There are many features to enjoying Real Ale, one of which must be the vast selection on offer. Unlike massively produced beverages, Real Ales tend to focus upon quality and in many cases tradition. Black Sheep Ale is one such ale produced by the similarly named Black Sheep Brewery in Masham, North Yorkshire.
Black Sheep Ale is available to be consumed either on draught or by the bottle. This review focuses upon the bottled variety which still keeps the essence of what makes the ale distinctive.
The most interesting feature of Black sheep Ale is that its alcoholic strength is 4.4% abv. It is pleasant to see this amongst other competitive ales that are more often premium strengths of 5% abv or higher. It denotes one of two outcomes; that either Black Sheep is as weak as water, or that it engages the drinker in taste instead of intoxication. Luckily it is the latter for which Black Sheep ale can be credited.
The ale's middle weight character allows for a more readily consumable beverage. It allows the drinker to consume at a rate level to social peers, who more than likely are drinking something other than Real Ale. It is for this reason that it is apparent that the intention of the Black Sheep Brewery was to create an ale which rests as happily on a bar pump as it does in the home of a connoisseur.
The bottled ale is indeed an inviting sight. This is amusing since it is no more than a brown bottle with a brown motif on a cream background. It certainly shouldn't stand out from any other ales on the shelf, but it does. Its allure for this writer is that it seems to invoke a sense of rustic tradition and more important sells itself not by pretty pictures but by the content.
The aroma of the ale is certainly a gentle one of hops, not a pungent one as can be sometimes found with other ales. When poured from the dark brown bottle it settles quickly with a frothy head. It is not a creamy froth as can be found on a Stout or a Porter, but a head more suited to a bitter. Its bubbles grasp the outer rim of the glass and it gradually separates from the middle.
This is an important occurrence and one which accounts for its taste. The gentle head indicates a smaller quantity of carbon dioxide, something which is the product of fermenting yeast, but also helps to make ales 'fizzy'. It is out of personal preference a true ale should be still and this alone imparts the brewers attitude to create a perfect pint. If the ale is what some may call 'flat' then its appeal lies in the taste. It is in part for this reason why mass produced lagers are so effervescent.
Without taking a taste of the Black Sheep Ale it is apparent that it holds all the properties required to make a pleasant pint. Its colour is a very light brown, almost an amber and certainly clear enough to see through. It indicates it is a gentle ale and certainly imparts this upon the tongue when consumed. The initial taste is light and does not promote a heavy alcoholic stature but a more refined bitter sweet tickle. As the ale washes down the throat it again is gentle, almost creamy and not at all sharp or tart. The after taste settles quite dry upon the tongue and roof of the mouth but without any displeasure. It is not gassy and causes you to instinctively partake in more.
It is without doubt that Black Sheep Ale is a very self-imposed understated beverage. The design of the bottle and label is much like the content of the bottle itself; clear, simple yet instantly recognisable and as pleasant on the eye as it is on the palate.
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