A Ruby Red Ale from Suffolk from across the world: the United Kingdom. This bottle is marvellous. Looks like a medicine bottle and the beer in it is lovely – if medicine tasted like this, it’d be way easier to get people to take it.
A lovely red colour, a lovely spicy hop red ale aroma and it even tastes good. There’s a lovely malty undertone to it all that isn’t overpowering, just what you want from a red ale.
I kinda want to have more of it just to get more of these bottles…
One of the great things about Cascade First Harvest is that it’ll be different each year. Some years it has been great and others, not so much. This year is pretty good actually. I’d say give this year a go.
This is one of my favourites. Look at any list on BeerAdvocate.com and it scores rather highly. It’s dark and delicious. Yes, it’s Belgian and it’s 10% and it comes in large bottles if you like. If you’re really lucky you can find somewhere with a tap of this stuff – If anyone knows somewhere in Melbourne with one, I *MUST* know.
Ahhh Ginger. I had the Matso Ginger Beer the other day and quite raved about it (my search for a Ginger Beer with ginger in it is strewn with disappointments). This was a different kind of drink, while there was ginger in it, it was certainly a beer with ginger rather than *ginger* beer. Honestly, I prefer the Matso by a long way.
I had this about a week ago and being a fan of beer brewed with coffee, I thought I’d try this Limited Release  Lagunitas Cappuccino Stout. It was fairly nice, although I have had coffee stouts I’ve liked better – although I do know people who have really liked this one too.
I wrote about the Harviestoun Old Engine Oil a little while ago, and I really quite liked it. I liked it enough that when next at Acland cellars I decided to get more of their beers. Tonight, being another cold night, I decided to see if the “Old Dubh” (also on the label is the wonderful words “Special 12 Reserve”) lived up to the Old Engine Oil.
It does. Wow.
The little book attached to the bottle says the beer is so named because it’s “gloopy and viscous”. Well, it’s lovely and black, and the aroma is just lovely. I’d use words such as chocolatey, malty and that hint of scotch that warms the soul on a cold evening.
The Old Dubh is matured in Highland Park 12 Year Old Single Malt Scotch Whisky casks, which is what gives it that extra bits of flavour. I honestly don’t know why this great trick isn’t done by more breweries, as this beer is just lovely. I have another Harviestoun in the fridge, and I kind of can’t wait to try it.
I had this a little while ago, but I didn’t really take any notes at the time. It was quite a pleasant drop.
Finally, an alcoholic Ginger Beer that actually tastes like it has ginger in it!
Smells like rum, tastes a bit like it too. You can certainly tell it’s been in a Rum cask. Nice. I think I prefer the original over this one, although they are both distinctly different.
This is a delicious beer. The text on the side of the bottle is rather worth reading too. Basically, it has flavour. It’s not a “we’re going to hop your brains out” IPA, rather a “we’re making an IPA with flavour that’s very yummy”.
I think this has to be one of my favourites. I Â don’t get to have it often, but it has such a wonderful flavour: strong, not overwhelming and a wonderful example of what an Extra Special Bitter should be. I know you can get it on tap at Mrs Parmas in Melbourne, although I swear I’ve found it at other places too – and anyone who doesn’t mind an ESB should certainly give this one a try.
My first beer from Japan! This pours nice and thick. This Espresso Stout is black like my heart and is thick like the phrase “Guinness is a meal” would lead you to believe (rather than the sad reality that is Guinness these days).
While I can’t really detect the espresso in the smell of this one (although once it warmed up a bit I could), I can in the taste. Halfway through a mouthful you’re certainly going “mmm… espresso-y”.
This was quite enjoyable. I’m not sure if I could drink more than one (I probably couldn’t), and it doesn’t match the whatever it was I had through a coffee bean filled Randy at Mountain Goat a while ago, but it’s certainly nice.
Yes folks, there can be good beer come out of Japan.
In which I attempt to make beer photos more interesting by hipster-izing them as much as humanly possible without using Instagram.
This is Barons Black Wattle Original Ale. As far as anyone can work out, there isn’t much of this left. The Barons Brewing website is no more and it seems the company went away after not sticking to their core business – which was brewing beer.
It’s got Wattle in the name as the beer has roasted wattle seeds. The Wattle is an Australian native, that is – to me, this beer is distinctly Australian. It’s not a flavour you’d come up with elsewhere. While it is not my most favourite beer of all time, being something that you simply couldn’t really come up with anywhere else, I hold it in a special place.
Oh, and yes it is true that I’m attempting to bribe people at work (Percona) with offers of me sending them a bottle.
When we heard that the brewery was no more, we stockpiled. If you find any in a store, grab it – you probably won’t get another chance to try this brew.
It’s 5.8%, with a rich amber colour and a good rounding of malt flavours – you can certainly taste the Wattle and that’s what makes it distinctive. I’ve never found this a session beer, but I do enjoy a few of them.
This beer heralds from a craft brewery in Scotland. At 6% and with good strong flavours, it’s strong all around. A good solid porter with (again, as the bottle says) notes of chocolate and coffee (both in smell and taste) and a bittersweet aftertaste that is just perfect on a cold evening like this.
On the back it describes itself as a “New World Bitter” and the word bitter is certainly true – it’s not a floral hoppy flavour but rather a bitter that tastes like a bitter should. I could drink a few of these, although more than that could get overwhelming. Bottle conditioned, only 3.9% and quite pleasant.
This was a really nice beer. Sweet with toffee and vanilla (a the bottle says) and you could even smell the oak
. This one was recommended by PatG, and I finally found it at Acland Cellars.
I have their rum cask one and a special Canada Day brew in the fridge.