Favorite UK beer

Beers from the UK that I get in town? St. Peter's Cream Stout and O'Hara's Irish Stout.

 

Favorite available here (assuming it's fresh): Timothy Taylor Landlord; favorite over there: maybe Timothy Taylor Golden Best.

 

THAT...I buy online. Great brew!

 

Fullers 1845, Past Masters Double Stout, ESB, London Pride, London Porter.

Thornbridge Kipling IPA - a single hop IPA made with Nelson Sauvin hops.

St. Peters Cream Stout, Winter Ale.

Youngs Double Chocolate Stout.

Harviestoun Bitter & Twisted, Old Engine Oil, and any of the Ola Dubh series. Especially Ola Dubh 40.

Traquair Jacobite.

Sam Smiths Oatmeal Stout, Imperial Stout.

Adnams Broadside Strong Original.

JW Lees Harvest Ale.

Brewdog Punk IPA (I'll probably catch shit for that one, lol)

And Belhaven Scottish Stout is fan-effing-tastic.

 

Samuel Smith Oatmeal Stout or Organic Chocolate Stout hands down for me.

EDIT: Honorable mentions Sam Smith Imperial stout and Young's double chocolate.

 

Anything Innis & Gunn is great, but by far the JW Lee's cask series (Port, Sherry, Calvados, Lagavulin) are all fabulous. I find a few once in a while hiding in stores where people just can't pull the $10 trigger for a bottle. I happily buy them up.

Oh, and the entire Ola Dubh series. Glorious beers.

 

Timothy Taylor Landlord
Jw Lees Vintage harvest ale
Meantime Old Naval College
Adnams (anything)

 

Two best English beers I have had here were 2005 Fullers Vintage, and a smudged date, recent bottle of Marble Brewing of Manchester Barleywine, which was simply delicious.

Wish we got the smaller stuff from there more fresh, but they suffer more with freshness of our stuff, I'm sure. That said, beers like Fullers ESB and Coniston Bluebird Bitter still taste pretty fucking good not so fresh.

 

/\
l l
l l
ESB

 

Back in my naive, neophyte days (aka before BA and trading), I would consider it a luxury and reward to spend $8 for a sixer of Bass Pale Ale. I would probably drain pour it now....

 

Please don't hurt the brewery in Baldwinsville NY's feelings.

 

right now I love Goliath and Scarecrow from Wychwood and anything from Hawkshead. Looking forward to opening the 2010 and 2011 Fullers vintage in December.

 

Young's Double Chocolate Stout

 

Samuel Smith's Imp Stout/Winter Welcome and London Pride are my favorites.

 

One of my favorites that hasn't been mentioned

J.W. Lees Manchester Star
http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/178/22571

as well as J.W. Lees Harvest, Ola Dubh varients, and Old Engine Oil Engineers Reserve

 

Courage Russian Imperial Stout is available somewhere in the US? Wow, I used to love John Courage beer.

 

Yup! I've found it several places in central IL, typically for about 6-7 bucks a bottle. It's really unique, and quite delicious!

 

Courage Imperial stout and taddy porter

 

Bottled beer isn't where it's at, the cream of the crop is cask which of course has to be well kept. I see Coniston Bluebird mentioned; in bottle it's a very pleasant drink indeed but it's a contract brewed version of what I first encountered in the brewery, the Black Bull at Coniston.I was so impressed that when I got home I asked my local pub landlord to get some but while he was making enquiries it was awarded Champion Beer of Britain and suddenly the demand for it made it unavailable.

 

Best UK beer I've ever had was Cairngorm Black Gold on cask at Bow Bar in Edinburgh.