The Beer Father

Everyone has somebody who introduced them to something they are now passionate about, whether it's the person who took you to a gallery for the first time, your first guitar teacher or someone who gave you that glass of wine which made sparks go off in your taste buds.

The person who is responsible for igniting my passion for beer – which as a result opened the way for me to get fully into the flavours of wine – is my Dad.

He used to take us on holiday every year, and after a while my brother, sister and I started noticing a theme. From Brugges to Amsterdam and Prague to Berlin, everywhere we went seemed to have a thriving and historic beer culture. While all my friends where drinking cheap lager, I was acquiring a taste for something altogether more flavourful.

I now have a fantastic mutual interest with my Dad and brilliantly get invited round his house to try a plethora of excellent beers he has picked up, often ones I've never heard of. Below is the line up from my last visit. You'll see why I am lucky and hugely thankful for having a Dad who not only has great taste but a very extensive knowledge of our favourite fermented malt beverage.

Sierra Nevada - Torpedo (7.2%)

Classic US IPA. Dry, citrussy, and full of piney hops. Went perfectly with the delicious enchilada pie my stepmother made.

3 Fourquets - Lupus (8.5%)

Like a supercharged Saison! Herbal, bright and slightly sweet with some wonderfully balanced hop bitterness. It has that classic Belgian yeasty aroma that takes you right back to Brugges whenever you smell it.

Birrifico Bruton – Momus (7.5%)

There's something about Italian craft beers that ooze class. Momus is in a 'dubbel' style but as far away in flavour as Italy is from Belgium. The palate is unbelievably clean, with flavours of Turkish delight, coffee and dried fruit.

Goose Island – Fleur (5.2%)

Goose Island's Belgian brown inspired ale, Fleur is paler and apparently brewed with hibiscus and kombucha tea. I didn't detect the tea but it did have some lovely floral and dried fruit flavours. What I really enjoyed about this beer is that Goose Island have achieved those great brettanomyces funky aromas and sour flavour which freshens the whole thing up.

Nogne O IPA (7.5%)

A really excellent and original IPA. Darker than most and halfway to a black IPA even, it has tons of raisin flavours in the nice and firm malt base, balancing the heavy, piney aromatic hops wonderfully. One of the best IPAs I have had for a while.

Westmalle Tripel (9.5%)

I always forget how good this beer is, and it's the perfect way to finish an awesome day of drinking. Fruity, spicy and perfumey with punchy alcohol and balancing bitterness. A classic! This was accompanied by a much needed ham and mustard sandwich, which went amazingly well. Honestly, a near perfect match – you have to try it!