Cambridge Winter Ale Festival 2001 - Beers & Ciders

The Festival has an East Anglian theme again this year, with a selection of old favourites and new beers. We'd love to have room for all the old favourites such as Woodforde and Wolf every year but we don't have the space!

Whilst many beers here are "Winter" beers, as usual there are lighter beers and Milds for variety. This is the list of beers as arrived on 9th January.

Beer descriptions are mainly from the Good Beer Guide 2001 but there are relatively few of those as so many beers are new.

Wherever possible we show in Festival programmes the 1998 East Anglian Beer Star Ratings. These rate the region's regularly-brewed beers, so occasionals, one-offs and more recent beers have no rating. Only one beer here fits this!

The Beer List

Champion Beer of the Festival

Bartrams, Thurston, Suffolk; 1999

New Year Daze 4.6%
Made with malt wheat so it may have a slight haze.
Damson Stout 4.8%

Blanchfield (The Bull), Fakenham, Norfolk; 1997

Black Bull Mild 3.6%
A gentle, lightly-roasted aroma leads to a muscular roast taste and a lingering finish with a growing sweet bitterness. Rich red colour.
Winter Warmer 6.0%
A well-rounded, rich red beer redolent of autumn fruits. Rich plum pudding flavour leads to an explosion of creamy sweet fruitiness.

Bluebell (Blue Bell Inn), Whaplode St Catherine, Lincs; 2000

Olde Honesty 4.1%
Olde Fashioned 4.8%

City of Cambridge (moving to near Ely); 1997

Mich'ealmas 4.6% 3rd place in Champion Beer of the Festival voting
A darkish, smooth and complex beer, combining sweetishness with a subtle aftertaste.
Recently available at the Cambridge Blue.

Darktribe, Gunness, Scunthorpe, Lincs.; 1996

Dixies Mild 3.6%
Sixteen Bells 6.5%

Elgoods, Wisbech, Cambs.; 1795

Reinbeer 5.9%
Ginger Wenceslas 7.5% 2nd place in Champion Beer of the Festival voting
A tickers' special for this Festival.

Green Jack, Lowestoft, Suffolk; 1993

Orange Wheat 4.2%
Santa's Sack 7.5%

Highwood, Barnetby, Lincs.; 1995

Mill Race 4.2%
Christmas Cheers 4.5%

Iceni, Ickburgh, Norfolk; 1995

Hopped Aboard 3.9%
"Late hopped for extra flavour"
Men of Norfolk 6.0%

King & Smart, Market Rasen, Lincs.; 1999

Hop Bine 3.6% - didn't arrive
Brookenby Dark 4.8%

Lidstones, Wickhambrook, Suffolk; 1998

Triple Gold 4.0%
An intensely gold-coloured bitter with lots of smooth hoppy flavours, made with three types of Goldings hops.
Old Ale 6.0%
A rich, traditional strong ale with a perfect balance of sweetness and bitterness.

Mauldon, Sudbury, Suffolk; 1982

Peggarty's Porter 4.1%
Christmas Reserve 6.6%

Milton, Milton, Cambs.; 1999

Pegasus 4.1%
Hops dominate the first impressions of this majestic ale but the long, fruity/toffee finish shows that this is anything but a one-dimensional beer.
Colossus 5.6% Champion Beer of the Festival
Deceptively light - as quaffable as a 3.8% beer - temptingly moreish!
Recently available at various outlets such as the Cambridge Blue.
Neptune 3.8% part of 2nd emergency order
Electra 4.5% part of 2nd emergency order

Old Cannon, Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk; 1999

Best Bitter 3.8%
A fruity, hoppy bitter which is very refreshing and full of flavour.
Black Pig 5.0%

Oldershaw, Grantham, Lincs.; 1997

Regal Blonde 4.4%
Straw-coloured lager-style beer with a good malt/hop balance throughout; strong bitterness on the taste lingers.
Topers Tipple 4.5%

Potton, Potton, Beds.; 1998

Shannon IPA 3.6%
No-Ale 4.8%

Reepham, Reepham, Norfolk; 1983

Velvet Sweet Stout 4.4% *****
A smooth, slightly sweet stout in the vein of traditional milk stouts. A smooth roast barley beginning introduces a flowing maltiness. A fruity edge comes to the fore as the flavours mature.
St Agnes 4.4%

Rockingham, Elton, Cambs. (brewery near Blatherwyck, Northants.); 1997

Red Robin 4.2%
Fruits of the Forest 4.5%
A Belgian-style beer.

Sawbridgeworth (Gate Inn), Sawbridgeworth, Herts.; 1999

Is It Yourself 4.2%
Brooklands Express 4.6%
Pile Driver Porter 5.3%

St Peters, Bungay, Suffolk; 1996

Lemon & Ginger Spiced Ale 4.7%
Honey Porter 5.1%
Spiced Ale 6.5%

Sweet William, Leyton, London; 2000

Spiced Winter Warmer 5.0%
Cinnamon, cloves... think Christmas pud!
Recently available at the Kingston Arms.

Tindall (Tindall Arms), Ditchingham, Norfolk; 1998

Christmas Cheers 4.0%
Ditchingham Dam 4.2%

Cassels, Shelford, Cambs.; 1996

Medium-sweet cider 7.3%
Dry cider 7.3%

Cambridge Winter Ale Festival 2001