By Tom Wilkinson
You’re invited — Young’s Great Hop Expedition
Some might not consider a few beers down the local to be the lap of luxury. Throughout autumn, Young’s are aiming to change that with a bevy of brewer-led events to train your palate with an appreciation of everything to do with hops.
Sit back and let brewers from the UK and around the world fill you with ‘hoppyness’, good beer and pleasant memories. The talks from the different brewers are informative as well as entertaining. Learn all about the different types of hops in a congenial atmosphere with beers that bring their flavours to the fore.
I was fortunate enough to meet brewers from Yeastie Boys, Beavertown, Founders, Young’s and Camden breweries in three different pubs across South London. Each talk gave an insight into different parts of the brewing process and the decisions that go into picking the blend of hops in each brew.
The first two had their master brewers discuss the particulars of Australian and New Zealand hops. These strongly aromatic varieties are important to beers such as Neck Oil and Big Mouth IPA, small beers that pack a punchy flavour but can be enjoyed slowly as long as they stay cold.
Beer and food pairing
The founders of, well, Founders gave a talk about brewing to the changing tastes of the American public. This talk would appeal to those interested in the collegial atmosphere of breweries and a more historical overview of the recent rise of IPA in the US and worldwide.
The brewers from Young’s introduced more traditional British ales comparing their maltier ales that are more subtly hopped. Finally, Camden Brewery introduced their range with pairing notes. The Pils is light and pairs well with strong cheese based dishes, while the IHL’s citrus notes goes hand–in–hand with cake and trifle. The Hells is floral and goes well with fish dishes.
Make sure to pair your beers with the new range of bar snacks on offer. A variety of gourmet scotch eggs and sausage rolls are the perfect match to your highly hopped tipple. If meat isn’t your thing, there are plenty of options for vegetarians, too. The mushroom scotch egg deserves particular mention as a succulent and rich alternative.
Fall flavours
The full range of Young’s Great Hop Expedition Events can be enjoyed at the following pubs:
- Meet the Brewer with Guinness: The Windmill, Mayfair (19th October); Coach & Horses, Isleworth (26th October); Hand & Spear, Weybridge (2nd November)
- Pursuit of Hoppyness with Meantime: The Phoenix, Victoria (10th October)
- The Science of Beer and Food with Sambrook’s: The Leather Bottle, Earlsfield (19th October)
- Yeastie Boys Beers: The Hammersmith Ram (26th October); Dial Arch, Woolwich (2nd November)
- Bellville’s American Road Trip: The Windmill, Clapham (12th October)
- Founders Meets…: Defector’s Weld, Shepherd’s Bush (4th October); The White Bear, Kennington (10th October); The Trinity Arms, Brixton (18th October)
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Contributor Tom Wilkinson is a programmer by day and podcaster by night. He podcasts about quality alcohol at https://drwilko.org and discusses random topics drawn from a hat with his friend Mike at http://hatofmanythings.com
