Two faces of pale

I like that we've got to a stage in Irish brewing where the top tier do more than merely say "here's a lager and a pale ale". We get details, sub-genres, and I'd like to think that's more to do with consumer demand than brewers' boredom. Consumer demand is what will ultimately lead to better beer quality. All of which is a blathery introduction to this lot from Galway Bay Brewery: two pale ales of the hazy New England sort and a self-consciously Czech-style pale lager.

A pale ale called Little Feelings featured in a round-up last May. That turned out to be merely the first in a series of pale ales of the same name, the second of which is brewed with Azacca, Eldorado and Idaho 7 (or "Azaccza" as the front of the can would have it). The ABV drops a little, from 5% to 4.6%, though it's still opaque and bright yellow. I expected sweet and fruity candy from these hops but it's actually quite pithy, with a touch of coconut. If you'd asked me without telling me I'd have sworn that something like Sabro was involved. The low strength makes it easy drinking while the oats prevent it from turning thin. You get your money's worth out of the hops, to the point where it's maybe a little too intense for a session, but one can was good fun.

Little Feelings: Nelson Sauvin was hot on its heels, and the strength is rebalanced with 5.3% ABV this time. Still yellow, but it looks a little less murky to me; translucent rather than opaque. The aroma is subtle, though the ripe lychee funk of Nelson Sauvin is unmistakable in it. The flavour too is thoroughly Nelsonised, starting on a flinty mineral bitterness before proceeding to gooseberry, white grape and a mild guava tropicality. There's a less typical damp-grass effect as well, presumably a throwback to Nelson's German roots. That adds to the overall bitterness and, like with the previous one, the effect slows down my drinking. Though broadly New Englandish neither of these has the smooth vanilla and/or juice that tends to come with haze. I'm not complaining: here is yet another assertive and flavourful expression of Nelson Sauvin from an Irish brewer. I am far from bored with them.

And so to the lager. Bitter Pil is, I think, the first Irish beer to describe itself as "světlý ležák", specifically of the 12º variety. It's a bold claim given the tight strictures under which Czech beer is produced. So... yes to decoction mashing, yes to Saaz hops, yes to a Pilsner Urquell yeast strain, yes to 5% ABV and yes to three months of lagering. Even still that wasn't enough to make it clear so we're very much dealing with the nefiltrovaný sort of thing, with the resulting slightly fuzzy texture. There is also the fuller, slicker body you get with decoction and lots of an almost rye-like concentrated bitterness from the Saaz. In combination that creates a long-lasting bold flavour; no generic fizz here. The aroma is surprisingly slight for all that, with just a faint malt sweetness and herbal piquancy. Purely on personal taste, I think I would prefer more crispness to the whole picture, so it's either back to the tanks for another three months or, dare I suggest, a spot of filtration. As an Irish take on a Czech original, however, it's pleasingly convincing: a wholesome Urquell clone, minus the nasty diacetyl. I was delighted to hear this week that a tmavé will follow and I'm looking forward to seeing the same attention to detail applied to that.

It's refreshing to see a brewery that isn't simply chasing trends in an effort to seem relevant. I sense a genuine love of the art here.