Blog #93. Williams Bros. Brewery - Otis Blood Orange IPA. Lidls Vs. Aldi: Orange IPA Round 1.

Look, I'm well aware that supermarket beer is a dirty word in the craft beer street right now, but we can't dismiss the fact that they are churning out beers (or their subsidiaries are) like it's going out of fashion and when we talk about the cheapest supermarkets, there is only two to choose from: Lidls and Aldi.

So there will be tears, there will be laughs, there will be people who turn their nose up because they only drink 4 year old temperature controlled stouts that they spent a small fortune on, but here at www.bigbeerblog.com we don't hate, discriminate, overrate, saturate, depreciate, duplicate, fabricate, miscreate, fishplate (I ran out of words ending with 'ate') but instead we close our eyes, take a swig, and give a rating out of 10.

Battle 1: the orange flavoured IPA.

Lidl's entry: Hatherwood - Plunged Orange

Aldi's entry: Williams Bros. Brewery - Otis Blood Orange IPA

The can has a more 'sophisticated' design, with big bold lettering, whereas the plunged orange is more playground and cartooney - however one is not more fantastical than the other, so no points gained or lost here. 0 Lidls - 0 Aldi.

Out of the can it pours to a crystal clear golden colour with a fairly large head - identical here also. 0-0

The smell out of the can is a rich, deep orange smell, that actually smells like real oranges, unlike the Lidl's entry, which smells artificial and 'fake. It isn't a sensational smell, not bitterness or range of smells, just overwhelming orange, which means that Aldi takes the lead. 0-1

The taste of the Aldi beer is softer than the smell. Again, it is comparable to the Lidls orange beer, but giving a real orange taste. There is no bitterness at all and the sweetness of this beer sits in the middle of your tongue afterwards.

The can boasts of many hops used, but the rich blood orange overpowers them all!

This is rare: the man who is not keen on any bitterness needs some here! The sweetness is too much and needs balancing with some bittering - maybe some of the Mosiac they put in could be put in earlier to round of this beer, which is still a good beer after a hard days work outside in the sun - a real thirst quencher. 0-1

There isn't much between these bargain basement beers, however the Aldi entry edges it slightly, as the taste of orange (which is the main flavour from this beer) is a rich and well-rounded flavour and is a great summer drink.

Overall: for £1.25, this is a bargain and it also means that Aldi takes the lead in the bargain basement battle.

1-0 Aldi.

Cheers,

-Ben.

6/10.