Redemption Brewing Co Big Chief IPA
By Jonathan Hatchman, Food Editor, @TLE_Food
Tired of working in the City of London’s banking industry, Andy Moffat decided to change his career path and set up Redemption Brewing Company in 2010, following his ambition to open a brewery of his own. Operating from an industrial site in Tottenham, just a few streets from White Hart Lane, Redemption is actually one of the first craft breweries to set up in London, before the current craft beer scene took off proper, and before the city was filled with so many micro-breweries. Passionate about creating hand crafted beers of premium quality and flavour, the brewery prides itself on using only the finest raw materials within their brewing process. Maris Otter malted barley grown by farmers in England is used within the process, as well as whole flower hops from New World varieties to the more traditional Kentish-grown hops synonymous with British beer. Even the water is sourced from the brewery’s local reservoirs in North London’s Lea Valley. Each of these meticulously selected ingredients, as well as a special blend of yeast, are used within subtle twists on traditional recipes and displayed through Redemption’s core range of seven beers.
Taken from the core range, ‘Big Chief’ is one of the brewery’s flagships IPAs, featuring a big focus on hops, brewed with Kiwi hops from New Zealand. When poured from the bottle, the beer is topped with a large off-white head and has strong visible carbonation. On the nose, both citric and floral notes are unsurprisingly present, alongside aromas of orange juice, honeydew melon, pine, and some honey sweetness – the latter of which continues on the palate. This sweetness is combined with a light, refreshing bitterness that leads into a clean, bitter finish. While ‘Big Chief’ is particularly bold on the nose, the overall beer is very much a classic interpretation of a traditional India Pale Ale, albeit a very good interpretation.
Further information on Redemption Brewing Company can be found at redemptionbrewing.co.uk.
