The Bow. No strings attached

For those of you who dont know. The Bow Bar is one of the Best beer bars in Edinburgh and from Thursday 27th January to Sunday 6th February 2011 there having one of the semi regular beer festivals.

Below is the beer list for the festival but let me first sing the praises of some old favourites of mine and point out a few i think are worth looking forward to.

The first must have beer in that list is one of my Favourite UK beers. Its a must have everytime you see it on cask as it doesnt appear that often, its from one of the best Scottish breweries and its Highland Orkney porter 9%. This is a dark heavy rich roast malt. light sweetness but easily drinkable. I always have bottles of this in the house. Its a beer that i trade often, and it a beer i want to see on cask more. So hip hip hurrah to the Bow for this one. Now if i can just talk Highland into filling an empty minicask i have with there 'Old Norway' i'll be a happy man

Next up is another beer i dont see often, and is also on my list of Drink every time i see it. Its much lower abv. and from a very small brewery. Im glad to see this ocassionally making it down to Edinburgh and it Deeside Talorchan 4.5%  Again its a dark sweet (you will see a patten here) roast. The first batch i had a much larger Whey character. And much as i think its a better beer with the Whey toned down. I lament this change as it was more distinct while still being a wonderful beer. But because of this change we are left with a beer that is better balanced , very tasty and wonderfully drinkable.

The third old favourite is from a well known Scottish brewery. Now its not normally a brewery that impresses me much. But this is my Joint Favourite UK stout (along side Mauldon Black Adder not featuring here)  It would also be on my must have list, but this beer is very common in Edinburgh so i know i can have it when ever the urge takes me and this one is Cairngorm Black Gold 4.4% It is every thing a stout should be.

The fourth isnt quite an old favourite but i had a bottle just a few days ago and really liked, its dark and heavy again and rich . Some ovaltine notes and dark rich very fruity body with light chocolate bitter linger and this one is Green Jack Baltic Trader 10.5%


New to me that im looking forward to.

Well the first one is an easy one. Its another Great Scottish brewer. Its a local brewer. Its a take on my favourite beer of theirs and i was lucky to get a couple of mouthfulls of the trial run. Its Stewards no3+ 4.3%. Its got a huge cinnamon nose. That wonderfully soft malty creamy mouthfeel. Just a hint of cinnamon, light capsicum and rich fruity toffee malts. Really looking forward to trying this one properly

The other beer im looking forward to is from an English brewery who ive only had ligth and hoppy beers from and theyve all been well made. So i am looking forward to there take on a stout and its Guerilla Stout 4.9% from Blue Monkey


Well here the list. Hopefully some of you will mange to pass by and try a few


All Gates. Wigan, Lancashire
Winter Meltdown (4.8%) Brewed with Maris Otter, Lager malts and Brewers Gold hops to give a light well-balanced citrus-y beer
Ayr Brewery. Ayr
Leezie Lundie (3.8%) Floral with sweet citrus and soft fruits
Rabbies Porter (4.3%) Rich, dark and malty;full-bodied and a little smoky
Beartown. Congleton, Cheshire
Bear Ass (4.0%) Ruby-red, good hop nose and dry aftertaste
Bowman. Droxford, Hampshire
Nutz (5.0%) Made with organic chestnuts; to be enjoyed in front of a roaring fire, our stove or just stood at the bar…
Black Isle. Munlochy, Ross-shire
Yellowhammer (3.9%) Light ale, hoppiness balanced by sweet aftertaste
Heather Honey (5.0%) Classic Wheat beer with some very Scottish extras
Blue Monkey. Ilkeston, Derbyshire
Guerilla Stout (4.9%) A hearty beer full of malty complexity balanced by a robust bitter bite
Brewdog. Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire
Alpha Dog (3.9%) Launching Brewdog’s newest, this session ale is just quaffable…
Rip Tide (4.1%) The little bro’ of the 8% beer ,a welcome addition to the family
Burton Bridge. Burton-on-Trent
Bramble Stout (5.0%) Rich, dark fruity stout with abundant Challenger hops
Bushy’s. Isle of Man
Oyster Stout (4.2%) This age-old recipe uses fresh oysters late on in the brewing process, giving this creamy stout a little added extra
Cairngorm. Aviemore, Highlands
Black Gold (4.4%) Roasted malt gives hints of liquorice and blackcurrant, with a long dry finish
Dark Star. Ansty, W. Sussex
Winter Meltdown (5.0%) Brewed with Chocolate and Crystal malts, bittered with Goldings hops and conditioned with ginger and spices
M&M Porter (6.5%). Seven different malts and four hop varieties ensure a very full, smoky flavour, enhanced by aging over oak
Deeside. Aboyne, Aberdeenshire
Nechtan (4.1%) Pale ale with grapefruit and lemon flavours
Talorchan (4.5%) Thick creamy stout enhanced with the addition of whey
Elgoods.Wisbech, Cambridgeshire
Thin Ice (4.7%) Full bodied and warming ale brewed with generous amounts of English hops
Fyne Ales. Cairndow, Argyll
Hurricane Jack (4.5%) Grassy, lemony hoppiness, delicate spice, clean long finish
Jarl (4.0%) Citra hops lend tones of pineapple and orange, leading to a crisp grapefruit finish
Great Newsome. Winestead, Hull
Jem’s Stout (4.3%) Deep dark stout with hints of liquorice. Named in honour of the Brewery dog
Green Jack. Lowestoft, Suffolk
Ole Cock (4.4%) Rich Chestnut-brown Winter Warmer with a nutty finish
Baltic Trader (10.5%) Extra Strong (no kidding!) Imperial Stout with smooth rich roasted coffee and vanilla flavours
Hart. Preston, Lancashire
Ice Maiden (4.0%) Light fruity session beer with Maris Otter malts
Highland. Swannay, Orkney
Porter (9.0%) Aromas of roasted grain and dark fruits lead onto a palate of coffee and chocolate, with a hint of smoke. Nutty, Belgian chocolate finish
Island Hopper (3.9%) Golden ale; sweet, resiny hop predominates
Dark Munro (4.0%) Soft, velvety chocolate and coffee, balanced hop and fruit
Orkney IPA (4.8%) Modern IPA. Styrian Goldings hops allow lemon and grapefruit initially, developing into a Goldings-led spicy pepperiness
Holdens. Dudley, W. Midlands
Flo Jangles (4.2%) Sweet-natured, elegant and lady-like ale, as illustrated on the pumpclip
J.W. Lees. Manchester
Chocoholic (3.6%) A rich dark beer made with chocolate and Goldings hops, with crystal and chocolate malts
Kelburn. Barrhead, Renfrewshire
Dark Moor (4.5%). Winter warmer with hints of blackcurrant
Little Valley. Hebden Bridge, W. Yorkshire
Mellow Yellow (3.6%) Delicate berry fruit aroma, with light malty body and smooth finish
Mauldons. Sudbury, Suffolk
Mid-winter Gold (4.5%) Amber-coloured with a great balance of malt and hops
Milton. Milton, Cambridgeshire
Neptune (3.8%). Delicious hop aromas introduce this well-balanced, nutty copper-coloured ale
Nethergate. Cavendish, Suffolk
IPA (3.5%) Session ale with Fuggles hops and a dry, dry aftertaste
Northumberland. Bedlington, Northumberland
Winter Gold (4.5%) Sweet golden ale
Pictish. Rochdale, Lancashire
Northern Dawn (4.3%) Full-bodied amber ale with caramel notes
Phoenix. Heywood, Manchester
Snowbound (4.3%) Better not be; we’re looking forward to this one
Potbelly. Kettering, Northamptonshire
Best (3.8%) Chestnut bitter brewed with four different malts and Goldings hops
Purple Moose. Porthmadog, Gwynedd
Dark Side of the Moose (4.6%) Dark, fruity ale with plenty of character
Roosters. Knaresborough, N. Yorkshire
Farmhouse Ale (3.7%) Malty, toffee-ish and a long nutty finish. Northdown hops lend a good bitterness
Salopian. Shrewsbury, Shropshire
Black Ops Imperial Stout (7.5%) Intense malted and roasted flavours; dark fruit and mocha tempered with crisp, tart bitterness. Sneaks up on you…
Saltaire. Shipley, W. Yorkshire
Triple Chocoholic (4.8%) Small hint in the title…
South Hams. Kingsbridge, Devon
Knickadroppa Glory (5.2%) Dark ruby. Bramling Cross hops give a delicate mix of fruit and malt
Stewarts. Loanhead, Midlothian
S.R.A. Stewarts’ Rugby Ale. (4.0%) Get in practice for celebrating Scotland’s success in the 6 Nations’ by raising a glass of this golden, malty, refreshing brew
No.3 Plus! (4.3%) Two brews of our regular house dark beer, one dry-hopped, the other enhanced with winter spices
Strathaven. Craigmill, Strathaven
Trumpeter (4.2%) Vibrant red ale with roasted malts and Scottish oats
Tryst. Larbert, Stirling
Raj IPA (5.5%) Back by popular demand, this is how they did things in the Old Days
T.H.T.#1 (3.9%) First in a series of trial brews inspired by American hops. “Willamette” gives a slight spicy, smoky edge to this session beer
Yates. Wigton, Cumbria
Winter Fever (4.0%) Refreshing winter ale that uses Progress as its’ main hop