Growing up smack dab in England’s Bronze-aged industrial county of West Midlands, Sharks front man James Mattock devoured a steady diet of politically motivated and feverishly frolicking ‘70s punk as a tyke. And the righteously revelatory compositions he penned thereafter make it totally apparent. Though never one to go overboard with his political rhetoric and anti-government furor, Mattock nonetheless composes some of the most defiant rallying cries and rumbling fist-waving energizers the once great Britain now exports.

Taking their band…

Approachable 2011 hop-head delight pays tribute to Mississippi Delta blues progenitor 100 years after his birth. Well-balanced copper-hazed Imperial IPA contrasts resinous hop-oiled dryness and piney juniper bittering against floral yellow-orange fruiting. Shandy-like peach, apricot, pineapple and melon sweetness saddles lemon-peeled orange-tangerine-grapefruit tartness to citron vodka finish. Biting 10% alcohol warmth soothes. Will satisfy wide ranging beer enthusiasts.

Zestful saffron-hazed Belgian strong ale brings effervescent floral fruiting to peppery hop spicing and fungi yeast scamper. Abundant kiwi, mango, guava, pineapple, peach and orange tropicalia as well as advertised apple-pear flavoring sweetened further by creamy cotton-candied crystal malting of refined bottle-conditioned slow sipper. Sugary Brussels lace lines glass.

Creamy fruit-dried porter saturates heavy blackberry puree theme with smoked chocolate malting. Raspy blueberry, raspberry, and black cherry fruiting seeps into fizzy blackberry seltzer midst. Chambord liqueur reminder and chocolate cordial lick serenade cola nuttiness at backend. Just a tad thin by mocha-clad berry finish.

Robust mocha porter in cobalt blue bottle not far removed from fruit-dried mocha-malted Black IPA (and a damn fine dessert beer to boot). Espresso-milked kiln coffee dryness contrasts creamy molasses cookie sweetness and dark roasted barley graining. Resinous hop-charred bittering deepens nutty fig-raisin conflux, latent black cherry surge, and crisp tobacco leaf reminder.

Trendy limited edition (circa 2011) Black IPA/ Cascadian Dark Ale-styled medium body retains roasted chocolate depth, ice coffee appeal, and piney citric remnant. Ashen charcoal hop char upends dark carafa malting and tart pineapple-grapefruit ripeness. Subsidiary black currant and blueberry illusions embitter earthen grained backend.

Interesting limited edition (circa 2011) hybrid ale with copper-paled hue crosscuts ripe India Pale Ale fruiting with spicy Belgian Ale yeast funk. Lemony grapefruit-peeled orange-dried bittering contrasts candi-sugared banana, peach, pineapple, cherry, apple, and blueberry scurry. A floral perfumed waft spreads across tropic fructose. Black-peppered hop bite stiffens backend. Ancillary coriander-clove nicety nearly lost.

Waveringly eccentric straw-cleared herbal-spiced hybrid ale (circa 2011) spreads honeyed lavender pedals across syrupy citric tang and wafting floral potpourri. Tangerine, grapefruit, and orange pick up grassy-hopped heather, hibiscus, and sage dusting. Stiff alcohol solvency will chase away softies.

Resinous pine-needled oaken wood dryness affixes grapefruit-peeled pineapple and orange tartness above sugar-spiced crystal malting. Bitter blueberry-juniper conflux overtakes black-peppered oregano-basil-thyme triage at herb-encrusted citric finish.

Nebulous coppery amber medium-bodied India Pale Ale with ineffectual English hop variety falls short. Closer to a British pub ale, gathering dank black tea mustiness, cellar-bound mushroom-like yeast fungi, and citric-rotted apricot desiccation. Murky crystal-caramel malting beat down by everlasting alcohol-burnt bittering to dirty earthen wood spine.

Citric white ale spicing and funky yeast fungi furnish burnished golden Belgian-styled pale ale. Cheerios-like cereal oats and biscuit-y wheat spine upended by lemon rot acridity, grapefruit rind bittering and vegetal astringency. Herbaceous floral-hopped whim lacks resolve, seems misplaced.

Pleasant light-bodied amber-yellowed pale lager lacks body and depth. Crisp citric-hopped pep and sharp lemony seltzer fizzing counter spicy Belgian-styled yeast funk. Carbolic overload disguises apricot-dried crystal malting, biscuit-y barley-hopped pungency, and vegetal tinge to faltering toasted white bread spine, finishing watery and indecisive.