Celebrate the summer with Thai-Bo

THAI CURRY FLAVOURED BEER IS BACK WITH A VENGEANCE

The Otley Brewing Company has kicked off the summer by re-introducing ‘Thai-Bo’, its popular Thai-Green curry inspired, golden ale which was brewed in collaboration with beer writer Melissa Cole.  

This 4.6% ABV beer was a massive success during its re-launch at the Great Welsh Beer and Cider Festival which took place at the Motorpoint Arena in Cardiff in June. The speciality ale sold out halfway through the festival and proved to be a bigger success during its London re-launch earlier this month.

The ale which is infused with lemon grass, lime zest, kaffir lime leaf and galangal, is the first of two collaborative ales jointly brewed by Otley and Melissa Cole, the second being a gooseberry and elderflower pale ale, HedgrO.

Both Thai-Bo and HedgrO were launched together in London last month, which involved a real ale pub crawl, starting at the Jolly Butchers in Stoke Newington, which continued to The Rake in Borough Market, The Euston Tap in Euston Station and finished at The White Horse on Parsons Green. Those taking part ‘tweeted’ along the way which meant that real ale enthusiasts could follow them online during the event.

Melissa, who has judged at beer festivals all over the world and was the first beer writer to collaborate a beer with Otley, said: “If it's true that there's a fine line between genius and insanity, then I think every time I brew with Otley we walk it! The creation of Thaibo has taken the beer-loving world by storm; I'm simply blown away by how much people love it and I never get tired of handing it to unsuspecting drinkers and watching their faces light up as they experience something utterly unique.

“Hedgero was a different proposition, we wanted to subtly enhance existing flavours in beer, that come from the hops, by adding gooseberry and elderflower. I'm also very keen on local heritage and provenance and being able to walk from the front door of the brewery and pick the elderflower to put directly into the barrels of beer, was a truly fantastic experience.

“But more than that, it's about helping build drinker relationships with beer based on an artisan approach and a commitment to quality, which is why our Oh, Oh Tour around London was so valuable and thanks to the hundreds of people who came out to see us.”

Managing director of the Otley Brewing Company, Nick Otley, said: “Our series of collaborative brews have been really popular. We’ve already teamed up with a select number of beer writers including Adrian Tierney Jones, Pete Brown, Roger Protz and of course Melissa Cole. Thai-Bo’s huge success last year meant that we had to bring it back this summer and what better way to do it than at the Great Welsh Beer and Cider Festival for Welsh fans followed by a real ale pub crawl in London. We’ve had great feedback on both ales and we look forward to future collaborations.”

Thai-Bo and HedgrO are both available on cask only with prices starting from £82.