Core values

Beer Hut is a brewery I associate mostly with way-out wacky-craft recipes, often involving the word "milkshake" somewhere in the name. It seems they've been doing a little growing up, or at least shifting to approach a different segment of the market, because they now have what looks suspiciously like a core range of very straight-edge pale ale recipes.

A Session IPA of just 3.9% ABV is where we'll start. The sub-4% market is poorly served in these parts so it's good to see a new one. It does look a little watery in the glass, though: a wan misty yellow with a thin and fading head. The aroma has that mineral/citrus soluble vitamin tablet effect that can often be found in even lower-strength beers when generous hopping is involved. Looks and smells are deceptive, because it's a whole different experience in the mouth. The body is plenty full, with an almost syrup-like texture. "Pillowy" says the can, and I concur. A big and multi-faceted flavour goes along with that, combining lemon candy, aspirin, fresh cabbage and tahini. It's all done with Chinook and Citra and could be accused of being a little harsh, but I enjoyed the punch. It says "Tropical" on the can and there I must dissent: it's far too citric for that. Overall, though, it's very impressive. My only criticism is the tiddly 33cl can, though it's only €2.50 a throw so you can always buy two.

The punch gets punchier when we move up to the Pale Ale. This is 4.5% ABV and brewed with Citra, Centennial and Simcoe. It's clearer in the glass albeit still fairly yellow. The citrus side of the American hops goes beyond my tolerance levels here. There's an intense bitterness which tastes almost sour to me, and has the concentrated tang of lemon washing up liquid, building to thick pine sap and fermenting grass. Savoury caraway seed provides a contrast in the finish, but is another feature which doesn't suit me. Again, the sheer amount of flavour they've packed in is nothing short of impressive, and it's completely free of technical flaws, it just didn't sit right on my palate.

An IPA finishes the trilogy and settles the score. "Bright & Juicy" says the can, and there's certainly a lot of fruit in the aroma; sweet and concentrated. This time the Citra is joined by Columbus and Mosaic and the ABV is a still-modest 5.8%. Mosaic's savoury caraway side is manifest in the foretaste, which immediately put the beer in my bad books. There's a decent dollop of mango and cantaloupe in the middle, and some funky dank resins, but then it fades out on an acrid husky dryness. Savoury-sharp and cloying-sweet do not a pleasant combination make, and I found this too hard going to be properly enjoyable.

It's a core range with no compromises, that's for sure. The only points I can ding it on relate to accessibility. It's too intense and extreme, not for the ordinary beer drinker in the street, but for me. My feeling is they could have reached more of a happy medium with these, and there's plenty of scope to tone things down while still steering clear of blandness. The Session IPA is the only one that gets away with being so loud.

As a palate (un)cleanser, something a bit more "craft": an imperial stout with silly add-ons and a daft name. I'll Just Have One... is described as a Biscoff imperial stout. It smells strong and sweet, which is par for the course I guess, with lots of cakey coffee and caramel. I get chocolate in the flavour, though specifically some kind of eastern European confectionery, served pre-wrapped on the side of a coffee that doesn't taste quite right. There's a herbal element in here: cardamom and aniseed. Kola Kubes. Tamarinds. Not that any of this is a criticism. None of the features clash or jar; it's heavy and strong sweet stout and totally unapologetic about that. There's a cookie on the can and if that's not what you signed up for it's your own fault. Part of me thinks Beer Hut should stick to recipes like this, but I'm sure there's room for all of it.