500 Beers of Untappd

 

Hey, so I’m a big beer fan and therefore a big fan of the Untappd app, which I got last year and I’ve already recorded almost 500 different beers. What are some of my favourites you ask? Let’s take a look at my history and tell you!

 

Coming up we have my favourite ten; Stouts, Traditional English Beers, Pale Ales, Porters, Lagers, Sours and ten miscellaneous beauties where I’ve found beer that tasted like bacon or whatever. I hope you find something on this list worth a gander.

 

STOUTS.

 

1. Patron’s Project 17.03//Insa//Pete’s Dark Past//Chocolate, Caramel & Biscuit Stout (Northern Monk). Yes, the name is very long and silly and Northern Monk have a delightful habit of giving their beers long stupid names so you look like a complete loser when detailing their excellence but trust me, this is the tits. It was so delicious I had to message Carsmile Steve during consumption to demand he try it.
2. Slumber (Pressure Drop). This was leftover from a Pressure Drop tap takeover at Tonic and holy shit it fucking ruled.
3. Big Ole Beer – Blueprint No. 20 (Moncada). I only had this in bottle form otherwise it might be even higher. The best modern stouts know how to subtly blend in flavours like coffee or vanilla or chocolate. This has all three and it’s beautifully balanced.
4. Twist and Stout (Cerveja Musa). Velvety, malty, butterscotch, coffee, chocolate and oats. That’s your Twist and Stout. Proof the Portuguese are more than just Superbock vs. Sagres.
5. Millionaire (Wild Beer Co). I saw this on tap and didn’t get it and had it in bottle form a few days later and boy do I feel stupid for not getting the tap.
6. Woodland Creatures (Left Handed Giant). Pistachio and honeycomb milk stout. None of those flavours are overwhelming. It’s just nicely milky in substance but with all that flavor combined.
7. Jambo (Wild Beer Co). If you like stout, chocolate and raspberries and were wondering why the three weren’t combined often enough for your liking I have a beverage for you.
8. Hoodwink (Mad Squirrel). White stout? What?
9. Kompaan 39 Bloedbroeder (Kompaan). Heavy, sweet and strong on the coffee. Best Dutch beer of 2017.
10. Blackheath Stout (Fixed Wheel). I had this in a bottle and it was fine but then I had it on tap and fucking hell. It’s so moreish. I could easily have smashed my way through a dozen. Amazing beer.

 

LET’S GET TRADITIONAL AND BITTER (OR MILD)

 

1. Grave Digger’s Ale (Church End). I work near a Church End owned pub and this is easily my favourite of their drinks. Sometimes you just need a tremendous pint of mild.
2. Beware the Bear (Bespoke Brewing). One of the most moreish pints of bitter I’d encountered in many moons. Supped my way through a couple while waiting for a train in the Spoons.
3. Dark Side of the Moose (Purple Moose). Technically a dark ale rather than a straight up bitter or mild but I won’t shoehorn it in elsewhere. It’s a terrific pint. Welsh water, lads. Beautiful stuff.
4. Nordic Noir (Beowulf). My tasting notes on this are “Hahahaha, YES!”
5. Pig on the Wall (Black Country Ales). There’s a Black Country Ales pub near me and it’s worth the 20 minute walk just to get a Pig on the Wall. Blinding pint of mild. They have a decent range but this, and the Plum Pig, are my favourites by a distance.
6. Peaky Blinder (Sadlers). I wasn’t sure where to put this because it’s an IPA but it’s dark so it couldn’t go in the next section. Tasty beer. Good TV show.
7. Wotever Next? (Teme Valley). A lovely dark ale from a local brewery. The king of their range.
8. Magnum Mild (Muirhouse). I had this at the Wellington in Birmingham and my tasting notes suggest it was “fucking delightful”.
9. Plum Pig (Black Country Ales). Mild that tastes like plum. If you have it after any other beer the plum taste is amplified. I love this one.
10. XK Dark (Byatt’s). Famous for being the only Byatt’s beer I think isn’t total shit. Imminently quaffable.

 

THE PALES

 

1. Life & Death (Vocation). Although the aim of Untappd is rack up as many different brews as possible for those all illusive #numbers I keep drinking Life & Death. Usually on the train because they sell it at the Tesco by the station and it’s fucking delicious.
2. Juice Campbell vs. The Army of Dankness (Brew York). The name alone is worth getting this. It’s probably the cloudiest IPA I’ve actually enjoyed. I’m generally not a NEIPA guy.
3. Sierra Nevada Pale Ale. I’ve always loved this and every time I drink one it takes me back to being in California. Younger, excited at the prospects of the world Arn.
4. Jaipur (Thornbridge). The best IPA going in the English style that’s widely available.
5. Pride & Joy (Vocation). All Vocation beers appear to be good. This one is behind Life & Death but it’s really tasty and I would drink one at the drop of a hat.
6. Stone Tangerine Express IPA (Stone Brewing). James Harris’ favourite beer.
7. Gaffels Sonnen Hopfen (Privatbrauerei Gaffel Becker). The Germans have started to create beers outside of their traditional realm of pilsners and whatnot and they’re getting pretty good at it.
8. Aufwind (Propeller Beer). See above!
9. Unburied Treasure (Neon Raptor). Neon Raptor are so good at making beer that they could probably make me love any type of beer. Anxiously anticipating one of their wheat beers to see if that’s true.
10. Eternal (Northern Monk). Session IPA is my favourite type of IPA. Something hoppy that goes down easy. That’s all I need.

 

PORTERS

 

1. Cherry Chocolate Porter (Lakehouse). I was going to lump these in with the stouts but that’s completely unfair as they will barely get a look in. Cherry Chocolate Porter is one of the more delicious porters on the market. I had it on draft after having it in a bottle and let me tell you, get this motherfucker on cask if you can.
2. King Korvak’s Saga (Fownes Brewing). I remember this winning some sort of award a few years back. I had a pint of it in Cherry Red’s in Birmingham and it was a tremendous porter and I had it after a stout too. That’s a substantial porter to stand up to that stout.
3. Nazerbier (Cloudwater). Coffee porter is often better than coffee stout because they don’t need to throw so much coffee in there to overcome the thickness of the beer.
4. Don’t Be Afraid (Fierce Beer). This is one that is worth trying but I don’t see being a regular drink. It’s blackcurrant, fizzy with a chocolate aftertaste. It’s velvety, jet black and almost as strong as wine. It’s an experience.
5. Macchiato (Wylam). Nutty foretaste but balanced with the coffee so it disappears after the initial hit. If you get it in a can the name is spelled wrong.
6. Phoenix Porter (Hop Shed). Probably the least rated beer on my lists. I had it in the Spoons and would suggest they stock it more often.
7. Station Porter (Tapped Brew). I rather appropriately had this in a train station in Sheffield.
8. Midtown (Beatnikz Republic). Had a pint of this at Gasworks in Manchester and spent longer trying to find it on Untappd that it took to drink it.
9. Baltic Sabbath (Cerveja Musa). Confirmation the Musa lads know their way around a pint.
10. Plum Porter Grand Reserve (Titanic). This had to make the list. It’s great, if you like the taste of plum, and the normal Plum Porter but with more oomph.

 

PINT OF FIZZY, JOHN

 

1. Pistonhead Full Amber (Brutal Brewing). This is my favourite lager and if all lager was this good I’d be a lout.
2. Helles (Hoppebrau). This is where the Germans come into their own. Few countries are better at the lager.
3. Lagerbier Hell (Augustiner-Brau Munchen).
4. Amos (Bohem Brewery). Czech beer but made in London. Winner.
5. Samuel Adams Boston Lager (Boston Beer Co). One of my all-time favourite lagers.
6. Motorhead Overkill (Camerons). A rock band that produce good beer shocker. Pay heed Iron Maiden.
7. Beer + Art Series 2019 #14 (Lost and Grounded). This is a Vienna lager that tastes a lot like a Sammy Adams so naturally I dig it.
8. Northern Helles (Donzoko Brewing Co).
9. I Don’t Have a Red Shrimp (Mikkeller). I’m told, reliably by Mort who’s Danish, that this is a Danish phrase that means “I’m broke”.
10. Heverlee Blond Lager (Tennent’s Caledonian Brewery).

 

SOURS/SAISONS/LAMBICS

 

1. Bacchus Kriekenbier (Kasteel Brouwerij Vanhonsebrouck). The second major discovery since joining Untappd, after bacon beer, was that they made sours that were just pure cherry and they were great. This is the first one I had so it has a special place in my heart but I love them all dearly.
2. Kriek Brut (Brouwerij Liefmans).
3. Rhubarb and Custard Sour (Chorlton). A flavor sensation, delivered with aplomb.
4. Biere de Saison Raspberry (Kernel). I was originally going to just make this a sours list but then remembered I had this saison that I loved too so here we are.
5. Kriek Boon (Brouwerij Boon).
6. Oude Geuze Boon (Brouwerij Boon). Oh, and Lambics too. Next time I’ll have a better system for splitting stuff.
7. Florida Weisse (Thornbridge). The Berliner Weisse isn’t to be confused with wheat beer and is actually good. Also Thornbridge are very good at beer.
8. Original Blueberry Frozen Yoghurt Ice Cream (Buxton). It tastes exactly like the description.
9. Delirium Red (Huyghe Brewery).
10. Bash at the Beach (Top Rope Brewing).

 

MISC.

 

1. Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier (Schlenkerla). So, before this journey began I had no idea there was such a thing as smoked beer. I had no idea there was beer on the market that basically tasted of bacon. This is probably my favourite discovery and I’d like to visit Bamberg and drink loads more.
2. Corsendonk Pater Dubbel (Brouwerij Corsendonk). I’ve not had enough dubbels, tripels etc to have a separate list for them. This is my favourite Belgian beer so far. It’s dark and malty but also fresh and fruity. How do the Belgians do it?
3. Cwtch (Tiny Rebel). File this under “I don’t know where to put red ales yet” on the list. Tremendous Welsh water wins the day again.
4. Wolf Rock (Sharps). Red IPA? Where do I file that? Misc.
5. Original Alcoholic Ginger Beer (John Crabbie). Hey, I love this shit. I spent one winter literally living off this.
6. Dasher (Milestone Brewery). I spent the winter drinking winter ales and most of them were shit, especially the Xmas themed ones, but this rules.
7. Corsendonk Agnus Tripel (Brouwerij Corsendonk). Part of my Belgian journey included this first ever Tripel and I dig Corsendonk as a brewery.
8. Slap a Banker (Le Debauche). I had some barleywine and I have to say, I will probably have a top ten of barleywine the same time next year.
9. Franziskaner Premium Weissbier Naturtrub (Spaten-Frankziskaner-Lowenbrau-Gruppe). The only Weiss I’ve ever really loved.
10. Original Schlussel (Obergarige Hausbrauerei Zum Schlussel). This is an Altbier. Part of my German experiment over WTTF weekend and one of many open doors into a new world.

 

Here’s to another 500!

 

Arn.