Category Archives: Beer review

Beer review — Wig & Pen, Hoegaarden

11 July 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Wig & Pen Russian Imperial Stout $6.00 & Lachie’s Ness $4.20 (half pint)
These are two wonderful, idiosyncratic seasonal specialties brewed by Richard Watkins at the Wig & Pen, Canberra City. The first is a potent, molasses-rich stout served, responsibly, only in half pints. The other, named for proprietor Lachie McOmish, is in the silk-smooth, chocolate/malt/smoky Scot’s wee heavy style.
*****

Hoegaarden ‘The Forbidden Fruit’ 330ml $5.50
International brewer InBev makes Belgium’s unique, cheeky winter favourite – Forbidden Fruit. It’s a heady mix of alcohol, malt and fruity esters that are part and parcel of the warm-fermented ale family. At 8.5 per cent alcohol it’s a sip-and-savour style – but a wimp compared to the Wig’s 11 per cent stout, reviewed above.
*****

Beer review — Theakston & Wychwood

4 July 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Theakston Old Peculier the Legend 500ml $7.49
Peculier spelling perhaps, but Theakston’s idiosyncratic brew clicks all the right winter hyperlinks. An alcohol of 5.6 underpins an inviting warmth that’s matched by the rich but subtle malt flavour. The use of wheat malt as well as barley in the blend gives the palate zest and dries out the pleasantly tart finish.

Wychwood Hobgoblin Strong Dark Ale 500ml $6.89
At 5.2 per cent the alcohol’s modest for a strong ale. But the opulent, creamy-textured palate adds to its warmth. The flavours lean towards the chocolate, mocha and caramel typical of dark malt beers – and this is nicely balanced with a tweak of hops bitterness. It’s a distinctive, delicious winter beer.

Beer review — Outback & Schwelmer

27 June 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Outback Chilli Beer 330ml $3.75
Ahhhh! Ouch! Ahhhh! Ouch! At last, the beer that creates a need for itself. It has a deep amber colour and a matching, warm opulent, malty palate. That first sweet hit seduces the palate, before a surge of chilli ripples in leaving its pleasantly bitey residue and, alas, a slightly sweet, cloying aftertaste.

Schwelmer Pils Swingtop 330ml $4.20
Imported from the Schwelm brewery, Westphalia, this lovely Pils style lacks only the freshness to earn five stars. It’s a light golden coloured lager, featuring rich malt that’s offset deliciously by assertive but balanced hops. These contribute to the aroma, flavour, and refreshing, bitter, dry finish.

Beer review — Coopers Dark & Newcastle Brown ales

20 June 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Coopers Dark Ale 375ml $2.35
Cooper’s ads invite you to meet the dark side of the family – Dark Ale. While it’s dark in colour it’s comparatively low in alcohol (4.5 per cent) — meaning lighter body but not a lack of flavour. It has ale’s fruity aromas and, under that, a touch of roast-coffee-like character. The palate is rich but lively with a very fresh, crisp, dry finish.

Newcastle Brown Ale 330ml $3.25
While this is on the blander end of the ale scale, it’s only modestly alcoholic at 4.7 per cent, and offers attractive toffee and caramel like aromas and flavours. Together with the sweet, malt character this gives an attractive warming effect, while a decent tweak of hops dries the finish out nicely.

Beer review — Le Choufe & Outback

13 June 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Le Chouffe Biere Blonde d’Ardenne 750ml $13.50
I found this deep-golden, bottle-conditioned Belgian wheat ale in a tiny Sydney bottle shop. It’s seasoned with coriander and weighs in at eight per cent alcohol. There’s an appealing clove-like character to it, a richly textured, smooth palate and a pleasing tannin grip balancing the sweet, alcoholic warmth. A great winter beer.
*****

Outback Black Opal 330ml $3.15
‘Preservative free & naturally brewed’ says the label. But alas it fell flat, literally. A bad bottle perhaps? The dark amber/black colour suggests substance, but it’s medium bodied and to my taste a little hollow and off balance: the light, sweet/malt/molasses flavour seemed a little cloying and might have been better with a belt of hops.
**

Beer review — James Squire & Trumer

6 June 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

James Squire Original Amber Ale 345ml six-pack $17.99
The creation of Amber Ale in 1998 marked Chuck Hahn’s return to small batch brewing, after several years as head brewer for Lion Nathan. Available on tap and in bottle, it’s a deep, copper-coloured brew with citrusy hops notes, rich malt, fruity highnotes and lingering bitterness. The quality’s still there despite increased production.
*****

Trumer Pils 330ml $3.40
A bright lemon colour and pure-white foam give Trumer a refreshing appeal, confirmed by the fresh, attractive herbal hops aroma. This appeal carries through on a lively, fresh and tasty-but-light palate with a fine balance of rich malt and herbal, drying, bitter hops. Brewed and bottled in Salzburg, Austria.

Beer review — Little Creatures & Matilda Bay

30 May 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Little Creatures Rogers’ Beer 330ml — about $16 a six pack
This mid-strength brew (3.8 per cent alcohol) — named after its creators, Rogers Bailey and Bussell – leads and finishes with the distinctive and amazingly refreshing Little Creatures’ Oregon hops. Behind the hops, though, lies a silk smooth maltiness with a subtle roasted character.

Matilda Bay Alpha Pale Ale 330ml 6 pack $22
Brad Rogers brews this deep amber, small-batch, American style pale ale at Matilda Bay’s Garage Brewery, Dandenong. Its in-your-face hoppy aroma and astonishing bitterness counter the beer’s opulent, sweetish maltiness. This is a brewer’s brew, released on tap and in bottle in discrete batches after prolonged tank conditioning

Beer review — Cascade & Hoegaarden

23 May 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Cascade First Harvest Ale 2007
This is a serious celebration of humulus lupus – several varieties of it, in fact, fresh harvested from Tasmania’s Derwent Valley. It’s a fruity, light-amber ale with the full malty body to carry the assertive aroma, flavour and exquisite, lingering herbal bitterness of the three hops varieties. The best of this series yet, I believe.

Hoegaarden Witbier 330ml $3.69
Belgium’s famous bottle-conditioned wheat beer always impresses for its lively freshness. And it appeals for its hazy, lemon colour, pure, white foam, zesty lemon and clove aroma and beautifully light, crisp, citrusy palate. It looks particularly appealing served in a Champagne flute and, like Champagne, makes an excellent aperitif.

Beer review — Shepherd Neame

16 May 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Shepherd Neame 1698 Bottle Conditioned Strong Ale 500ml $8.50
This is a magnificent ale with a poise and balance belying its 6.5 per cent alcohol. While there’s a luxurious, toffee-like maltiness at the core, generous use of local Kent hops convincingly pervades and tempers – aromatically and with bitterness — what could easily have been a too-heady, too-sweet brew.
*****

Shepherd Neame Whitstable Bay Organic Ale 500ml $7.50
This delicious, aromatic ale combines organic English barley malt with organic New Zealand Gem and Hallertau hops. It’s another charismatic Shepherd Neame brew. In this case the sweet, fruity, malty aromas and flavours star. But the Kiwi hops kick in to give a refreshing, dry, herbal finish.
*****

Beer review — Weihenstephaner & Little Creatures

2 May 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Weihenstephaner Hefe Weissbier 500ml $4.99
I couldn’t make the International Beer Awards judging this year, but having recently tasted the 2007 Grand Champion – Weihenstephaner Kristall (clear) — alongside the bottle-conditioned version (Hefe) still have a preference for the latter. Whichever you prefer these are superb examples of Bavarian wheat ale from a millennium-old brewery. See www.internationalbeershop.com.au
*****
Little Creatures Pale Ale 330ml 6-pack $17.99
The AIBA’s ‘Champion Ale’, comes from a Fremantle operation in which Lion Nathan holds a major interest. Nevertheless, it’s a genuine craft brewer, making complex beers, albeit in sufficient volume for national distribution. Its original creation, Pale Ale, stimulates the senses deliciously with its passionfruit-like hops-led aroma and flavour.
*****