North East Writer Inspires New Range of Beers
One of the North East’s most beloved writers is being used to inspire a new range of beers.
Sonnet 43 Brew House at Coxhoe, County Durham, is creating a new range of cask ales based on the life and works of Elizabeth Barrett Browning.
Elizabeth, who was born and raised at nearby Coxhoe Hall, was one of the most prominent poets of the Victorian era and published dozens of collections and individual works, including Sonnet 43 after which the brewery is named.
The brewery’s latest range, which will be released intermittently throughout the year, will see new ingredients and brewing techniques being used to create a number of limited edition ales based on different aspects of Elizabeth’s prose and personal experiences.
Each beer in the range, collectively entitled How Do I love Thee? Let Me Count the Beers as a twist on the first line of Sonnet 43, will be brewed to a maximum of 40 casks and sold exclusively to leisure outlets on a first come, first served basis.
The first in the new line, which will be available from April, will be Hopes End, a rum-infused ginger pale ale inspired by the Barrett family’s history of owning sugar plantations in Jamaica and named after the estate in Hertfordshire which they bought with the resulting fortune.
This natural beer, with an ABV of 6.2 per cent, will be made to an original recipe, without the use of finings (ingredients used to clear the beer), to ensure it delivers an intentional hazy look in the glass.
