Grubber (Greene King)

Name: Grubber
Label: "Golden Ale, Limited Edition, A style of kick forced to bounce to stop the opponent. Supporting a season of rugby"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.2%

Tasting notes: "We celebrate the grubber with a fragrant, fresh and fruity golden ale. Brewed with pale malt and classic English hops Challenger, Pilgrim and First Gold to make a refreshing and deliciously fruity ale."

Game: Delivery time! Eaglemoss Alien and Predator Figurine Collection: Issue 10 Deacon. This is neat little dude from the end of Prometheus, the hideously underrated Alien prequel. Horrible looking thing it is too. Paint quality isn't quite as good as previous figurines but overall pretty decent.

Rating 7/10

Issue 10 Deacon

Double Hop Monster IPA (Greene King)

Name: Double Hop Monster IPA
Label: "Late hopped for maximum aroma & a refreshingly bitter finish"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 7.2%

Tasting notes: "Double Hop Monster IPA is the wildest, hoppiest beer we've ever brewed. A "big" beer in every way, it's bold, bitter and thanks to extensive dry-hopping - fabulously aromatic."

Game: Part 2 of Uncharted: The Nathan Drake Collection is surprisingly called Uncharted 2: Among Thieves. ​ Went through this one really quickly and to be honest I can't remember much about it. It definitely had climbing, shooting and simple environment-based puzzle solving. It was definitely good too. Sometimes games just go in one eye and out the other though...

Rating: 7 vague memories out of 10.

St Edmunds Golden Beer (Greene King)

Name: St Edmund's Golden Beer
Label: "Made with Cascade Hops - Fresh golden beer with a citrus finish brewed using pale malt and cascade hops"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.2%

Tasting notes: "St Edmund, the first patron saint of England, lends his name to this fresh golden beer with a citrus finish. Brewed using pale malt and cascade and first gold hops, it is a refreshingly crisp ale. Just one of a selection of great-tasting beers, created by Greene King at our home in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, England."

Game: Quick one about the new Skirmish mode DLC in Star Wars Battlefront. It's just 1 or 2 player Walker Assault and Fighter Squadron modes against bots. Gone is the thrill of besting a real opponent from across the globe. Gone is the mad scramble against peers for the coveted Hero pickup. Instead you're playing against a load of seemingly bad AI. At one point on Hoth, my Rebel scum friends were all just stood in a passageway whilst the nice lady on the comms channel was asking everyone to attack the AT-AT. They weren't even moving around to keep warm. They were just stood there. I'm sure it's great for couch co-op with a bud, but it sucks solo (not literally). 5 frozen Tauntauns out of 10

Brew T (Greene King)

Name: Brew T
Label: "Amber Ale - British hopped amber brew, with botanical infusion of jasmine green tea"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.5%

Tasting notes: "Amber ale, brewed with jasmine green tea. Botanical blend of jasmine green tea contrasts with spicy British hops, Goldings and First Gold. Rich amber ale with subtle astringency & fragrant floral finish."  This ale is definitely my cup of tea.

Game: Played Xbox 360 game Super Meat Boy, cos ya know, FREE with Xbox Gold :)  Let my eldest play it. He came up to me 20 minutes later crying saying it was too frustrating. Welcome to gaming, son. Welcome to gaming.

Rating: 8 rages out of 10.

Optical Infusion (Greene King)

Name: Optical Infusion
Label: "Golden Ale - Scottish Optic malted barley brew, infused with Blended Malt Scotch Whisky"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 5.5%

Tasting notes: "Golden ale with oak matured Scotch whisky. Brewed with a single variety of malted barley, "Optic" and blended malt Scotch whisky infused from toasted oak.  Rich and full with dried fruit & vanilla accents."

Game: Another quick one about Star Wars Battlefront DLC: Bespin. It looks the part, it sounds the part. It's got new heroes, Lando Calrissian (no-good scoundrel, you'd like him) and Gendar (you never heard him in the films but the voice and accent is so good it fits like a glove/head bandage).  New weapons, Jabba contracts and new maps abound; Cloud City, woah there's Slave I, there's that room where they all met, there're some bombs to disarm / arm in new mode Sabotage, AT-AT's here? Awesome!  8 scoundrels out of 10.

Strong Suffolk Dark Ale (Greene King)

Name: Strong Suffolk Dark Ale
Label: "A rich dark ale featuring rare 2 year old oak aged vintage 5X"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 6.0%

Tasting notes: "As the name suggests, Strong Suffolk is not for the faint-hearted. We blend a proportion of our very special and rare vintage 5X brew with a rich malty dark ale to create a deeply satisfying and complex beer." I really enjoyed this beer, so there.

Game: Thirty two quid seems a lot for a season pass, however it was recently mentioned that the 1989 Batmobile from the Tim Burton films is going to be power-sliding into Batman: Arkham Knight! This news is muchos awesomes, although you may only be able to use it in certain situations rather than cruising around the city in it.  Just realised that the first Tim Burton Batman film was released 26 years ago... suddenly feel totally old.

East Coast IPA (Greene King)

Name: East Coast IPA
Label: "American Hops and East of England Brewing"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.0%

Tasting notes: "This 4% beer fuses the punchy citrus aroma of American hops with the easy-drinking refreshment of classic British pale ales."

Game: Thought I'd crack on with some Witcher contracts I still had outstanding from my time in Velen... four hours later... realised I've just spent the WHOLE EVENING playing Gwent!

Twisted Wheel (Greene King)

Name: Twisted Wheel
Label: "Golden ale with a twist of ginger and a zip of spice"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.0%

Rating: "This beer celebrates the 50th anniversary of its namesake Northern soul club in Manchester"  Ok, you can take the music but leave me the beer. Thanks!

Game: Got the latest issue of X360 Magazine which has been re-branded as X-ONE Magazine.  This months ish is an Xbox One special and having had a good read of it I'm now ridiculously looking forward to the 22nd November. Before I was pretty excited. The mag has taken it to a whole new level now. I'm not even that arsed about Christmas at the moment, and I freakin' love Christmas! And Microsoft sent me an email saying I'm getting Killer Instinct for free! All characters! And FIFA 14 for free! I'm just hoping Amazon make good on their promise and deliver on the big day. Two weeks to go...

Yardbird (Greene King)

Name: Yardbird
Label: "Crafted Ale - American Style IPA"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.0%

Rating: "Full of hops and with a lasting fruity flavour, this beer is inspired by bold American IPAs"

Game: With next-gen gaming looming over us like a huge money-absorbing death blob, here's my top five best and worst games / IPs for the Xbox 360:

Games that amazed and astonished (great):

1. Dark Souls
2. Assassin's Creed
3. Dead Space
4. Mass Effect
5. Bioshock

Games that disgusted and dismayed (shit):

1. Duke Nukem Forever
2. Aliens: Colonial Marines
3. Ironman 2
4. Fantastic Four: Rise of the Silver Surfer
5. Terminator Salvation

IPA Gold (Greene King)

Name: IPA Gold
Label: "Brewed in Bury St Edmunds since 1799"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.1%

Rating: "Drawing on a heritage of brewing excellence that stretches back to 1799 and created at our brewery in the historic Suffolk market town of Bury St. Edmunds, Greene King IPA Gold is a light, refreshing golden ale that truly brings out the best in the unique and aromatic Savinsjki Goldings hop variety. The craftsmanship in this beer lies in the late hopping which creates a perfect blend of tropical fruits, mango and spicy notes and delivers a beer with a clean bitter taste and a crisp dry finish."

Game: Microsoft are having a games 'sale' on Xbox Live. This time though it really is a sale! The price cuts seem unprecedented. I've never seen the likes of it before. Some examples; Race Driver: Grid £2.69, Ghost Recon £2.69, HAWX £2.69, Halo games from £8! Admittedly these are older games but I think Microsoft are testing the water to see whether price points this low will encourage more people to download digital versions. I imagine very few people have downloaded digital copies of games from the marketplace at the ridiculous amounts that they are normally priced at. This sale looks like it will go on for a few weeks with more titles being added along with daily specials. I'm all for digital downloads if they are fairly priced so this is a welcome turn of events. Let's get buying!

Tolly English Ale (Greene King)

Name: Tolly English Ale
Label: "Tolly Cobbold - Full flavoured red - Brewed in Bury St Edmunds"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 2.8%

Rating: "This fine amber ale has been brewed using a complex mix of hops to offer balanced bitterness with strong tropical notes. All the flavour you would expect from a great English ale but at only alc. 2.8% vol."  Hang on... they seem to be saying here that low alcohol is a good thing...? Surely someone at the brewery has taken leave of their senses, you may be thinking. No! It's a brilliant session beer!

Game: Current sitrep on XCOM:

1. my squad is awesome (they've got plasma weapons, mind control, armour where I can pick the colour and everything) 
2. only three countries have left the council 
3. all available satellites have been deployed (very important) 
4. I need to buy some better aircraft 
5. I need to change everyone's armour from pink to something more manly (it was funny for one mission but I think they're getting cross with me).

IPA Reserve (Greene King)

Name: IPA Reserve
Label: "Brewing in Bury St Edmunds since 1799"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 5.4%

Rating: "A warming, full-bodied ale with a reassuringly rich appearance that belies its mellow fruit aroma. Grapefruit and Orange citrus tones combine with the floral and herbal Styrian Goldings hop variety to deliver a reserve ale of exceptional quality with a dry bitter finish." Another one to add to my favourite top five beers. My top five now contains more than five though.

Game: It got quite poor reviews but thought I'd give Ninja Gaiden 3 a go.  I've played the others in the series so why not! So far it's great! If you're ever after a one dimensional, linear, repetitive button-masher then this is the game for you. It's completely brainless but totally action-packed fun and, although I detest the term I'll say it anyway, a guilty pleasure. No levelling up, no upgrades, no shops, no hundreds of moves and combos to learn, only two weapons and one Ninpo attack, and lots of bad guys. It's simple and uncomplicated. Like a really ace arcade game. 7.5/10.

London Glory (Greene King)

Name: London Glory
Label: "Great British Beer - A rich & fruity ale"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.0%

Rating: "Our expert brewers have combined Crystal Malt with Challenger and Golding Hops to create this rich and fruity brew, in celebration of our great capital city."  It's random celebration time! I'm celebrating... erm... not being dead!

Game: Recently I've been test driving the new Amazing Spider-Man game on the iPad courtesy of popbucket.co.uk. I thought it was great, not quite Batman (because it's Spider-Man) but still great. Did anyone see that Batman game on YouTube where it was Batman but set in Victorian England? It looked rubbish.  But I digress, have a looksy at the full Amazing Spider-Man review here. It made 'Featured' article and everything!

Abbot Ale (Greene King) - in an Abbot Ale tankard

Name: Abbot Ale
Label: "Bury St Edmunds - Gold Quality Award 2010"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 5.0%

Rating: "Brewed for quality of the highest order in the heart of Bury St Edmunds where brewing in the town's great Abbey can be traced back to 1086. Brewed longer to a unique recipe creating a full flavoured, smooth and mature beer. This irresistible ale has masses of fruit and character. A malty richness and superb hop balance".  Notice my swish new Abbot Ale tankard in the picture? Thanks Abbot Ale / Greene King!

Game:  I saw perhaps one of the crappest video game related play on words / jokes ever on Twitter the other day. It's either rubbish or I just don't get it, or both.  It referred to the CVG article EA shuts Australian Dead Space studio regarding yet another game studio closing and the resulting job losses etc. The "joke" on Twitter quoted verbatim was, "Shocking News! Ea shuts Australian in Davy Jones' treasure chest Space studio. (Dead Space studio)".  I'm no expert on comedy but that is just shit. Sorry.  I don't know why, I honestly don't, but just reading it again makes me feel confused and angry.  I had to unfollow them in a vain attempt at catharsis.  In other, happier, news I want Dark Souls and Rage. A lot. I will resist though until I've finished Dead Island. Don't forget, Batman is out in two tiny weeks, woo!

Abbot Reserve (Greene King)

Name: Abbot Reserve
Label: "Brewed longer for Superior Quality - Brewed in limited quantities"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 6.5%

Rating: Tastes amazing, obviously. Abbots have something to do with religion I think, check this out for anyone who likes the Bible (and anyone who doesn't): http://www.xtranormal.com/watch/11566094

Game: An issue that's been bugging me a bit recently is whether or not to get Kinect.  I think I'll regret it if I do. But then if I don't, I might regret it more. One of the main issues is lack of gaming space. Apparently you need at least 6 foot between you and the sensor. I could do this but it would mean moving furniture everytime unless they start making some Kinect games where you can just sit down - these would be my favoured type of Kinect game obviously, preferably with as little physical movement as possible. Talking of Kinect, the "Michael Jackson Experience" has been released recently. In this case DLC may or may not stand for Downloadable Children.

Phoenix (Greene King)

Name: Phoenix
Label: "Celebrate the Resurrection - A Rich & Smooth Full Bodied Ale"
Brewery: Tolly Cobbold (it says on the label but it's actually Greene King - it's mischief I tells ya!)
ABV: 4.2%

Rating: Including both oats and wheat, its distinctive biscuit malt and fruit flavours, combined with just a hint of sweetness, result in a rich and smooth, full bodied ale.

Game: Woo hoo, Christmas is coming and the goose is getting fat! I don't really care about the goose though, I'm more bothered about the turkey because that's what I eat at Christmas. I hope it's not getting fat either, rather I hope its getting muscular, but not stringy muscle, I hope it's lean muscle.  I think we got off on the wrong foot there, let's start again. Woo hoo, Christmas is coming and the turkey is becoming more muscular. Not played much else except Assassin's Creed: Brotherhood for a whole month nearly! A host of games coming this Christmas though including Kane & Lynch 2, Spider-Man: Shattered Dimensions and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow. Bring it, Santa.

Sun Dance (Greene King)

Name: Sun Dance
Label: "A refreshing summer ale brewed in the heart of East Anglia"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.3%

Rating: Ok, it's not summer any more but that's no reason not to drink this lovely summer ale. Take that, winter!

Game: Another year and another Call of Duty game (this time it's Black Ops). I've not been caught up in the hype this year, I've been strong and said I'm not getting it, I'm not getting it, it'll be just like the last one, I'm not getting it. Anyway I got it on release day for £4.97 after trading Fable 3 in Assda (thanks for the assist www.frugalgaming.co.uk!) It is as awesome as expected and the multiplayer free-for-all is a lot of fun. I'm not trying out the team based multiplayer modes as that would involve speaking to people and stuff. The game looks great, although the single player campaign is a little bit short, 8 out of 10.

Ruddles County (Greene King)

Name: Ruddles County
Label: "Proper country ale"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 4.7%

Rating: Tastes great. Used to be brewed in Rutland (the land of mammalian sexual activity).

Game: No new games for a while, so achievement whoring Mafia II and replaying Dante's Inferno at the moment. Dante's Inferno still looks and plays great. It's the only game ever that you'll be able to see babies with scythes for arms climbing out of a giant Cleopatra's puss filled nipples. Yes, it's as horrible as it sounds.

Hop (Greene King)

Name: Hop
Label: "Beer to dine for - Crafted English Beer"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 5.0%

Rating: Contains Tettnang hops. Never heard of them but they make for good beer. I would definitely dine for this beer.

Game: Play.com had Nier for £9.99. I thought I would give it a go because of this review.  First impressions are positive. Looks like it will play a bit like a Zelda game which is always good. Its got a floating book in it, it's a bit "WTF?".  It seems to mix up RPG, platforming, 2D and 3D exploration into the same game and transition between styles effectively. Not much more to say on it yet, I'll see if it plays out as well as hoped and then we can look forward to the obligatory bad "near" puns in a later post.

Very Special India Pale Ale (Greene King)

Name: Very Special India Pale Ale
Label: "A masterclass in brewing excellence"
Brewery: Greene King
ABV: 7.5%

Rating: Brewed to emulate the early India Pale Ales shipped during the 18th Century. They must have had hell of a good parties on those ships. They probably partied every night like it was 1799.

Game: A movie tie-in now that isn't complete shit. The Bourne Conspiracy loosely follows the plot of the film but with the game seemingly devoid of plot. Quite an achievement in itself. It ends abruptly and it's not very long, however the fighting is brutal and the take-downs look punishingly painful. If you like a bit of repetitive fisticuffs with action that doesn't let up, this is definitely worth a look. 7/10