chocolate malt style flavours over that terrible yeasty tang. Then, popping up in your mouth every few seconds is a familiar flavour I've tried to pinpoint and can only think of wholegrain mustard. It's certainly not something I've come across in a beer before. Fruit cake and mustard - the future flavours of the experimental craft. Everything draws to a rather flavourless carbonated finish. It wasn't terrible - but it didn't taste as good as it looks. It didn't rouse any emotions or feelings. It existed and it happened and it is selling quite well for the brewery and supermarket. That is what I have to say about this beer. 

Mince Pie Pairing Rating: 4/10 - the mincemeat flavours dominate the beer, making it have less flavour rather than drawing the flavour out 

Best paired with: Santa Claus the Movie, because that's a thing that exists, right? That's sort of Okay... ish... right? 


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

The Pubs of Stalybridge Part One: The Stalybridge Seven.

And a touch more ...  Rififi Nightclub - once the town's cinema - has stood empty and unused for four and a half years This is the continuation of my posts of regular pub crawls to try and get myself in more pubs and discover more. Whilst I grew up in an old hamlet that most were quick to distance themselves from, my address clearly stated that we belonged to Stalybridge. However distant the town centre felt I was a Stalybridger, a Stalybridgian, a Stalyian: you know I don’t think I’ve ever heard us given a name before. I’m going with Stalyian. After a few moves around the country and through various relationships, I didn’t expect to find myself still local to the town in 2017. Whilst my address hasn’t stated Stalybridge for 3 years, I still spend plenty of time in the town – not least as it houses my “local.” To many in the north-west, it is famous for its nickname of Staly Vegas , that came about (as far as I’m aware) through its late Nighties-through-to-N...
4 comments
Read more

WHEN CELEBRITIES DIE - THE INFINITY OF PUBS

    Recently I was stood outside Huddersfield Railway Station waiting for my Replacement Bus Service. I was eating much needed food from a nearby fast food outlet and contemplating my next move. Other match-goers had gone home but I had over 50 minutes to wait for my bus. We’d already been to a few of our post-match regular spots and so I was contemplating somewhere new or different to pass the time now.   I stood in St George’s Square, behind the statue of Harold Wilson, and pondered where I should waste my next hour. And pondered and pondered. After deliberation that ate into much of my allotted time, I walked down to the familiar setting of The Sportsman, realising that there wasn’t anywhere different to go at all.   But whilst I deliberated, I cast my eye over the currently scaffold-covered George hotel opposite the station; a place I had been in once with my Dad. It’s downstairs public bar had stood as a firm and available option to match-goers fo...
1 comment
Read more

Advent Calendar Window 14 - La Goudale de Noel

"Keep my distance, but you still catch my eye, Tell me, baby, do you recognise me? Well, it’s been a year, that doesn’t surprise me" La Goudale is an interesting French enigma. I searched for this under the label Brassee a L’Ancienne believing this to be the name of the brewery. After some fruitless searching, I learnt that this is not the name of a brewer, but rather a French saying that, roughly translated, means “Brewed in a Traditional way.” La Goudale is actually from the Brewery Gayant based in Douai, North-east France that aleso houses other well-nown brews such as Amadeus and La Biere Du Demon.  The real reason I find them an enigma though is for the discovery the other day that two of their beers – the Abbey and Wit – are sold in Aldi. They are in 750ml bottles and are £2.49 and £1.99 respectively. Housed here, the repugnant snob in me thinks they look cheap and unappetising on these shelves and managed to slightly put me off my La Goudale...
Post a Comment
Read more