Due to my new job up Northⁱ starting a week later than planned, I had time to go to the Concrete Pint or Milton Keynesⁱ Beer Festival.   Obviously the 2 MKers where there; Matt & Andrew, plus Al from Sunderland & myself from Southamptonⁱ.   We showed up mid afternoon & stayed until we had drunk everything we wanted to sample.   Two of Matt's friends showed up a little later.

One of the best thing about MK beer fest is that they've picked several beers from the Manchesterⁱ area to put on, which means you can try beers you wouldn't ever find in a local pub.   Overall there was a good mix of local beers & ones from further afield.

Beers I enjoyed - in the approximate order of how much I liked them;

Vale, VPA - a pale blonde ale that tasted like someone had zested a whole lemon into it!   A wonderful beer which I assumed used lots of Amarillo hops.  A big hit with Al too.

Great Oakley, Abbey Stout - big bodied with a dryish, burnt flavour like an Irish stout.

Dark Star, Oktoberfest - from the brewery that can brew no wrong in my opinion (& Al's), this tasted like a bigger bodied version of Hophead.   A good citrus hop flavour but with a good level of bitterness too.

Wesk Berkshire, Dr Hexter's Healer - A full bodied beer that smelt of orange marmalade, with an orange & fruity flavour.   Good bitternees too.

Phoenix, West Coast IPAⁱ - a pale, dry beer with a good Cascadeⁱ hoppiness.

Dark Star, Hophead - one of my favourite beers as it packs shed loads of hoppy flavour into a session strength beer (3.8%).

West Berkshire, Maggs' Magnificent Mild - big bodied, some molasses & burnt flavours.

Harviestoun, Hoptoberfest - a good fresh hoppiness & bitterness.

Bank Top, Blonde - good body, with a light malt sweetness.

BrewDog, 77 Lagerⁱ - good bitterness for a lager with some sweetness.

Concrete Cow, Pail Aleⁱ - a sweetish, floral & honey flavour.

Tring, Blonde - some malty sweetness & a good Goldings type bitterness.

BrewDog, Trashy Blonde - some fruity sweetness & a light hoppiness.

Concrete Cow, Fenny Popper - malty, chestnut flavour.   Very Autumnal says Matt.

Silverstone, Chequered Flag - some molasses & big malt character. Warming fusel alcohol too.

Green Mill, Northern Lights - fruity malt flavour.

Prospect, Pickaxe - sweetish with some chocolate flavours.

Rudgate, Ruby Mild - sweetish with a little burnt flavour.   Currently Champion Beer of Britain, nice enough but nobody thought it was great.

Vale, Black Swan Mild - Chocolatey but not sweet with a gentle bitterness.

Marston's, Old Empire - malty with a good balancing earthy bitterness.

Silverstone, Pit Stop - malty, ordinary beer.

Hornbeam, Black Coral Stout - a sweetish stout & a little thin in the body.

Phipps, IPA - a little malty sweet, modest hoppiness.   Ordinary beer, certainly no IPA.

There were lots of smashing beers, some ordinary beers, but more importantly no bad beers.