Staff picks: some of our favourite and frequently available beers.
Equal parts crisp and smooth, this German lager is regarded as one of the best in the world. Imbued with notes of digestive biscuits, a slight herbal hoppiness, and light citrus finish, it is a beer for all seasons and occasions. It’s as enjoyable supped straight from a cold bottle on a hot summer’s day as it is poured into a tall pint glass on a chilly winter’s evening. You can find it in our fridges all year round.
The Ardennes-located Orval monastery produces only one beer: a beautifully hopped pale ale made from local spring water and laced with candy sugar. On cracking one of these open and pouring it into the correct glassware – a weighty but elegant chalice – you’re hit with esters of banana, spice, and burnt caramel.
One of the unusual characteristics of this beer is that its bottle conditioning with a Bretanomyces yeast strain, which causes the beer to evolve over time. After a few years, aged Orvals take on a pleasant “funk,” reduced in bitterness while their caramel flavours become heightened. All this just adds to the fun and complexity of a truly timeless beer.
A modern classic? Bright, refreshing…and gluten free! Located between Bury St Edmonds and Ipswich, Burnt Mill is a brewery that produces some of the best balanced, clean-drinking pale ales in the UK. While in recent years brewing trends have leant into “juicier,” “danker”styles of pales and IPAs, Burnt Mill have consistently trod a path that embraces the boldness of American and Antipodean hops whilst acknowledging the importance of crispness and refreshment. This one goes down easy!
We’ll be updating our staff picks throughout the year so do keep checking back.