Noli temere

A few cans from the Heaney Farmhouse Brewery have leaked down to the south in recent weeks. My only previous experience with the Bellaghy brewer was a positive one, back in November, on draught. Surely the cans would be nothing to be afraid of. When I took them from the fridge I was surprised and pleased to discover that two of the three were dark styles. That hardly ever happens.

Let's get the IPA out of the way first. Digital Leash isn't a very farmhouse name, and IPA dry-hopped with Galaxy and Amarillo not a typically farmhouse product, but howanever. It's 6% ABV, a sunny yellow colour with lots of haze and has the soft texture of the New England style. The flavour is something else though. In place of vanilla or garlic there's a strong citrus pith, a rasp of chalky dryness and some sharp dregs on the finish. The aroma is funky, sweaty and maybe a little cheesy too. It all takes a bit of getting used to but adds up to something much better than the sum of its parts. The other features are a mere sideshow to those pithy hops, and the assertive hit of lemon and bergamot is invigorating and refreshing. This is a beer best enjoyed on the superficial level, without going into too much detail on what makes it tick, as I've just done.

Porter next, one called Long Shadows, brewed as a winter special last year. From the pour I would nearly swear it's nitrogenated: no bubbles at first, then a rush of them towards the end, forming a thick tan-coloured pillow. The beer beneath is ruby-garnet rather than black. The aroma is a mix of dark chocolate and soot. I think we're going old-school here. The flavour is sweeter, however. In the middle there's cocoa and cookies with a little floral rosewater. This is flanked by bitterness: the dark chocolate going in, and an English hop bitterness on the finish, bringing green veg and zinc. Again, this beer works best outside of the analysis. It's just a good sinking porter, satisfyingly chewy at 6% ABV and well balanced by being restrained on the sweetness while just bitter enough. It may have been brewed for winter nights but worked great on a sunny summery afternoon outside.

To conclude, then: I Can See The Stars, an imperial stout in collaboration with Boundary. They offer 11% ABV and a four hour boil to claim the proper credentials here. A nip bottle might have been more appropriate than a 440ml can. It's very thick, something immediately obvious from the pour. A head the waxen yellow of corpse flesh swells up as it pours. The aroma is thick and sugary, curling up from what smells like a pit of molasses and treacle. The mouthfeel bears that out: very unctuous indeed. Sugar isn't to the fore in the taste. I get a meaty umami first and then it turns sweet -- an olde worlde candy store of clove rock, humbugs and liquorice sticks with a coating of melty milk chocolate. There's a bitter tang on the finish, but I wanted more of that. It's just a little too sweet and sticky for me. I'll be basic and suggest that some time ageing in spirit barrels might be good for this, but really I'd just prefer it dried out a little.

Beer of the set is definitely that porter, but for a new brewery Heaney really has its game together: I detected no technical flaws in any of this. That farmhouse is one tight ship.