NERAX Real Ale Exhibition *REVIEW*

[stinkycheeseman]

I got a call from a friend a couple of weeks ago. "Hey, Matt: Wanna go to the New England Real Ale Exhibition (NERAX), being held in Somerville, Mass. in a week or so? It is really cool- a bunch of cask conditioned ales, for like ten bucks or something. Should be fantastic".

"Uhhh, OK" I said.... Now, I knew a little bit about cask conditioned ales. I know that they are very special, a 'lost art' throughout the world, and a practically unheard of art here in America. I knew the style derived from those created in Brittan. I knew they were served warm. I knew they were served flat. I knew that the real, hard-core beer aficionados flocked to cask ale festivals all over the US, like ants to a chocolate puddin' pop on a sidewalk in the middle of July. But that is about all I knew. After all, I'm a cheeseguy, remember?

Well, I had no idea what was coming. The New England Real Ale Exhibition is held every year in Somerville. It is Sponsored by the Cask Conditioned Ale Support Campaign (CASC), and the festival offers traditional real ale. This festival started over twelve years ago, by way of a few warm kegs in the bottom of Redbones BBQ joint, a stone's throw from the VFW post in which it thrives now.

'Real Ale' is essentially top-fermented beer, that completes its secondary fermentation in the barrel. Sounds straightforward and simple, right? Not at all. Real ale is more mysterious than blarney stone, more stunning than a London morning in September and more delicious than the best 'fry up' you can find on earth. This is real beer. The way it should be enjoyed. This beer is alive. Unpasteurized. Unfiltered.

Flavor and texture is what real ale is all about. The depth of character of every beer- the nuances and underlying components all emerge and creep out to spook (or delight) you.
From the 'nose' the the 'finish', real ale presents a completely different experience of beer drinking, than that which we are used to in this country- the freezing, over carbonated and flavorless swath that fogs up our pint glasses and goes down like water on a hot summer's day. Now don't get me wrong- I too, upon rare occasion, and during moments of either intense nostalgia, American weak-mindedness, or desire for 'a chilly grown up soda' as my Father used to say- do enjoy a freezing beer in the middle of summer. My days as a roofer and carpenter embedded this into my head, I think: what could be better after a hot day of pounding nails, then a cold beer.

However, I digress. The point is- in order to do justice to REAL beer, to honor the tradition of amazing, first rate brews, made from the hands of a skilled and tireless lot, then we must enjoy them as intended: barrel fermented. Real ales are the next level. Welcome to 'Brewtopia'.

The line in Somerville jetted out the front of the VFW hall, made a sharp right hand turn at the street, and headed down the block, when we arrived on Wednesday at 6:30pm. Beer nerds were everywhere. 'At the last NERAX, I was like second in line and ended up being the first one to taste the Fuller's Reserve Porter'. Dork. People were wearing their Long Trail hats, their Rock Bottom Brewery shirts. They were be-spectacled, long-haired, bearded, pierced up, tattooed, polo-shirted, penny-loafered and there was even one with some clown gear on.
We all waited outside for a very cold one hour wait, while the ticketed few made early entry.
Then the moment came.

The doors opened and the most magical sight appeared: close to 100 racked barrels, with their cute little chill jackets on, appropriate signage and a bunch of eager 'barmasters' and 'brewmaidens' waiting to pour for the well behaved, calm and thirsty crowd. $10 per person got us in, then it was up to us. For the most part, $1.50 for a 1/4 pint, $3.00 for a 1/2 pint, and (if allowed) $5.00 for a whole pint. Taste whatever you want. Mix it up. Try some from the UK and some from the US. A little sip here, a little sip there- the next thing you know, you are 6 pints in. BUT- the good news, is that all of these ales are very low alcohol, because the point is that they are considered 'session' beers- those that can be leisurely consumed at a corner pub, pint after pint after pint. Therefore, most of the ABV's tend to be anywhere from 3-5%. What does that mean for you? More opportunity to taste the spectrum of what might be available for that given day, as the casks change from day to day.

I would say by the time we left, I was able to try close to fifteen different beers, of varying style, technique, flavor profile and strength. Out of those fifteen, I would say I met three that literally changed my life. I know, I know- that is a strong statement, but you have two more days left to see exactly what I mean. Go there. Take the commuter train. Then take the T to Davis Square. Eat at Redbones first and drink some water. Then go pay your wee ten bucks and drink some real ale. The pittance is worth the immeasurable experience you are about to get. Living beer. It's what's for dinner. Oh- by the way, that 'friend' was Jim Williams from Seven Stars fame. He's a beer geek. A big one, in a good way. This review, and subsequently my unforgettable first experience with cask conditioned ale could not have been possible without him. Thanks, Jim.

For my photos of NERAX, click HERE.

My top three of the festival:

1. Fuller's London Porter:
Rich, dark and complex, it is brewed from a blend of Brown, Crystal and Chocolate malts for a creamy delivery balanced by traditional Fuggles hops. The range of flavours works well with a wide variety of foods, ranging from rich meat dishes, to oysters, and even chocolate puddings.

2. Butternuts 'Porkslap'
Beyond an awesome name. This was f*cking briliant. A Special Bitter, dry hopped with Kent Goldings. Amber in color, mild spicy notes. Imagine it with grilled scallops. Smoked, pulled pork. Apple tarts. Even something as simple as a smoked gouda quesadilla. Holy crap, batman.

3. Dark Star's Espresso Stout
A black beer brewed with roasted barley malt and challenger hops BUT with freshly ground espresso coffee beans also added to the copper for a few minutes after the boil to provide a rich and complementary coffee aroma. Wooohoooo. Bust out the beef brisket, dude!

Details:

NERAX at the George Dilboy Post VFW, Davis Square, Somerville.
http://www.nerax.org/nerax/
Remaining 'Sessions':
Friday 6:00 - 10:30 p.m. $15
Saturday 12:00 - 7:00 p.m. $5

[Lynn Williams]

Real ale rocks. It was a great time, and, I'm so glad you were able to make the trek with me! Until August in London.............

Jim

[Max]

Yeah! Thanks for the excellent, effusive review, Matt. Cassie and I are going tonight. I'll be sure to check out your top picks and I'm sure we'll both report back with a few of our own.

[Jim Williams]

Matt,
I'm going back tonight. If you can swing it, let me know.

Jim

[Joel]

I've always wanted to check this show out. Next year! I'm going to a Newport Storm beer dinner and the American Craft Beer Fest in the next month, so I will be getting plenty of beer real soon.

[RunawayJim]

I'll definitely have to check it out next year, though I will admit that English style beers aren't my absolute favorite.

[cassie]

So glad to hear you went to NERAX matt! I've been counting down for months, and Max and I went to Saturday's session...so utterly worth standing in line in the rain for (though next year i will without a doubt make sure not to procrastinate buying tix online!) It's tempting to expound on every beer i tasted, as almost all were notable in some way, but i will try to restrain myself and, following Matt's example, give my highlights:

1. Inveralmond's "Lia Fail" (translates as "Stone of destiny." Yeah, dude...) Perth, Scotland:
The only way i can describe this beer is like drinking a stick of butter. Beer butter. Maybe with a little caramalized sugar in there. But it's not sweet. Made me rediscover the joys of a beautifully malted beer in these hop-crazed times we live in.... The most revelatory thing about these real ales to me is their textures--and Lia Fail brought "mouth feel" to a whole new level as far as I'm concerned. I tried to keep tasting new beers every round, as there were so many to try, but I had to come crawling back to this one before the end of the night...i will dream of this beer until next it passes my lips.

2. Elland's "Beyond the Pale," West Yorkshire: The NERAX booklet describes this beer as "robust and creamy" while also "dry, fruity and hoppy" and somehow these are indeed both true. Upfront it has this crazy hit of an almost rocky/tar flavor, (you know that smell in the summer when rain hits hot pavement? Exactly like that.) But then it takes you into some great fruit with just the right amount of bitterness. Never felt thin at all, and completely blasted my previous understandings of what a pale ale can be.

3. So, cause I'm a cider girl, I have to babble for a moment about the "Haymaker Medium Cider" from Mid Glamorgan Wales: This is a blend that heavily features Kingston Black apples--a classic British cider variety. (I'm most familiar with this apple from Steve Wood's Farnum Hill "Kingston Black Reserve." I sometimes feel like he ferments the bejeezus out of all of his ciders--I've heard him admit that he just likes his cider bone-dry...he certainly does it well, especially with his Kingston Black, but it was interesting to see what else could be done with this apple...) The Haymaker had a sweet/funky nose and initial taste, and then went into serious barnyard funk (what cider peeps call the straw/hay and--don't get scared off!--manure flavors/aromas that some ciders have) but finished quite dry with really nice slightly tongue-drying tannins. It had the quality of the flavors changing and evolving in a complex way throughout each sip, similarly to good wine & beer, that my favorite ciders have. (As a side note, in my opinion the best American cider in this regard is Judith & Terry Maloney's West County Cider, from Colrain MA..can't get in RI yet--though I'm trying to work on that--but it's available in Boston/Cambridge)

Also of note, especially given the current hop-shortage, were two Gruit style beers (Gruits are the ancient styles of ales brewed with herbs and plants like yarrow, heather, spruce, rosemary, conifers, and other herbs/spices that were used as flavor and bittering agents in beers before hops became the norm...) 1. The Scottish Williams Bros. Fraoch Heather Ale, which was quite refreshing and had some lovely floral honey notes.. and 2. The Moat Mountain Spruce Tip Brown, from Conway, NH. (There's an interesting article on Gruits in a recent BeerAdvocate, though I can't remember which issue...)

It was also fun to taste beer that I've had in bottles and get to really taste the difference, sort of like taking the "real-ale challange." Had some Haverhill Brewery/The Tap "Old Leatherlips IPA," (rivals "Porkslap" for a kick-ass name Matt, no?) which I've been schwilling of late, and it was quite a different beast when sipped from the cask...

Well, I hope it's not obnoxious to post about NERAX now that it's over, when it's too late for others to get inspired and head up there, (next year!) but, like Matt, I was just so psyched after going that I had to spout about it! As a tide-over in the realm of Real Ale until next year's NERAX, I should mention that Julian's on Broadway, Pitchers Pint in Cumberland, and Track 84 in Warwick are three spots that are doing periodic Real Ale casks, so I will try to keep anyone who's interested posted on those...