FOOD
F ine ales and much more
for Quarr Abbey visitors
V
isitors to Quarr Abbey will
now be able to sample fine
ale within the grounds of the
historic site following a joint
operation with popular Island brewers,
Goddard’s.
Quarr Abbey Ale, with an alcohol
volume of 6.5 per cent, is brewed on the
Island, and uses locally grown coriander
and ‘sweet-gale’ as well as Isle of Wight
water, in addition to English barley malt
and hops. It is a strong, full-bodied,
thirst-quenching top-fermented ale with
a dark-amber colour and a complex fruity
palate and sweet hoppy aroma.
It has been brewed to capture the
essence of traditional Abbey beers as they
were many years ago. These were brewed
by the monks for their own consumption
as ‘Liquid Bread’. Many of the ingredients
were sourced locally to the abbey, leading
over time to the regional variations
in Abbey beers due to the naturally
occurring ingredients. As the monks
enjoyed their own produce so much, it
was inevitable that local populace wanted
to share in their pleasure and sustenance.
The barley, wheat and sugars would have
been grown near the monastery, and also
the hops for bitterness and flavour, or in
earlier times Gruit, comprising of a range
of herbs with names such as mugwort;
yarrow; coriander; alecost; sweet-gale, etc.
Dean Pascall, Quarr Abbey's Operations
manager, said: “It has been an exciting
project working with Patrick Birley and
Richard Harvey from Goddard’s to produce
such a high quality Quarr Abbey Ale.
“The Ale will be available in our Farmshop and also other outlets through
Goddard’s distribution channels.”
Still and Sparkling Cider and Apple
Juice is also available at Quarr Abbey.
The apples for the cider came exclusively
from the Quarr Abbey orchard, which
comprises over 120 trees. The trees are all
pruned by hand, and the orchards have
recently been extended by planting local
and old varieties with varieties such as;
IOW Pippin, Sir John Thorneycroft, Peters
Pippin, Steyne Seedling and Nettlestone
Pippin.
Gold top bottle is sparkling dry cider at
6 per cent and the blue top bottle is still
dry cider at 6 per cent.
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