Eugene’s Lair is a limited edition US style pale ale from the Oakham brewery. Eugene’s Lair was the first (of many) cask conditioned beers I sampled at the Liverpool Craft Beer Expo in June of 2013 and fortuitously for me it turned out to be one of the best I tried that day.

The ale is a light amber/darker gold colour and at 4.3% is fairly low in ABV for an American style pale ale. However, the relatively low alcohol content was more than compensated for by the generous level of hops and flavour which was certainly more in keeping with the US genre.

There is a definite hit of tropical fruit hops both in the aroma and on the palate. I was getting strong hints of passion fruit and grapefruit with a lovely bitter finish.

Eugene’s Lair gave an impression of freshness due to the beautifully balanced hops left my palate feeling refreshed and wanting more.

Some of the big, bold US style IPA’s are similar to Eugene’s Lair but their high alcohol level prohibits being able to drink too much. With Eugene’s Lair you get the same big, bold flavours, but at a much lower alcohol level so you can drink without having to worry about the following morning!

A very nice cask ale which as far as I’m aware is only being brewed in the month of June, so get it while you can.

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