A St. Andrews Brewery?!

Hey everyone!

Today I bring tidings of great excitement and hope.  For those of us here in St. Andrews, we have been long bombarded with the kitsch practice of booze companies producing their second-rate products and capitalising on the un-copyrighted name of our Auld Grey Toon for the sake of making 'The' St. Andrews version of their product.  Those of you who drink beer know that I am mostly talking about Belhaven.  Belhaven, aside from producing their typical mass-marketed "Best" (which is only slightly more palatable than Belhaven "Meh") produce a shameless brew known as St. Andrews Ale.

IPA, 70/- and the Oatmeal Stout

Now if this had a picture of Saint Andrew the apostle on his saltire crucifix, I would be totally apathetic about it's existence.  In fact, depending on the illustration of the blessed saint's martyrdom, I would applaud them for going all edgy-like.  As it stands, there is a ridiculously cliché picture of the Royal & Ancient.  That noble institution considered the heart of the golfing world, and something for St. Andrews to take pride in, is being used by a Dunbar-based slop-factory to promote a half-arsed beer meant to be our town's brew.  In a bar in Pittsburgh I found it being plied as "Scotland's Finest Craft Ale."  I nearly cried.  Scotland has so much to offer in the way of beer and, with any luck, so will St. Andrews itself.

This week I tasted some beers by the St. Andrews Brewing Co. and for a brand new company I was pleasantly surprised by the quality and style of the beers.  They aren't too flashy and the brewer obviously knows exactly what he's going for.  Individually, I thought one or two had some improvements ahead of them, but these are early days yet and I see nothing but good things in the future of this small operation.

I tasted five beers, across a range which is more or less representative of the classic beer styles, and in general they all pleased.  The first one I tried, the Fife Gold was nice and zesty with a good hop profile.  It could do with a hint more malt on the finish and it'll be up with Edinburgh Gold and Ossian as a delightful golden beer for easy drinking.  Either way, its a refreshing beer with a lot of positive qualities.  In general it's a good solid Gold.

Seventy Bob and Oatmeal Stout

The second was the IPA.  It has a good hoppiness for sure and a nice drying character.  That said, I thought this had a bit of work to be done for the next batch.  Again, it's a bit thin and a bit more maltiness could make this a classic style IPA that could stand out among the über-hop IPA's which seem to dominate the market.

The Neuk Ale was a very well balanced beer with a good maltiness, not quite a heavy, but rich and full flavoured with a nice deep amber colour.  I could happily have quite a few of these badgers and call it a successful session!

The Seventy Bob was a classic old-school 70/- with a great balance.  It avoids that cloying sweetness you get with MacEwans and Belhaven.  Overall, this was my favourite of the evening.

The Oatmeal Porter was a big, full bodied job with a nice bittersweet chocolate flavour and a lovely bit of dryness on the finish.  It was balanced and rich with a nice toastiness throughout.

While I think there is some work to be done, I can tell this guy has good touch with his beer and will continue to make better and better beers and I look forward to St. Andrews having a great brewery all it's own.  Afterall, the stuff did sell out very quickly from our shop, and it was after a general tasting, so the people must have liked it!  Definitely a big round of applause, and I look forward to all the great things the future will hold for St. Andrew's Brewing Co.

Much Love,
G