Inspiration is an odd thing. It can strike at any time, without any warning and leave you totally in thrall to whatever idea it has placed in your mind. The ideas it brings may take hold for a long time or they might disappear before you've really begun to articulate it to yourself, but for whatever length of time that flash of inspiration lasts, you are totally powerless to its charms. If you're lucky that bolt from the blue will be something worthwhile, a new chord progression for that song you've been trying to write, a pithy rejoinder to throw back at an interlocutor or it could be a million pound business idea. If you're unlucky that blazing sensation of inspiration will be nothing of any consequence at all, a cliché, a waste of time or a ludicrous money pit you will throw your life savings down leaving you penniless, confused and alone.
The beer I am reviewing today was clearly developed as a result of a flash of inspiration (rather than say, a cynical attempt to flog a vaguely amusing sounding beer to people looking for a secret Santa gift for that beardy colleague in IT). Whether Yorkshire Pudding Beer is one of the lucky results of inspiration, or the other variety, well you're going to have to read on to find out.
Yorkshire Pudding Beer
Style - Yorkshire Pudding Beer
Brewer - Yorkshire Pudding Beer Brewery
Hops - Not stated - which I do not find surprising in the least
Adjuncts - Yorkshire Pudding (at least half a pudding per bottle - based on a 20g Yorkshire Pudding).
ABV - 3.6%
The Beer
Look, let's get one thing straight, even before I've opened this concoction, I am convinced that Yorkshire Pudding Beer is a cynical attempt to part consumers from their hard earned dough, despite it being the winner of ALDI's next big thing, whatever that means. It's the kind of thing your funny uncle (not that kind of funny, they aren't all like that) would pull out over Christmas to let you know he has at least tried to have a sense of humour, albeit one entirely lacking in spontaneity, wit or mirth.
What Yorkshire Pudding Beer is not is an answer to any question any beer drinker ever asked. All that being said, my bottle of this, shall we say intriguing libation, was bought for me by my very lovely cousin with the request that I write a review of it. So Sally, this one's for you.
I have a further confession to make, I may have over chilled my Yorkshire Pudding Beer somewhat, the serving suggestion is for around 12 degrees, I think mine was likely closer to 8 when I poured it. It could be said that this may be to the detriment of the product at hand, but considering I really took my time over drinking this, I am sure I got to sample Yorkshire Pudding Beer at its peak conditions at some point on my journey with it.
Enough preamble Jack, tell us about the Yorkshire Pudding Beer already, I can hear literally some of you asking. Ok then, I will. Yorkshire Pudding Beer pours very nicely, I thought this was going to be a real ale type beer more than anything that would be commonly marketed under the craft banner, and I'm not wrong. This is deep amber and rust red with a healthy quarter inch of dense-ish foam capping things off, but very little in the way of fizz. A CAMRA style beer in appearance, although I doubt the men and women of that venerable organisation would get on board with the adjuncts at play here. Still, Yorkshire Pudding Beer looks very much like any other beer you'd get from the cask lines in a pub next to a railway station, like there aren't chunks in it or anything weird like that.
Yorkshire Pudding Beer doesn't give much in the way of surprises on the nose. It's very malty, yeasty and there's a hint of citrus freshness coming in from the hops. These notes do become more obvious as the beer reaches its optimum temperature, so if you are rushing out to buy Yorkshire Pudding Beer, do let it warm up before drinking. The other thing that is apparent from the scent, don't ask me how to explain this, but if you drink beer you know, is that Yorkshire Pudding Beer smells like it is going to be too sweet and very sticky in texture.
And what a surprise, Yorkshire Pudding Beer is thick and sticky on the tongue, would you credit that? While it didn't look overly carbonated in the glass, and by overly I mean it didn't look at all carbonated in the glass, Yorkshire Pudding Beer does release itself in a burst of fizz on the tongue, which I could charitably describe as titillating, but that would be slightly too charitable really. Let's just say it fizzes a bit when you sip it, more than you might expect but not enough to blow your socks off.
Overall, Yorkshire Pudding Beer tastes fine, much like any old school British IPA. It's all malt and very subtle hoppage with a touch of bitterness and a creamy finish. There is a light note of citrus which I like, but that's really all I can say about it.
The observant among you will notice that at no point in talking about the flavours present in Yorkshire Pudding Beer do I mention even a whiff of Yorkshire Pudding. There's a really simple explanation for this, there isn't a whiff to be had. Now I'm sorry, as stupid as I find the idea of a beer flavoured with Yorkshire Pudding, if you are mad enough to decide to not only brew one, but make it central to your brand (assuming of course that this isn't just a cynical cash grab), you'd think you'd make damn sure the fucking beer tasted like Yorkshire Pudding.
If you don't know what a Yorkshire Pudding is, it is a sort of goblet of fried batter which manages to be simultaneously crispy and soggy and which is served with roast beef. Some renegades serve them with all manner of roasted meats, but we won't speak about them. Yorkshire Puddings have a wonderful but delicate eggy taste with notes of burnt toast or maybe Carr's water biscuits - think the taste of a slightly burnt French toast. Their taste is almost indescribable, but they are a perfect vehicle for gravy and scraggly offcuts of meat and I love them - even the ready made ones from Aunt Bessie.
Unfortunately Yorkshire Pudding Beer does not evoke any of the joy that real Yorkshire Pudding does and while I thank the lovely Sally for the gift, this is not a beer I would consider drinking again, Yorkshire Pudding Beer is not the lucky flash of inspiration its creators were hoping for.
Score - 0/5
N.B. While compiling this article, I have had ready access to a lot of Yorkshire Puddings and I can confirm that they make an excellent beer snack, so much so that I am considering packing in my job and setting up a Yorkshire Pudding Beer Snack Company, hopefully ALDI will approve.
Are you willing to invest in my Yorkshire Pudding Beer Snack business?
Yes, where do I sign?
You've over egged the pudding mate, I'm out.
Comments