Brewdog Prototypes: The Verdict

Promo shot of Brewdog prototypes

After a few days of waiting, my Brewdog prototype beers arrived. I went for three of each of the beers: a Pilsner called Nuns with a Guns, a super hoppy IPA called Jackhammer and a 10% ABV imperial Russian stout called Cocoa Psycho.

I'd been hearing mixed things about a couple of the beers, in particular Nuns with Guns which didn't seem to be getting the best reviews in some quarters. But it's always better to try for yourself and come to your own conclusions.

Whatever you think of Brewdog and their marketing strategies, it is hard to ignore them. They produce some fantastic beers and have injected a real energy into the UK brewing scene. It is of course a bit of a gimmick getting people to vote for their favourite, which will go into production throughout next year. However, it's also a nice opportunity to see where they're going as a brewery and try out some new beers before they go into full production.

It's also quite refreshing to receive them with simple white white labels bearing just the Brewdog logo, the name of the beer and the ABV and without the usual twaddle about how 'post-modern' and rebellious the beer is.

Anyway, on with the verdict...

Nuns with Guns

Nuns with Guns

4.2% ABV

This beer is a fairly low alcohol Pilsner. It pours a coppery colour with minimal head and has a very gentle and slightly underwhelming aroma with a slight fruitiness to it.

Overall, this is an utterly inoffensive lager, but it is far from their best beer. In fact, 77 lager is a much more rounded flavoursome beer. This falls short of expectations by some way. It has a slight sharpness and a bit of bite from the hops but not enough to make it stand out.

It's not a bad beer per-se, but it's just not that original or unusual and frankly Brewdog can do much better. This won't be getting my vote to go into production next year.

Jackhammer IPA

7.2% ABV

Now, we all know that Brewdog can produce a fantastic American hopped IPA, so it was with a certain level of excitement that I approached Jackhammer, which they have claimed is their bitterest to date. It also comes accompanied by some typical Brewdog silliness, stating that it's 'not for the feint hearted, elderly or French.'

It pours a clear yellow-ish brown with a small amount of head and immediately has a fantastic hoppy aroma. It's all tropical fruits and handfuls of pine needles, lovely stuff. Taste wise, Jackhammer definitely delivers on flavour. After the disappointment of Nuns with Guns, it's great to be drinking a big and bold IPA from the Brewdog boys with bags of mango and passion fruit flavour from the Centennial and Columbus hops.

The fruity upfront flavour gives way to an excellently bitter finish. This is a big and punchy beer which is designed for real hop heads.

I would be pretty happy to this go into production as I can imagine wanting to come back to it time and time again. I love powerfully hopped beers and I think they've done an excellent job with Jackhammer. However, there is one more, very different beer to go...

Cocoa Psycho

10% ABV

This is the beer that I had heard the best things about. A number of people have given it rave reviews. This 10% ABV imperial Russian stout is infused with coffee beans and aged on cocoa nibs, vanilla pods and toasted oak chips.

It pours a pitch black colour, with a two finger brown head. The aromas that are released are fantastic, all dark malts, wood smoke and bitter dark chocolate.

This is a hugely flavoursome beer. It's thick and rich with a complexity and depth to it. A definite kick of coffee comes through in the middle, alongside a touch of vanilla and treacle.

This is a truly fantastic and characterful beer. With each sip, you can notice different elements to the flavour. The high ABV gives it a warm boozy underbelly. It slips down a little bit too easily if truth be told!

I have one bottle left over, which I'm going to drink on Christmas day. This beer is an example of Brewdog do best - making highly flavoursome and engaging beers.Cocoa Psycho definitely gets my vote and I hope that it is the beer that goes into full production in 2013.

I thought it would be difficult picking a favourite from three such different beers, but in the end one was average, one was good and one was brilliant. I'm looking forward to my remaining bottle of Cocoa Psycho already!

It would be great to know your take on these three beers. Why not leave a comment below...