Marston’s Old Empire
| November 4, 2011 | Posted by Alec Fowler under Ale |
The Blinkhorns (that is Charlotte’s family) are coming round on Sunday for a long over due Sunday lunch. As Mr Blinkhorn shares my passion for real ale, I nipped into Aldi last night to pick up a Head Brewer’s Choice box from the guys at Marston’s. Excellent value, 12 bottles for £14.99 with three ales and a stout to choose from. We are yet to purchase any of the food for Sunday, however it is all about priorities and last night, if I must say so myself, I got them spot on.
Marston’s have been producing fine ale in Burton Upon Trent since 1834. For more detailed information on Marston’s PLC please see The Crown, Northolt.
The plan was to wait until the weekend for my first foray into the selection, however after a long week and a tough game of five-a-side I decided to crack on. I always enjoy an IPA therefore the Old Empire 5.7% was my first selection. Once opened the hoppy aroma poured out, a delight on the nose. Described as pale on the bottle I found it was fiery orange in colour. The Old Empire had a very hoppy (to be expected) first taste, you can certainly see why it survived the 3 month trip to Bombay all those years ago. I noticed a slight malty after taste.
A quality ale, not quite good enough to hit the top ales page, however I am certainly looking forward to the next couple of bottles and seeing what the remainder of the Head Brewer’s Choice box has to say.
Rating ★★★★☆
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