First Taste: 'I Agree With Nick' Summer ightning clone

I cracked open a bottle of this honestly not knowing what to expect last night and I have to say I was pleasantly surprised.  It wasn't overly carbonated, which I quite like and is probably down to bottling method (the real test of this beer will be when I tap the mini keg).  The colour is a bit darker than Summer Lightning is, which I think is due to the boiling of the extract, I'm looking into ways of avoiding it next time. Taste wise, it is very light in the mouth and not overly bitter.  It has a wonderfully pleasant hop aroma and taste that is nicely balanced (I'm starting to dislike overly hopped light ales because they are everywhere, so this is a good thing).

All in all, I'm very impressed and will now forge on ahead with extract brewing, knowing that I can produce genuinely good results.

Update: St Peter's Ruby Red

I've been tasting small amounts of the Ruby Red every now and then since it went into the barrel and I have to say I started out disappointed.  It had a very harsh, almost astringent hop aftertaste to start with.  Tried a bit today and it seems it is starting to get better, so here's hoping for it being really nice in about two/three weeks.

Update: Wherry

Today marked a week(ish) since I put the Wherry into the bottles and barrel and it has been in the Boiler Room to (hopefully) do its secondary fermentation for a week.  So today I moved it out to the shed for some cold conditioning.  Most kits say they are ready to drink after a week or two but this is a lie.  The minimum conditioning for kits is normally about 4 weeks but 6-8 are preferable.  I've read that this one definitely bnefits from a long conditioning and that's good because the Linthwaite is going down quite slowly (thanks to the faff of it being hugely carbonated).

Will obviously let you know how this is when I eventually try it.  The next kit brew I do will be a Brupak's Brewer's choice Old English Ale, which I'm looking forward to as its a little more involved to make the kit up...