Life

Craft beer: Mourne meets the eye to Wee Binnian ale and bunny-inspired lager Hop

Wee Binnian is a a wheat ale, along the lines of a Belgian witbier, from Mourne Mountains Brewery; Hop is the Warrenpoint brewers' new lager
Wee Binnian is a a wheat ale, along the lines of a Belgian witbier, from Mourne Mountains Brewery; Hop is the Warrenpoint brewers' new lager Wee Binnian is a a wheat ale, along the lines of a Belgian witbier, from Mourne Mountains Brewery; Hop is the Warrenpoint brewers' new lager

A FEW sunny days suggest summer is still trying to hang on for dear life, but the odd biblical dump of rain is enough to let us know that September is well and truly here.

However, it shouldn't spell the end of light and refreshing ales and a couple of new brews from Mourne Mountains have really hit the spot this week.

First of all is Wee Binnian, a wheat ale which is very much along the lines of a Belgian witbier and which made a welcome appearance at the recent ABV Fest in Belfast. This time, though, I thought I'd try it without an imperial stout for starters, giving it a chance to showcase its flavours on a clean palate.

Unlike many beers from Mourne Mountains, Wee Binnian has nice haze to it. It’s just 3.5 per cent, so it's an easygoing sort. I dandered around the Mournes in my younger days as a scout, but nowadays I think this is as close as I'm going to get to plotting the peaks of the Co Down range. The lightness, though, doesn't mean a dilution of flavour: the wheat gives it a smoothness and there is a very subtle hint of spice of bitterness thanks to the orange peel and coriander.

I bumped into Mourne Mountains head brewer Tom Ray at the ABV Fest where he tipped me off about a new lager they had coming out. Hop comes in at 5 per cent and is the creation of Conor O'Hare at Mourne and is that very rarest of things – a lager with some character. The name not only refers to one of beer's most basic ingredients but also nods at the rabbits which once roamed around the Warrenpoint area of south Down where the beer is made.

It pours an almost amber colour, slightly darker than the normal straw colour you'd normally associate with lagers. There's actually a nice fruity aroma, reminiscent of a pale ale but the crisp taste and dry finish very much place it as a lager. It's lightly hopped, but I think the hop flavour is quite bold, a welcome departure from the bland lagers streaming through many pub taps.

It's up there with Mourne Mist pilsner as a beer a lager agnostic like myself can get on board with.