North East Beer Review

Recently, I was up in Edinburgh during my trip away with my girlfriend to Scotland for the week. In Edinburgh, I made it my mission to stop off at the Fierce Beer Bar located on Rose Street. Originally, I was looking for the Big Iron Brew which is the stronger version of the Iron Brew Beer Cooler which I am a fan of. After grabbing this, I saw the availability of a flight so I thought i had try one. So during the course of this review I will cover who Fierce are? What the flight options were and what did I think? Cheers

Forged in Aberdeen

A brewery born in Aberdeen, Fierce Beer began as a home brewing project where the founders were inspired by hoppy and flavourful US West Coast beers. Their first commercial brew took place in 2016 and they operated a small scale brewing operation in Great Western Road ,Aberdeen. Due to a reputation of ‘flavour packed beers’, an investment was made to a new facility at Kirkhill Industrial Estate in Dyce, Aberdeen.

Fierce Beer built its reputation up on the back of fruity, hoppy, dark specialty beers which differ from more standard types. Due to this they currently operate a taproom in their Dyce Brewery and two bar/taprooms in Aberdeen and Edinburgh. In recognition of their growing reputation, Fierce won Scottish Brewery of the year in 2021.

I have previously tried a few of the Fierce options such as Iron Brew Beer Cooler, the IPA and their take on Mexican Lager.

What beers did I try?

During my visit to Fierce I was lucky enough to be there for the first pours of the Fierce x Elusive Brewing x Attic Polaris West Coast IPA and the Fierce x Bullhouse x Cloudwater New England IPA which are interesting collaborations in my eyes. Furthermore, I tried Fierce Citra and Friends: Simcoe and Idaho 7. On top of this of I also purchased a can of Big Iron Brew and the Krush collaboration with Barth Haas. My girlfriend also bought cans of the Fierce x Henderson x Rush collaboration lager and golden ale for her Dad who is a massive Rush fan.

1)Fierce Beer x Elusive Brewing x Attic Brew Co Polaris 2026 West Coast IPA

Polaris is brewed with Finchampstead based Elusive Brewing and Birmingham based Attic Brew Co. This was created as West Coast style IPA and utilises hops such as Simcoe, Krush and Nelson Sauvin, with the aim of delivering a ‘fresh take on a timeless style’. Carrying an ABV of 6.8%, it could certainly pack a punch. The pour of this is an amber colour which had a thick white head. In terms of flavour, Polaris had a very resinous to piney flavour which coincides with the typical bitter citrusy nature. These flavours include the likes of grapefruit and maybe lemon. A slight tropical to stonefruit flavour was observed too. The mouthfeel was full bodied and crisp. Overall, I rate this a decent 4.25 out of 5.

2)Fierce Beer x Bullhouse Brew Co x Cloudwater Borealis 2026 New England IPA

Borealis 2026 was brewed in collaboration with Belfast based Bullhouse Brew Co and Manchester based Cloudwater. Borealis is a 6.8% ABV New England IPA which is ‘overloaded with New Zealand Hops’ such as Citra, Motueka, Nectaron and Nelson. The pour of Borealis is a typical pale yellow unfiltered nature you would expect from a hazy IPA. In terms of flavour, it was extremely juicy and tropical with notes of mango prevalent. This is followed by a citrus edge which gives this a slight bitterness. A dank and floral note is observed which adds an extra layer of depth. The finish was crisp and slightly bitter leaving you wanting another sip. The mouthfeel was smooth and glided down. Overall, I rate this a solid 4.5 out of 5.

3) Fierce Beer Citra and friends: Simcoe and Idaho 7

This Fierce Brew is part of their experimental range of utilising other hops alongside a Citra forward ale. This brew is with Simcoe and Idaho 7. This carried an ABV of 4% and is the style of a citra forward pale ale. The pour of this ale was an amber colour which was pretty much clear in complexion. The flavour was quite restrained in my opinion, it began with a quite citrusy flavour with a slight herbal hoppy flavour. The malt base of this beer gave it a slight sweetness but that was about it. The finish was dry and a citrus bitterness lingered. The mouthfeel was light and smooth. Overall, I rate this 3.5 out of 5, this was still refreshing and drinkable but not brilliant overall.

Overall, I enjoyed my trio of Fierce Brews and I am most certainly looking forward to my cans. I have to say that Borealis is the best one I had tried but that could be my bias towards New England IPAs. Polaris was delicious and I would certainly have a pint or two of that West Coast IPA any day.

I really enjoyed my time at the Fierce Pub in Edinburgh. The staff were friendly and helpful. Overall, the pub had a really nice atmosphere to it and complimented the high spirits of the city. I will definitely be returning when it comes to my next trip up to Scotland.

Thanks for reading this different review today. I performed a similar review not too long ago on Northern Monkey Brewery and the Boaters Bar located on Lake Windermere. I would appreciate if you could check it out. Cheers