Maybe it was the cold weather, or maybe it was the Man City v Real Madrid game being on TV but it was a slightly reduced turnout for the February meeting. The lower numbers didn’t stop lively informative debate and some surprising beer tasting going off though.

We sampled a direct comparison of a Fusty Ferret clone that had been boiled for half an hour compared to one boiled for the full hour. The difference in both appearance and taste was huge and drove some interesting conversation and thought. This was followed up by a classy mild and a, rather hot, Dubbel – both good choices in the cold rainy February weather.

We settled into some technical discussions around water chemistry, fruit moulds and carbonation before sampling an old Fruit stout – which had aged pretty well and finishing with a Windsor Cider. This was a refreshing palate cleanser and was very reminiscent of the Northern Spanish sidras with their flamboyant pouring culture in Asturias.  

We finished the night discussing the Champion Homebrewer contest and trying to predict which box would be the most popular with Knightclub members and ensuring that we can help as many members as possible enter the large format contest.

March’s meeting will be looking at Bitters as a style – so if you have some to share or just love trying them we’ll see you there. Cheers.