Skip to main content

Beer Advent Calendar Window Thirteen - Naughty & Nice


As I crawled through a packed Calls Landing in Leeds in May this year, I never knew that a forced choice of beer would lead to something remarkable. A Vocation Brewery Pride & Joy was in my glass as I surveyed and judged the packed bar, but my eye kept returning to my glass and thinking "Who the heck are this brewery?" 

I was soon to learn of the Hebden Bridge based brewery and their founder, John Hickling, formerly of Blue Monkey brewery, We all were. As those well branded bottles started to pop up everywhere, they soon turned to stunning cans and some of 2015's most memorable beers. 

In the past week, they've had many mentions in "Golden Pints" posts - and feature in mine too (coming this week.) 

With that I am pleased to see them enter my Beer Advent Calendar behind Window Thirteen with their Naughty & Nice. The can was kindly provided by Rachel (pictured) and had to be drunk in the pub itself so that this particular window could be completed. 

Naughty & Nice is a Chocolate Stout brewed just for the season in collaboration with creative design studio Robot Food. There were a limited number of 750ml bottles released to celebrate this beer, but thankfully some made it into those wonderfully designed cans too. 

Vocation Brewery - Naughty & Nice A Strong Chocolate Stout 7.5% 


It's going to be difficult to say much here that isn't the word chocolate. This pours a luscious dark chocolate colour with white chocolate head. There's big flavours on the nose of dark chocolate, woodland scrubs, dark chocolate, cacao nibs, dark chocolate, cooked winter berries and dark chocolate. I'll try to describe the taste in as simple terms as I can muster: 

Willy Wonka was looking at his chocolate river and was tired of its milky flavouring. He liked good, strong cocoaed chocolate. He liked it robust, flavoursome and dark. So the lactose addition was taken away from the river and it ran a pure dark chocolate colour. It oozed and boozed through the factory, picking up honey, tannins and maple syrup along the way, to provide a little difference, but mostly the river retained this powerful chocolate flavour, that flowed best at the most indulgent times of year. Willy Wonka dipped a can into the river, retrieved some of its liquid and took a sip. It was long lasting, mouth-filling but tasty. Above its subtle hints of Eccles Cakes and evergreen leaves, it was definitely chocolate; the darkest and richest chocolate you can imagine  He knew drinking from the river was Naughty but the drink was so Nice. "That is what we shall call it," he thought. 

That is the best way I can describes Naughty & Nice to you, without repeating the word "chocolate" over and over. 

Mince Pie Rating: N/A - damn pubs and there lack of mince pies at this time of year 

Best Paired with: Augustus Gloop. 

Chocolate 




Labels:

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

THE STATE OF CASK part 2: The Cask Consumers

In what has become one of the most written about subjects amongst beer communicators for a long while I am going to follow on with my own thoughts about cask beer. Yet these ideas are formulated from potential posts I've been writing the odd paragraph about for around 18 months but never managed to construct into something relevant.  I have much to say on the subject; so much so that rather than making this into one enormous read I've split it into three sections regarding the current trends and effects on cask beer as I see it.  Today I look at the problem with consumer's and the immunity of one Timothy Taylor's Landlord. Part 1 can be read here . On the first Saturday morning of June 2016 I travelled to Stockport Beer Festival with my Aunt Marie and Uncle David; famously more traditional beer drinkers. They enjoy a day out in Stockport as, coming from Dewsbury way, they don’t actually see much beer from my side of the Pennines, incl...
16 comments
Read more

National Winter Ales Festival 2013 - A Reasonable Farewell

Perhaps if this had been three years ago I would really have lamented the loss of the National Winter Ales Festival in Manchester . Not only has it long been held in my home city, but it was also my first ever beer festival, signifying a special place in my heart. That first visit was in 2006 and the event was then held in a co–operative building near Victoria station. At the time, my young ale loving mind was rather gobsmacked by the wondrous multi roomed, multi floored experience as barrels and casks of the good stuff stood waiting for me to try at no more than 90p for a generous half pint. Breweries and beer styles I had never heard of were present. It was also where I had my first taste of rauchbier, an encounter I have never regretted. I paid £3 to enter that day as a non CAMRA member. The organisations members that did travel with me on the occasion entered the festival for free (so they say, I’m inclined to believe they paid at least £1.) “They’re not a money making ...
20 comments
Read more

BEER INDUSTRY PERSONNEL - COME TO DADDY!

Around 7 months ago I started dating a pub manager. It was inevitable in many ways. Amongst the perks that come with being involved with somebody on the other side of the bar, came the dread of how to react in future to the interactions involved in bar work.    It isn’t a situation I’ve been in before so it has required adjustment. I’ve never had a partner pull up a chair in the office and stare at me through part of the working day whilst occasionally ordering goods from me. So you don’t want to interfere in your partner’s work whilst still getting to enjoy the pub.   You don’t want to suddenly take up a spot on the bar where you make gooey eyes at each other with every pull on a hand pump. You don’t want to be one of those possessive teenagers, watching like a bar hawk and scowling at any intimidatingly handsome pair of arms that makes your other half roar with laughter. You want to separate their work from your social life and allow everything to sti...
11 comments
Read more