Tuesday 10 April 2012

REVIEW #94: Dark Side of the Geek (Beer Geek Brewery)

Note: This beer is not yet released but I've been told the recipe is unlikely to change prior to official release so this review should apply to the finished product.

Pours mahogany red with beige head. Smells portery with loud juicy fruit along the lines of blackcurrants and blueberries. Again lots of jam (plums, strawberries...) at first in the taste. Its certainly on the sweet side but not unbalanced as some prickly hop astringency and a good bitterness level act to even things out. Quite a bit of chewy malt displays towards the end prior to a smoky finish with some pleasantly warm alcohol. The mouthfeel is firm but it doesn't become heavy, I could easily have a few of these.

Beer Geek is Birmingham's newest brewery, joining an elite club comprising very few members. Off the top of my head I can think of Two Towers Brewery, Backyard BrewHouse and Aston Brewing Company, although a few others could be included such as Dudley's Sarah Hughes of Dark Ruby Mild fame. The bottle says Dark Side of the Geek is a 'dark ale' but I think it can safely be called a porter with its dense malt and juicy forest fruit notes. The bottled beers are not available quite yet, I've been told its likely to be only a matter of weeks though. On draught you can try them at the Post Office Vaults in Birmingham city centre, and a few other local pubs. Beer Geek will have four core bottled beers of which this is one. The others - I think - are Great White Geek (pale ale), Geek Unique (special bitter) and Legend of the Golden Geek (golden ale). These will be supplemented with seasonal beers of a more exotic nature. Signs are looking good for this brewery if Dark Side is anything to go by. Incidentally, I believe the brewery gets its name from the fact that founder Dr. Paul Bennett has a PhD and is therefore a bit of a geek!
  • MALTS: 6 different types
  • HOPS: ?
  • IBU: 47
  • ABV: 5.5%
  • BOTTLE-CONDITIONED AND CONTAINS A SECRET INGREDIENT :P
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