Day 115, Beer 115 - Wadworth's "Horizon"

Today's Beer

Name – Horizon

Brewer – Wadworth

Classification – Golden ale

Strength – 4.0% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Intense yellow gold.

On the nose – Citrus rich. Surprisingly potent malt presence. (Nicely surprising.)

On the tongue – A very well rounded golden ale. Zesty, lightly nutty, refreshing and easy drinking.

On the subject – There's a sense of calculated revolution over at Wadworth these days. This is a company with a rich heritage, and many of their labels tend to hark back to eras gone by, with some of the ales inside the bottles also doing the same. Suddenly, a feeling of 'be here now' has descended upon the company and with the huge skills-base they already have in place – I predict all manner of exciting new beers are going to be the result. I welcome this move in advance.

On the market – Wadworth beers are simultaneously everywhere and nowhere, depending on the specific label. This one can be tricky to stumble across, so try stumbling on the upcoming red words to find Wadworth's online shop.

On the whole – 8/10

Full Review

The Horizon you see before you now is not the Horizon you will find in the shops.

The 'new look' Horizon on the shelves from now on will look far more like this.

But I'm fated to have to work with an old version – as that's what Wadworth sent over to me. (Yes, my bottom lip is jutting forward and yes, my eyes are welling with tears.)

But this is actually very good news, for Wadworth if not for me, because it demonstrates the significant changes that are currently taking place at this famous UK brewery.

They are having what might be described as a coorporate makeover, bringing themselves into line with the recent massive acceleration of this industry's pace.

I'm delighted by this, as I've long been worried that established favourites like Wadworth would resist change and stick to the 'what we do best' mentality, a mentality which cannot win in the modern era of social media and image-obsessiveness.

You can't fight the tide and win, all you can do is take pride in trying. Thankfully, Wadworth have now plunged in having elected to ride the waves and go with the flow.

Beers in the style of Horizon are at the forefront of this new wave, and although this beer displays less hyper-intensity and dynamism in it's constuction than many of the newer 'yellow' beers (many of which go too far with it all) it is a very nice drink indeed, and one which you could imagine staying with for a long evening without ever being overly challenged or getting bored.

That's the kind of beer most people like. Even those people who don't like to admit it in public.

Having been largely unmoved by the (now defunct) branding on this bottle, I have to say I'd passed it over many times in preference to other golden beers in my 'queue', but having finally got round to it – it actually went and impressed my socks off, so the rejuvenation of the design is a move I'm personally delighted by.

It's a remarkably well balanced golden beer, and balance is arguably a rare thing in these kinds of ales these days. The hops are vibrant, thirst quenching and zesty, but they don't dominate the proceedings like they are encouraged to do in so many of the 'modern goldens.'

Keeping those hops honest is a measured gathering of roasted nuts and biscuit (of both the sweet and savoury kind). These elements don't bring 'sweetness' as such, they merely take the relentless sting out of the citrus, making it effortlessly drinkable and doing away with all that involuntary face-pulling which many highly-hopped beers can trigger.

The body is light without being thin, and the ABV is fairly low without ever feeling weak.

It's an excellent example of how a session-style golden ale can have a very broad appeal.

Is is avant garde?

No.

Do avant another?

You bet I do!

Day 61, Beer 61 - Wadworth's "Farmers Glory"

Today's Beer

Name – Farmers Glory

Brewer – Wadworth

Classification – Premium ale

Strength – 4.7% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Deep, sumptuous rosewood.

On the nose – Cereals like never before. Cereal-zilla!

On the tongue – Traditional bitter with an emphasis those wonderfully rich cereals.

On the subject – "Locally sourced (Wiltshire) barley" sets the tone for this bold and characterful beer.  Well, wherever the barley came from, it certainly makes the difference.

On the market – The Wadworth message is growing beyond that of just their mighty 6X. Even so, the brewery's own shop is a perfect place to buy.

On the whole – 7.5/10

Full Review

Sometimes, in moments of divine inspiration, breweries give their beers exactly the right name.

This is one of those beers.

Firstly, the word 'glory' is used, and that is the proverbial 'nail-on-head' use of the term.

Secondly, and perhaps even more apt, is the use of the word 'farmer', because this ale takes you right onto the farmer's land, among the rows of swaying crops, which border wildflower meadows rimmed with hawthorn and blackberry bushes.

There's no hiding from it - this drink is simply packed with cereals in a way only Kellogg's could compete with.

There's a citrus sweetness, too, to lift the malt up from the earth and into the trees, and a fulsome bitterness from the hops completes the nature-infused appeal of the brew.

There's something knowingly traditional about what Wadworth bring to the marketplace – and I can sense the many generations of farmers (as well as all the other varieties of working folk) savouring this beer at the end of the long day's grind.

There's a spiced orange/aniseed twang to the finish, and a trace of oriental black bean sauce on the nose, but these are the only real hints of any modern-day tinkering. These extra character features work wonderfully, without ever taking centre stage.

Centre stage is taken by those swaying crops and those wildflower meadows...this beer evokes these images as clearly as a liquid ever could.

Halfway through the glass, I felt like I was actually there. I could almost detect those barley ears tapping softly together in the warm summer breeze...

Clever little beer!

Day 51, Beer 51 - Wadworth's "Old Timer"

Today's Beer

Name – Old Timer

Brewer – Wadworth

Classification – Strong Ale

Strength – 5.8% ABV

Verdict - At A Glance

On the eye – Deep, rich walnut.

On the nose – Elusive for it's strength. Faint traces of fresh straw and espresso.

On the tongue – Intensely ripened fruits, charcoal and deepest malts. Frenetic and potent.

On the subject – Wadworth & Company of Devizes in Wiltshire have a far wider range of beers than most people realise, and that's partly due to the huge success of their ubiquitous '6X'. But then, 6X is a beer with an 80 year heritage, whereas the beer they named Old Timer is a mere child in comparison – at just 49 years of age. (A '6X' review is coming soon!)

On the market – Further out of Wiltshire and the surrounding counties (where there is no problem at all) this one's a bit on the rare side. But worry not – the brewery's online shop is excellent.

On the whole – 7.5/10

Full Review

This is a powerhouse drink in almost every sense.

The force of that first sip leaves you in no doubt that this is a drink for grown ups. Not just grown up humans either – but grown up human beer drinkers. There's a difference, and this brew reminds you what that difference is.

I feel I should pause here and explain that this beer is a remarkable, perhaps even peerless example of a characterful strong ale. I feel that if I don't pause now to say this, it may begin to seem that I'm not a fan this drink, and I'm pretty certain that I am. I'm also semi-certain that this beer may be a classic. A representative of a lost art of strong beer creation which - as the last of its kind - really needs us all to pay it some serious attention.

But, I just can't be absolutely sure of all this.

Chiefly, my lack of certainty as to this beer's greatness stems from the sheer potency of its character. It is so unrelentingly intense that I feel just a little inclined to hold back on offering maximum high praise, just in case I'm unwittingly allowing this beer to force such a judgement out of me. 

You see, I suspect this ale might be a bit of a bully... and I find myself wanting to keep a very close eye on it.

Not that keeping a close eye on it is entirely devoid of benefits, because there are many good things to discover.

As the label suggests, it is strong, and the word 'strength' applies to everything here. The deep red hue is strong, the char-grilled fruity flavour is strong, the alcohols amid the flavours are strong, and even the two Shire horses on the label look to be well above average in strength. There really is nothing that this beer does weakly.

But does that necessarily make it a bully? Well, perhaps not... but I'd hate to be the guy telling this beer I didn't like the look on it's face.

And, just maybe, this fearsome quality might explain why this very good beer isn't more widely known – as it arguably should be. The fact is, I can see how it might be a little bit full-on for some drinkers. But for those who aren't intimidated by beers with sackfuls of character, they'll quickly discover that this beer is actually not a bully at all.

Not only will it not hurt you - but it might just wind up becoming an old friend.

I certainly grew very fond of it by the end.

I said before that this beer might be a classic of its kind – I reckon I'm going to stick with that assessment.

Wadworth-while!

Six cracking beers from Wadworth's extensive range have arrived - by magic - here at Beer Year Towers.

Actually, its possible they arrived by courier, but there's always a pretty magical feel to a delivery like this.

From left to righ the beers are -

Farmers Glory - (Traditional Ale)
Old Timer - (Strong Ale)
6X - (Famous Ale!)
Horizon - (Golden Ale)
Malt & Hops (Seasonal Ale)
Swordfish (Blend Of 6X and Rum!)

Each one will get the full Beer Year treatment very soon.

Magic!