A salute to Polish Beers!
I was in Poland during May so I decided to do a special bit on the country's beers. I started early with Jboy and went through 3 of the better known ones here. This was actually a good idea as the tipple of choice over there was Vodka, and while it was excellent, its hard to write a review after 3 of them
Lech 5.2%
Lech is the first beer I'm trying and I have to say I'm quite impressed! It pours with a golden colour and a head that quickly dissipates. The first impression is crisp and mild honey tones. It finishes with a nice smoky flavour. I always thought Lech was going to be a very generic beer but this would make a good alternative to Heineken
Zywiec is more golden in colour than Lech and far less carbonated. I can only describe the aroma as mealy. If I got this from a tap I would even suspect it was slightly off but I am reliably informed this is the way it should smell. Flavour wise it was more hoppy ad bitter than Lech and with a very dry finish
Same as the other two Tyskie shows a classic golden colour but the flavour has a lot more bite. There was even a faint white wine smell that I was unable to shake. Quite Bitter
This is the only beer that I actually properly tasted in Poland. The beer hall was in a shopping area in Lodz. They Brewed 3 of their own beers with more to come and even had waitresses dressed in the German beer hall style. Since i was with a group the beer came in a barrel that could be poured by the customer which was a nice touch!
The beer itself was slightly cloudy with a lovely light honey scent. The flavour relfected this with additional corriander and smoky tones.
Also Ran
After I came back I was pretty well behaved for the rest of the month, but I did try a few more:
Flying Dog Double Pale Ale
Flying Dog are going up in my opinion. They modelled themselves after the writings of Hunter S. Thompson and the artwork on the label is always psychadelic.
The double pale ale is a belgian style, with a very high alcohol content. It would be similar to Delerium Nocturnum in flavour. Amber in Colour and a wonderful berry smell. The flavour is a mixture of hops and Citrus. Definetly worth a look but one at a time!
Another Flying Dog offering and an IPA to boot. I am on record as saying I don't like IPA's but after a good experience with this and Jagged Edge I am going to give this style another go. This one poured a lovel Amber colourand had a bitter but orangey finish. Quite dry as an after-taste.
The final taste for May was Jagged Edge IPA. The Amber colour was once again in evidence but with a less pronounced bitter scent and flavour. The finish was citrusy and I find this style of Fruit flavoured finish makes an IPA more attractive.
Deveneys in Dundrum is running its Beer Festival again this year in the Tripod. Tickets are on sale now so go buy them, its a great festival and a fantastic way to expand your knowledge!
Official Festival Site
Ruth Deveneys Beer Blog
No comments:
Post a Comment