31 August 2019

Running With Sceptres (Discover Brew) By @SpectreUK


No, it's not a spelling mistake. Although I must admit I did have an initial misread thinking it said "Running With Spectres"! If it did you'd have been reading about this India Pale Ale during Halloween.

Anyway, Running With Sceptres is a 5.2% volume IPA produced by Lost And Grounded Brewers, in Bristol. The back of the can rather helpfully told me that Pils, Vienna and Crystal malts were used in the brewing, as well as a combination of Magnum, Chinook, Mosaic, and Ella hops.

I don't know why seven fairly random animals are running up a hill carrying sceptres, or six animals chasing a particularly fast tortoise, depending on how you look at it. However, the Lost And Grounded website states that sceptres are usually reserved for royalty, so owning one must make these animals pretty special. Of course, all animals are special. Even the ones that scare us or irritate us with some sort of bizarre smell or noise.

This beer must be pretty special too, so I had to crack the can open. It was pretty excitable and blew up all over me. By quickly shoving the can opening in my mouth I managed to save most of it, accept for one or two drops on my hand and the floor.

Once the massive head had calmed down a little in my beer glass, this deep golden IPA had a strong hoppy aroma to it. I could smell the herbal strength of the strong Chinook hops poking its nose through the other hops and sweet malts. On taste Running With Sceptres has a strong bitter herbal smokiness to it. There must be a dominance of Chinook hops in the brewing. The other hops add to the herbal bitter flavours, just as the sweet malts soothed my tastebuds into the aftertaste.

This is a lovely beer, and unusually flavoured with its smokiness. I heartily recommend it. :-)

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