North East Beer Review

Tula is a new beer project I spotted in Morrisons. Whilst exploring the can I expected to find it was brewed by a massive macro brewery located in Burton Upon Trent. However, finding out who actually brewed it, I decided I needed to give it a review. Fruit infused beers are usually hit or miss for me and even after reviewing this I can’t make my mind on this new beer. So, to find out more about Tula I will cover the history of this beer and brewery, the pour, the taste and aroma and finally my verdict.

From Cumbria’s best known independent brewery

Tula has began life by being brewed by Hawkshead Brewery, one of the best known breweries in Cumbria. Hawkshead was founded by Alex Brodie in 2002, who was a former BBC foreign correspondent who swapped journalism for brewing. Brodie had developed an interest in brewing after becoming frustrated when his local pub stopped selling his favourite real ale. He subsequently took a brewing course at Sunderland University before establishing Hawkshead.

The brewery was originally housed in a 17th century barn in Town End Farm, Hawkshead in the Lake District. Brewing began on a small seven-barrel plant, but demand for the beers quickly outgrew the original premises and moved to a larger premises at Mill Yard Staveley, between Kendal and Windermere. The new site initially featured a 20-barrel brewery and eventually became home to the brewery’s Beer Hall and visitor facilities. Hawkshead subsequently grew into one of Cumbria’s most prominent independent breweries, developing a reputation for beers such as Hawkshead Bitter, Lakeland Gold and Windermere Pale.

Hawkshead has had investment from Halewood Wines & Spirits in 2017, this helped expand production and develop next roots in the market.

Tula has a connection particularly to the Halewood family. According to Adam Halewood, the idea of Tula was conceptualised back in 2011 after the success of Crabbies Ginger Beer. Adam’s father believed there was an opportunity to combine a great quality beer with an accessible flavour. Years later, whilst living in Australia and building his experience within the drinks business, he saw the rise in canned drinks. The idea was to combine the brewing credibility of Hawkshead with the accessibility and creativity of flavoured drinks.

Tula was the product of this, rather than relying on traditional malt and hop character, they aimed to produce an accessible and flavour-led drink. The Tula range includes three 4% infused lagers with flavours ranging from Tula Elderflower to Tula Pineapple and Tula Pink Grapefruit. Tula is interesting as it represents the modern crossover of traditional beer and the wider flavoured drinks market. I think the most interesting thing about Tula is that it doesn’t hide or disguise the fact that it is a flavoured beer which main concept being centred around fruit flavours.

Tula Elderflower- 2.75/5

Tula Elderflower is the Elderflower infused lager which lends itself to being light and aimed at casual drinkers. This brew brings floral flavours which is fragrant and relatively sweet. The finish is quite crisp and lacks a lot of the usual characteristics of a regular lager. The pour is a bright golden colour which has excellent clarity. A fine head forms but this lasts around 30 seconds. Overall, this is an incredibly sweet and floral beer which is easy drinking. I think this gets a 2.75 out of 5, it reminds me of a shandy then anything else.

Tula Pineapple- 3.5/5

Similarly to the Elderflower brew, Tula Pineapple is the you guessed it… a pineapple infused beer. This of course has pineapple take the centre stage which begins with a strong pineapple aroma. The flavour itself is extremely pineapple forward and the sweetness of Tula Pineapple is particularly more controlled. The finish is crisp and clean which makes this quite easy drinking and refreshing. Similarly to Tula Elderflower, the pour was a golden colour with excellent clarity with a head that dissipates quickly. Overall, this is quite a tasty brew which is refreshing and went down quickly. This was the best flavour for me.

Tula Pink Grapefruit-3.25/5

Tula Pink Grapefruit is the Pink Grapefruit infused beer. This brew had a more citrus forward character especially when coming to the aroma. A slight bitterness is noticeable which is different compared to the previous pair. However, when it comes to the taste it is a mixture of slightly bitter and sweetness. This is more juicy than the other two. The finish is crisp with a lingering bitterness. The pour is the same as the other Tula beers. Overall, this I feel the grapefruit beer feels more like a sweet radler. This was tasty and is as equally easy drinking as the others. Overall, I rate this a 3.25 out of 5 as it was refreshing and incredibly sessionable.

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My verdict

Overall, I understand the role that Tula plays and after seeing the rise and success of brands like Jubel, I can see this becoming popular. This offers a deeply refreshing and easy drinking experience which is incredibly fruit forward. However, if you are looking for a lager and expecting the hallmarks of a lager, this was not do it. This felt more like a shandy to almost an alcopop at a push. I feel this is aimed at casual drinkers and those who don’t even like the taste of beer thats how different this is from an off the shelf beer. I think this is worth a try for a different flavour experience however this is not something I would run back to try.

Where did I purchase Tula?

I bought Tula from my local Morrisons and each flavour costs around £2 a can.

Thanks for reading my review. If you liked this review you will love my review of the Full Circle Inner Circle pack.