A Taste Of Summer

When the sun is shining, there’s nothing more enjoyable than drinking a cold, refreshing beer, writes Tracy Hargreaves

Beer is seeing a huge influx of new and exciting beers from around the world as well as right on our doorstep. It is the oldest recorded recipe in the world with the Egyptians first documenting the brewing process on papyrus scrolls around 5000 BC. So why is this drink, which has been around for centuries, still as popular as ever?

According to Booths beer buyer Pete Newton, “there’s an array of new beers generally and there really is a beer to suit all tastes,” he says. “Beer choice is broader than ever and it’s following the wine and gin boom. From craft beers, to the more traditional darker ales to lighter, vibrant lagers and fruity beers, no longer is it targeted at a certain audience, but is being drunk by the young, old, men and women.”

Booths has probably one of the largest ranges of beers, which includes 250 bottled beers from near and far, from breweries that are close to its stores as well as from around the world. They include the organic brewers Little Valley, near Hebden Bridge. The Lancaster Brewery, home to the robust Red bitter, and smaller brewer Moorhouse’s in Burnley.

In addition, Booths has 100 modern craft beers which can be found in both bottles and cans. The packaging has also moved with the times in that it reflects its audience, with more modern, funky, trendy cans and bottles being produced to appeal to the newer generation of beer drinkers.

As people get more adventurous with their holiday destinations, they try new beers when they travel abroad. As such continental beers including Peroni, Estella and Pilsner have never really gone away, but consumers have seen an increase in the range accessible in their local supermarkets. However, with events such as the major football tournament this summer, brewers have seen an opportunity in the market to promote beers, not readily available, from the nation’s involved. So even if you aren’t at the actual game you can feel part of the action by drinking the participating country’s beer.

Beers such as the Russian Baltika will prove popular. In Russia, beer is the second most well-liked alcoholic drink after vodka. Its brewery in St Petersburg is considered to be the largest brewery in Europe with the area occupied equal to the Vatican.

Australia, Denmark and France are close behind with their respective top beers, Krush, Raid Beer and Dalva, also worth a try.

So what else could the novice beer drinker start with? “There are more lighter beers along with flavoured beers, which are easy drinking,” said Pete. “Jennings Redskins has a silky strawberry blonde sensation, and High Wire Grapefruit from Magic Rock Brewing in Huddersfield is a fruit-infused version of its best-selling West Coast pale ale. The brewery accentuated the original beer’s smoothly composed malt body and lip-smacking citrus character with the addition of 100 per cent natural pink grapefruit flavour. It’s juicy, tart and deliciously refreshing.

“People now want quality over quantity and are happy to try new styles, new flavours and new breweries. If the demand is there, it can only continue to boost the market.”

Another area of growth is microbreweries. The Market Ale House in Leyland is one such microbrewery which opened in 2013. Independently and family owned, it is accredited with being the first micro-pub in the CAMRA area and sells high quality cask ales. The Tap and Vine in Penwortham is another independent brewer which opened last month, offering a variety of cask ales and specialist lagers and Priest Town Brewing in Preston is also keeping it local, producing beers such as Ribbleton Ale and PR2 IPA.

If the thought of drinking a beer or ale doesn’t appeal to you, give it a go and you might be pleasantly surprised. Beer festivals are a good place to start as they have a wide range available and often you are able to try before you buy.

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