Antur - Session Pale 440ml 4.4%

Session Pale is a 4.4% ABV pale ale in a 440ml can from Antur Brew Co, a craft brewery based in Crickhowell, Powys, within the Bannau Brycheiniog, or Brecon Beacons, National Park. As the name suggests, it is built as a session beer, designed to be light, crisp and easy to drink over the course of an evening rather than a high-strength showcase beer.

Antur Brew Co is a relatively young Welsh microbrewery, established by Lance van Dijk with a taproom and brewery based in Crickhowell. The name Antur is the Welsh word for "adventure", reflecting the brewery's positioning within the outdoor landscape of the Brecon Beacons, and its beers are brewed using Welsh water alongside a mix of local and imported ingredients. The brewery has built a following for producing approachable, well-made modern styles rather than more traditional cask ales, positioning itself firmly within the newer wave of Welsh craft brewing.

Session Pale itself is built around clean UK malt, which gives the beer its light body and biscuity backbone, combined with citrus-forward American hops that provide the beer's aromatic lift. The result is a beer that leans towards the American pale ale tradition, with a noticeable citrus character on the nose and palate, but kept restrained enough in bitterness and strength to remain genuinely sessionable at 4.4% ABV. It is pale gold in colour and designed to be served well chilled, with a crisp, clean finish rather than a lingering bitter one.

Being a lighter, citrus-driven pale ale, Session Pale works well with a wide range of everyday food. Grilled chicken, fish and chip shop classics, mild curries and barbecued vegetables all suit its balance of malt sweetness and citrus hop character, and its lower strength makes it a sensible choice alongside a full meal rather than just a single glass. It is equally suited to drinking on its own as a straightforward, refreshing beer without food.

Antur Brew Co's Session Pale offers a good example of the newer generation of Welsh craft breweries working out of the Brecon Beacons, taking familiar American pale ale techniques and applying them to a genuinely sessionable beer. For drinkers wanting to explore what smaller, independent Welsh brewers are doing beyond the more established names, it is a reasonable and unpretentious place to start.