Ad Hop launch again. This time they have some additional input from another Liverpool group, the Ladies that Beer. They have been working on this beer for a little while and it has finally come to fruition, with the launch being held at 23 Club again on a Wednesday evening with plenty in attendance to try the toffee porter that the collaboration has borne. The beer itself, as stated is a toffee porter, infused with caramel and brewed to 5% strength. The aromas are definitely of a beer that seems to be tooth-achingly sweet, but delivers a much more restrained sweetness than anticipated. Toffee, milk chocolate and some lightly toasty notes all come through in the flavour, along with a nutty, rich and sweet finish. Maiden Porter is still definitely a competent dessert beer, or perhaps something to round a few other beers off with at the end of the evening. I managed to catch up with a couple of the founding members of Ladies that Beer at one of the launch events: How did the LTB and AD Hop idea to do a collaboration beer come about? Gaynor: Initially we'd wanted to do a beer collaboration with a local brewer because we wanted to learn more about the actual process and stages involved in making beer and to understand the steps involved from start to finish, including promoting the finished product. Where/why did the idea to do a caramel/toffee porter come from? Angela: We had a meeting at one of our members houses to discuss the invitation to brew with them (with beer and cheese obviously included at the meeting to get things going!), it was around Autumn and we thought of doing something seasonal, so we formed the idea of cinder toffee/Apple caramel, we gave this flavour idea to Anders from Ad Hop and he decided to do it as a porter style (possibly because of the other materials he had available). How do you think the beer turned out in the end? Gaynor: Although porters are not really my preferred style I was pleased with the finished beer. It's sweeter than I'd normally choose but I feel that was appropriate for a toffee porter. I felt you really did get a toffee/caramel flavour coming through, but there was still a pleasant background bitterness which made the beer have quite a complex character which I liked. Do you have any other collaborations or plans to make a beer with another brewery lined up at all? Gaynor and Angela: We'd definitely like to do a further collaboration with another brewery and to perhaps try a different style. I also caught up with Anders from Ad Hop Brewing, luckily he had some time to answer a few question on the collaboration brew... Hi Anders, what made you decide to make a beer with LTB? We think LTB is a fantastic initiative. They spread very positive messages about craft beer and have also been very supportive of AD HOP. We have done loads of collabs with other breweries and it just felt right to do one with a group of people we like and believe in what they are doing, rather than just doing a collaboration with another brewery. It turned out to be a great little project. We had fun in every step and LTB contributed in a fantastic way throughout. From recipe discussions/design, through the brewday to head-scratchings around the appropriate balance of flavours of this quite unique toffee flavoured porter. You got any other collaborations lined up? Yes, two confirmed and a few more in the planning stage. We keep the lid on them though until at least the brewday! Now that you have permanent premises, can we look forward to a more steady output of beers from you guys? Absolutely! Lack of space has been a great headache for us, and now when we have a “proper” brewery set up we will brew loads. Later this year we are also planning to invest in a much larger kit. Are there any other exciting things on the horizon for Ad Hop? We are working intensely with developing and testing new recipes and methods. There will be a whole range of new sours released this year. We are also planning a big push to get into bottle shops across the UK. For those wanting to try the Maiden Porter, there are a few more dates following the events held at the 23 Club, Brewdog and The Grapes, Roscoe Street, Ship and Mitre for the other launches across the northwest: Also available at Tap and Bottles, Southport and Dead Crafty, Liverpool. Also on Saturday 7th May - Wigan Central (Wigan) and Port St Beer House, (Manchester) from 1pm onwards. This will also be a Ladies that Beer social event and the beer will be on Cask as well as keg dispense for the Wigan Central launch. Go check the beer and Ladies that Beer out! Pedro. ------------------------------ Ad Hop Brewing Twitter: https://twitter.com/AdHopBrewing Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/AdHopBrewing/ Ladies that Beer Twitter: https://twitter.com/ladiesthatbeer Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Ladies-That-Beer-395052064029416/?fref=ts
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The various Franco-themed premises of the Bistro Qui group are something of a mainstay on the Liverpool scene (Hub and Smokehouse, along with the forthcoming South American venture) excepted, bringing their take on French bistro style dining to various corners of the city centre. They have now added an extra dimension to their portfolio with the arrival of the Refinery on Hardman Street/Myrtle Street in the shadow of the Philharmonic Hall and the Philharmonic Dining Rooms (that pub which has the fancy and grade 2 listed gents convenience). They have secured a large slice of the ground floor area in the new Josephine Butler Building complex; the location is becoming quickly saturated with places competing for diners' affections, with a number of very competent places already in operation nearby. So what does the Refinery bring to the table? It is an impressive and actually fairly comfortable space once you have taken the restaurant in, the long stretch of bar area is a good location for people watching, facing outward towards the Philharmonic Hall and down Hardman Street beyond the outdoor tables and manicured topiary. The main dining area has the air of a canteen about it, with the kitchen hatch opening into the ample dining space and the ambient noise giving plenty of atmosphere to the experience. The decor itself is something of a tick box exercise in what to use at the moment to coax people into a contemporary restaurant. Ropes with Edison bulb lighting, tick, some furniture looking 'reclaimed', tick, some brushed steel, tick, lots of glass, tick... and so forth. That's not to say it doesn't work however, it is very thoughtfully put together; I found it quite comfortable with plenty of room to manoeuvre despite a large number of tables and the lighting is quite soft, it balances the warm glow of Edison filaments with natural light. The bar thankfully, unlike the rest of Refinery's sister restaurants, carries a beer selection beyond bottled mainstays. Upon this visit, there were six cask hand pulls present, though only three were operational, but carrying three local beers. Sadly, the staff may need some guidance on serving cask ale, as it was the Liverpool Craft American Red Ale was a bit warm and seemingly thin on this occasion, losing the rather soapy head within a minute and resultantly less enjoyable to drink by the end. Inspecting the menu pointed to the pleasing fact that the casks are going to be sourced for the bar locally, providing support to our local brewers. The bottled beer selection is reasonable, Flying Dog and Meantime being the standout breweries represented, the rest seemed to be a string of standard and premium lagers, which do not really provide any further dimension for beer and food matching sadly. The wine menu was a much more balanced proposition, with a good spread of grapes in both red and white selections along with a broad set of styles represented and all in a price range which won’t hurt the wallet too much at all. The menu itself seems bit scattered on the face of it, with plenty of smaller cicchetti/tapas style plates, broken into meat/seafood and other (veggies, potato and eggs no less) along with a selection of larger dishes (nine on the Spring menu, with two vegetarian options). There are also bread, olives and bar snacks available along with meat and cheese platters, so plenty of options available for even the fussiest of eaters. There was a worry with the lack of focus within the menu and a suspicion that this is the groups' first foray into the 'small plates' territory, there may be some compromise in the quality of the output. Any such worries were laid to rest; everything was seemingly handled in an unfussy and timely manner. The squid (calamari fritti) with lemon aioli and dusted with pimenton was crisp, forgiving and only had a hint of residual oil, not quite perfect but still highly enjoyable. The chips were stacked Jenga-style and served with a coronation-mayonnaise style sauce (curried aioli), though they were soft and fluffy inside there was a lack on crunch on the golden exterior. Onto the chicken and proscuitto 'lollipops', which actually were skewed and rolled chicken with a crisp layer of proscuitto outside; there was an odd gamey flavour here, slightly earthy but not unpleasant. The chicken may have been a touch overcooked, but it wasn't dry by any stretch, but the onion chutney served with the dish was a rather heavy handed touch and perhaps too sweet for the meat. The frittata was actually excellent, light, fluffy and seasoned perfectly working in harmony with the garlic mayonnaise, sweet pepper working tongue twistingly well with the salted feta. The other dish of note on the expedition was the Devon crab tortellini, incredibly rich and tasty, the swamp of tomato and shellfish bisque was quite pungent and blotted out any delicacy that would have been purveyed by the crab. Texturally, the dish is bang on the money though and the broad beans and pea shoots add some lightly sweet verdancy, a mixed experience within one dish. There is much to be pleased with at the Refinery, as there is some flair on display and no shortage of competency; the food was all presented very well and in the experience was good. The pricing structure of the food was much like the experience, good overall but ultimately mixed, the larger plates seem rather less value on the pocket compared to the smaller dishes, the drinks are very reasonably priced. What the Refinery does well based on this visit, is the basics are pretty much nailed down and simple dishes are very enjoyable. Possibly a 'focussing in' on the menu, trimming a few dishes here and there may benefit the quality overall, though it is worth a return visit based on the potential once the Refinery team have hit their stride. Though I am still not sure what the ‘Social Dining’ thing is about. Pedro. ------------------- The Refinery Josephine Butler Building Hope Street Liverpool L1 9BP Tel: 0151 294 3024 Web: http://www.therefinery-liverpool.co.uk/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/refinerylpool Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/TheRefineryLiverpool Some things really are worth waiting for… the best things come to those who wait… there are a number of proverbs, mantras and sayings all paying testament to those who are patient and are subsequently rewarded with something duly, well err.. rewarding, I suppose? The wait for Dead Crafty has been a while, considering the rumour and innuendo that was brewing in Liverpool for quite some time. The doors to the newest haven for craft beers opened on Friday 18th March for a select few and then again the next day for the first full opening to the public. Located near to one of Liverpool’s most famous pubs in the Ship and Mitre, Dead Craft sits in Westminster Chambers at the bottom of the flyover heading over from the direction of the Walker Art Gallery, Liverpool World Museum and part of the John Moores University campus. The brainchild of Gareth and Vicky Morgan, this bar is dedicated to serving kegged beers and many hard-to-find bottles and cans from not only this country and Europe, but with a heavy slant toward bringing slices of the massive American craft brewing market into Liverpool; given Liverpool’s history this is somewhat serendipitous and rather apt. The opening night had the ribbon cut by a special mystery guest, that Vicky and Gareth managed to keep secret until around a week before the opening, none other than Steve Hindy, the CEO of New York’s Brooklyn Brewery and being one of the forerunners of the craft keg beers to become available, seemed rather proper in the circumstances. Gently enthralling, Steve spun the yarn of his life’s work and how he ended up becoming involved in the brewing trade; from the tribulations of his work as Associated Press’ War correspondent based in Beirut in the 1970’s and early 1980’s, he witnessed the assassination of Egypt’s then President Anwar Sadat up close and personal, he was then present for gun battles between UN peacekeeping forces and militia forces in the region before returning back to the USA. In between these events, he found some solace in tasting the (by all accounts, very competent) homebrew of friends and acquaintances during his Middle Eastern tour, as the region is not really renowned for its brewing prowess. Choosing to return home rather than pursue his reporting career in the Philippines, Steve then had the joyous pleasure at the brewery of armed robberies and brushes with Organised Crime before finally striking on some luck with the Brewery and solid investment due to some hometown ties from Ohio. Fast forward to 2016 and Steve seems happy to tell the stories and seems happy to report that Brooklyn Brewery is in much better health than the first 15 years of its life. The tap takeover at Dead Crafty is testament to that, with 8 of their beers present and Steve continuing his talk to sing the praises of Brooklyn’s brewmaster for his skill and innovation; Garrett Oliver. Hindy’s final focus from his regaling, is that the seeds of Brooklyn came from family investment and hard work, much like that of Dead Crafty who began their journey sometime ago, but culminating in the opening on a cool but fine Liverpool evening in March. What made you guys want to set up your own bar in Liverpool? We've spent many years travelling around the US visiting breweries and craft bars. Two years ago we did a road trip from New Orleans to Houston, Texas. While we were there we attended an event ran by Goose Island called Migration Week. It was in a bar called the Hay Merchant in Houston. We were inspired by the whole ethos they had. The place was packed out with people, many on them on their own, sharing bottles and bonding over beer. We wanted to bring that vibe back home. What will Dead Crafty offer to the city in terms of an experience in what is a fairly competitive atmosphere already? What sets us apart from the rest is that we travel far and wide to bring beers and new breweries to our bar. We have great relationships with brewers right across the globe. Our range is second to none. We have the whole of the New Zealand Collective in our fridges and on draft and a huge selection of Rogue, again both draft and bottles. Every beer we sell we can vouch for, we only sell beers we have tasted or breweries we know produce high quality beers. We aren't scared to approach the bigger breweries either. We are great friends with Harpoon Brewery, Founders Brewery and Brooklyn Brewery. We had the honor of Steve Hindy from Brooklyn Brewery come over to officially open the bar. We've also had an article written about us in the Boston Herald as we are one of the only bars outside the US to have Harpoon. We are also the only bar to specialise in beer alone. We don't serve wine or spirits (apart from an amazing Rogue Brewery single malt whiskey! How glad are you going to be when DC finally opens its doors, given you've had a pretty long 'gestation' period and the launch has been held off for a while? We were very glad to be open to let everyone in on all the amazing beer we have been sourcing for the last couple of years, but now the hard work starts to keep the beers coming. Granted that you won't want to say too much about any surprises you may have in store, but are there going to be any exciting developments or new beers coming to your premises that we won't have seen in the city or the UK? We have Magic Rock, Unhuman Cannonball launch coming up (which will be on the Tuesday, 12th April). We've also got 4 US breweries, never been seen in the UK launching in the bar this year. Is there going to be any particular focus on beer style at Dead Crafty? (For example, we understand there's going to be no cask lines) We will have a style that suits everyone’s taste. I think it's important to always have a selection of styles on tap at any one time. Seeing the (almost) finished article put together, has it been worth all the work, arduous travelling to build a network and tasting a lot of beer? This has been one of the hardest things we have ever took on but both pulling from our different backgrounds we have managed to build a bar that represents us and now delivering amazing beer and atmosphere. Was there any temptation to deviate from doing just a bar - no thought given to opening a brewpub/brewtap, producing your own beers as well? Our expertise lie in drinking not brewing! However, the whole team will be brewing seasonal brews with Melwood Brewery. This is something the staff will be proud of when selling their own beer. Was there ever any worry about the location and your keg offerings, given Dale Street is home to a corridor to a lot of cask ale favourite drinking dens? I think Dale Street is the perfect place for us. The Road is known as ‘Beer Street’ and we fit right at home here. Dale Street has really developed over the last year, especially now Rigby's have embraced craft beer. I don't see it as a hindrance being in a cask ale area, I see it as an opportunity to broaden people’s horizons. In the 2 weeks we've been open we only been asked for cask a handful of times and each person has enjoyed a keg beer instead. Thanks so much to Gareth and Vicky for their time and efforts in getting this article together for Dead Crafty Beer Company. See you in there soon! Pedro. -------------- Dead Crafty Beer Company Westminster Chambers Crosshall Street Liverpool L1 6DQ Website: http://www.deadcraftybeercompany.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/deadcraftybeer Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/The-Dead-Crafty-Beer-Company-486370501493491/ |
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