The Ale Archive

What they say: “Is there such a thing as a black IPA? There is now! Whichever way you look at it, Proper Black challenges the senses. Black as stout, but the taste is classic IPA. Powerful hops dominate the restrained chocolate and coffee notes. Whatever you thought you knew about beer, we’ve just challenged it.” Loved this. Had a couple of black IPA’s in the past but this is my favourite, although at 6.0% A.B.V it’s not one too slosh back, particularly on a school night. November 2016.

  What they say: “ Crafted from British hops, Maris Otter barley and Cornish spring water, Cornish Best is an easy-drinking, traditional, well balanced bitter with wide appeal. Cornish Best is brewed from the heart of Cornwall but with a flavour that appeals further afield. For its strength it drinks much fuller with plenty of toffee and biscuit flavours complemented with a hint of bitterness on the finish. A very nice well balanced beer.” Our first stop on our summer jaunt is in North Devon just up from Woolacombe but our first taste was from over the border in Cornwall and it didn’t disappoint. In a word, delicious. It was everything I like in a beer, it’s flavour belying it’s strength and at less than three quid a pint, a bargain. The Chichester Arms, Mortehoe, Devon. July 2016