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Kent Beer Festival 2006 (CAMRA Beer Festival)
| Beer (sort) | Average Score (sort) | No. Samples (sort) |
|---|---|---|
| Naylor's - Victoria's blonde and fruity |  | 2 |
| Hawkshead - Lakeland Gold | | 2 |
| Marble - Chocolate Heavy | | 1 |
| Buffy's - Mild |  | 1 |
| Bierbrouwerij St Christoffel - Christoffel Blond | | 1 |
| Bank Top - Dark Mild | | 1 |
| Big Lamp - Prince Bishop Ale | | 1 |
| Goacher's - Real Mild Ale | | 1 |
| Sulwath - The Black Galloway | | 1 |
| Hopdaemon - Skrimshander IPA | | 1 |
| Copper Dragon - Black Gold | | 1 |
| Whitstable - East India Pale Ale (or EIPA) | | 1 |
| Rother Valley - Cocoa Hops | | 1 |
| Spectrum - Wizzard | | 1 |
| Goacher's - Gold Star | | 1 |
| Spectrum - Light Fantastic |  | 2 |
| Houston - Killellan | | 1 |
| Whitstable - Native Bitter | | 2 |
| Spectrum - Old Stoatwobbler | | 1 |
| Larkins - Best Bitter | | 2 |
| Garton - Woldsman Bitter | | 2 |
| Nelson - Powder Monkey | | 1 |
| Cotleigh - Blue Jay Best Bitter | | 1 |
| Newby Wyke - Kingston Topaz | | 1 |
| Westerham - Grasshopper Kentish Bitter | | 1 |
| Bank Top - Game, Set & Match | | 1 |
| Sulwath - Criffel Ale | | 1 |
| Springhead - Roundhead's Gold |  | 2 |
| Marble - Ginger Marble | | 1 |
| Goacher's - Best Dark Ale (aka Original) | | 1 |
| Dartford Wobbler (re-named from Millis) - Ginger Freak | | 1 |
| De Molen - Engel | | 1 |
| Rother Valley - Golden Valley Wheat Beer | | 2 |
| Naylor's - Fred's Centurion | | 1 |
| Dent - Bitter | | 1 |
| Dartford Wobbler (re-named from Millis) - Kentish Red Ale | | 1 |
| Fyfe - Mashie | | 1 |
| De 3 Horne - Bananatana | | 1 |
| Loddon - Bamboozle Pale Ale | | 1 |
| Fyfe - Frida | | 1 |
| Young's - Golden Zest | | 1 |
| Loddon - Hullabaloo | | 1 |
| Hawkshead - Red | | 1 |
| Hesket Newmarket - Great Cockup Porter | | 1 |
| Joseph Holt (see also Holt's) - Mild | | 1 |
| Hesket Newmarket - Blencathra Bitter | | 1 |
| Buffy's - Norwegian Blue (aka Polly's Extra Folly) | | 1 |
| Hebridean - Islander Strong Premium Ale | | 1 |
| Larkins - Traditional |  | 1 |
| White Star - Crafty Shag |  | 1 |
| Milestone - Crusader | | 2 |
Visits Details
22 Jul 2006 (Ian)
Hey, it was my birthday. Here with Martin, Andrew and Brian. We sat by the entrance so the breeze cooled us down on another scorching day. As usual, the Friday night session had cleared out a lot of the beers, but there was still plenty to get your teeth into. Some of the weaker alcohol strength beers were beginning to tire from the heat.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Newby Wyke - Kingston Topaz | 4.20 | | Gold colour with thick white head. Strong citrus hop aroma. Grapefruit and tangerine. Creamy in mouth, bit nutty. Hop is also quite earthy on end. Longish earthy tangerine finish. My type of beer if not perfectly executed. |
| Loddon - Hullabaloo | 4.20 | | Deep copper, thin white head. Butterscotch aroma. Bit of citrus. Malts are ok in mouth, but I think there is some diacetyl in here somewhere. |
| Garton - Woldsman Bitter | 4.50 | | Amber colour with bubbly off white hea.d Yeasty hop/citrus aroma, bit bready. May lack a bit of body, but good hop finish. Bit thin overall. |
| Hebridean - Islander Strong Premium Ale | 4.80 | | Down as Island Strong at 4.8%, but I am pretty sure that this is the same beer as Islander. Hazy russet with thin off white head. Raisiny aroma with some off flavours in mouth. Some grapefruit hop on end. Syrupy red fruit. Quite malty. |
| De Molen - Engel | 4.50 | | First beer of the Saturday session (3rd session for me). I had been waiting for this to come on for 2 days. Hazy amber colour with off white head. Yeasty, strong hop and grapefruit aroma. Bit earthy in mouth. Not a bad first attempt. Mouthfeel is just a little wrong. |
| Fyfe - Mashie | 4.60 | | Gold/amber with thin bubbly white head. Not a huge aroma, some nice biscuity malt, bit of fruit. Biscuit on end. Lacking in hops. Needs more of everything. |
| Young's - Golden Zest | 4.70 | | Crystal clear pale copper colour with bubbly disappearing off white head. Yeasty caramel aroma. Caramel in mouth. Spritzy hoppy citrus finish. |
| Milestone - Crusader | 4.40 | | Hazy gold colour with thin white head. Odd aroma, apple sour. Quite fruity in mouth. Sour. Odd. Bit vinegary. Had to pour this one too. |
22 Jul 2006 (Brian)
By Saturday some of the best stuff had gone, but still a decent variety.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goacher's - Gold Star | 5.10 | | Having just arrived and having nothing specific in mind, this seemed to be the perfect starting point - and it was. Beautiful pale ale, intense bitter bite, well balanced and refreshing. |
| Hopdaemon - Skrimshander IPA | 4.50 | | As things were starting to run out I thought I'd fall back on an old favourite - and as expected it was great. Superb flowery nose, soft / bitter balance in the mouth. |
| Garton - Woldsman Bitter | 4.50 | | Quite nice golden brown bitter, with not much aroma but good bitter finish. |
| Springhead - Roundhead's Gold | 4.20 | | Bit thin in the mouth. Slight floral nose, and a bit empty in the finish. Unremarkable but OK. |
| Whitstable - Native Bitter | 3.70 | | Mid brown and nice and clear in appearance. Nothing much to write about in the flavour though. OK, but compared to say their EIPA, it was forgetable. |
| Rother Valley - Golden Valley Wheat Beer | 4.20 | | As this is the first time I'd tried this it may just have been on the way out, but if it's supposed to taste like this then it's awful. Smelt like disinfectant and tasted like mouthwash. |
22 Jul 2006 (Andrew)
Ian's birthday. Here with Ian, Martin and Brian and this time it's not so hot.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Goacher's - Real Mild Ale | 3.40 | | Bitter coffee, hints of chocolate. This is the best Goacher's mild I've had at a beer festival |
| Bank Top - Dark Mild | 4.00 | | Black mild with slightly sour start followed by toasted malt and low malt toast finish |
| Big Lamp - Prince Bishop Ale | 4.80 | | Smells of lemon and elderflower. Strong earthy, but light, rich grapefruit and syrup |
| Joseph Holt (see also Holt's) - Mild | 3.20 | | Dark mild. Can't work out if this is on the turn or not. It's a bit acidic but a bit fruity too. Tastes of sharp plum skins with a bitter finish |
| Fyfe - Frida | 3.90 | | Cloudy. Wheatbeer taste with lager hops. Yeasty nose with yeasty tart bite |
| Larkins - Traditional | 3.40 | | Yeasty and not really ready |
| Milestone - Crusader | 4.40 | | I saved my kidneys the trouble and chucked this straight down the bog |
21 Jul 2006 (Ian)
Just Andrew and me for this session. Not too busy and more for the older male CAMRA geek crowd. However, we sat in the hottest spot in the entire shed and spent 3 and a half hours saying "God, it's hot." Beer still in good shape.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bierbrouwerij St Christoffel - Christoffel Blond | 6.00 | | Lovely unfiltered blond. Lots of citrus hops. Some yeast, creamy in mouth, but strong hop finish dominates the beer. |
| Marble - Ginger Marble | 4.50 | | Slightly hazy gold colour with no head. Strong ginger biscuit aroma. Very herby ginger in mouoth, some juicy malt, but finish had harsh spicey stem ginger flavour. Not balanced, but the intensity of the ginger is interesting |
| Spectrum - Light Fantastic | 3.70 | | Golden with thin white head. Yeasty aroma, some citrus hop. Fine in mouth, with good citrus hop finish. Lemon and grapefruit flavours. Summer beer, slight more yeasty than you might expect and it lacks a bit of depth. |
| Springhead - Roundhead's Gold | 4.20 | | Gold colour with no head. Some honey on mostly hop aroma. Thin malt in mouth, some more honey towards end. Bit of a spicey/noney hop finish. |
| Loddon - Bamboozle Pale Ale | 4.80 | | Copper colour with disappearing white head. Some toffee malt, some strong green hop on finish. Bit of strawberry/grapefruit aroma. More grapefruit on end. Bit of farty yeast puts me off on the aroma. |
| Rother Valley - Golden Valley Wheat Beer | 4.20 | | First beer of the Friday lunchtime session. Hazy gold with thin white head. Little bit muddled, bit earthy. Dry earthy hopo finish, some citrus. Finish is really quite nice. |
| Hawkshead - Red | 4.60 | | Chestnut colour with lasting beige head. Malty and red berries aroma. Yes, malty in mouth too. Some hoppy dryness on end, but mostly a dry medium malt bitter. Fine. |
| Buffy's - Norwegian Blue (aka Polly's Extra Folly) | 4.90 | | Crystal clear amber colour with thin white head. Malty aroma with some hop, some grapefruit. Fullish and juicy in mouth. Good bitter flavour and hop on end. Competent ESB with good malt/hop balance. Bit of alcohol heat. |
| Naylor's - Fred's Centurion | 3.90 | | Golden with thin white head. Caramel and hop aroma, I thought a bit of diacetyl, but others with me couldn’t detect it. Strong hoppy finish is good. Hops and lemon citrus overcome the butterscotch. |
| De 3 Horne - Bananatana | 7.00 | | Copper colour with thick beige head. Ripe banana aroma. Lots of fruity esters. Good in mouth, fullish and then sweet dried fruit and banana finish. Alcohol is there, but doesn’t overpower the other flavours. It does certainly grow on you after my initial doubts. |
| White Star - Crafty Shag | 4.10 | | Gold colour with disappearing white head. Nasty burnt toffee aroma, bit of pukey lager in mouth. This is awful. I had to pour it away it was that bad. |
21 Jul 2006 (Andrew)
Friday lunch time session and it was way too hot. The sweat running down Ian's face made him look like he was melting.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Copper Dragon - Black Gold | 3.70 | | Dark Mild. Smells of cold coffee cream. Initial blackcurrent flavour quickly supressed by strong bitter coffee flavours |
| Spectrum - Wizzard | 4.90 | | Copper brown with a smell of raspberry and strawberry. Tasted of plum and a bit of brown sugar with tingly burnt short bitterness |
| Buffy's - Mild | 4.20 | | Dark mild with hints of blackcurrent and short, mildly bitter finish |
| Whitstable - Native Bitter | 3.70 | | Brown bitter. Sharp malt bitter flavour with low depths of bitter finish |
20 Jul 2006 (Ian)
Aarh, the wonders of the Kent Beer Festival. A cow shed in the middle of a working farm on the outskirts of Canterbury. I like the Thursday evening session, there is a good mix of people. For some reason there were 2 bands playing which made conversation difficult. Given the heat of the prior week, the beers were in very good condition. Cider and perry stand, foreign beer stand and a good mix of food outlets round off an idiosyncratic festival. Andrew, Jane and I walked up from Canterbury to it and met up with Brian.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naylor's - Victoria's blonde and fruity | 4.50 | | Golden beer with lasting white head. Good hoppy hit and rose petal fruit on aroma. Full in mouth, with gorgeous fruit on end. Really good golden fruity hop beer. Bitter on end. |
| Hawkshead - Lakeland Gold | 4.40 | | This was labelled as Lakeland Gold, but at the same ABV. Deep gold, lasting bubbly off white head. Very flowery hop aroma. Really lovely beer. Bit astringent, but hop is fantastic. A bit like a US style IPA. This is my kind of beer. |
| Rother Valley - Cocoa Hops | 4.80 | | Black beer with fading beige head. Powdery cocoa, smooth in mouth, very good choc on end. Just a bit too powdery |
| Sulwath - Criffel Ale | 4.60 | | Hazy gold with thin off white head. Odd flavours of fruity malt and then very strong hop finish (resiny hop). May develop over a day or 2 to be brilliant. One to come back to later in the festival. It has presence. Whiskyish malt aroma. Spicey hop finish |
| Cotleigh - Blue Jay Best Bitter | 4.20 | | So my first beer on the first evening of the 3 sessions for me at this beer festival. Copper colour with thin off white head. Sticky spicey hop and caramel aroma. Good in mouth. Hop on end is quite spicey. Good toffee. Certainly has lots of taste. |
| Bank Top - Game, Set & Match | 3.80 | | Pale copper with disappearing white head. Bit of farty blackcurrant. Bit thin in mouth, but really hoppy finish which is flowery and bitter. Very drying finish. Very nice hop in fact. |
| Hesket Newmarket - Blencathra Bitter | 3.30 | | Deep ruby colour with yeasty aroma. Good malty session bitter, bit of dry malt in mouth, very good malty session bitter in fact, I liked it. |
| Dartford Wobbler (re-named from Millis) - Ginger Freak | 4.30 | | Gold with lasting white head. Very strong ginger aroma. Quite an eathy beer with strong ginger finish. Bit thin in mouth. Not a bad pint but ginger is too dominant. |
| Dartford Wobbler (re-named from Millis) - Kentish Red Ale | 4.30 | | Strawberry malt aroma. Fullish in mouth, bit of hop tingle on end. Maybe not the greatest beer, but fine. |
20 Jul 2006 (Brian)
Thursday evening at the fest. Not as big a range of beers as usual, but more than enough to keep you going.
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Naylor's - Victoria's blonde and fruity | 4.50 | | Dreadfull name, fantastic beer. Pale, golden colour, superbly balanced, with gentle grapefruit aroma and bitter finish. |
| Hawkshead - Lakeland Gold | 4.40 | | Second stunner of the evening. Similar in a way to the Naylor's VB&F. Golden colour, fresh fruity aroma and full mouth, citrus flavour. Great. |
| Whitstable - East India Pale Ale (or EIPA) | 4.10 | | Started with a sure fire banker. Pale, straw colour, fresh aroma, gentle bite and good citrus finish. |
| Larkins - Best Bitter | 4.40 | | Again nice and fresh. Mid brown bitter with good strength bitterness. |
| Westerham - Grasshopper Kentish Bitter | 3.80 | | Dark brown colour, bubbly head. Slightly sulphurous aroma, but good bitter, nutty bite. |
| Houston - Killellan | 3.70 | | Slightly cloudy, but nice floral aroma. Full in the mouth with a prickly finish. |
| Dent - Bitter | 3.70 | | OK. A bit thin in the mouth, fruity aroma and subtle hop. |
20 Jul 2006 (Andrew)
Thursday night at the beer festival. Ian Jane and I arived by foot and were 10th in the queue. It ended up fairly busy with a mixture of young and old. Met up with Brian and saw both Keith (...Phenoix) and Charlie (...Yew Tree Inn).
| Beer | ABV | Score | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Marble - Chocolate Heavy | 5.50 | | This was the beer of the festival for me. Big sweet coca smell. Slightly tart burnt cholcolate with long bitter mellow sharp coca finish. A very well ballanced beer. |
| Sulwath - The Black Galloway | 4.40 | | Good lungfull of sweet/sour proter alochol. Not hughly well ballanced but that might be due to it just been tapped. |
| Spectrum - Light Fantastic | 3.70 | | Golden bitter with musky heather and mandarine bitterness |
| Spectrum - Old Stoatwobbler | 6.00 | | My notes were beginning to fade out by this point. In fact all I have written down is a single happy expletive. As I recall it was a good black stout |
| Nelson - Powder Monkey | 4.40 | | Golden beer. Tasted of sharp horses urine (but not unpleasant so I don't quite know what I meant by this) with a smell of syrup. |
| Goacher's - Best Dark Ale (aka Original) | 4.10 | | Badged as Goacher's Dark. Quite fizzy. Bit too much sherbert for a ber that's usually a cooked sugar & fuggles hop treat |
| Larkins - Best Bitter | 4.40 | | Bit lively and fizzy. Dark rich syrup with storng base-bitter finish |
| Hesket Newmarket - Great Cockup Porter | 3.00 | | Black beer that smells of marsh water and tastes a bit thin. |
About the Kent Beer Festival 2006
Summary of Beer Scores
| Total | |
|---|---|
| 3 |
| 15 |
| 11 |
| 26 |
| 2 |
The pub is found in Canterbury, Kent, CT4 7BA.
The CAMRA Kent Beer Festival held every year in a cow shed.
We have visited this pub 8 times, seen 50 different beers and tried them all.
Postcode: CT4 7BA