Australia's best pale ale ?

My previous post contained a qualifed statement about Alpha Pale Ale being Australia's best American Pale Ale. The qualification being that it is 'widely available'.

This got me thinking about the veracity of my claim. In my fridge at the moment is probably Australia's best American Pale Ale ("APA"). And I'm not really sure if it's all that scarce so as to not compare with Alpha's availability.

I'm talking about Stone & Wood's Pacific Ale (previously known as Draught Ale).  I picked it up at 1st Choice at Forestville NSW (aka Crown of the Hill).



OK, sorry, I've had this carton in the fridge for the last couple of months, and haven't quite gotten around to telling you about it. I've taken the photo, just not as yet supported it with formal commentary.

What sets this beer apart from the run-of-the-mill APA is the choice of hops. APAs are notable in their use of American hops, particularly the 3 C's (Cascade, Centennial, Chinook) and Amarillo. This beer however uses an Antipodean variety: Galaxy.  In fact it's been mooted that a 'Pacific Ale' style might be a bona fide style different to the APA...less citrus and more tropical notes. And different also to the 'Aussie Sparkling/Pale', which is considered to be a sub-branch of English Pale Ale  - think Coopers and all that I've waffled on about before.

(As an aside, also consider how the Knappstein Reserve Lager set itself apart from the crowd by using the NZ Nelson Sauvin hop to impart its distinctive fruitiness...... 'Pacific Lager' perhaps).

I think, therefore, I can still support my claim of Alpha being the best Aussie APA.  The Pacific Ale is the best, ahem, Pacific Pale Ale......

Stone & Wood Pacific Ale: outstanding late hop aromas, tropical fruits such as guava, & passionfruit (my Mum even detected frangipani). Refreshing and light body, 4.4% ABV.... top class warm-climate session ale.

I think it set me back $65-$70 (AUD) for the carton of 24.

ADDENDUM: Stone & Wood didn't figure in the Sydney Royal Beer Show results. Perhaps they didn't enter. I'll try to find out.....

ADDENDUM+1: Brewer was judge, hence no entry. Thanks Matt, again.

Double Coopers in the keg

The vigorous home brew has settled down now, enough for me to run it into the keg for some secondary. It was truly the most violent home brew I've made due to, as mentioned previously, throwing a lot of fermentables onto an active yeast cake.

In trying to slow it down, I had the fermenter out in the cold night air. I think it dropped to about 8C the other night, but the beer just kept going.... amazing.

I'm trying some secondary fermetation in the keg; threw in 25 carbonation pellets. This is the same principle as priming bottles before capping. The target pressure will be for a lightly sparkling beer.... not too fizzy.

A quick taste of the beer was taken, of course. A distinct maltiness not unlike a Scottish ale, but backed up by the somewhat angular hops (Pride of Ringwood, no doubt).  I could taste alcohol too, so we definitely have a strong'un.  I'll give it a fortnight to prime & settle, by then it will hopefully be self-pressured enough for at least a couple of Real Ale pints.

Australian Ale ? What's that exactly ?

Yep... Cooper's would take 99% of survey respondents here... And 99.9% in volume sold as well, you'd expect.

It's my go-to ale. Every week I have lunch at the local RSL, and put two Red's down regardless of what I'm eating. And I reckon that Cooper's Sparkling Ale in a 750mL bottle is a particular joy. Dunno why it's better than 375mL bottles..... just seems to be more balanced.

Most of us would like to see Aussie Pale Ale in its own beer style. But a couple of problems here...

1) The arbiters of beers style categories have a collective conscience sitting somewhere between Boston, Bruges, Bavaria & Burton.... the New World doesn't come into consideration.

2) The style itself would be up for debate in Australia anyway....what is it ?

Well, you'd have to go to Cooper's as a touchstone at least.... Pride of Ringwood hops, a clean malt profile, and a cloudy yeasty fruitiness .... say green apple or pear. OK... this serves both Red & Green Coopers.... but anything else ?

I remember one occasion long ago at the old One-Eyed Beer Tasters club at the Lord Nelson Hotel in the Rocks.. Willie Simpson pulled out an aged Kent Town Pale Ale. Must have been something about 1980's Adelaide, but this was all satin & lace. Yet very much the same pedigree as it's larger neighbour. Kent Town is long gone, sadly.

I'll throw some Sydney locals into the mix:

Lord Nelson Three Sheets, James Squire Governor King, Redoak Kolsch.

Kolsch ? Fair enough to pull me up on that. But I will argue that, in Australia at least, this style is so wide and varied that at least one offering is likely to align with Aussie Pale.

A lot of Aussie brewers are hung up on American pales. Little Creatures has paved a wide, wide way, and the ongoing evolution of New World hops, particularly from NZ, has seen the fruit-bomb beer become the norm.

I want clean, fresh malt, (yep... Kolsch-like), good yeasty evidence in ester & eye, served cold, but not too offensive when warming, and sessionable.