Category Archives: Beer review

Beer review — Barons

25 April 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Barons Lager 330ml 6-pack $15
This dark golden lager uses Czech Saaz and New Zealand hops and Australian and German malts. It starts with an inviting burst of hops aroma, backed by sweet malt. The creamy textured palate, too, shows real malt depth, nicely balanced with hops flavour and refreshing bitterness.

Barons Pale Ale 330ml 6-pack $15
This is a pleasant, balanced, fruity drop but it has neither the turbo-hopped character of American Pale Ale styles nor the harmonious, bitter, more-ish subtlety of English styles like Bass. But it does have delicate fruity notes and appealing aromas and flavours derived from Pacific Hallertau and Nelson Sauvin hops.

Beer review — Schloss, Wernesgrüner & Cooper’s

4 April 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Schloss Pils 330ml 6-pack $11.99. Wernesgrüner Pils 335ml 6-pack $11.99
These Aldi imports sit squarely in the German Pilsen-style mould – bright, light golden lagers with dry finish and pronounced hop bitterness. The Schloss is a little darker in colour and not as stunningly fresh as the Wernesgrüner. Both offer outstanding value for money and were purchased at Aldi, Holt.

Cooper’s Extra Stout 375ml about $3.30
The recent cool nights prompted a visit to this warming old friend — a beautifully fresh and balanced beer. It’s deeply coloured, with persistent, creamy tan-coloured foam and opulent, malty, fruity, roast coffee aroma and flavours – finishing dry and refreshingly bitter. It’s bottle conditioned and therefore carries a natural yeast sediment.

Beer review — Matilda Bay and Wig & Pen

28 March 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Matilda Bay Bohemian Pilsner 345ml about $3
Matilda Bay brews this golden lager in the traditional Czech Pilsen style — with heaps of hops of the very aromatic and succulently bitter Saaz variety. This sets the tone from start to finish – from the pungent, resiny aroma to the lingering, ultra-bitter finish. It’s a beer drinker’s beer.

Wig & Pen Summer Dark Star Lager middy $4.20
The Wig’s latest, charismatic seasonal specialty looks dark and brooding like a warming winter ale – an impression furthered by the rich, dark-chocolate aroma. Though the dark chocolate flavour fills the palate, it’s foiled by the most refreshing, assertive and delicious hops bitterness that turns winter to summer in a few sips.

Beer review — James Squire & Tooheys

14 March 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

James Squire Hop Thief Ale 345 ml $18 6 pack
This second release of Hop Thief — named for convict James Squire, pioneering hop grower and brewer — makes a pungent, bitter, delicious statement about hops (from the USA) – fleetingly muted by a smooth maltiness – before the resiny, bitter hops flood back to provide as bracing a finish as you’re likely to find in any beer.

Tooheys Old Black Ale 375ml $15.49 6-pack
In a hot land populated by cold, golden lager, Tooheys Old is a rare, swarthy survivor of the pre-refrigeration era when ale ruled the beer world. Available on tap and in bottle it offers fruity ale notes and subtle, refreshing bitterness with a core of distinctive roasted coffee flavours. Pity it’s always served Arctic-cold.

Beer review — St Arnou

7 March 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

St Arnou Premium Blonde 330ml 6-pack $17
Managing Director Matthew Beggs says that this is the beer ‘to get people comfortable with St Arnou’. It’s the biggest selling of five in the range, a pale, crisp, easy drinking, and not-too-bitter style with a distinct clove-like note, courtesy of wheat malt. A bottled version recently joined the draft.

Beer review — Holgate of Macedon

21 February 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Holgate Mount Macedon Ale 330ml $2.99
Paul Holgate models his signature beer, named for nearby Mount Macedon, on the German Kölsch style of pale ale. It has an attractive reddish colour and a smooth, malty richness. Assertive hops seasoning adds a floral note and lingering, zesty, bitter finish. One isn’t enough. But alcohol is a modest 4.5 per cent.

Holgate White Ale 330ml $2.99
On a hot day chilled wheat beer fresh from the tap appeals even to non-beer-drinkers. The high acid, negligible hops aroma and moderate bittering deliver a unique flavour experience unlike that of regular all-barley beers. The luxurious, pure-white head looks a treat, too, especially served in a Champagne flute.

Beer review — Bright Brewery

14 February 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Bright Brewery Hellfire Ale 24X330ml $85
Bright’s amber brew is vaguely in the English pale ale style, though notably maltier and with a touch of caramel giving a hint of sweetness. But a good dose of hops keeps the sweetness in balance, starting with appealing aromatic high notes then providing a tantalising, drying, refreshing bitterness.

Bright Brewery Blowhard Pale Ale 24X330ml $85
Blowhard seems more in the mould of American style pale ales — and that often means a burly, muscly, malt-opulence versus hops-bitterness arm wrestle. It’s amazingly zesty, fresh and rich. But as you sip away, the resiny/citrusy hops gain the upper hand. You love it or hate it. But you never forget it.

Beer review — Bridge Road Brewery

7 February 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Bridge Road Brewery Beechworth Wheat Ale 330ml-6pack $19
You can buy the bottled version from Brian Loader at Kingston markets and it’s good, but for the real five-star thrill you must try it on tap at the brewery. Served ultra-fresh like this it delivers the wonderful fruity high notes of the southern German wheat style.

Bridge Road Brewery Beechworth Dark Ale 330ml-6pack $20
Brewer Ben Kraus says this goes well with chocolate cake or oysters, presumably not at the same time. It’s definitely good with the brewery’s home-baked pretzels or on its own and distinctive because though dark coloured and assertive chocolate and roast malt in flavour, is quite lean bodied and refreshingly dry.

Beer review — Pike’s Oakbank

31 January 2007Beer reviewChris Shanahan

Pike’s Oakbank Beer $15.99 6-pack
Pike’s, the much-loved Clare Valley winery, brewed beer in the nineteenth century, a practice that lapsed then re-emerged as the Coopers-brewed Oakbank Ale in the late twentieths century. This new brew is more in the pilsner style and features rich, smooth malt and wonderfully aromatic, mildly bitter hops.

Australia Day beer report — state of play, state of origin

24 January 2007Beer, Beer reviewChris Shanahan

In the old days where we lived in Australia pretty well determined which beer we’d enjoy on a hot day. Barring a little blurring around State borders, we drank what our home-State breweries offered.

In the mid seventies a new Victorian brewery, Courage, attempted a national roll out with the now defunct Courage and Crest brands. By then, of course, we were also enjoying a range of imported beers.

In the eighties rationalisation of the industry began in earnest and brewers attempted to move State brands across borders. Carlton United did this with great success, building Fosters into a national and international brand.

Interestingly, Fosters faded quickly in Australia to be replaced by Victoria Bitter, another Carlton United brand. It remains, perhaps, the most successful of the border-crossing non-premium State brands.

Huge growth in premium beers started in the late eighties and accelerated in the nineties leading, ultimately, to the national roll out of Sydney’s Hahn Premium and Tasmania’s Cascade and Boags Premium. These joined the already nationally successful Crown Lager, yet another of the Carlton brands, and a growing number of internationals.

By now State brands were thoroughly intermingled in ownership, with Queensland’s Castlemaine, New South Wales’ Tooheys and Hahn, South Australia’s West End and Southwark and Western Australia’s Emu and Swan folded, along with New Zealand Lion, Leopard and Steinlager, into Lion Nathan, itself 46-per-cent Japanese owned.

Meanwhile, Foster’s Group, still Australian owned, controls just about any hallowed old Victorian name you care to remember as well as those from New South Wales’ Tooths and Reschs breweries and Tasmania’s Cascade.

Ironically, while rationalisation and internationalisation tend to foster blandness in mass brands, both of our giant brewers have serious investments in genuine craft brewing operations.

Lion’s Malt Shovel Brewery in Sydney and Little Creatures in Fremantle and Foster’s Matilda Bay (Fremantle and Dandenong) produce highly complex, idiosyncratic beers of the highest quality.

Fortunately these are widely distributed, for the most part readily available and add vivid splashes of colour to the pretty bland palette of commercial beers.

Consumer demand for more interesting beers has also meant a proliferation of micro breweries across the country, These tend to service local markets – sometimes for the simple reason that they make draft beer only. But we’re sure to see increasing numbers on retail shelves if demand for premium beers continues to grow rapidly.

With all of the above in mind, my Australia Day beer selections focus on genuine State-of-origin beers, of great individuality, from craft brewers large and small.

The one exception is the Northern Territory. Without a field trip, alas, nothing notable emerged – hence, the choice of the top end’s beer icon, the Darwin stubby.

Here’s to Australia and Aussie beer.

AUSTRALIAN CAPITAL TERRITORY

The Wig & Pen Tavern & Brewery, various beers
Since 1994 the Wig, under proprietor Lachlan McOmish and brewers Richard Pass and now Richard Watkins, has been at the leading edge of Australian pub brewing. The Wig, in Alinga Street, offers a diversity of complex, award winning beer styles built on a regular range supplemented by seasonal specialties.

NEW SOUTH WALES

James Squire Original Pilsener 345ml 6pack $16
NSW has so many good brewers but this one, made by Chuck Hahn’s crew at the Lion Nathan owned Malt Shovel brewery, is a world class interpretation of the Bohemian model. It delivers the tremendous malt richness of the style as well as the magnificent aromatics and intense bitterness of Saaz hops.

NORTHERN TERRITORY

Northern Territory Draught Darwin Stubby 2 litre $30
It’s brewed in Melbourne by Foster’s and the beer, says retired brewer Peter Manders, is a mainstream lager in the style of Victoria Bitter – Australia’s biggest selling brew – so we all know what it tastes like. It’s an icon of the Territory, if not an artefact. And, no, they don’t offer six-packs.

QUEENSLAND

Oxford 152 Micro Brewery, Bulimba, various brews
Early last year I judged at the Australian International Beer Awards with Oxford 152 brewer, Brennan Fielding. I’ve not visited the pub brewery — at 152 Oxford Street, Bulimba — and therefore rely on Brennan’s extraordinary nineteen-medal tally at the awards for my rating and recommendation. A field trip is on the agenda.

SOUTH AUSTRALIA

Coopers Sparkling Ale 375ml 6 pack about $15
After defeating Lion’s recent hostile takeover bid, Cooper’s cemented its role as the third force in Australian brewing – with an estimated three per cent of the national market. Adelaide loves it. And growing numbers throughout Australia enjoy the rich, fruity, distinctive, cloudy style – caused not by the Adelaide water but by a natural yeast haze.

TASMANIA

Moorilla Moo Brew Wheat Beer 330ml $5.50
Tasmania has a highly visible brewing thanks largely to the quality and mainstream success of Cascade Premium and Boags Premium lagers. But there’s a craft brewing presence as well, including Claudio Radenti’s draught Hazards Ale and this delightful, zesty bottle-conditioned wheat beer from Moorilla Estate Winery’s new brewery near Hobart.

VICTORIA

Naked Ale $4.80 a pot at Young & Jackson Pub, Melbourne
Jules Lefebvre’s 1875 portrait Chloe provoked outrage in Victorian era Melbourne. More than a century on Chloe presides, still naked, over her own bar at Young & Jackson’s pub on Flinders and Swanston Streets. Visitors toast Chloe with Naked Ale, a superb keg-conditioned wheat beer made at Matilda Bay’s Dandenong brewery.

WESTERN AUSTRALIA

Little Creatures Pale Ale 330ml
Lion Nathan is a major shareholder. Nevertheless this Fremantle operation is a craft brewer in the true sense, making highly complex beers, albeit in sufficient volume for national distribution. Its original creation, Pale Ale, the flagship, stimulates the senses — deliciously — with its passionfruit-like hops-led aroma and flavour.