Comments on Pencil and Spoon: Top 11 Beers of 2011

Interesting list. Not had many of those but our li...

2012-01-01T15:43:21.913Z

Interesting list. Not had many of those but our list would, I think, be similarly influenced by 'the moment'. Most of the beers we get most wistful about -- the ones we sit and reminisce about drinking -- were consumed on our travels, so we were certainly tasting the holiday as much as the beer in most cases.

T_i_B - Nice list! I tried Alice Porter in BrewDog...

2012-01-01T15:01:44.229Z

T_i_B - Nice list! I tried Alice Porter in BrewDog Camden a few weeks ago and it was delicious. The Brodie's beers are tasting really great - their Red is very good. And I wish i could get more beer with Hazelnut!

Sid - Who knows what I was thinking!

Rob - It's always the moment which matters! These beers stand out because I'm doing different things in different places as well as having great beer.

Tandleman - Here's to a good 2012!

Never had or heard of some of them. Do I feel depr...

2012-01-01T09:46:48.797Z

Never had or heard of some of them. Do I feel deprived? No. But beer is personal, so sup up Mark and keep on doing so.

A very Happy New Year to you.

The older I get the more I realise it. It is the m...

2011-12-31T22:58:52.969Z

The older I get the more I realise it. It is the moment that matters. Its not all about lining up different beers, notepad at the ready to give each beer your full concentration.

Nice list Mark, and I like your point about rememb...

2011-12-31T20:18:27.367Z

Nice list Mark, and I like your point about remembering the moment. To think, this time 2 years ago you were going to waste your life rating the beers you drank. Where's your thinking on that today?

Happy New Year :-)

Nothing as exotic for me, but I can cobble togethe...

2011-12-31T12:25:51.075Z

Nothing as exotic for me, but I can cobble together a good list as follows

1) Brewdog Alice Porter - As much as I loathe Brewdog's marketing there is no doubt that they brew some stunning beers and Alice Porter is excellent

2) Brodies Hackney Red IPA - Possibly even better then 5AM Saint and I can't think of a greater compliment then that.

3) Acorn Simcoe IPA - My personal favourite of Acorn's many single hop IPA's this year.

4) Saltaire Hazlenut Coffee Porter - One of those beers that always puts a smile on my face

5) Buxton Imperial Black IPA - a late entry, but it is the best Black IPA I've ever had.

6)Steel City CTZ - When Steel City beers are bad they are undrinkable but when they are good they are spectacularly good. And CTZ is the pick of the bunch for me.

7)Marble Chocolate Stout - One of those beers I always make a beeline for when I see it in a pub.

8) Barlow Jolly Roger Porter - One of the nice things about 2011 has been that other Derbyshire breweries then Thornbridge have been making waves. Buxton, Raw and Barlow have all been making some great stuff and Jolly Roger is pretty much exactly the sort of beer I like.

9) Thornbridge Alchemy XIII - My own personal favourite of Thornbridge's new beers this year.

10) Acorn Gorlovka Stout - Yes I know it's another dark beer but it's an excellent one.