Whats the best beer you've had & why?

[wombat]

Can't say I've ever been a massive beer drinker, but I really think that changed a bit a month or so back in Germany. First of all we had an awesome brew in Fussen, down south in Bavaria. We found it at a little B&B we stayed at, local brewery, not available outside of the town, and awesome. I can't drink much warm, but this was a joy. Sadly can't remember for the life of me what it was called. Drank a lot of Schlappe Seppel in Aschaffenburg too, acquired quite a taste for that one.

Found this in a little bar here in Dijon tonight though, 'Belzebuth". 13% abv, can't say I was a fan of the aroma, but the taste was bitey and enjoyable, not bitter, maybe almost a bit chocolatey? I dunno about this tasting guff.

 

[Fatman]

Here we go, a long weekend and a few premium beers.

Mikkeller '1000 IBU Ultramate', Denmark, 4.9%abv.
Light clear amber with a billowy uneven head, Absolutely reeks of fresh picked hops, farking big aroma. Hop syrup is about the best I can describe this as. The first sip attacks the palate, it takes about ten seconds but it will get you. There's a false sense of security thinking it really isn't all that powerful but then it hits like a train, there is a warming quality and aftertaste that just wont go away. Absolutely kills your palate in the first few sips so eventually you become accustomed to the hop onslaught. But just because it's full of hops doesn't mean it is a great beer. The aromatics remind me of a broken lemon tree branch and the flavour is just too much even if it does become bearable.



Stone and Wood 'Mash Collective' Amasia Rumweizen, Australia, 7%abv.
Rusty reddish brown with a stack of marbles head and fine bead. Sweet rum and raisin toffee with banana and chocolate. Smooth and light but just too thin, a little bitter and dry. Not nearly as 'Amais'ing as it make out in the blurb on the bottle.



Murray's 'Wild Thing" Imperial Stout, Australia 10%abv.
Black with no windows of colour with a shiny dense beady bronze head. Rich dark chocolate and moody earthy malt but there's a pervasive aroma of chlorine? Burnt treacle and leather, great label on the bottle but this is not a good Imperial Stout, something went wrong? If not this is not a flavour I'd be seeking out any time soon.



Thornbridge Brewery. 'Jaipur' IPA, England, 5.9%abv.
Beautiful clear golden straw with a lively bead and frothy white head. Syrupy and citrussy hop aromatics with some pine and a little sweetness. Well balanced, full of character and intriguing flavour. A little short on malt but the hops are perfect, big bitterness but it seems to dissipate before becoming too much. Grapefruit, pine, just YES! this is a smashing beer. Worth the $13 a bottle? probably not but it really is very good.



Green Flash Brewing Co. 'Palate Wrecker' Double IPA, USA, 9.5%abv.
Hamilton's Ale, brewed to celebrate the 2nd anniversary of Hamiltons Tavern. The most complicated west coast IPA. Malty, complex fruity hop aroma. BIG favour, loads of delicious resinous hops intertwined with rich malt. Far too drinkable to be a palate wrecker it is certainly a challenging beer. Very nice indeed, just delicious.



We did have quite a few more today but they weren't worth mentioning.

 

[Fatman]

And a few more.

Southern Bay Brewing Company. Requiem Uber Pale Pilsner. Australia. 5.0%abv.
The name was a little confusing, Requiem, a song or mass for the dead, not exactly confidence inspiring. Very clear pale golden straw with a billowing soft white head. Made from a very pale malt and German, Australian and New Zealand Hallertau hops for a freshly picked hop nose. Light and smooth but definitely favours the hops but just enough bitterness. Seems a little smooth for a hoppy pilsner, maybe it's a requiem for crispness which is a bit dead in this drop?


Bridge Roads Brewers and Nogne Ø. India Saison. Australia. 7.5%abv
A collaboration of North and South, Norway and Australia. Light Saison yeast and some Galaxy and Stella hops. Big sappy herbal hop aroma and that grainy saison background. Pours beautifully clear light golden with an uneven bead and frothy white head. Strong oily bittersweet hops up front with a smacking dryness followed by a malty finish which is in no way as big as the hops. I am not a fan of Saison, this hasn't really done anything to change that even if I do generally like both of these brewers.


Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. 2012 Tumbler. American Brown Ale. USA. 5.5%abv.
Pours light clear brown with a stack of marbles dense head and very fine lively bead. Light roasty malt with some chocolate and yeasty bread. Quite thin and light but has some redeeming hoppy qualities which are again quite light. For a beer with this high an abv it lacks the flavour of English milds with much lower strength. I'm not a fan and I want to like this so much, there is just too much missing.


Moon Dog Brewing Pty Ltd. Henry Ford's Girthsome Fjord. Belgo American India Brown Ale. Australia. 8.1%abv.
Pours thick and opaque mid brown with a thin light brown uneven head, I tried ptting a very bright light to it and there was no penetration whatsoever. Quite a hoppy sweet herbal aroma, with a title like that it covers a lot of bases. Disinctly sweet malt of a Trappist ale, roasty and hoppy qualities of an American Brown and the bitterness of an IPA. I like this one, it is so many things, complex and rich, bitey and bitter. This thing is a schizophrenic beer, when you think you know it it will change. So many malts, Maris Otter, Brown, Crystal, Dark Munich, Chocolate Wheat and some brown sugar with trappist yeast and American whitbread with Summit, Horizon, Amarillo hops and then dry hopped with Glacier, Amarillo and Cascade. I had no idea what to expect and this thing is quite complex and confusing, I don't think it knows what it is. Despite all this the problem I guess is that it really is a nice drop, just very big for a warm spring afternoon as it is a big SOB. Delicious.



Still a number more to go through today but I wouldn't want to give the wrong impression would I?

 

[kl3ggy]

@fatman. Where do you buy all of these beers. I haven't seen half of these at my local.

 

[Fatman]

@fatman. Where do you buy all of these beers. I haven't seen half of these at my local.

I will travel far and wide to get my hands on all sorts.

I make a regular trip that takes about 1.25 hours to my favourite beer purveyor, Warners at the Bay, and spend a few hundred at a time every couple of months. Aside from that I have a great local who will get in all sorts for me and I used to work in the trade for one of the very big beer specialists.

Get to know the guys at your local and they may order from good importers like Phoenix and Innspire. If you can't then get on to Purvis cellars, Slow beer, International Beershop and a number of other online stores to get what you need.

 

[nikmcc]

@fatman. Where do you buy all of these beers. I haven't seen half of these at my local.

Another site worth mentioning is adelaide beer store, or maybe its "bier"... I can't remember. Google it:beer:

I've mentioned it before, but I'll plug em again... I'm a member of www.beermasons.com really cool, they send out a box every 3 months (with the seasons). They are now big enough that they import some of the beer themselves, makes for some very unique experiences! Well worth the $$$

Sent from my GT-I9000 using Tapatalk 2

 

[@nDr3w]

I make a regular trip that takes about 1.25 hours to my favourite beer purveyor, Warners at the Bay, and spend a few hundred at at time every couple of months.

Awesome, this is only about a 45 minute trip from me. Any tips? I feel like I'd be a kid in a candy store.

Tried 3 different pale ales this weekend. Gage Roads Atomic Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, and Little Creatures Pale Ale, with the L.C. being the only one I've had before. Surprising, I liked the Atomic Pale Ale the most. It was the cheapest, too, which is a nice bonus. Reckon I'll get a whole case pretty soon.

 

[Fatman]

Awesome, this is only about a 45 minute trip from me. Any tips? I feel like I'd be a kid in a candy store.

Tried 3 different pale ales this weekend. Gage Roads Atomic Pale Ale, Sierra Nevada Pale Ale, and Little Creatures Pale Ale, with the L.C. being the only one I've had before. Surprising, I liked the Atomic Pale Ale the most. It was the cheapest, too, which is a nice bonus. Reckon I'll get a whole case pretty soon.

Funny thing, I often find the cheaper and shabbier the label the better the beer. That isn't always true though.
Just try anything that you want to, it's often better not to listen to everyone else. I have bought more rubbish listening to everyone else than just grabbing the ones that jump out at you.

 

[Mattydv]

LTYL: living 500m away from Warners At The Bay. The ability to get a growler every few days is pretty nice.

I'd say it's worth the trip Andrew, but when you go take a bit of $$ with you, especially if you're planning on buying single bottles. A stubby for >$8 is pretty common.

 

[Fatman]

It's Sunday again, time for a few more tasters.

Grand Ridge Brewing Company. 'WHOA!' Oatmeal Ale Australia 4.5%abv.
Wet hopped oatmeal ale made with some home grown hops and toasted oats. Pours clear golden with a frothy white head, grassy aromatics with hints of peach and a little like a forest fruit muesli bar. Smooth and well rounded, the hop bitterness is tempered well by the smooth and sweet oatiness, the bitterness rises and then instead of attacking the palate it falls away to a crisp dry finish. Unusual and quite drinkable.



Innis & Gunn Brewing Co. Ltd. 'Independence Day 2012', Oak Aged Ale, Scotland, 7%abv.
Aged in oak barrels for 54 days prior to release, pours clear coppery like a shiny new penny with a fine bead and frothy white head. Theres an earthy fruit nose with the oaky qualities coursing through it. Smooth and strong flavour, as always a little like lacquery acorns or an old wooden church pew. Complex flavour unique to Innis and Gunn, this time brewed with some zesty American hops which compliment the oak very nicely, the higher alcohol and sweet malt make a fantastic drop.



MoonDog Brewing Pty Ltd. 'Perverse Sexual Amalgam' Sour Ale, Australia, 6.1%abv.
Black wild ale with cherry plums. Vienna and unmalted wheat, Progress hops, Midnight wheat and dark muscovado sugar. Belgian Wit yeast and brettanomyces. 5 months in a barrel with dark cherry plums. Black with a thin light brown head. Acrid acidic fruity aroma with some tar and brown sugar. Tart and a little woody, like an off red wine. Oak and fruit but no sweetness and all the acidity. Complex and unusual, rather polarising, putting Brett in always mixes it up as it could go either way. I love and hate this beer, I just can't not drink it though. Can normally pick Brett like a dirty nose, just not as well done as many sour ales but it is challenging.



BridgePort Brewery, 'Kingpin' Triple Hopped Double Red Ale, USA, 7.5%abv.
From Portland Oregon. Semi cloudy honey amber with a tight light brown head. Beautiful rich malt with loads of hops, resinous and full bodied. Very nice indeed, body , flavour, aroma and complexity. Really very nice stuff.



BridgePort Brewery, 'India Pale Ale', USA, 5.5%abv.
Burnt yellow with a dense foamy head and good lacing. Typical new world hop aroma but somewhat lighter than many these days. Floral and light hops with underlying sweet malt and a hint of mint. Smooth and complex but a little light. A little underwhelming and light on. Expectation these days of an IPA even of this low abv is of huge hops but this doesn't have it. Not a bad beer at all but just too bland in present company.



Epic Brewing Company. 'Barrel Aged IPA', New Zealand, 7.25%abv.

Aged Armageddon IPA. Clear yellowish amber with a fine bead andfrothy white head. Loads of herbal zesty hops with oaky christmas tree. Unfortunately this stuff reminds me of a floor cleaner. Resiny and complex but quite delicious and warm woody finish with underlying bitterness.



Sail and Anchor, 'Cat's Shank' Kolsch, Australia, 4.5%abv.
Pours clear light yellow with a fine bead and thin white head. Zesty pineapple, true to the style it is very light and refreshing. Quite thin and crisp, not a lot there but it is okay. Trying to cut in on the James Squire market by the looks of it.



Sail and Anchor 'Lark's Foot' Golden Ale, Australia, 4.5%abv.
Beautiful coppery bright clear amber with a light head. Grainy light treacle, it's quite light and lacking in flavour. Plenty of body but there's not a great deal to like.



Sail and Anchor, 'Boa's Bind' Amber Ale, Australia, 5%abv.
Deep clear amber with a slow fine bead and translucent light brown head. Malty molasses and herbaceous hops. Full bodied but medium flavour it is just a little lacking.



Gage Roads, 'Pumpkin Ale', Australia, 4.5%abv.
An American classic style with a local spin. Bright clear orange with a frothy white head. Pumpkin pie, cinnamon and pumpkin, lightly sweet and smells like pumpkin seeds. Smooth and tiny prickles, nothing really special, smooth and sessionable Halloween beer.



Sail and Anchor, 'Monkey's Fist' Pale Ale, Australia, 4.9%abv.
Clear coppery amber with a short lived translucent head. Fresh garden clippings and green hop aroma. It is quite promising to start but as you drink it, it is like they got half way and pulled out. It is as if there was a good beer which was watered down significantly to ration it out, the good ingredients are there but quite diluted.



This is getting to be like too much work, but I do so enjoy it.

 

[KWICKS]

Avoid Hargreaves Hill Hefeweizen, 4 Pines all together (sadly as they are local to me). Enjoying the Hargreaves Hill Pale Ale, the Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA and Kellerweis Hefeweizen (again!) and the Hook Norton Brewery Old Hooky (get into this brewery if you can find it at your local Dan Murphy's, all the beers are very good).

 

[OCD'R]

Thought you weren't drinking atm kieran?

 

[jrewing]

The dopplebock from 4 pines on tap was awesome.

 

[dcrofty]

The one I'm part way through right now goes alright

 

[syphon_the_python]

Found a treat stashed away – Winter '09 Special Release James Squire Hop Thief! by oceanic, on Flickr

Had a pint of James Squire "Hop Thief" last night. I like a hoppy brew, but this was almost too much! Potent burps for hours.

 

[Fatman]

Little Creatures, Single Batch 'Puffing Billy', Australia, Bock 6.5%abv.
A dark lager made with loads of hops and beech wood smoked malt. Lively clear reddish copper with a billowy soft head which fades to a thin foam with some spider webs, when just poured it's a great looking beer. The name would suggest some smokey aromatic quality but I'm yet to find it, plenty of yeasty malt and some herbaceous hops. Plenty of body with a little bite mid palate, the alcohol is warming and the hops spicy and bitter, the feintest suggestion of the smoke comes through in the lingering finish. From all the pre-release around this one I was expecting a lot more.

 

[KWICKS]

Really, I'm raving about it. Easily as good as the winter spiced ale.

Mind if I asked how bad you were ripped off at the checkout? I paid $12 a bottle, Dan Murphys will have it for $6.99 a single or $69.99 a box of 12 pints (coming soon on their website). Was not happy with what I was charged.

 

[KWICKS]

Thought you weren't drinking atm kieran?

Ocsober permitted a leave pass as part of the program. Gratefully accepted was the offer

 

[KWICKS]

Is the Sail 'n Anchor kit an OEM "craft beer" from Woolworth's? Seems a little out of left field and to hit the shelves with a full offering, in store tastings, etc. I smell a money grab from Woolies?

 

[Fatman]

Is the Sail 'n Anchor kit an OEM "craft beer" from Woolworth's? Seems a little out of left field and to hit the shelves with a full offering, in store tastings, etc. I smell a money grab from Woolies?

You bet, they're known as WLB's, cheap products with big margin.