"The Northern Lights are in my mind ..."

I met some friends for an early evening drink in the Sir Henry Segrave in Southport a couple of days ago. On the bar there was, among the remnants of the cider festival, a George Wright beer called Northern Lights (5.1%). I have to say I could have happily stayed and drunk it all night, but we had to move on. The brewer's website states that it is "A strong ale, amber in colour. A strong citrus ale balanced by the bitter hop." That is almost word for word how I described it to one of my friends later, although I'd have thought it was paler than 'amber' suggests. Definitely a strong citrus, bitter flavour, which reminded me of some of the American-style pale ales Wetherspoons sometimes commissions.

I haven't seen George Wright beers around for a while; I don't know whether there have been problems at the brewery or whether it is just chance. Probably the latter. I'm rarely disappointed with their beers, and this one in particular is well worth keeping an eye out for.