Nice place, shame about the Beer - NOT (Newcastle Brown Ale)

Member Name: rob_writer

Product:	Newcastle Brown Ale
Date:	18/03/01 (380 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Cheap, nice taste

Disadvantages: Not distinctive

Newcastle Brown Ale, the beer of choice for the Geordie male (or should I call it Broon Ale).

Up here in the grim North East it goes by the name of Dog, and I must admit when I was new to the whole 'pub' thing I was a little surprised to hear people asking for a pint of Dog. Still, that is one of the greatest things about Brown ale; you actually get a pint of it!

Anyway, before I get in to the beer itself I need to say a bit about the making of the beer and the history of it.

Brewing Process
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Firstly selected barley is turned in to malt. This is done by adding water and allowing to germinate, and when it is ready to be used is cured in a kiln.

The malt is then crushed and the wort is added in to the coppers. The mixture is then boiled, which reduces the bitterness of the beer and releases the flavour from the hops. The mix is then separated, cooled and moved to the fermentation vessel.

The yeast acts to turn the wort in to alcohol (ethanol) and Carbon Dioxide. I know you don't want to read this, but I'll put it in anyway, it makes Chemistry seem worthwhile. The yeast breaks down glucose as shown in the following equation

C6H12O6 ------> 2CO2 + 2C2H5OH

The yeast multiplies during this process and the best yeast is kept to be used again. After 5 days fermentation the beer is ready to drink. Before being sold it is pasteurised to ensure a consistent beer.

The History
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While some beers claim to have been in existence for years and years, Brown Ale was first produced 1927 in its hometown, Newcastle upon Tyne.

It is produced by Newcastle Breweries who formed 1890.

Its creator, Jim Porter, spent 3 years perfecting the beer. After its release in 1927 its popularity was proven the next year when it won 3 gold medals in the International Brewers Exhibition in London. After this victory the famous blue star was added to
the bottle,

In 1937 it was produced in cans as well as bottles and in 1951 the bottle top was changed from the old screw top to the same metal top we see today.

Throughout the years its popularity grew and it became a symbol for the hard working people of Newcastle.

In the 1980's the design was changed to include the slogan 'The One And Only'. There was also a series of ads that featured people who said they were going to walk the dog, but instead went to the pub for a brown ale. Perhaps this was the origin of the name 'dog' for the beer.

The beer has increased in popularity and had become a top selling beer both in the UK and in Europe.

The Beer
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The normal way to buy Brown Ale is in a bottle, but unlike the American beers (Budweiser) or other bottled drinks (Smirnoff Ice, Bacardi Breezer) it is pint sized. The problem is that most bottles weigh in at just over half a pint (330ml or even less). For the same price, or sometimes even less, than a bottle of Budweiser you can get almost double the volume. And trust me, when you’re a student or poor youngster then the price to alcohol ratio is very important. I normally drink whatever’s cheap, but if I don't know what to buy or I'm too drunk to say anything complex, I spurt out the words 'a bottle of Broon Ale' to the barman/lady and I always get what I want. Don't ask me why, but I never was happy with asking for a bottle of Dog!! If any abbreviation is needed I would have to vote for the more recognisable 'Newkie Brown'.

So the drink is reasonable cheap. But then so is a nasty bottle of wine from Safeway’s. Yep, you guessed it; taste comes in to it too.

You may hear the hardcore Geordies (the ones who go to all the Toon army matches!) say that they think it’s the best beer in the world. On the other hand you hear the Southerners moaning of its lack of taste, and
generally how terrible it is. Personally I take the middle ground, the beer isn't the nicest on the shelves of the pub but it is by far not the worst. I guess I would have to describe it as the generic beer!! What it lacks is a distinctive taste.

From the bottle the beer has a crisp taste and although a lot of people prefer it chilled, I think that it is equally as tasty when served at room temperature. Unsurprisingly, the beer is brown in colour!

At 4.7% it is quite strong. You may disagree, but remember that the lager you drink on taps at pubs can be as low as 3% then you realise it isn't bad at all. Budweiser is around 5% but then a bottle of Bud is little over half the size!

The canned version doesn't live up to the quality of the bottled version, but then canned drinks very rarely do. The advantaged of the canned version is that it is cheaper than buying the bottles. Still, unless you need to save a few pennies go for the bottled version!!

A great beer, not just for Geordies but for everyone!

Summary: