Anchor O.B.A.

The Good News & The Bad News

First the bad news... I seem to be on an incredible run of bad luck with my car. I can't quite believe it. I have had my Renault since 2001 and have done about 95000 miles in it, it's been a good servant, until the last 12 months, since when I have had problem after problem. A couple of days ago on my way to the pub I hit a flooded pothole, which it seems, has bent the alloy and left me with a flat tire. I pulled on to the grass verge of the single track road, and my friend, my dog and I walked the mile and a half we had left to get to the pub. It happens, I know, but it has been compounded today by having to change the tire in the rain on a soaked verge that meant the jack disappeared into the earth rather than raising the car... and why do mechanics have to do the wheel nuts up so tight, it took me over half an hour of kicking with all my considerable weight to loosen the bloody things. These things are supposed to happen on sitcoms not to real people.

The good news also happened last night when we eventually finished our hike to the pub. We arrived at the bar, where the landlord greeted us with "So words got out then?" I had no idea what he was talking about "You had better try some then" he says and pours an unknown beer from a magnum. The beer in question turns out to be Anchor O.B.A (Our Barrel Ale) a blend of all of Anchor's beers aged in a freshly emptied whisky cask. It had been sent over so that the pub could find a suitable food match for an Anchor Beer & Food matching night they are hosting.

I am a huge fan of Anchor's beers, they are all well crafted with good balance and seem to be some of the best examples of particular styles. I have written before about The Old Foghorn comparing the draft and bottled version, and there was a lot of the Old Foghorn character in the O.B.A. The aroma was dominated by a sweet smokiness, that combined the toffee aromas from Old Foghorn and the smoke from the whisky. I love it when a beer has an aroma that really makes you want to dive in head first and you just can't wait to get it in your mouth. This beer certainly had that effect on me, and didn't disappoint either. It has a wonderful complexity, with hints of the fruit that you find in the Porter and toffee and raisons from the Foghorn, there is a slightly dry, hoppy finish from the Liberty Ale and underneath it a rich smooth warmth from the whisky. This is one truly fabulous craft beer that I really hope to try again. One glass just wasn't enough.

Our initial thoughts were that the O.B.A would go well with cheese, but all the different cheeses we tried didn't really work for one reason or another and we came to the conclusion that belly pork and scallops might be the best match. I think it is one of those drinks that might just be best savoured on its own. Either way, I just want to get my grubby hands on some more, role on the tasting dinner on the 30th April!

Happy Adventuring!