Look who's Tolkein

I guess it's the nerd connection that's responsible for all the fantasy telly tie-in beers. Mikkeller had the Game of Thrones franchise a few years back and now it seems that the owners of Lord of the Rings have granted a licence to Hungarian brewery Mad Scientist to make some associated beers. Three of them showed up in Craft Central.

White Tree is a pale ale of 5.2% ABV. It doesn't look ideal, being dull and murky, with a greyish cast. Oxidation? I don't get any staleness in the flavour, but there's no freshness either. It all tastes very savoury, which is a surprise given the New Zealand hops employed -- Nelson Sauvin, Motueka and Pacific Sunrise. Something has definitely gone wrong here. Instead of grapes, grass and minerals, it tastes of sesame paste and dark brown breadcrust: not what anyone wants from a pale ale. It is at least cleanly flavoured, the murk softening the texture but stopping short of adding any unwelcome grit. But ash-dry pale ale is an idea whose time has not yet come and hopefully never will.

Anyway, I only bought the pale ale to make up the numbers. The next two are in much more interesting styles. Mordor is a black IPA. They wouldn't dare mess one of those up, would they? It's a bit murky, pouring muddy brown rather than shiny black. The aroma doesn't have much to say, but it's on the right lines, with light liquorice and dark toast. The flavour keeps everything moving in the right direction, with the spiced red cabbage effect I especially enjoy in black IPAs. Sparks of peppercorn and gunpowder start us off, and the finish is smooth and treacly. That said, it's all quite understated, not making full use of the 5.5% ABV to drive flavour. I can't really criticise it too much, because it delivers all the lovely features of black IPA, and at a modest strength. Yes, I'd like bigger and bolder, but what's here is very decent. Mordor seems like a lovely place.

Our epic quest concludes with Dwarven Forge, an oatmeal stout. This one, at least, is properly black, with a rich and wholesome aroma of coffee and porridge. It's surprisingly lightly textured for all of 6% ABV, but it does have that oatmeal smoothness. The flavour centres on dark chocolate with an edging of oily coffee roast, finishing quickly and cleanly. There's a burst of floral complexity in the middle and a growing alcohol heat, making for some tasty after-dinner sipping. While it's no world-shaker, it's a jolly decent beer with enough going on to keep it entertaining while delivering all the things anyone could want from an oatmeal stout. Dwarves: dependable. 

I get the impression that Mad Scientist didn't bring their best to this franchise arrangement. The beers are middling and unspectacular. I guess they know that people will buy them for the association rather than the taste. That's one way to stay in business.