Malt Shovel, Northampton

The Malt Shovel is the premier ‘real ale’ pub in Northampton. It was built in 1914 by the Northampton Brewing Company. It has been through many incarnations until it was purchased by its current owners in 1996. As well as being renowned in the area for good beer, the Malt Shovel also houses a vast collection of breweriana. It is a large pub which on the Friday night I went was very busy.  

There is a good selection of local beers available. The Malt Shovel is the brewery tap for the Great Oakley brewery. The Great Oakley brewery operates a five barrel plant from Bridge farm, Great Oakley. Ales from Frog Island brewery are also available from the Malt Shovel. The Frog Island brewery is based around the corner from the Malt Shovel, and has been brewing since 1994. In total, there were about 10 real ales on tap at the Malt Shovel.

Great Oakley Harpers (4.3%). Harpers is a good brown bitter. It is a smooth drinking ale with a good complex flavours. I could taste a bit of wood and grassiness in this quite sweet rich bitter. A good quaffing bitter 6/10.

Great Oakley Gobble (4.5%). Gobble is a dark golden beer which is very rich and has a thick mouth feel. It is very smooth and easy drinking. Richness of golden syrup came through, as did slight apricot flavours. A tasty rich beer 6/10.

Elland Brewery Malt Shovel IPA (4.6%). The Elland brewery is based in Yorkshire, and was formed in 2002 as Eastwood and Sanders by the amalgamation of the Barge & Barrel and West Yorkshire Breweries. In 2006 the brewery was renamed Elland. This IPA is a light golden beer. The light theme continues in this very easy drinking beer. There is not as much flavor as I would have hoped for in this ale, especially given the levels of alcohol in it. 5/10  

Nottingham Beer Festival day 2

Thinking it would be very busy at the beer festival tonight, we decided to go early to ensure we could try some of the ales on our wish list. It was 4.30pm when we arrived and it was busy! By 6.30pm it was extremely busy with everyone packed together like sardines. Of the two days I preferred the Thursday as it was less hectic.

Here are some of the beers I tried:

Fyfe Nagnum IPA (4.5%). This Scottish IPA had a pretty poor nose of sweaty socks and the taste was no better as although it was quite malty it was bland and dull. 3/10

Blue Monkey Infinity (4.6%). So it was then that I went to one of my favourite breweries. Infinity is a very light golden beer.  It has a floral nose and lovely citrusy flavours, which combine with a nice bitterness to make this a great easy drinking ale. 7.5/10

Blue Monkey Evolution (4.3%). Evolution is darker than Infinity and has a subtle nose to it with hints of grapefruit. It is more malty compared to Infinity and has a lovely complex flavour with great length. Slight caramel and violet flavours make this a perfectly rounded ale. 9/10

Blue Monkey Infinity (Left) and Evolution (Right)



Poachers Lincoln Best (4.2%). This is a dark brown bitter with lots of roasted malt and coffee flavours. It is easy drinking and would be nice on a winters day. 6/10

Allgates Motueka Gold (4.2%). Light golden colour with a thin head. The New Zealand hops used make this a really refreshing beer with citrus and floral flavours and a nice bitterness. 7.5/10

Vale VPA (Vale Pale Ale) (4.2%). A well balanced golden beer with a citrus nose, good body and nice bitterness to it. 7.5/10

Strathaven Aleberry (4.6%). This Scottish beer is infused with damsons and you can really tell as it has a very fruity taste. It is easy drinking, but it is a bit too dominated by the fruit. 5.5/10

Backyard Brewhouse Nipin (4.6%). Light golden American style pale ale. It has a slight citrus nose and almost vegetable flavours. Initially it seems a sweet beer, but it is bitter at the finish. 5.5/10

Botley Gringo’s Gold (4.5%). Light golden beer with a thin frothy head. It has a sweet nose with flavours of nectarine. It is very easy drinking due to the sweetness, but it is not complex enough. 5.5/10

Hogswood Broken Piston (4.2%). A nice brown beer with sweet coffee flavours. It is easy drinking and settles nicely in the stomach. 6.5/10

Loddon Ferrymans Gold (4.4%).This amber beer has a floral nose/taste and a good length. 6.5/10

Great Oakley Tailshaker (5%). Another amber ale with a frothy head. It has nice malty and floral flavours and is very smooth to drink. 7/10

Green Mill Zenith (4.5%). Golden ale with a complex nose and hoppy citrus taste. It is a well balanced drinkable ale with good length. 7/10

Blue Monkey 99 Red Baboons (4.2%). This very dark beer has a slightly sweet nose and raisin like flavour. An unusual and really tasty beer. 8/10

Once again the beers had been superb. The highlights had to be the fantastic beers from Blue Monkey. Well done to them.