Hope Brewhouse Nelson Bay

Had our annual holiday in Shoal Bay, couple of hours north of Sydney.  It's a couple of clicks east of the main centre of Port Stephens, Nelson Bay.

Until recently, the immediate area lacked any particular beer-worthy subject matter, other than the pleasure of having early beers in the local pub with a newspaper and little else to worry about.

But the Hunter Valley-based Hope Estate now has an outlet in Nelson Bay, and it's worth dropping in.  Arrived on a Thursday afternoon with Libby, Chris and Jillian. Chris and I went to the tasting paddle, naturally, while the ladies hooked into some Hope Estate chardonnay (located at the old Rothbury winery in Pokolbin).

The paddle beers we selected included lager, pale ale, Indian Red Ale, Rye IPA.  Afterwards we had a tin each of Imperial IPA.

The lager seems to be a fairly dumbed-down offering, similar to a lot of Aussie lager that's being offered to the masses... not too fancy, and not too different from macros. Drinkable on a hot day, it's an everyman's beer.

The pale aligns with the typical 'Aussie Pale' style i.e. US-pale with Southern Hemisphere hops. i.e. fruit cocktail.  I'm a bit miffed that brewers have decided to use this name for this style. The term had previously been used for the Australian ales that were derived from English pales, but adjusted to use local Pride of Ringwood hops (read Coopers, Kent Town). So 'Australian Pale' now refers to bastardised Yankee beer, rather than bastardised Pommie beer.  'Southern Pacific' might be a better term.... with the connotations of tropical fruit and all that.

Anyhoo I digress..... the Indian Red is a good drop. I'm becoming quite the fan of hopped-up Red Ales, as demonstrated by this one and the richer Former Tenant from Modus Operandi.  Good balance of malt, hop flavour and bitterness.

The Rye IPA is pretty good too, with a decent spicy backbone.

For me, the can of 2018 Macedon Harvest Imperial IPA was the duck's nuts.  This is a style that I think most teams are getting right. Bigger in all dimensions, with an additional sweetness that is a good counterpoint to the increased bitterness. I'd drink this all day, were it not for 9.5% ABV.

The view's pretty good, looking out across to the marina. The vibe is quite funky/music venue, although the opening hours could be a little bit more progressive than Thursday afternoon through to Sunday night. These are ostensibly Winter hours, but there wasn't much allowance for Spring school holidays.

But worth the wait, and worth the visit.

I should point out that to get to Nelson Bay one needs to drive past Murray's Brewery, which I have covered on many occasions.  Didn't get there this trip, but plan to visit the post-fire, newly rebuilt venue early next year.

Going retro

First can of several at the local rugby.  

A serious flashback to my childhood, when collecting empties at the footy was a lucrative enterprise (1c per can!). Reschs Pilsener, Tooheys Old, DA, KB......

It's just Tooheys New of course. And in reference to my previous post, no I don't think I'll see if it improves with age.....

Cans or Bottles for Ageing Beer

There's an interesting opinion piece in the Good Food site, discussing the best way to age beer.  As I mentioned in a recent post (tasting Goose Island Sofie), cellaring beer at my place can be a challenge.

Unlike wine, I'm generally of the belief that beers are always good when fresh. And although one may be able to improve a beer by cellaring it, it will depend very much on the style.  For instance, if you're a hop-head, cellaring a DIPA will result in disappointment, as the pronounced hop aromatic and bitter attributes vanish relatively quickly.

On the other hand, if the beer's profile is malt-driven, higher than average alcohol, and configured for secondary fermentation, there's a reasonable chance of it developing into something smooth and creamy. If there is a bona fide exception to my belief, it could be those extreme sour beers that need some time for the microflora to balance things out (e.g. Cantillon).

The article mentions two examples of beers that age well:  Westvleteren 12 and Coopers Red.  I've been lucky enough to have tried the former a few years back, and still drink the occasional Sparkler.

Certainly the legendary Trappist is a complex beast, a lot of which is due to the Belgian ale yeast and its big malt roster.  As for Coopers Sparkling Ale, any packaged beer with a 'Best After' date is obviously thinking ahead.

The author of the post makes a strident claim about bottles being better for ageing than cans. But he offers no supporting evidence, only an opinion that "it just isn't always the best way to store beer".  In my experience, bottles come with some issues, and not just their mass and vulnerability to breakage and light-strike. For example, you wouldn't lie one down for cellaring, as you risk the cap rusting (I know this from experience).   

And for those beers with corks ?  On the face of it, these may be better equipped for the long haul, but there have been concerns about of cork taint.  Again, probably best stored upright. 

So, if we compared the ageing of big ales in cans vs. upright bottles, I reckon there would be little difference.  But, I too have no supporting evidence for this claim.

Time for some research.  So, I am on the lookout for strong, malty ales that have some sediment. An ideal candidate would be available in both formats, but unless Coopers also start canning their Sparkler (Pale in cans), this might be a tough ask. At the very least, it's a good opportunity to see what canned beers are available that are not hop-heavy, but built for the distance over 12-18 months.

All Hands Brewing House

Got together with my old mate Jon last night, meeting at the All Hands Brewing House at King St Wharf. The venue is conveniently located at the bottom end of Erskine Street in the city (of Sydney), close to King St Wharf.  It's even more conveniently located near to Beer Deluxe, which gives us more choice than we really need on a weeknight.  Best stick to the one place.

This place started its existence as a James Squire mini-brewhouse, back in the early 00s from memory. I remember going to the launch of the Golden Ale (now called The Chancer) at this venue, with legendary brewer Chuck Hahn holding centre stage. I recall the amazing flavour of a newly imported hop variety called Amarillo.

Compared with the hop range today, Amarillo is kinda old hat. One particular AHBH beer manages to fit in six different varieties, old and new, including Cascade, Chinook, Topaz, Centennial, Simcoe, and Fortnight.

As with all good brewhouses, AHBH offers a tasting paddle of four choices, for $18, which is great value.  I selected the following (listed from right to left in the photo):

Longneck Best Bitter 4.1%

An immediate flashback to a London pub was quickly subdued by the modern influx of US hop notes. A fairly light body and easy drinking. However, when returning to it after sipping the others, it couldn't hold its own.  Drink this before trying the others.

Dunkel in the Rye Dark Lager 4.6%

Toasty, chocolate, medium body, and very drinkable. Good length and a good alternative to the ubiquitous IPAs. Speaking of which....

Hump Day I.P.A. 6.2%

Well, it was Wednesday, so an appropriate inclusion. Six different hops according to the blurb, with the tropical fruit and pine notes generally associated with US ales.  Strong guava/green seed notes that always reminds me of lantana. Not bad.

Skinny D.I.P.A. 8.9%

The pick of the bunch so far, with the aforementioned combination of hops, with a great malty spine to counterbalance.  Candy notes, apricot, pine. Comes in at 45 IBU, which I think could easily be ramped up.

I hooked into this while waiting for Jon to arrive, and when he did, we moved on to happy hour pints of Wood Duck Cream Ale, at 4.7%., and at $8 a pint. Nice.

This was certainly a revelation, being delivered via nitro tap (the black board said hand-pumped, but this was not the case), displaying the beguiling upside-down head as it formed out of bright, creamy, apricot hues.  A very malt-driven style, and a wonderful alternative to the fruit bombs of US & Pacific pale ale styles.  A great session ale, as Jon described it, and certainly worth the visit to AHBH for this alone.

I was pleased to see the Certified Independent logo on the AHBH web site.  I became aware of this a few weeks back when visiting Newcastle, and is an initiative of the Independent Brewers Association. Look for this logo.

Waiter, there's a hair in my beer......

You know, I'll drink any beer offered to me.  A dud beer is better than no beer....  

But I think I'll draw the line at this.....

The Order of Yoni

Definitely one out of the box....

Stone & Wood at The Beach Club

Got this from The Beach Club at Collaroy.  Might try to drop in on the way home from work:

Great Aussie Tinnie Taste Test 2018

From Fairfax Media's goodfood site:

The Great Australian Tinnie Taste Test 2018

and linking from it

Top 20 Aussie tinnies for 2018

I can't profess to having tried even half of these, but I can certainly vouch for:

• Young Henry's Newtowner
• Balter IPA
• Philter XPA

Shame they couldn't get through their planned schedule. The penultimate paragraph in the first article states:

"The target was to taste 100 cans that provided a wide snapshot of the domestic brewing market. However, when palate (and general) fatigue kicked in, stumps had to be pulled. (It's with regret that brilliant independent brewers such as Batch, Modus Operandi, Akasha and Bridge Road were not tasted on the day, in spite of a sterling effort from the panel.)"

http://www.mobrewing.com.au/modusbeer

I've got no issue with this per se.... one can get a bit jaded after a while when tasting a wide range (not to mention other possible effects). But, yes, regrettable to miss Modus (and the others too). 

I'm a big fan of and regular customer at the Mona Vale brewery, and believe the Former Tenant Red IPA would have been a shoe-in for the Top 5, at the very least.

The article's a good read, nonetheless.

Imperial IIPA at 4 Pines Brookvale

There's a lot to be said for kindly taking one's son to gym on a Saturday. Normally, Brookvale is not the friendliest of places to drive through.  Saturdays seem  more busy than weekdays, and combined with a home game to the Sea Eagles, there wasn't much room to move.

Oh well, do what I have to do. Drop Jacob and his mate off and think of a way to kill an hour. It's a good thing that Brookvale is now home to three breweries and a distillery (see my other blog for some thoughts about Manly Spirits). Otherwise I'd be lost.....

Quick stroll to the Winbourne Rd industrial estate, and I have the choice of two. Having only recently been to the distillery, I think a quick look into 4 Pines would be worthwhile. Normally is.....

The "Truck Bar" has an industrial Rust Belt feel about it, with probably my favourite device in any beer hall or brewery... a blackboard.

There are a dozen or so offerings at any one time, and 4 Pines are particularly fond of fresh hops, so variations on XPAs and IPAs are the norm. Today I was torn between a Double IPA, and an Imperial Double.  The guys were unanimous in their advice:  go the Impy.

Now, clocking in at 9%, and having to drive the boys home in 45 minutes, discretion ruled, and I ordered a half, for $8.

Looks fairly innocuous, with a mid golden hue, and tightly packed head. But this is a well-built ale. Citrus, pine and musk candy notes, combining to remind one of the old Sherbie lollies. I love Sherbies….

Full bodied and silky. Rich on the palate, and long in the finish. Nice little ethanol warmth to polish it off.

Came with a not-unwelcome flashback to one of Murray's old ales, reviewed a good 7 years ago...Spartacus, which was probably the first Australian Imperial IPA I had tasted.  This style is most certainly driven by the bigger-is-better ethos from our friends across the Pacific, but I think when done with balance and freshness in mind, it can be brilliant without being obnoxious. And fresh is the word, particularly on tap in the brewery.

Don't know what the future holds for 4 Pines, being recently consumed by the mega giant AB InBev (see https://craftypint.com/news/1632/ab-inbev-buys-4-pines), although on the face of it there seems to be little appetite for change.  Let's hope the corporate accountants don't start influencing the joint, as these grain and hop bills, while not cheap, are vital to the character of these beers.

Pyrmont Pub Crawl

Check out the Pyrmont Pub Crawl on my other blog.

http://brewsreviewsbbqs.blogspot.com/2018/07/pyrmont-pub-crawl.html

Goose Island Sofie Belgian Style Saigon 2017

This beauty presented itself from the shelf at Dan Murphy in Mona Vale.  750mL cap seal, coming in at 6.5%, $20, the label advises to keep for 5 years to develop. Bottled on 20DEC17.

Don't know about you, but I find cellaring beers very difficult. Managed to hang on to a Thomas Hardy Vintage Ale for a year, but that was definitely an exception. And for the purpose of illuminating you, dear reader, this will not become one either.

Hazy pale apricot in colour, with rocky white head.  Citrus and spice on the nose.  Good light to medium mouthfeel, with an easy bitterness at the back. Flavours of citrus, musk, and Saison funky goodness.

Best description is a funkier version of Witbier. I tried to sell it to Libby as a cross between Champagne and Hefeweizen.  She likes both but is unconvinced by this one. More's the pity, because I think it's pretty good.  The spice is still lingering as I'm typing this, and my last swallow was after the last paragraph....

Exit #016 Scotch Ale

I've been someone impressed lately with the beer range at the local IGAs, in Elanora Heights and Warriewood Valley. Not only the usual suspects, but a good server of locals (Modus Operandi, Nomad), overseas beers (plenty from US), and a lot unrecongisable to your humble correspondent.

What's more, they offer a pretty decent two-can deal, which inspires buying two.... for a mate, or for later.

Hadn't seen Exit brewing before, nor for that matter had a Scotch Ale in many a long day. This was a no-brainer.....

Pouring a beige honeycomb head, the ale glows a rich chestnut, with highlights of burnt orange. Good start.                                                                                                   Complex malt aromas, touch of yeast, nuts, rum/molasses.... something else there, not sure just yet.  Hint of alcohol.                                                                                Smooth and velvety mouthfeel, and persistent body & length. Flavours of caramel & spice, coffee/mocha.
 I now know what I was missing before.  There is some peated malt in this grain bill, and it gives a faint hint of Hebridean smoke. Give another 40% alcohol, this could easily be mistaken for a sherry-wooded Islay.

Good stuff.

Six year hiatus

Well, it'll be interesting to see if anyone is still subscribing to this old thing...

It's been a while I know..... many other responsibilities have interfered. Not to mention the on-again-off-again relationship I now seem to have with beer (mostly physiological, sadly).

However, in recent times my diarising interests have expanded significantly, from the simple beer focus to the wider world of other alcohol species (notably spirits and wines).  Moreover, I'm developing an interest in better BBQ-ing, smoking, slow-cooking, as well as curing meats and fermenting/preserving other foods. A lot to do, a lot to document.

And, life is too short to spend in the kitchen or the yard.  Sydney (and Australia, generally) has expanded significantly over the last half-decade, in the realms of quality pubs, distilleries, micro breweries and so forth.  Time to investigate.

So.... a new blog is springing forth: https://brewsreviewsbbqs.blogspot.com/

Might try to salvage some still-relevant posts from this.  And (ideally), cross-pollinate with future posts on beer, breweries, and pubs.

Hope to see you over there....

Vale Geoff Scharer

Today's Good Living (Fairfax press) reports the passing of Geoff Scharer, at the age of 72 after a short illness.

Along with the late Mark Shield, Geoff Scharer was a major influence in my passion for good beer. His single-mindedness about brewing beer of uncompromising quality was a significant factor in driving the Aussie craft brewing industry to where it is today.

His eponymous brewery in Picton was a 80's/90's haven for beer nuts, travellers, and bikies alike. And his particular ethic about not serving anything else but his own product was, if not unwise, admirable.

"Brave", Sir Humphrey might have said. What made it braver was his attempt to replicate this business model in the Rocks.

I recall an evening with my old friend Julian, at the Australian Hotel, which became Scharer's outlet of choice in Sydney city. As Julian and I sipped on Burragorang Bock, a group of nursing students fronted the bar (Geoff was behind it), and asked for half a dozen Carlton Colds and as many Toohey's News.  Our host leant over the bar, said something to the effect of "we don't sell that shit here", and summarily dispatched them to the nearby Glenmore Hotel.

My first ever taste of Burragorang Bock was an epiphany. A rich, complex, chocolatey drink with a hidden kick. We would buy champagne bottles of the stuff at Picton, with instructions to "treat like milk". Unpasteurised, and meant for immediate consumption. So too the Scharer's lager, an unfiltered, apricoty old world lager that would these days go head to head with the ubiquitous American Pale Ale.

I'm not even sure the brewery exists anymore..... so these beers may be consigned to history. But I won't forget the irascible Mr Scharer, nor his contribution to the Australian beer scene as it stands today.

The Baxter Inn

My mate Rowan and I caught up in town last night. Via Beeradvocate I'd learnt of a new place in Clarence St, The Baxter Inn, so suggested we take a look.

Last week, I took a tentative stroll to see if I could locate it, but to no avail. Scott Morgan of Hart's Pub later advised me to head down the alleyway opposite Redoak, and turn right at the garbage bin. Not quite the directions one expects for a new venue.

Arriving ahead of Rowan, I followed a couple of young suits down the dark alley (there was no bin.... is this the right alley?), and turned right into a deadend. All inner-city grime and grunge..... no signs of an establishment here.

Except for the black-shirted security guard, and a fancy rope, indicating where the queue is to form. But to where ? A darkened doorway leading into an even darker stairwell. Down I went, and opened a door.

A blast of music and laughter hit me, and I quickly learnt that I was not one of the first to discover this place. Like a speak-easy of 1920's Chicago, this converted cellar is all brick & wood, with a distinctly American jazz bar look and feel, minus the smoke. There must have been a hundred people already there, and no available seating.

But the bar.... oh the bar... hundreds of whisky bottles from bench to ceiling, and a large board listing them and their prices. And four taps of good beer, including Coopers Lager, Mountain Goat Steam Ale, and 2 Brothers Growler Brown Ale. A small but impressive bottle beer range includes Moylan's Hopsickle Imperial IPA, a bottle of which we shared upon our return.

Yes, we returned later. As I waited for Rowan, the bar got more and more crowded, and I wondered if the door queue was now in operation. A quick SMS exchange confirmed this, so I left, collected him from the queue, and popped over to Redoak for a couple of good beers.

At 8pm we returned to Baxter, assuming that a lot of the post-work crowd had left, It had, so we found a booth, and ordered the Moylan's. This is a mouth-ripping beer, outstanding hop and malt profile, almost heading into American Barleywine territory. At $25 a long-neck, this is a very, very reasonably priced beer. I reckon you'd pay the same at Platinum Liquor. Dirt cheap liquor licensing  allows for smaller markups, and lots of these back-alley establishments opening up all over Sydney (and elsewhere).

Did I mention the complimentary pretzels ? They just kept coming and threatened to curtail our dinner plans.

According to the proto-website, The Baxter Inn is open Monday to Saturday, 4pm-1am. I recommend timing your run, though, otherwise you're in for a long wait.

Basement, 152-156 Clarence Street, Sydney

IMAX ? or Pumphouse

Well, it's not often that Libby (my wife) suggests that I should spend some time in a pub. Not much of a beer drinker herself, she tends to view my proclivities with disdain.

Today, however, we escorted our offspring through the wonders of Sydney's Darling Harbour ("no you can't go on that", "keep away from the edge", "don't talk to that man".....) with the end-goal of catching a movie at the big IMAX cinema. Libby suggested that they would take the movie, and I should go to the Pumphouse... At times I do have selective hearing, but on this occasion she didn't need repeat herself.

The Pumphouse was an old stomping ground.... with on-site beers such as Federation Ale, Thunderbolt, and Brewers, it was quite ahead of the pack in the 80s/90s. After an hiatus, it has returned with an internal wash of post-industrialism, and a beer selection of outstanding merit.

The thing about this place is that every barman I've met here has known his stuff, loved his stuff, and happy to share his stuff (today, at least..read on).

Today's visit started with Weiss City, the house wheat from St Peters Brewery. This is a decent hefe, with some additional IBU angst, which makes it a bit meaner than your average Bavarian.... 13/20

Holgate's Road Trip is, according to mein host Ash, a response to the brewers' trip to West Coast USA. So, yeah, it's a big IPA, but for mine, quite caramelly and richly bodied. It's an ongoing debate in some forums (fora ?) about the difference in IPA from one side of America to the other. West Coast is all about hops, East Coast about malt & body. This beer seems more East than West, to me at least. But so what.

Regardless, the Road Trip is a see-saw of hops and malt. A flavoursome ale, and good on tap. 14/20.

After the draught beers, time to look in the fridge. I noticed a somewhat discretely labelled bottle that shared the names of the much lauded Norwegian Nøgne Ø, and our own Bridge Road Brewers. In a trans-continental collaboration, the beer is India Saison.... This is a fine, fine beer. Expensive yes (cost me $15 a 330ml stubby), but a wonderful use of Aussie hops (Galaxy, Stella) atop a fine saison profile of spice, dank, and funk. A rare find, and a rare treat. 17/20.

Ash (my host and new friend) felt that at this stage he could offer me something else. The keg remnant of Mikkeller's It's Alive! was sitting idly in a growler bottle... for his later enjoyment. But, much to his credit, he offered me a glass (on him), for which I will be eternally grateful. A tribute to the classic Trappist beer Orval, this goes a step further. Full of Brett & funk & barnyard, it's also overlaid with cara malts, bringing with it some more body and sweetness than one would expect with Orval. 18/20

Funnily enough, some young poseur from Canberra fronted up to the bar and started to bemoan that he missed the keg. Ash said "shake my hand and I may have some for you". It took the goose a couple of seconds to realise he was onto a good thing, but even still, his attitude cost him $10.50...... So folks, it pays to give the barman respect, introduce yourself, and listen well to his opinions.

I finished with another Mikkeller.... Monks Elixir. Styled as a Belgian Quad/Abt, this is a significantly good ale..... it's like a Pecan Pie with a dram of Speyside malt. A great beer. 16/20.

At the end of it all, my young family swung by and carted me away. Probably a good thing.

The Pumphouse is a strange venue. Strangely located & strangely decorated. But it is committed to beer.

You +1'd this publicly. Undo

Coopers the Big Australian

Hi all, it's been a while.

I was happy to open the Sydney Morning Herald today, and see the following full-pager:

True brew.

As an Australian company,

we're responsible for more than brewing beer.

Sure, we're not the biggest player in the beer game

but now, surprisingly, we find ourselves the largest

Australian-owned national brewer.

This is not something we should celebrate.

On the contrary.

We understand how our colleagues may feel because

it was only a few years ago that we to were at risk

of being taken over by an overseas company.

Only our commitment to staying true blue and the

strength of our family ensured we remained

a family-owned, Australian brewery.

That's how we started in 1862 and after

nearly 150 years of quenching thirsts

of fellow Aussies, that's how we intend to stay.

Dr Tim Cooper AM           Mr Glenn Cooper AM

At the time SABMiller made its successful bid for Fosters, I did think it was a potent marketing opportunity for Coopers. What pleases me here is their restraint and dignity. The reference to "their colleagues" is a consideration to those who have no say in these boardroom decisions: the brewers, drivers, sales reps, marketers, storemen, admin staff etc. Those who run the brewery....

But.... it is a full, page 7 advertisement. Coopers still want us to know they are now the top Aussie dogs; let's see them leverage this to the betterment of the local industry and products. I paraphrase this as "stop reacting to Gen Y's demand for dry, low carb beers.... brew a saison, an IPA, a barley wine, a decent pilsener".

Good on 'em. Now get on with it.

Cooperian Dark Ale - The Results

As a preamble, kindly read the earlier post.

The results:

a) Pours a fairly haze-free, chocolaty/ruby brown. Garnet highlights. Head is a soft beige, holds well and leaves a decent lace (thankyou maltodextrin).
s) Peach and soft yeast fleshiness. Touch gluey.
t) Strong stonefruit, but tempered with an acetone-like heat. Keep the naked flames away.....
Has a strange seedy/vegetable note. Maybe celery (?)
m) Light to medium. Touch hollow in the middle.
d) Seems to have the awkwardness of Casacadians/Indian Blacks etc..... but not the quality..... Needs an addition of steeped dark malts to give more chocolate & mocha notes, and the hop additions may be better post-primary.
I'll save it for when Darren comes around :-)

Serving: On-tap

Well, I think this experiment was part success, part failure. A tin of Coopers Pale, a tin of Coopers Dark, and a kilo of Brewbooster.  My recent success with a Pale clone (using the Pale tin and the Brewbooster) could be put down to the use of full boil techniques (including wort chilling), and a stable, cool fermentation.

I didn't give this beer the same attention. It was a quick empty of the contents onto the yeast cake of the Pale, and topped up with tap water. The hop additions were thrown in at the end, but most of the aroma seems to have blown off during fermentation.

It's probably worth another go, but with the additional attention of the full boil. It is drinkable (just), and cheap to make. Not sure if Amarillo is the way to go with Coopers tins. Maybe some spare Pride of Ringwood might have aligned better....

Incidentally, an interesting variation has presented itself. My friend Glenn has given me an old port barrel, so I've filled it with this beer. My ambition is to have, in 12-18 months, a Rodenbach clone. 

You can stop laughing now...

Beer Porn

That got your interest, didn't it ? "Beer porn" is a rather questionable idiom that is used whenever one wants to show off their recent beer acquisitions. I've been guilty of it before, and here again.

Last Friday saw me drop into the Beer Cartel, growler in hand, and a mind for Father's Day. Geoff got the refilling underway, and I had a bit of a browse.

Certainly some interesting bottles here. I collected Meantime London Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada Porter, Mikkeller 1000IBU, Viven Imperial IPA, and Mountain Goat's Seedy Goat Coffee IPA.

The growler contains a German-style Pilsener, from the Australian Brewery at Rouse Hill.
Anyway, these have all been consumed..... another splendid Father's Day spent in the garden with the extended family. My brothers Chris and Nick don't mind a quality beer, and Chris' father-in-law Bob spends way too much time at Platinum and Northmead cellars. This is good news for us, as he brought along some very interesting beers, including Greene King IPA, Hepworth Sussex Ale, Kozlak bock, 3 Monts, and the Little Creatures Dreadnought stout, which we never got to, sadly.

The Meantime was a little subdued.... maybe would be better on tap in a London pub. The Viven seemed strangely schizoid..... I'm not entirely sure that Imperial IPAs are meant to come from Belgian yeasts. The Mikkeller almost took the roof of my mouth off. Intense hop flavours and bitterness that just kept on going. It left the Viven on the starting line.......

And the Seedy Goat ? Coffee IPA ? Well, it was interesting. We couldn't detect any bona fide coffee flavour, but the overall impression was one of green vegetable. Capsicum, to be precise.
The beer in the growler was brewed by Neal Cameron, who was also the brewer behind Red Angus pilsener. To me the beers are similar, with a well-balanced malt profile, and a good dose of hops giving the spine needed for the style. The growler is a concept that is beginning to take off in NSW, with Murrays doing it at Bob's Farm (and hopefully Manly soon).
The surprise of the day was the Kozlak, from Poland. I tend to view Eastern European beers as being fairly straightforward, with an almost pedantic ahderence to style, but lacking the substance. The Kozlak offered a caramel, fruity malt flavour that was almost doppel. A great drop for an early spring afternoon.

I also had my own Coopers pale ale on tap, as the in-betweenie session beer. For a kit brew it's remarkably good. I put this down to the full boil I gave it, rather than my usual approach of tipping tins into hot water and filling up from the tap. I think the full wort boil is a "best practice", even when using the tins.
Thanks Nick, Chris & Bob. A good lineup, and a good afternoon. And thanks to Geoff at Beer Cartel.

Cooperian Dark Ale

One of the many hybrid styles going round these days is Cascadian Dark Ale. Invented by the late Greg Noonan in the 90s', it's a variant of the IPA, adding some darker malts to the grain bill, but maintaining the hop profile of (American) IPAs.
Cascadia is in fact a region of the Pacific Northwest, taking in parts of Canada and the US, and home to the ubiquitous Cascade hop.

This got me thinking.... is there a quick and easy way of brewing a hoppy, dark beer from kit ?  I had a yeast cake left over from a (failed) all-grain batch, which was then reused for a Coopers pale ale kit (successful). So on it's third outing, the yeast should be raring to go, and up to the challenge of something a little unusual.

A quick trip to the supermarket, and I landed a tin of Coopers Pale Ale malt, a tin of Coopers Dark Ale malt, and a kilogram of brewbooster (a blend of dextrose, malt, and maltodextrin). Normally you only need one tin plus sugars to get to a 4.5-5% ale, but two tins plus the brewbooster should see me in at 7-8%. (Incidentally, I smashed my hydrometer doing a recent brew, so the original & final gravities, and ensuing ABV%, are anyone's guess.....)

Since I was pitching two tins of malt extract, I was also doubling the hop bitterness. Tins are not renowned for their late-hop aroma, so any additional hops will come in handy to give some of the aromatics associated with IPAs.

Back at home, I scrounged some leftover Amarillo hop pellets, tipped it all together, and had a good fermentation underway within the hour. It's still been quite cool in the cellar, so hopefully a lot of the warmer-ferment, yeasty characteristics will take a back seat to the malt & hops.

After three weeks in the fermenter, I kegged the result today. First tastings are not too bad, with some interesting spicy notes, and a hint of alcohol warmth. And it's dark. It'll spend the next fortnight cold conditioning, and then get the carbonation treatment.

As for the name, well I thought "Cooperian" was appropriate, although the play on words relies on the coincidental naming of the Cascade hop variety and another Australian brewery.

My hopes are high; I'll get back to you in a fortnight.

Beer Review: Murray's Spartacus

Guide to review scoring is on the post Beeradvocate Ratings Systems

Unless otherwise specified, these reviews are my own.

Murray's Spartacus Imperial India Pale Ale 10% abv
A- / 4.2
look: 3.5 | smell: 4 | taste: 4.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 4

This beer is an absolute mind****.  Strong, rich, flavoursome, very, very moreish. I'm not sure if it's a one-off, but I have enjoyed it on-tap at Murray's in Manly, as well as in the bottle from their Port Stephens outlet.

a) 1 inch off-white, spongy head. Hazy marmalade amber in colour.

s) Pine resin aromas, passionfruit, caramel and licorice, almost barley-wine richness in the malt. Warms to melon and pineapple.

t) Rich flavour, honeycomb, caramel, brambly wild green vegetation and tropical fruits. Spicy, with alcohol warmth, and a prickly bitterness.

m) Silky smooth, if not slightly oily. Not at all heavy, nor cloying.

d) "Dangerously drinkable" says the label. I agree. Classy beer.