Beer Reviews - A Few Core Brands

Today I’m doing a few reviews of the core brands. BrewDog has 5 and I’ve only done one so I feel like it is time for some more.

Trashy Blonde – You know you shouldn’t

This beer is one of the core 5 and we have had a few debates about how it got its name. Some say that it was a good (or bad) night in college for James or Martin and others argue that it is because it is a blonde beer and it’s a bit dirty. Looks like we may never know.

Look – It is very light in colour with a pale gold colour, just a bit darker than the generic lagers you see out there. There is nothing special or interesting going on.

Smell – The smell is very mild. It has a slight hop smell with some sweet malt coming through but past that there isn’t much else. Like the look, there isn’t anything too interesting going on.

Taste – Surprise!! There isn’t anything special here either. Some malt sweetness and a bit of bitterness coming up front. The hops show up at the end with a decent bitterness but not much flavour. The bitterness lasts for longer than you would expect with such a low profile everywhere else. The body is quite thin and would attract a lot of drinkers. Maybe that is where it got the name? Sure you would have it because of its thin body and easy drinkability, but you wouldn’t be too proud.

Punk IPA- Post Modern Classis Pale Ale

This label is great. It tells you that you don’t know shit about beer and that you might as well have a generic lager since you can’t really appreciate this IPA. In you face and a no bullshit attitude, the BrewDog way. Is the beer actually that good? I should note that this is the new Punk, formerly Punk X so it has only been on full production for a few weeks at this point.

Look- A very pale golden yellow colour. Nothing too Punk yet.

Smell – The smell is great. Very aromatic with the big American hops. Fruity, resiny, some citrusy and a bit of a floral smell. The hop smell is also sweet and not too pungent. Maybe touches of sweetness from the malt, almost cinnamon or piecrust like.

Taste – Malt up front. You get this nice sweet maltyness that is biscuity and piecrust like with a bit of a toffee flavour mixed in. The hops you see in the smell are in the taste as well: Citrusy, a bit resiny and a touch of fruitiness in there. The bitterness is tame but present and gives a great balance to the beer.

Compared to old Punk this one is tame. The old one is very bitter in comparion, almost double the IBU’s but lacks the dry hop finish, which gives a great complexity of flavour to the beer. It also is less pungent smelling than the old punk. I personally like both of them but they are quite different beers. The new one has more flavour and hop presence while the old one is bitterer. I’d say the old is truer to the name but hey, I’m just an intern.