Thornbridge – Chiron

Thornbridge’s first beers were brewed in 2005, in the grounds of Derbyshire’s Thornbridge Hall. The 10-barrel kit is still in place today and is used to produce small batch recipes, but the main brewing operation switched to a new site in Bakewell in 2009. As winner of over 350 national and international awards, Thornbridge has a reputation for putting quality at the forefront of everything it produces and their state-of-the-art brew house and lab is the envy of small breweries up and down the country. Their range spans immaculately clean German-style lagers all the way through to robust imperial stouts whilst their innovation range covers an extensive barrel ageing programme, which yielded a gold medal in the 2016 World Beer Cup.

Thornbridge’s flagship pale ale, Chiron is a pale golden colour and weighs in at 5% ABV. A wonderfully balanced combination of citrusy hops offer notes of apricots and tangerines. The malt sits underneath offering a light biscuit flavour without being sweet. The bitterness is sufficient to cleanse the palate without drying, making for a sessionable drinking experience.