'Grozet' Scottish Gooseberry Beer - Care Package Beer Three

In the words of Monty Python - and now for something completely different. I might have been a bit apprehensive approaching the opening of my third Care Package beer, Grozet, from Williams Brothers Brewing in Alloa, Scotland, had it not been for having imbibed their flagship, Fraoch, on a number of occasions (best in cask, by the way). Fraoch is the world's benchmark for heather infused beer and assuredly the first to be produced commercially. Like Fraoch, Grozet is a modern interpretation of an historic Scottish ale, this time brewed with Gooseberries, Grozet being Scots for gooseberry. Fraoch and Grozet are part of Williams Brothers' Historic Ales From Scotland line that also includes Alba, brewed with Scots Pine and Spruce sprigs, Ebulum, brewed with Elderberries, and Kelpie, brewed with seaweed; yes, seaweed!

Grozet is brewed with malted barley, gooseberries, hops, boymyrtle, and yeast. (A number of historic ales from the British Isles used Myrica Gale - common name bog myrtle or sweet gale, in place of hops either prior to the arrival of hops from the Continent or due to the expense of hops). It is said to be fermented for a lengthy period at cold temperatures. When poured it is straw to light golden in color with a fruity aroma that I'm assuming is primarily from the gooseberries (I've never had gooseberries myself). It has a very light bodied mouthfeel and is very lightly carbonated. The flavor is unlike any beer I've ever had. Upon first taste I thought it quite harshly bitter although not a hoppy bitterness. However, after the next two or three sips I found it very nice and flavorful. As mentioned, I've never had gooseberries but if I am correct I would say they aren't a far cry from black currant, a flavor a do quite like. As Grozet first hits the tongue the taste is kind of tart but still slightly bitter (not unlike black currant). However, once the initial bitterness settles the beer is pleasantly sweet and slightly malty. It reminds me of some fruit flavored wheat beers I've had in the past but unlike anything I've tasted before.  The initial finish is slightly sweet, tailors off to bittersweet, but leaves a lingering sweetness in the back of the mouth. This is indeed a very unique beer; not one I would drink a lot of at one sitting, but very interesting nonetheless.

Today's William Brothers Brewing Company started in earnest in 1988 when Bruce Williams began brewing Fraoch, or Heather Ale, in the tiny five barrel West Highland Brewery in Taynuilt, Argyll. With the success of the beer more capacity was needed and brewing of Fraoch was contracted to the sadly now gone historic Maclay Thistle Brewery in Alloa, Scotland, long a classic Scottish brewing center. In 1998, with the help of Historic Scotland, Bruce and his brother Scott refurbished for brewing Craigmill, an old mill in Strathaven, just south of East Kilbride. Brewing remained here until 2004 when the company adopted the Williams Brothers name, purchased the New Alloa Brewery in Killiebank, Alloa and moved all production to the new brewery. The Craigmill site was subsequently taken over by Strathaven Ales. After moving to the new brewery, Williams Brothers expanded their range of beers beyond the Historic Ales line to a variety of interesting and excellent beers under the Williams Brothers name. I urge you to seek them out when and if you have the opportunity. You will be glad you did!

FINAL NOTE: The brewery description on the website, ScottishBrewing.com, is incorrect. This will be addressed very soon.

Yours Aye!
Neil

Orkney Brewery's Northern Light - Care Package Beer Two

Finally, I'm finding the time to say something about the second beer in my recent 'care package'. This one is Orkney Brewery's Northern Light. First off, I must say that I've enjoyed all the cask versions of Orkney's beers that I've tried over the years. Prior to this, I think I've only had Red MacGregor in bottle form. One of the things that struck me right away about Orkney beers when I first tried them some years ago is the packaging. Orkney has always had awesome pump clips and bottle labels. But, enough of that, on to the beer itself.

I've had a few other Orkney beers but this is the first time I've tried Northern Light. Visually, it is very light golden, almost straw colored. The bottled version that I had exhibited little to no aroma when poured into a glass. Flavor-wise it has a nice upfront sweetness from the pale malt and a citrusy fruitiness from the hops and the yeast. According to Orkney's website, Northern Light is brewed with 'the very best pale ale malt' along with Hallertauer Hersbrucker, Saaz, and Liberty hop varieties. The beer is classified by the brewery as a Pale Ale but I found the body to be a little thin for a Pale Ale, in my opinion. The finish seemed a bit too dry and bitter with the flavor of the beer itself quickly disappearing.

Overall, I think this would be a great beer for hot weather (something Scotland has very little of) or with spicy food such as a nice Chicken Tikka Masala. It must be said, however, that this is not a beer I would order successively in the pub; Red MacGregor or Dark Island, yes.

The Orkney Brewery was founded in 1998 by Roger White and his wife, Irene, as a retirement project. Their initial brewer was the very talented Rob Hill, now running his own brewery, Highland Brewing Company, also in Orkney. In 2006 the brewery was purchased (along with Atlas Brewery, who I think I read recently is no longer on the go, I could be wrong) by Norman Sinclair, a successful restaurateur, under Sinclair Breweries Ltd. I have to be honest, I think they struggled a little bit after Rob left as the consistency of their beers was not what it had been. I think they've regained this however and now continue to produce highly acclaimed beers.

Yours Aye!
Neil