Somerland Gold
Moor Beer Company

 

My first but not last foray into the Moor Beer Company docket. Thanks to the individual who added this beer for the research into the style designation and hopping regime (see first review posted for this brew). English Golden or Sparkling should probably be a separate style from pale ale and this brew was not exactly like the other American blondes I've tried (ales, that is. Get your mind out of the gutter). Pours a rather cloudy light honey color with an aggressive white head that holds pretty steady. The aroma is quite arresting, very brightly herbal and green. Smells like green peppers, fragrant dry grass ... Green yet fruity at the same time. I also get a touch of the vanilla promised on the label and some sweet bread. Taste is similarly sharp, fresh, green, and fruity, again with green bell pepper, apple, sweet orange, and another herbal note that is almost minty. I also get a separate grainy cracker malt vibe with a hint of caramel sweetness (but just a hint). Some loose yeast is floating around and maybe this is why there is a yeasty nuttiness in the background. Tangy and acidic with moderate to somewhat heavy carbonation that seems to fit the "sparkling" moniker. This style may not be everyone's cup of tea but I quite enjoyed myself. The fresh, crisp flavors were invigorating and fairly unique.

 

 

 

 

Handpump halfpint at the Apollo.

A: Clear pale gold body with a thin head of fine white froth. Ok.

S: Fruity hops: lemon, apple, pear, and tangerine, all in front of some bready malt. Very nice.

T: Fruity to the extreme, with bell pepper and cucumber joining the citrus and apple notes from the nose. Balanced and pleasant.

M: Soft, light, and lightly carbonated. Ok.

O: The bell pepper threw me for a bit of a loop, but in the end I really enjoyed it. A very nice brew.

Cheers!

660ml bottle, 5.5% ABV.

This bottle conditioned beer pours a lightly fogged medium straw colour, with a teeming amount of thin puffy, spongy off-white head, which leaves some soap-scum lace around the glass as it slowly settles. It smells nicely of crackery, bready pale malts, some earthy yeast, and mildly zippy floral, grassy hops. The taste is sweet grainy, saltine cracker malt, some soft fleshy fruitiness, edgy yeast, and fairly bitter grassy, weedy hops. The carbonation is lively, but not overbearing, the body a wee bit on the light side, but sturdy all the same, and approaching the smoothness horizon. It finishes mostly dry, the hops, yeast, and even malt all bent in that direction, in their various manifestations.

A generally quite enjoyable blonde ale, the hops and extra yeast goodies from the shelf conditioning add much to make this normally bland style worth reconsidering.

Delicious golden beer with a big, white head. Very cloudy. Lots of sediment in the bottle. Lightly bitter fruits, toffee and yeast. Light bitter hoppiness, creamy maltiness. Good, lightly zesty mouthfeel. Nice, natural carbonation. Very nice, and at 5.5%, quite sessionable. Pairs well with English cheddars.

This is not really an American Blonde Ale but does not fit any of the beer styles. I spoke to Justin the head brewer and owner of Moor and it really is a Golden Ale (quite Sparkly) brewed exclusively with German Perle hops but using them as aroma hops as well.

The result is a dry aromatic very hoppy but not citrussy or pungent light ale - very pleasant!