The 51st beer in the top 50, which I'm sure The Independent would have put in had they been aware of it. This is the beer that got me into ale, and into my curent fad of the golden variety. Brewed in Fremantle, Western Australia, where I spent the last 8 years, this beer cleans up at the majority of Australian Beer Awards, and with good reason. Bottle conditioned, this beer is like having a garden growing in your mouth. Floral hoppiness dominates, and yet the Pale Ale (5.2%) has something slightly different with each taste. Available in a handful of places across the UK (including my local who got it in following my begging), my only complaint is that it comes in small, 330ml bottles. The brewers, Little Creatures, do put it into pint bottles, so maybe if the brewery are reading this they could think about exporting those, as well as their other beers, Roger's Ale, Bright Ale and Pils!  Quite simply the best beer in the world!

Obviously The Independent don't comment on this beer, but if they did, they would agree with me!

Now I know that this must be sounding repetitive, but here is another beer I haven't tried before, and another I will try again. As you can probably gather, I do like my golden ales, definitely the beers that do it for me. This is a golden ale with a difference, it is made with porridge oats! The brewery says,"Hebridean Gold (4.3%) is a uniquely different ale, brewed with porridge oats. This produces an ale of exceptional smoothness, with a deep and creamy head. Like a Hebridean sunset, it is magnificently beautiful and must be experienced".

The Independent says,"Close your eyes and imagine you're in the Highlands, with this belting novelty beer from the Isle of Skye's only brewery. Made from porridge oats, which lend a distinctive aroma and aftertaste, this chesnut bitter has rich demerara overtones".

I say; Another winner, with this smooth tasty ale. To be honest, I don't think you would know it contained porridge oats unless you read the label. Has a fantastic underlying bitterness married to a sharpness and crispness that almost bites. Not too sure I could drink lots of it, but as a stand alone beer - wonderful! 

I was very pleased when this came out in the draw, this is one of the top 50 that I have been itching to try.  Dorothy Goodbody's Golden Ale (4.2%) is a bottle conditioned ale brewed in the Wye Valley, in Herefordshire.  They say, "Nothing gives Dorothy Goodbody more pleasure than the succulent aroma of the two finest English hop varieties: Goldings and Fuggles. Dorothy selected these and best Maris Otter pale malt for her 'Golden Ale'. A natural winning combination! Crisp and slightly zesty, enjoy on its own or with chicken dishes, salads and pasta".

The Independent says, "Herefordshire might be the home of cider, but they run to a pretty decent pint of bitter, too. This clean, refreshing beer, from one of the finest local breweries in Britain, is lively, fun, and reminded our panel of summer picnics".

I say; wow, oh for summer days! Pulled out of the hat on the warmest day of the year so far, this made me want to kick back and chill.  Crisp and clean, golden and citrus like, this beer is a million miles away from standard bitters, so much so even my wife approves.  So far, 3 beers down, and I'm agreeing with the Independent's panel.

Another beer that I haven't tried before, Joseph Holt HumDinger (4.1%), made in Manchester. This was a beer that was pretty hard to track down, and to be honest the brewery, when emailed, weren't any help. Obviously have enough business!  They say, "Joseph Holt have brewed this refreshing beer in their Manchester Brewery, with a combination of the finest English malt, Mexican aroma  honey and citrus flavoured whole hops to provide a rounded, tongue tingling taste with excellent aroma".

The Independent says, "The Manchester family brewer Joseph Holt beat off several hundred rivals to win Tesco's prestigious Beer Challenge in 2004 with this light, refreshing summer ale. It owes a distinctive, tongue tongling taste to the addition of Mexican honey and citrus flavoured hops. Our judging panel described it as a cracking breakfast beer which you could drink all day".

I say; very, very refreshing. To be honest, this wasn't a beer I was too excited about trying, I have drunk honey flavoured beer before and found them to be too sweet. This beer is almost lager like with its lightness, although there is a great deal of depth to it, and it would definitely be easy to sink a few.

First name out of the hat, Co-op Gold Miner (5.0%). Brewed in the Forest of Dean by the Freeminer Brewery, the beer is bottle conditioned. They say, "A delightfully refreshing, golden-coloured ale, made in the Royal Forest of Dean, by an award-winning micro-brewery.  Brewed exclusively for the o-op, this bottle conditioned ale should be poured with care to enjoy its intense hop flavours of spicy orange and citrus, which are backed by a comforting soft maltiness. Truly Irresistible."

The Independent says, "Although this bitter is produced exclusively for Co-op, it wears its local provenance proudly on its sleeve. Made at the Freeminer Brewery in the Forest of Dean, this is a fantastic session beer: clean and crisp, but with a distinctive enough taste to keep you interested to the bottom of the glass."

I say; Would be an easy drink to sup all night.  Light and hoppy, definite orange flavours there.  Mid golden in colour, this could grace any top beer list. If all beers on the Independent's list are this good, I'm in for a good couple of months!