Bragdy Conwy, Welsh Pride

Welsh Pride, known in Welsh as Balchder Cymru, is Conwy Brewery's best-selling bitter and something of a flagship beer for the North Wales brewer. It is a copper coloured ale at 4.3% ABV with an orange citrus and malt aroma, built as a well balanced blend of malt and hops with a nutty, malty finish rather than an aggressively hoppy or bitter one. The name reflects its position in the range as a beer intended to represent the brewery, and by extension the region, to a wide audience.

The beer comes from Conwy Brewery, founded in 2003 by Gwynne Thomas, a chemist by trade who turned a home brewing hobby in Llandudno into a commercial business with his wife Adele. It was the first brewery to open in North Wales for more than a century, and has since grown from its original premises to larger facilities in Llysfaen, taken on in 2013, which now also house the brewery's taproom. Conwy Brewery naturally conditions its cask and bottled beers, meaning a secondary fermentation takes place in the container itself, giving the beer natural carbonation and a livelier character than heavily filtered alternatives.

As a traditional English and Welsh style bitter, Welsh Pride sits in a long lineage of session ales built around a balance of malt sweetness and hop bitterness, historically brewed to be drunk in quantity over the course of an evening at a moderate strength. Its copper colour comes from the malt bill, likely including some crystal or caramel malt alongside pale malt, which produces the biscuit and caramel notes noted by drinkers alongside the citrus hop aroma. The finish is clean and bitter without being harsh, in keeping with the style's emphasis on drinkability.

Welsh Pride is best served at cellar temperature if drawn from cask, or lightly chilled if from bottle, in a traditional pint glass. Its malty, nutty character makes it a strong match for classic pub food: steak and ale pie, a Sunday roast, or a ploughman's with strong cheddar and pickle. It also pairs well with grilled or roasted meats more generally, where its balance of sweetness and bitterness can stand up to richer flavours without overwhelming them.

As the brewery's best-selling beer, Welsh Pride is a reasonable starting point for anyone wanting to understand what Conwy Brewery does, a straightforward, well made bitter that leans on balance rather than extremity, brewed in North Wales using naturally conditioned methods that have defined the brewery since 2003.