![Teddy2.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/harveyword/dQiKMRCD-Teddy2.jpg)



One of my favourite breweries to go to is Westside ale works - this is not a fancy brewery, it's tucked into a old factory right in the corner of a deadend street surrounded by motor mechanics, it's the type of place that unless you new it was there you would never find it. 

I used to work near there and it was a excellent place to hide - go to the obvious pubs and you bump into someone from work there, not Teddy Westside's as I like to call it. 

Step inside and you are in a beer wonderland, and a little slice of Californian style micro brewing land. There are 30 taps, 10 of these guest taps, generally high quality American brews and 20 of Westside's own brews, that's right twenty of them which means it's always a good place to get a tasting paddle. Combine this was a really good Pizza and you have yourself a great place to pop in for a bite to eat, which in a Post fully locked down world we are allowed to do again. 

The good thing with tasting paddles is that you get to try a heap of stuff and discover the gems, which is exactly what we did on on Friday, one of my tasters was a beer called 'Dan's Self Doubt Stout 2020 edition' and on tasting I immediately decided I needed some to take home. 

![Teddy1.jpg](https://files.peakd.com/file/peakd-hive/harveyword/rfTz268f-Teddy1.jpg)


Westside also can on site so I can choose a beer, they pour from tap into a half litre can (a good sharing size), seal it up in a canning machine and away you go, so that exactly what I did - I was warned that the can wouldn't last for months and months as they handed it over I explained - Mate, this isn't making past the end of the weekend. 

And it didn't - Saturday night and we broke it out and it was just as good as in the taster, maybe better. 

Now this Self Doubt stout is a 9.3% monster (hence no more than a taste in the bar as I was driving) 
Half was aged in in shiraz wine barrels and half in Rye whisky barrels for 6 months and then blended back together so it was pretty special.  

It is as you can see pitch black. It poured with a dense tan head which just stays there all creamy like. 

The smell is all booze with a hint of caramel sweetness and It tastes like a good stout should, barely carbonated, velvety smooth with enough alcohol punch to warm the cheeks and to force you to sip slowly.

The taste is sweet but balanced, it strong enough to linger in the mouth with just a hint of bitter roasted malts but then the wave of sweetness overtaking it.

I've tried a lot of Westside beers over the years and this has to one of there best, and it was so great getting back into the bar again. 

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