Church Key Northumberland Ale

I don't normally buy things when I don't know what they are, but with beer I can make exceptions so when I bought Northumberland Ale not knowing what I was getting (apart from beer of some sorts) I was not overly worried, and the gamble did end up paying off.

Northumberland is an amber coloured ale that drinks more like a pale ale than an amber.  When I first tasted it I thought that it was a wheat beer, but on further research (as in drinking more of it) that wheaty flavour is a result of a sweeter malt than a lot of beers.   The result is a nice, light and refreshing beer, one that goes good with a Barbecue.   I would definitely consider Northumberland to be a summer beer, not complicated, refreshing, but wiith enough malty flavour to separate it from the bland mass produced stuff.  The only drawback is that it has a bit of a skunky taste if it gets warm, so if you are drinking it you will need to drink it more quickly, which is such a tough task......

It's available at their brewery as well as at the LCBO and at the Stinking Rose Pub in their hometown of Campbellford, Ontario.  My one suggestion to Church Key is that they should really improve their labeling.  None of the beer cases say what style of beer each is, so if you aren't familiar with their products you could find yourself with a beer style that you don't like. 

Rating: 3.5 Steins

What you need to know

Brewery
1678 County Rd # 38
Campbellford, On K0L 1L0

Website:
www.churchkeybrewing.com

Twitter:
@churchkeybeer