BrewDog flights

BrewDog is a chain of craft beer pubs across the UK. Originating in Scotland, they tend to have one pub per city - my local BrewDog is in the centre of Nottingham which is where I first came across them. They sell beer flights, typically 4 small glasses (one-third pint each) which are priced at one-third of the pint price. Over the last couple of months I've had a beer flight in BrewDogs in Birmingham, London, Nottingham and Edinburgh (because I could !).

BrewDog Birmingham (22nd October 2015) - this is pretty much in the centre of Birmingham and a very welcoming sight after a long day in meetings.

The beer flight I had (£6.75) consisted of the following:

1. This.Is.Lager 4.7% ABV £4.35/ pint - Traditional lager with a more hoppy, bitter taste.

2. Punk IPA 5.4% ABV £4.65/ pint - Classic American-style IPA, so much better in draft !

3. Five AM Red Ale 5% ABV £4.65/ pint - Caramel, malty with significant citrus hops, very dry finish, pucker up!

4. Black House (Modern Times) 5.8% ABV £4.25/ two-thirds pint - Initial coffee hit, smooth not overpowering, belies its strength, a dangerous combination!

All served on a wooden paddle in one-third pint glasses with the paddle numbered and a card with the beers written on it.

BrewDog Shepherd's Bush (28th October 2015) - this is London so everywhere is extremely busy but usually accessible by Tube or a ubiquitous London bus.

The beer flight I had this time was served in small wine style glasses (£11.25) with the following beers:

1. Saison Stone 6% ABV £5.35/ pint - Refreshing amber ale - hint of Belgian style aromas. Dry, slightly gingery with a faint antiseptic/ TCP after taste! (According to the menu: "Not your everyday saison; Light and floral farmhouse ale with lemon thyme & lavender").

2. Hardcore IPA 9.2% ABV £4.65/ half pint - Heavy citrus aroma and initial flavour, pretty quickly overpowered by its high strength! This is one for treading carefully. What does it say in the menu! "Extremes of grapefruit in this citrus hop bomb are followed by a long, biting finish". Not a favourite - I'm sticking with Punk IPA!

3. Blubus Maximus 5.5% ABV (Wild Beer Co.) £5.55/ half pint - Bravely opted for a 'sour' - it's definitely that! A dark purplish- red colour. It's pleasantly sour, with a fruity taste and the sourness hits you in the after taste! Menu says: "Collaboration with Beavertown Sour infused with bay leaves and blueberries".

4. Libertine Black Ale 7.2% ABV £5.30/ two-thirds pint - Black as night, hoppy aroma this is a dark ale that yearns to be an IPA - what would you expect from BrewDog!! It's smooth, citrusy with that dry dark beer finish. The menu says: "This single hop Simcoe black IPA brings coffee, liquorice, pine and orange to the party".

BrewDog Nottingham (30th November 2015) - only a bus ride from home but I've only been here a handful of times, its a lot smaller than I remembered but perfectly formed!


























I was here for a birthday treat with my son and we both had the same BrewDog flight (£7.25) as listed on the board. It consisted of the following (descriptions from the menu in speech marks):

1. Five AM Red Ale 5% ABV £5/ pint - "robust red ale hopped to the brink and back.... resulting in an all out riot of citrus, orange and lychee flavours against a rich, roast malt base." - I say, decent hoppy red ale.

2. Jack Hammer 7.2% ABV £4.35/ two-thirds pint - "devastatingly bitter finish ..... more bitterness than a human palate can detect .... huge grapefruit aroma and flavour". I say, this is a good beer but over-powered by alcohol (which I could detect using my own human palate !)

3. Punk IPA 5.4% ABV £4.30/ pint - "flagship beer ... avalanche of tropical fruits ... fruit explosion and a satisfyingly bitter finish". I say, still my favourite BrewDog beer but £4.30 a pint, come on !

4. Libertine Black Ale 7.2% ABV £4.35/ two-thirds pint - "dark hop bomb ... drinkability ... look out for blackcurrant spiced fruit with roasted malt notes". I say, a decent hoppy stout.

BrewDog Edinburgh (10th December 2015) - on Cowgate tucked away in the 'bowels' of the old town below the Royal Mile. I'd passed this place loads of times - its tiny, not much bigger than the bar !


























Flight of 4 one-third pints in wine style glasses - £5.70 (the cheapest I've had in all the BrewDog pubs I visited). Also had some food in the pub, an excellent beef pie - perfect accompaniment with beer !



1. Doodle Bug 2.8% ABV £3.25/pint - pale, citrusy, effervescent. Not listed in the BrewDog menu in the pub so must have been new or limited batch.

2. Punk IPA 5.4% ABV £4.50/ pint - my favourite BrewDog beer has featured on three of the beer flights for a good reason.

3. Five AM Saint 5% ABV £4.50/ pint - "balance of five malts ... red berry and stone fruit with a long dry finish".

4. B-side Stout 5.3% ABV £4.75/ pint - "gorgeous milk stout ... silky smooth". I say, coffee tasting but moreish stout.



That's all folks!

Clive Mitchell, BeerFlights Blogger, 1st January 2016
Twitter @BeerFlights