Cambridge Winter Ale Festival 2002
Beers & Cider
Whilst many beers here are "Winter" beers, as usual there are lighter beers
for variety.
Most beer descriptions are from our tasting of the beers,
as so few are in the Good Beer Guide 2002.
See also: Champion Beer of the Festival
Last updated: 6-Jan-2002
- Ales of Scilly; Trenoweth, Scilly; 2001
- Maiden Voyage 4.0%
- Scuppered 4.8%
sweet, with a hint of caramel and plums
- B&T; Shefford, Beds.; 1981
- 2XS 6.0%
reddish with strong, fruity, hoppy aroma, full-flavoured with
sweetish finish
- Black Bat 6.0%
powerful, fruity with a good malty finish
- Bartrams; Thurston, Suffolk; 1999
- Holly Daze 5.2%
organic; pale, with clean hoppy bitterness
- New Year Daze 5.2%
rich, malty chestnut-coloured beer
- Bath Ales; Webbs Heath, Bristol; 1995
- Festivity Rum Porter 5.0%
darkish, with a malty bitterness
- Buntingford; Buntingford, Herts.; 2001
[ALE 304]
- Templar's Gold 4.0%
a golden, dry, refreshing brew with a pleasant bitter
finish
- Dark Times 4.4%
spiced; dark, chocolatey with a hoppy aroma
- Burton Bridge; Burton-upon-Trent; 1982
- Thomas Sykes 10.0%
well-balanced malty sweetness
- Butts; Great Shefford, Berks.; 1994
- Blackguard Porter 4.5%
rich, fruity, red-brown with hints of crystal and
chocolate malt
- Carlow; Carlow, Dublin; 1998
- Curim Gold 4.3%
a peachy-tasting wheat beer
- Cassels; Gt. Shelford, Cambs.; 1996
- Medium Sweet Cider 7.3%
- Dry Cider 7.3%
- City of Cambridge; Chittering, Cambs.; 1997
- Grunting Granta 4.5%
amber-coloured, richly malty
- Holly Heaven 5.2%
clean-tasting, amber-coloured beer
- Cottage Spring; Cwmbran, Gwent; 1999
- The Full Malty 4.8%
amber-coloured, with malty sweetness
- Dwan; Thurles, Co. Tipperary; 1998
- Cool Amber 4.3%
- Festive Paddy 6.0%
a strong, warming winter ale; pale and bitter
- Elgoods; Wisbech, Cambs.; 1799
- Thin Ice 4.6%
fruity with a hint of spice
- Wenceslas Winter Warmer 7.5% Champion beer: 2nd place
rich red-brown warming brew with full fruity
aroma, flavoured with cinnamon plus a hint of orange and a potent finish
- Exe Valley; Silverton, Devon; 1984
- Winter Glow 6.0%
very dark brown full-flavoured beer
- Faint Hope; Horse & Cart; Scawby Brook, Brigg, Lincs; 2001
- Problems at the brewery meant they were unable to supply beer
- Lazy Drayman 4.0%
- Honest Lawyer 4.4%
- Felstar; Felstead Vineyards, Felstead, Essex; 2001
- Hoppin Hen 4.5%
- Hop Hop Hooray 4.6%
- Felstar Glory 5.0%
- Garden Barber; Bengeo, Hertford; 2001
- Reedy Pops 4.0%
popular at the recent St Alban's Beer Festival
[ALE 304]
- Heritage; Dinton, Wiltshire; 2001 (formerly Tisbury Brewery)
- Decadence 6.0%
amber coloured, with malty sweetness
- Houston; Houston, Renfrewshire; 1997
- Jock Frost 4.5%
full-bodied, well-balanced premium bitter
- Teuchter 4.8%
strong and dark, full of character and flavour; "chookter"
is the lowlander term for highland warrior ancestors
- Humpty Dumpty; Reedham, Norfolk; 1998
- Ferryman 3.8%
straw-coloured, brewed with Golding hops
- Railway Sleeper 5.0%
sweet, plummy fruitiness blankets an underlying malty
bitterness
- Iceni; Ickburgh, Norfolk; 1995
- Silent Night 4.5%
dark, with chocolatey bitterness
- Winter Lightning 5.0%
pale, with well-rounded maltiness
- Lidstones; Wickhambrook, Suffolk; 1998
- Extra Strong Winter Stout 6.2%
excellent full-bodied stout, a meal in itself
- Old Ale 6.0%
heavy, complex ale, mixing sweet and roasty flavours
intriguingly
- Milton; Milton, Cambs.; 1999
- Pegasus 4.1%
very hoppy with a long fruity/toffee finish
- Caligula 9.1% Champion beer of the Festival
deceptively pale; very popular around Cambridge lately
- Moor; Bridgwater, Somerset; 1996
- Old Freddy Walker 7.3%
dark strong ale with complex fruity taste and
fruitcake finish
- Nottingham; Plough Inn, Radford, Notts.; 2001
- Rock Ale 3.8%
- Dreadnought 4.5% Champion beer: 5th=
- Nursery; Keynsham, Bristol; 2001
- Georgie Porgie 3.7%
- Oat King Cole 6.0%
"proper" London-style porter, aged in oak; note very tart
- Oakleaf; Gosport, Hants.; 2000
- Blake's Heaven 7.0%
strong, chestnut-coloured beer
- O'Hanlons; Clyst St Lawrence, Devon; 1996
- Goodwill 4.8% Champion beer: 3rd place
- Rye Organic 5.0%
- Old Chimneys; Market Weston, Norfolk; 1995
- Winter Cloving 7.2%
excellent winter beer; cloves provide warmt for the walk home
- Good King Henry Imperial Stout 9.0% Champion beer: 5th=
dark, sweet, rich & intense
- Organic Brewhouse; Cury Cross Lanes, Lizard, Cornwall; 2000
- Black Rock 4.7%
a dry, dark chestnut-coloured stout
- Wolf Rock 5.0%
strong, well-balanced amber-coloured beer
- Packhorse; Southsea, Portsmouth; 1998
- Old Pompey 4.8%
dark amber, with robust hoppiness and slight nuttiness
- Phoenix; Heywood, Greater Manchester; 1982
- Golden Glow 6.5%
- Humbug 7.0%
- Poachers; Swinderby, Lincs.; 2001
- Black Crow 4.5%
a truly opaque beer; rich, with a malty bitterness
- Ring O'Bells; Launceston, Cornwall; 2001
- Santa Boar's 5.5% Champion beer: 4th place
- Skinners; Truro, Cornwall; 1997
- Jingle Knockers 5.5%
sweetish, amber-coloured beer
- Stonehenge; Netheravon, Wiltshire; 1984
- Rudolph 5.0%
- Sutton; Plymouth; 1994
- Sleigh'd 6.0%
chestnut-coloured with a bitter finish
- Warcop; Wentloog, Gwent; 1999
- Oil Fired 6.0%
amber-coloured, with a hint of honey
- Wickwar; Wickwar, Gloucs.; 1990
- Mr Perret Stout 5.9%
dark & malty; sweet at first, with a long dry finish
Cambridge Winter Ale Festival 2002