Featured in BEER November 2009 as a strong ale for winter drinking. For similar beers, see previous post.
ABV: 8%
Origin: Woodbastwick, Norfolk, England
Website: www.woodfordes.co.uk
Woodforde's Norfolk Nip
Established in 1980, Woodforde’s is now quite a veteran, and a leading player in the burgeoning microbrewing scene of East Anglia. As well as a number of standout cask products, its range is immensely strengthened by bottle conditioned beers, including a number of strong options. One such is this minor classic barley wine, based on a 1929 recipe from Norwich’s Steward & Patterson’s brewery, brewing of which ceased in the early 1960s under the ownership of Watneys, who later shut the brewery. The brand name was preserved as the title of the local CAMRA magazine, and Woodforde’s recreated the beer to celebrate the 10th anniversary of that publication in 1992. It’s since become an annually released limited edition special, brewed from Maris Otter pale, crystal and chocolate malt, roasted barley and Goldings hops and matured for six months before being racked and bottled with unfermented wort.
A vintage dated 1999 bottle on sale at the Great British Beer Festival in 2001 and tasted two years later turned out a very dark burgundy, with a low yellow head, a mellow malty liquorice aroma with faint spice and perhaps some banana, and a smooth palate developing roasted malt, blackcurrant, nuts and enlivening hops. A smooth swallow led to a roasty finish with mellow hops, chocolate, warming alcohol and late bitterness, very soothing but not sweet.
In 2002 I bought two more bottles, no longer vintage dated but with a best before date of August 2004, and tasted the first relatively young. This was a dark ruby beer with a very thick off-white head and a rich malty toffee-apple aroma with apple core and custard hints. The palate was smooth and malty but surprisingly light, fizzy and winy, with stewed apple notes. A cleansing swallow heralded a warming rounded hop finish with more toffee apple, again very long and quite fruit, with a late bitterness. The second bottle didn’t age as well as I expected — tasted in December 2006, it had gained sherry, mint and olive notes but seemed to have started to deteriorate.
Read more about strong ales for winter in next post.
Read more about this beer at ratebeer.com: http://www.ratebeer.com/beer/woodfordes-norfolk-nip/18393/
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