As last year looking at my Golden Half pints blog it was clear that I love Big Dark Beers. Ok this is nothing new to me or people who know me, But i dont just love these beers, so i thought i would cover the same ground with other styles, working with an arbitrary maximum abv of 5.5.  In  know ive had several good bottles and Cask(all of which id happily drink again) at under 5.5% but i have found this much more difficult to write than the original piece, on the whole these beers while good just dont WOW me, in the same way. Where there is no winner, that is because no beers meeting that criteria didnt make it into my Ratebeer top 100 of the year.

Best UK draught (Cask or Keg) beer(stout):
Winner:  Tinpot Game Spice Stout  
Runner Up: Adkin Alfred’s Jaypee’s Stout

Best UK draught (Cask or Keg) beer(other):
Winner:  Thornbridge Wye
Runner Up: Magic Rock High Wire NZ

Best UK bottle or canned beer (stout)
Winner:Buxton Dark Nights 

Best UK bottle or canned beer (other)
Winner: No winner This year
 
Best Overseas bottle or canned beer
Winner: Crombe Oud Kriekenbier


Best Overseas Draught beer
Winner: No winner this year


Best Overall beer
Winner:  Tinpot Game Spice Stout  

The Most interesting thing about this years results is to find a sour beer in my lists as i really am not a Lambic fan, but some of the Flemish red styles are nice and the Crombe was a stunner.

How ever this year brought about the nicest thing to ever pass my lips. Its not a beer (though it is on Ratebeer) hence does not feature in this post or my main post, So what is it i hear you ask... dont I,  i could have sworn i heard you ask. Oh well im going to tell you anyway, its an ice cider La Face Cachée de la Pomme Neige Recolte D’Hiver to be precise. It truely was stunning, very sweet but ive always been partial to the sweet end of beer. Never have i come closer to taste bud heaven. Now dont get me wrong i still love beer, and i could not drink ice cider all the time (especially given the price) but if your gonna offer me a beer or that ice cider chances are the beers not got a look in.