M&S is a shop I seem to constantly forget about, despite the presence of doughnuts that are clearly the work of occult forces and, crucially, a decent beer list.
Among the bottles on the shelf were two cans from Bermondsey-based Fourpure. The Session IPA was the first to be cracked open, and it delivers. Specifically, it delivers juicy orange and loads of zesty mandarin peel. It's inviting, and has lots of... yes, that's still orange I'm smelling. Unsurprisingly, semi-sweet mandarin opens the taste, with tangerine (or at least, Tanora), more peel, zest, pith, all that good stuff. All of this is achieved without any harsh bitterness and remains a refreshing quaffer, almost oily in its enthusiastic willingness to be swallowed. A hint of generic cara malt props up a solid hop delivery package, making this a pretty much spot on session IPA.
The Pils is the second can and it's pilsy; grass, straw, herbal and flowery in its hop outfit but not at all as clean as I'd expected. There's a coarse graininess that plays a supporting role to a lead that is in turns earthy, floral and lightly bitter and which lingers for geological ages. Any huskiness on the nose is absent from the palate, which is sufficiently clean and refreshing but with plenty to think about. The overall effect has you grappling with a fluffy, kind of bitter and leafy elderflower character on a mostly clean biscuit malt base.
Two bloody gooduns from Fourpure that will make for plenty of great summer drinking.
I have these in the fridge at home, though I'd heard terrible things about the IPA. This is comforting.
ReplyDeleteI really wasn't expecting much, especially from a session IPA, but it did a good job. I'd be happy to have a fresh supply on hand.
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