To Bee or not to Bee?

Tandleman recently commented on his distaste for honey beers, and so it was with his post in mind that I opened up my bottles of Wychwood BeeWyched last night, having discovered that just the one Hobgoblin wouldn't suffice. Actually, the one Hobgoblin and 2 BeeWycheds didn't suffice either, so I had a Paulaner hefe-weissbier and a Mönchshof Urtypisches Schwarzbier as well.

BeeWyched is a pale ale which is made with FairTrade honey and pours a dark amber, topped off with a fluffy cream head. The nose was mostly sweet, but not overpoweringly so, a light maltiness came through as did subtle citrus notes. The first taste is very much that of a pale ale, but slowly the sweetness of the honey asserts itself, but without becoming too much and cloying. I was worried that it would suffer from the same thin body as the Belhaven Fruit Beer, but it was actually rather robust and velvety. Overall a nice beer, one which Mrs Velkyal rather enjoyed and has asked me to go back to Cider Club today in the hope that they have more - does Primátor English Pale Ale have competition?

I only made a few mental notes about and the Paulaner hefe-weissbier - a supremely yummy beer, overflowing in all the clove and banana goodness you expect from a bavaria wheat beer as well as buckets of citrus that makes it hugely refreshing. The Mönchshof was also very nice, lots of toffee, caramel and fruit with a bitterness which cuts through it all to make it one delightful beer to drink.

As I have mentioned elsewhere, tomorrow is brew day - so hopefully on Monday I will have pictures and what not of the first Velky Ale!