Review: Fem-ALE Intro to Beer Styles

Walking into the beer hall of St Andrews Brewing Co. Brew Pub (STABCO) last night was like walking into heaven. The long brauhaus-style tables were adorned with candles, flowers and two of life’s simplest pleasures: beer and food. We were greeted by STABCO’s consistently friendly staff and encouraged to take a seat. Not knowing anyone else there we chose at random, but found that the long tables led to a real community atmosphere (aided by the strongest of the beers of course).

On each table there was a selection of bottled beers of many varieties, along with various nibbles, including chocolate and fruit to bring out the flavours of the different beers. These were quickly devoured in the assumption that they were the free tapas we had been promised, but how wrong we were. Once everyone was seated, trays of deliciousness were presented to us, including miniature Spanish omelettes, paprika fries and assorted spicy croquettes in abundance.

The evening began with an introduction by Lucy Keen, one of the brains behind Fem-ALE, explaining the philosophy behind the event and a few amusing tales of her own experiences as a female ale-drinker. Her wise words: “beer doesn’t have a penis and wine doesn’t have a vagina” were demonstrated by the surprising number of men in attendance, and gave the evening a relaxed, informal ambience.

Naomi Tyrie, former president of Real Ale Soc, introduced the first beer, a blonde ale from Belgian brewers Brasserie l’Abbaye des Rocs, accompanied by the story of how she came to love real ale. There was a bottle of each beer on the table, and tasters poured and shared amongst their neighbours then discussed the flavours and aromas they experienced. Following the “official” description of the beer as “hoppy”, Naomi suggested we smell the hops provided on the tables as a helpful comparison. As a bartender even I wasn’t 100% sure what hops smelled/tasted like, but thankfully our neighbour cleared this up for us when he misheard and, unfortunately for him, ate the hops. (They taste like a farm. For future reference, they’re much better fermented)

This was followed by a delicious woody Saison by The Wild Beer Co. and a very pleasant lager(!) by Camden Town Brewery with a refreshing honey taste, although our neighbour sadly missed out on these as all he could taste were the hops stuck in his teeth!

A Kentish Town wheat beer led nicely onto STABCO’s own IPA, then Alechemy’s Melgian Tripel, a strong Belgian-style ale inspired by brewer Melissa Cole that rather strangely tasted of bananas. Next was the scarily-named Cut Throat Porter, with a beautifully rich chocolate/soy sauce aroma and an overwhelming bacon flavour! The evening drew to a close with STABCO’s own Oatmeal Stout, immediately reassuring those “scared of the dark” with its mild finish.

Overall, the night was a great success. A friendly group of people sharing their love of all things ale, beginners discovering its wonders and a community spirit that paved the way for more fantastic events in the future.

Photos Courtesy of Emily Meades