Cloned beer fails the taste test
Brewing giant Fuller's has failed to replicate the exact flavour of Horndean's famous HSB beer. The ale, which from next week will solely be brewed in London, underwent an exclusive taste test yesterday. And the judge, beer expert Marcus Stanley, said that the taste was close – but not the same. He said: 'It is a good approximation of what is coming out of Horndean at the moment. 'I would say it is more like the HSB I drank in
1979 when I started drinking bitter, rather than the HSB that has been produced in recent times. 'It has a sweeter taste, and is a darker colour.' And the taste is not the only thing that is changing – Fuller's said today it was to drop the name Horndean. Although it would still be called HSB, the name of its historic home would be dropped from all labelling. The move follows pressure from the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA), which said it was wrong to use the name of Horndean when the beer was no longer brewed there. Mr Stanley, regional director of CAMRA, tried the beer at a special tasting session organised by The News and Fuller's, which bought the historic Gales brewery last year for £82m.