Northern Monk Faith is in the glass this week as Beer Together takes on one of the UK’s best-known modern craft beers: a 5% hazy pale ale from Leeds with big gateway beer energy, soft tropical fruit, pineapple, citrus, stone fruit and a clean, gently bitter finish.

In this episode, Elton and Matt crack open Faith by Northern Monk and ask whether it still deserves its reputation as one of the beers that helped bring hazy pale ale, NEIPA-style flavours and modern craft beer into the mainstream. Is Faith the perfect first step for someone moving from lager into craft beer? Is it still interesting enough for people who chase double dry-hopped, experimental, limited-release cans? And does being available in supermarkets make a beer less “craft”, or just more successful?

We get into the history of Northern Monk, its Leeds roots, its proudly northern identity, and how Faith became a recognisable name in UK craft beer. The tasting notes lead us through tropical fruit, pineapple, light citrus, stone fruit, oats, wheat, a soft body, low bitterness and that clean finish that makes you reach for another sip without feeling like the beer is shouting at you. We also compare it to other familiar supermarket craft beers, including Beavertown Neck Oil, Camden Pale Ale and BrewDog Hazy Jane, and ask where Faith sits in that everyday craft beer line-up.

There is also a proper craft beer debate: what does “craft beer” actually mean in the UK? Should craft beer have a tighter definition? Does independence matter more than scale? Can a beer still be craft if you can buy it next to dishwasher tablets in Sainsbury’s? We compare the looser UK pub definition with stricter European ideas of craft and artisanal beer, and end up somewhere between admiration, suspicion and mild confusion.

As always, there is food pairing chat. Faith gets matched with barbecue halloumi, buffalo chicken wings, Thai food, Vietnamese food, herbs, spice, citrus and anything fresh enough to work with a soft, fruity pale ale. There is also a warning about katsu curry, a brief halloumi boiling tip, and the usual level of completely unnecessary threat-based storytelling.

Then Choose Your Fighter returns as Northern Monk Faith goes up against Seven Giraffes by Williams Bros. Faith brings smooth, tropical, easy-drinking hazy pale ale energy. Seven Giraffes brings elderflower, biscuit, caramel, hops and a more memorable botanical character. Which beer wins on taste, drinkability and character?

This is a funny, opinionated UK craft beer podcast episode for fans of Northern Monk, Faith hazy pale ale, NEIPA, pale ale, supermarket craft beer, beer tasting, beer history, beer and food pairing, independent breweries and the ongoing argument about what craft beer actually is.

Beer Together is a beer podcast about tasting beer properly, arguing about it badly, and trying to work out why some beers stick in your head while others quietly behave themselves. New episodes drop every Friday.

Featured beer: Northern Monk Faith
Style: Hazy Pale Ale / NEIPA-style Pale Ale
ABV: 5%
Brewery: Northern Monk, Leeds
Key tasting notes: tropical fruit, pineapple, citrus, stone fruit, soft body, gentle bitterness, clean finish
Also discussed: Seven Giraffes by Williams Bros, Beavertown Neck Oil, Camden Pale Ale, BrewDog Hazy Jane, UK craft beer, gateway beers, supermarket craft beer, beer definitions and food pairings