Westerham - Audit Ale

Though the idea of getting an audit from your ale may be an unpleasant one, I can assure you that there is nothing sinister in this name apart from maybe some shady dealings in regards to its history but I can only imagine that the ale itself had a minimal effect on that. Oddly enough I was talking to Westerham Brewery over twitter, waxing lyrical about Viceroy and they mentioned that I should try the Audit. I said I'd try my hardest to find it and then, naturally, instantly forgot. A week later it magically appeared on the shelves of The Bottle Shop, a set of circumstances that seem WAY too convenient but if this beer is half as good as Westerham say it is then I'll be sure to be a happy chap.

It pours a dark mahogany with a light, wispy, head that fades quickly. The aroma has hints of fruit, bitter hops and bread, leading me to think that this is going to be a round, thick, hearty ale with sweet and bitter components that play on the tongue like a mouse and a grasshopper who were both orphaned but became the best of friends... I've been wrong in the past. Sometimes it wasn't a mouse at all. It was a vole.

It instantly hits you with big bitter notes that stick to your tongue like limpets, which combined with a heavy, rounded and imposing body, leave you with the sense that the ale is bullying you into loving it. It never goes too far with the bitterness and the body is more playful in its attempts at rough housing your senses than it is actually do you physical harm. It definitely feels like the kind of thing they would have had 200 years ago, it feels like the kind of thing the masters at Hogwarts would drink.

It's thick, bitter, lightly fruity, imposing and, still, thoroughly enjoyable. At 6.2% I would happily see my way to drinking 4 or 5 of these in an evening without begrudging my hangover the next day. Cheers Westerham! You done good, chaps!

Food Suggestion: I would love to have a pint of this whilst sitting in a country pub in the 50s, hops hanging from the ceiling, pipe smoke hanging heavy in the air and a bit of game pie in front of you or, even, a full beef roast if it were a Sunday. Sounds like the perfect use of a time machine to me.

Drink this if you like: Similar in style and taste to "Kill Your Darlings" by Thornbridge but less plummy, less bready, with a punch more bitterness.