SLOWBEER'S NEWS, REVIEWS & ARRIVALS!
As always, there is plenty of news this week. Though somewhat unusually, not any great quantities of new beers, just a handful of excellent, never before seen releases!
FEATURE BEERS
LITTLE CREATURES (WA) Single Batch Brown Ale 568ml $5.50
Really pleased to see creatures continue with their single batch releases. However annoyingly for us, the allocation has once again been exceptionally small. So you will need to be quick to get your hands on this one! Styled as an American Brown Ale, this brew has masses of lightly roasted malts giving a subtle caramel sweetness with some drier nutty characters. Being a US style brown, it also has a good old whack of bitterness on the finish imparted by US cascade hops as well as local Hallertau from Tassie, Victorian Galaxy & a relatively new local variety, Topaz. Rich malt & 48IBU means this beer will be a cracker for winter but as mentioned, be quick or miss out!
RED HILL (VIC) Imperial Stout 330ml $5.50
Probably the most heavily anticipated of the Red Hill seasonals & with good reason. Tending more towards a classic imperial stout (think Samuel Smith’s) with masses of heavily roasted dark malt & also a good dose of estate grown willamette & goldings hops. Despite the elevated abv (8.1%), this comes across as silky smooth & drinks far too easily for a beer of this richness. Sure, they could have gone all out with a huge 20% abv, teeth-rottingly sweet uber imperial stout like so many other brewers but this, much like all Red Hill beers is all about finesse. Enjoy now or cellar for 3-5 years.
HAS WON SILVER IN IMPERIAL STOUT CATGORY AT AIBA LAST 4 YEARS IN A ROW!
FEATURE BREWERY
EPIC (NZ)
We’ve flogged Lukes’s beers so many times before & certainly with good reason. This time he has 2 brand spanking new releases that people have been anticipating for months!
EPIC Barrel Aged Armageddon IPA 500ml $16.50
Most of us know the history behind the India Pale Ale style. Colonial Troops in India wanted to enjoy their favorite local tipples, however the long & arduous journey often rendered the beer undrinkable. Thus IPAs were brewed with a heap of hops (traditionally used as a preservative) & higher abv to survive. They were also housed in wooden barrels, which arguably changed the character of the beer. In a bid to test this theory, Luke housed his regular Armageddon IPA in brand new American Oak barrels & sent it out on a 8 week sea voyage. The result is a brew that is certainly mellower in bitterness than its un-oaked version, however it has picked up those unmistakable American Oak characters of vanilla & coconut, as well as a subtle toasted note. However don’t be fooled, this brew still has plenty of delicious citrus & tropical fruit hop bitterness.
EPIC & Thornbridge Stout 2010 Vintage 500ml $13.50
Apparently NZ’s first collaborative release with an international brewer, being Kelly Ryan of Thornbridge in England. However, not to be fooled, Kelly is actually a Kiwi ex-pat. Coming in at 6.8% abv, this is tending towards an imperial stout. In typical epic fashion this brew is certainly very more-ish but the hops are a touch more subdued than Luke’s other offerings. As you’d expect there is plenty of dark roasted malt, bringing chocolate & mocha, while providing some bittersweet notes on the finish. Another beefed up stout that couldn’t be more appropriate for this cold winter.
MIKKELLER WINTER WARMER SHOWCASE
After the success of our recent Barrel Aged tasting, I figured we’d better get cracking & decide on a theme for our next in August. With some careful consideration (of the weather) & in keeping with what we originally promised we have decided to offer the following:
Beer Geek Brunch Weasel – Imperial Oatmeal Stout brewed with kopi luwak, the world’s most obscure & expensive coffee (RRP $32.00)
Beer Geek Brunch Weasel Highland Edition – As above + aged in Highland Whisky casks (RRP $40.00)
Beer Geek Brunch Weasel Islay Edition – As above + aged in Islay Whisky casks (RRP $40.00)
Black – Huge, thick & rich Imperial stout fermented with champagne yeast to get to a heady 18%abv (RRP $23.00)
Black Whisky Edition – As above + aged in French Whiskey casks (RRP $42.00)
Black Peated Edition – As above + aged in Peated Whiskey casks (RRP $42.00)
When: BOTH Wednesday 4th August 7pm & Sunday 8th August 7pm
Cost: $30.00 to try ALL beers ($210 value!)
+ Attendees receive 10% DISCOUNT on any purchase that night
IF YOU WISH TO ATTEND PLEASE LET US KNOW WHICH SESSION, SO THAT WE CAN CONFIRM NUMBERS
FEATURE BEERS
LITTLE CREATURES (WA) Single Batch Brown Ale 568ml $5.50
Really pleased to see creatures continue with their single batch releases. However annoyingly for us, the allocation has once again been exceptionally small. So you will need to be quick to get your hands on this one! Styled as an American Brown Ale, this brew has masses of lightly roasted malts giving a subtle caramel sweetness with some drier nutty characters. Being a US style brown, it also has a good old whack of bitterness on the finish imparted by US cascade hops as well as local Hallertau from Tassie, Victorian Galaxy & a relatively new local variety, Topaz. Rich malt & 48IBU means this beer will be a cracker for winter but as mentioned, be quick or miss out!
RED HILL (VIC) Imperial Stout 330ml $5.50
Probably the most heavily anticipated of the Red Hill seasonals & with good reason. Tending more towards a classic imperial stout (think Samuel Smith’s) with masses of heavily roasted dark malt & also a good dose of estate grown willamette & goldings hops. Despite the elevated abv (8.1%), this comes across as silky smooth & drinks far too easily for a beer of this richness. Sure, they could have gone all out with a huge 20% abv, teeth-rottingly sweet uber imperial stout like so many other brewers but this, much like all Red Hill beers is all about finesse. Enjoy now or cellar for 3-5 years.
HAS WON SILVER IN IMPERIAL STOUT CATGORY AT AIBA LAST 4 YEARS IN A ROW!
FEATURE BREWERY
EPIC (NZ)
We’ve flogged Lukes’s beers so many times before & certainly with good reason. This time he has 2 brand spanking new releases that people have been anticipating for months!
EPIC Barrel Aged Armageddon IPA 500ml $16.50
Most of us know the history behind the India Pale Ale style. Colonial Troops in India wanted to enjoy their favorite local tipples, however the long & arduous journey often rendered the beer undrinkable. Thus IPAs were brewed with a heap of hops (traditionally used as a preservative) & higher abv to survive. They were also housed in wooden barrels, which arguably changed the character of the beer. In a bid to test this theory, Luke housed his regular Armageddon IPA in brand new American Oak barrels & sent it out on a 8 week sea voyage. The result is a brew that is certainly mellower in bitterness than its un-oaked version, however it has picked up those unmistakable American Oak characters of vanilla & coconut, as well as a subtle toasted note. However don’t be fooled, this brew still has plenty of delicious citrus & tropical fruit hop bitterness.
EPIC & Thornbridge Stout 2010 Vintage 500ml $13.50
Apparently NZ’s first collaborative release with an international brewer, being Kelly Ryan of Thornbridge in England. However, not to be fooled, Kelly is actually a Kiwi ex-pat. Coming in at 6.8% abv, this is tending towards an imperial stout. In typical epic fashion this brew is certainly very more-ish but the hops are a touch more subdued than Luke’s other offerings. As you’d expect there is plenty of dark roasted malt, bringing chocolate & mocha, while providing some bittersweet notes on the finish. Another beefed up stout that couldn’t be more appropriate for this cold winter.
MIKKELLER WINTER WARMER SHOWCASE
After the success of our recent Barrel Aged tasting, I figured we’d better get cracking & decide on a theme for our next in August. With some careful consideration (of the weather) & in keeping with what we originally promised we have decided to offer the following:
Beer Geek Brunch Weasel – Imperial Oatmeal Stout brewed with kopi luwak, the world’s most obscure & expensive coffee (RRP $32.00)
Beer Geek Brunch Weasel Highland Edition – As above + aged in Highland Whisky casks (RRP $40.00)
Beer Geek Brunch Weasel Islay Edition – As above + aged in Islay Whisky casks (RRP $40.00)
Black – Huge, thick & rich Imperial stout fermented with champagne yeast to get to a heady 18%abv (RRP $23.00)
Black Whisky Edition – As above + aged in French Whiskey casks (RRP $42.00)
Black Peated Edition – As above + aged in Peated Whiskey casks (RRP $42.00)
When: BOTH Wednesday 4th August 7pm & Sunday 8th August 7pm
Cost: $30.00 to try ALL beers ($210 value!)
+ Attendees receive 10% DISCOUNT on any purchase that night
IF YOU WISH TO ATTEND PLEASE LET US KNOW WHICH SESSION, SO THAT WE CAN CONFIRM NUMBERS
Labels: Beer News, New Releases, Recent Tasting Notes
posted by Chris Menichelli at
2:58 pm
1 Comments:
I'd like to come to the Sun 8th Aug tasting session - how do I register my interest? Feel free to e-mail me at
gem at eatdrinkstagger dot com
By
Gem, at 9:27 am
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