The Ale Archive

The brewery: "The Lakeland Brewhouse (formerly Stringers Beer) is based in the South Lakeland market town of Ulverston. It all started with our Head Brewer Jon Kyme, a man with a passion, and since 2008 we have been creating a variety of real ales which have become popular with beer aficionados and occasional drinkers alike....Managing Director Kirsty Ridge acquired the brewery in 2018, and now the female owned brewery's ales can be found across the North.” The beer: "Roasty nose. Some grain and dark toast. Firmly bitter. A seriously drinkable jet-black stout." Couldn't agree more, particularly with the last sentence. Very tasty indeed. 4.0% A.B.V. The Commodore Inn , Grange-over-sands. August 2021. Related Entries

The brewery: "The Lakeland Brewhouse (formerly Stringers Beer) is based in the South Lakeland market town of Ulverston. It all started with our Head Brewer Jon Kyme, a man with a passion, and since 2008 we have been creating a variety of real ales which have become popular with beer aficionados and occasional drinkers alike....Managing Director Kirsty Ridge acquired the brewery in 2018, and now the female owned brewery's ales can be found across the North.” The beer: “Copper coloured with a sweet, soft aroma which leads into a full mouthfeel with a solid bitter finish” As enjoyable as it's stablemate Stout - see recent entry - a lovely quaffable bitter. Related entries. The Commodore Inn , Grange-over-Sands. August 2021.

The brewery: “In a region renowned for delicious local produce and divine taste experiences, Bowness Bay Brewing have been producing a range of hand-crafted traditionally made beers using the famous Lake District water to create the freshest, cleanest beers around.” The beer: “Set sail on a journey into the deliciously darker waters of our black IPA with its start-to-finish hoppy magnificence. Allow this beer’s rich chocolate sweetness along with its subtle citrus notes and grassy loveliness to wash over and refresh you with its Lakeland water freshness.” I liked the colour -obviously - but the flavour? Not so much. A tad too hoppy for me in truth. Forgot my specs when I went into Booth’s in Keswick and so didn’t read the label. 4.6% A.B.V. July 2022

The brewery: “Based in Long Marton, near Appleby, Tirril Brewery offers fine traditional ales, refreshingly crisp pilsners & a range of spirits. The first brew was delayed for a month, by the arrival of our daughter India. It turned out by chance that the current Tirril Brewery opened exactly 100 years after Siddle’s the last brewery in Tirril had closed….“ The beer: “Our first specifically designed Lakeland Ale. A pale golden beer, lighter in colour than our Grasmere Gold, yet also subtly hopped to make for plentiful session drinking.” It didn’t offend and hardly excited but after a warm day out on Ullswater it was indeed very refreshing. Pleasant but not outstanding - but that’s just my palate. 3.9% A.B.V. Glenridding Hotel , Cumbria. July 2022.

The brewery: "We are a small, co-operatively owned micro-brewery based in the beautiful village of Hesket Newmarket in the north of the Lake District National Park. We have been producing fine real ale ever since we started in 1988; we are now Cumbria’s oldest surviving micro-brewery. Most of our beers are named after the Lakeland Fells that attract visitors from all over the world and make our home such a special place to be.....Our brews are loved by locals and visitors alike; to such an extent that the brewery became co- operatively owned in 1999 to prevent its closure or sale to a larger enterprise." The beer: "A Gold Medal winning, strong, ruby ale. Brewed with a smooth blend of dark, crystal and pale malts; moderately bittered in the copper with the addition of gentle aromatic hops to give a classic flavour. This beer is rich, deep in flavour and should be treated with respect!" May 2024. 6.0% A.B.V.

The brewery: “Millholme Country Hotel was purchased in 1987 by the Coulthwaite family who dreamed of opening a traditional Lakeland inn, and ultimately, an on-site brewery. Developments soon began and The Watermill Inn was born, with the doors opening in 1990. Alan and his son Brian’s further aspirations were achieved in 2006 when they launched the Windermere Brewing Company.“ The beer: “Come over to the dark side”, this is a well balanced stout beer with fruit , a malty flavour that has a dry bitter aftertaste to finish.A dark , powerful “may the force be with you” beer.” Yep, another tasty stout from Cumbria. They know how to brew good stouts up here. 5.0% A.B.V. July 2022.