Introducing
Tarka Lager
from Otter
Brewery
Stand aside European lagers,
there’s a new pint in town
O
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tter Brewery is one of
the South West’s
leading producers of
cask ales and home to
the UK’s first
underground carbon
busting eco cellar. Established back in
1990 by David and Mary Ann McCaig,
it is set up high in Devon’s Blackdown
Hills close to the Dorset border.
Beer is definitely in the McCaig
blood. There’s a history of brewing
going back at least five generations on
Mary Ann’s (Mum’s) side of the family
and three of the four sons are now
heading up the next generation.
Although the technology has
moved forward in the quarter
century since it all
began, some things
stay the same. For
those not familiar
with Otter, what
really sets the
business apart is the
cherished family-run
principles that help to
characterise
everything they do
to support local pubs
and the community.
We’re going to touch more on that
in future issues, especially their
commitment to local sports like the
Exeter Chiefs and the Lyme Regis Gig
Club, but this article is about Tarka.
Next time you go to order a pint
of lager in a pub you might just see
a new, deep blue circular pump clip
topped off with a polished steel otter
occupying a space on the bar. Some
things can’t help but catch the eye!
After nearly 25 years of producing
cask ales, the brewers at Otter set
themselves a mammoth new challenge
– to develop (this part has taken two
years in itself) and launch the West
Country’s first premium lager. Now,
thirsty drinkers have a local quality
alternative to the big brand European
lagers normally to be found on a bar.
One of the UK’s leading beer
writers, Adrian Tierney-Jones, does a
good job at describing something that
is very hard to do – articulating the
taste of a good lager.
For Adrian, a pint of Tarka is:
“Beautiful to behold: pale gold and as
clear as a mountain stream. A sprightly
carbonation engages the palate, which
is enlivened by bitter lemon and herbal
notes. If a good lager is a canvas on
which the colours of malt and hops
are spread evenly and pleasingly
prop