Orkney White Christmas

cask at the market porter. goldenish. aroma of sherbet and lemon tree. quite alright, decent bitterness with hints of lychee and a tinny finish

Cask@The Market Porter, Borough, London. Nose is soft and hoppy. Palate shows some slight sappy hop characters. Lightly acidic, with some citrus fruit in the finish. Slightly sulfuric edge.

Any first impressions?
-A veil of foam tops the nearly clear golden bronze.
-Orangey, piney, and earthy hops possess a caramel backbone.
-Orange fruitiness dominates the honeyed hay maltiness.
-The lean maltiness and quiet carbonation produces a highly drinkable pint.

What if you dig deeper?
-Mild leafy hop bitterness paints the ending, while some recurring honey (golden syrup) laces it.
-Complex fruitiness crosses from the hop side of things to the malt flavor spectrum.
-A nice pint of bitter which drinks as easily as a lower gravity bitter.

On cask at The Phoenix Inn, Inverness, and also at the Bow Bar, Edinburgh.

Dover Beer Fest. Pleasant pale ale with a white lilly flavour. Pleasant and balanced. I have something else really interesting written here, but I can’t read it. Looks like styrofoam colding. O well.

Cask (gravity dispense) at White Cliffs Beer Festival, February 2006. Quite pale amber/gold colour. For a pale beer there’s a rather incongruous smoky malt element to the aroma. Flavours are mainly dry malt, without too much hop. Decent enough but not one of Orkney’s best in my view.