We were invited to organise a North East beer tasting as part of Stockport Beer Week 2018, so naturally we jumped at the chance to #sharethebeerlove in a different part of the country!

The Plan

The idea was to help share more info on the great range of breweries and beers we have up here in the North East, so with six different beers in tow, we headed to The Hope Inn in Stockport on Wednesday 26th September. Having asked for a maximum of 20 guests, it was great to get exactly that!

Using the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) beer style guide, everyone rated each beer (aroma, appearance, taste), added notes if they wanted to, and gave a final total score.

The Beers

Camerons Brewery: Röad Crew (American Pale Ale)

Black Storm Brewery: Hurricane (American Style Wheat Beer)

Anarchy Brew Co.: Citra Star (Session IPA)

McColl’s Brewery: Blood Orange (IPA)

Steam Machine Brewing Co.: Apricots by Post (Milkshake IPA)

Almasty Brewing Co.: Blend Edition (Imperial Stout)

The Results

Whilst the event was to get people tasting and talking about North East breweries, everyone also had a go at beer judging, too. The results have been tallied from all 20 participants, and converted to an overall score out of 10:

Camerons Brewery – Röad Crew: 6.6
Black Storm Brewery – Hurricane: 6.25
Anarchy Brew Co. – Citra Star: 6.35
McColl’s Brewery – Blood Orange: 6.1
Steam Machine Brewing Co. – Apricots by Post: 6.35
*winner*
Almasty Brewing Co. – Imperial Stout: 8.2

Some of our favourite tasting notes from the group:

Camerons Brewery – Röad Crew: 
Good summer beer // Easy drinking pale ale // Excellent quaffable ale

Black Storm Brewery – Hurricane: 
Clean aftertaste // Smooth, balanced flavour // Very easy drinking

Anarchy Brew Co. – Citra Star: 
Strong citrus // Very pleasant // Very hazy, good aroma 

McColl’s Brewery – Blood Orange: 
Lovely complex flavour // Great finish // Very hoppy and citrusy

Steam Machine Brewing Co. – Apricots by Post: 
Very pleasant fruity aroma // Good body // Murky and very drinkable

Almasty Brewing Co. – Imperial Stout: 
Luscious appearance // Stouts are my favourite and this is a blinder // Excellent beer to end the night

With thanks to…

…the team at Stockport Beer Week, The Hope Inn, and to Lawrence Devaney (for the event photos). This beer tasting was only made possible because of the wonderful North East breweries who kindly donated the beer for the event: Camerons Brewery, Black Storm Brewery, Anarchy Brew Co., McColl’s Brewery, Steam Machine Brewing Co. & Almasty Brewing Co.