Old Dairy Brewery - Sun Top

It was one of those beers that defined the "swift half" for me. A cheeky little drink whilst on a swift jaunt around Rye with my girlfriend. She wanted a bloody Mary, I wanted to stay below the legal limit and so it seemed that when I stepped into The George in Rye that the 3.6% Sun Top was the perfect choice. Though the cask and bottle versions are slightly different, both retain that playful fluffy head and golden body that make this look more like a cloudy pilsner than it does a pale ale. What I like about it, though, is how it just screams refreshment, the name and the sunflowers on the label are telling you when you should be drinking this and how you should be drinking this: When it's bloody sunny and bloody cold.

This bottled version smells like soft hops and fresh bread which may mislead as the flavour is a little stronger than you might expect. There is an outspoken hoppy core, wrapped in a lightly carbonated, drinkable outer casing that makes this both interesting and drinkable... I mean it's definitely more drinkable than it is interesting but it's more of an enigma than many others of its ilk.

This is a pale ale that you can happily chug like a steam train on a sweltering hot day. Embrace the hop core and you'll be friends for life, this is perfect if you wanted an entry level Old Dairy Brewery beer or something to take to a party that you had to drive people to/from. It's low in alcohol but don't think for a second that that makes this weak. Sun Top knows what its talents are.

Food Suggestion: Something that involves a salad. This really shouldn't be paired with anything heavy, it's truly a summer beer. Drink this with steak and kidney pudding at your own risk.

Drink this if you like: Sunflowers, salad, summer... Lists...