Thursday, February 11th, 2010
One of my favourite places to stop by while in the Hunter Valley is the Hunter Beer Company located at The Potters Hotel & Brewery in Nulkaba. The service there is impeccable combine with beers brewed on-site that are cold and tasty the only downside to a visit is the argument that pops up without fail around the 1 1/2 beer mark, about who is going to be the responsible one that switches to soft drink to drive everyone else home.
Last time I stopped by I decided to pick up a bottle of their Bock for future enjoyment without worrying about staying under the limit and I must say it did not disappoint later when it was taken out of the fridge. Into a glass the Bock poured a very dark brown colour with a small creamy tightly packed white head that didn’t hang around long before subsiding to a thin lace covering.
On the nose slightly sweet malt notes accompanied by aniseed, coffee and cocoa aromas. Taste wise this brew has a very nice flavour profile consisting of cocoa, coffee, bread, toasted grain notes, the mouth feel is somewhat creamy and the ending smooth with the gentle flavour of lightly burnt toast.
Verdict: Very nice come spring or autumn I would love to sit outside and enjoy one of these only downside is the drive to go get them.
Score: 7.8
Link: http://www.hunterbeer.com.au/
Tags: Bock, Hunter Beer Co, Hunter Valley, NSW, Nulkaba, Potters
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Monday, December 21st, 2009
I have been a big fan of the Baron’s beers since they first came out, although the Black Wattle Ale and Lemon Myrtle Witbier seem to be the only ones I see on a regular basis. So it came as a pleasant surprise to track down a bottle of their Lager in Vintage Cellars, I had an earlier look in Dan Murphy’s but was unable to locate it.
The Barons lager poured clear with a bright golden colour, minimal level of carbonation and a smallish white head around 1cm. On the nose, grassy and floral notes predominate straight after pouring with honey and clove notes coming through later after being allowed to stand awhile.
On the palate a light mouth feel is accompanied by grassy herbal notes, clove, pepper the beer then goes on to finish crisp with minimal after-taste. A few times I swore I tasted some slight “musty” flavors toward the back of the palate that one would expect from a Belgian but it didn’t seem constant so was very hard to pin down.
Verdict: It did strike me as a tad watery in places although this may have just been too excessive chilling, as it did grow on me the further down i got. All in all a very smooth session lager for lazy summer days.
Score: 7.2 / 10
Link: Barons Brewing
Tags: Barons, lager, NSW
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Thursday, December 17th, 2009
New South Wales may lag behind Victoria in the number of craft breweries we have, in my opinion though it doesn’t matter as we are lucky enough to have my favourite brewery in Australia, Murrays Craft Brewing Co. Located at Port Stephens north of Newcastle, Murray’s head brewer Shawn Sherlock is constantly pushing the boundaries with beers that taste great but never seem to fit exactly within a style.
That said when I saw a bottle of Murrays Pilsner sitting unloved in the fridge at Vintage Cellars I had to buy it! Pouring the bottle into a glass gave a cloudy straw coloured brew with a medium sized head around 2- 3 cm high which slowly subsided over the space of 10 minutes. The aroma was very full on, packed with pine, clove, herbal and floral notes straight after pouring. With bread notes coming through later after the majority of volatiles wafted away.
On the palate this beer has a somewhat oily mouth feel and leads with a big hops hit that just seems to keep building right to the back of the palate, with a slight malt sweetness that shines though around mid way. The flavours that come across are very similar to the aroma with big grapefruit, passion fruit and pine flavours, whilst finishing dry and crisp.
Verdict: This beer is very heavy hitting on the flavour front, after the first sip i thought this beer was not for me due to the intensity. But it did seem to mellow as it warmed and had one me over only a few sips later.
Score: 7.8 /10
Link: Murrays Brewing Company
Where to buy: I have seen this Pilsner for sale at Dan Murphys and Vintage Cellars on occasion, both seem to stock bits and pieces of the Murrays range but it seems to be luck of the draw as to what is on sale during any given day.
Tags: Murrays, NSW, pilsner
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Friday, November 13th, 2009
Dr Chuck Hahn has recently left his post at the Malt Shovel Brewing Company and headed up to the Snowy Mountains to setup the Kosciuszko Brewing Company which falls under the Lion Nathan umbrella. Based at the Banjo Paterson Inn, and the Brewery can boast being the highest brewery in Australia!
Cracking a bottle and pouring it into a glass i was greeted by light amber coloured liquid with a nice tightly packed creamy white head around 1.5 – 2 cm in height which died away fairly quickly. The aroma of this brew is fairly inviting with brown sugar, toffeee and apple notes. On the palate the beer had a medium mouth feel, taste-wise it leads with toffee, caramel notes. Herbal and floral notes come through about mid palate as the hops assert their presence in the piece and toward the back honey accompanied with apple, melon and the odd hint of banana can be noticed. The beer finishes fairly dry with a slightly sweet tangy after-taste that is not at all unpleasant.
Verdict: Not bad but nothing fantastic either its a pale ale thats drinkable enough but nothing you would head too far out of your way to get.
Score: 7.2 / 10
Link: The Banjo Paterson Inn
Tags: chuck hahn, lion nathan, NSW, pale ale
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Wednesday, October 14th, 2009
This number comes in a smaller than average 250mL bottle, but they seem to have packed just as much flavour into this brew as a normal size bottle . Pours into a glass a cloudy purplish tan colour with a medium level of carbonation and a large fluffy loosely packed head. The aroma is great, straight after pouring a smell very reminiscent of apple cider is hard to miss although this seemed to dissipate quickly, leaving a bouquet filled with notes of rock melon and roses.
On the palate this brew hits hard and sharp bursting with fresh blackberry flavour, notes of tropical fruit mainly melons and citrus are also fairly assertive. A tang hits near the back of the palate, although this seems to calm down a bit as the brew gets warmer. Other than the tang the beer ends very clean leaving a lingering sourness that’s not unpleasant.
Verdict: Refreshing packed full of fruit flavour great for something different. One small bottle and i was feeling very satisfied though, great beer but after one my palate was feeling worn out.
Score: 7.6 / 10
Where to buy: The Red Oak Cafe is located at 201 Clarence St in the city CBD and is well worth paying a visit.
Link: Red Oak Beer Cafe
Tags: fruit, NSW, red oak, Sydney, wheat
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Monday, October 12th, 2009
Its been awhile since i have had this brew on tap and it was the first time i have tried it in a bottle. It poured clear, golden in colour, with a medium level of carbonation and a head around 2 fingers in size which slowly receded to a thin lace cover.
The aroma was mostly malt driven, with sweet caramel notes and the odd hint of basil and lemon. On the palate sweet malty flavours lead the way with caramel, toffee and butter scotch although it’s not too much work to notice hints of citrus and vanilla lurking in the background. The beer finishes crisp with a slightly sweet after taste.
Verdict: Easy drinking English style Ale, if your in Sydney there is no excuse to miss tasting it at its birthplace up in The Rocks at the Lord Nelson.
Score: 8.0 / 10
Where to buy: This beer is pretty easy to find around Sydney, you can get it from the Lord Nelson Hotel itself, The Australian Hotel or the Australian Wine Centre in Circular Quay.
Link: Lord Nelson Brewery
Tags: ale, lord nelson, NSW, Sydney
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Friday, June 19th, 2009
When i saw this beer I had to give it a go as they are one of my favorite local breweries here in Sydney. Also an Ale brewed with Tasmanian honey is not something you come across everyday and this beer proved itself to be a very unique drop.
In a glass this brew appears a murky straw colour with a lively medium sized head resting on top which lasted around 5 minutes before slowly starting to die away. The aroma caught me off guard at first as being very similar to a white wine with a passion fruit like presence that was very reminiscent of a semillion.
The taste come on with a mild bitterness, which is then quickly replaced by a wave of tropical flavours of Guava and Passion fruit ending with a sour tang and a dry mouth feel.
Verdict:It would probably pair with a light meal as good as any white wine. Maybe work good as a starter beer on a hot summers day but the tang at the end was too much for me and made me think the beer was partially oxidized.
Rating: 4.7 / 10
Link: Red Oak Brewery Cafe
Tags: ale, honey, NSW, red oak
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Wednesday, May 27th, 2009
Seems to me alot of microbreweries in Australia are making beer with a bovine theme lately. Mallie Bull and Holgate brewhouse with a bull as their mascot, then i came across this Red Angus Pilsner the other day whilst browsing an isle of my local Dan Murphys. I brought a bottle and put it in the fridge for later. Coming home from work today i was thirsty i wanted beer any beer, this one was cold and ready to go and it didn’t disappoint.
On the appearance side this drop is bright yellow in colour, with a loose sudsy head which quickly dropped down to a thin lace covering although the beer itself has a good level of carbonation. The aroma is dominated by floral notes (very similar in smell to a rose i thought).
On the drinking side i found the bitterness of the hops nicely balanced with the assertive malt flavours. Notes of pepper, lemon and honey where the primary flavors i could pick out. The beer then finishes with a mild dry bitter / tang as an aftertaste.
Verdict: I enjoyed this beer quite a lot,very refreshing! Not a beer i could see myself drinking all the time but it has a fairly complex taste and makes a very pleasant change from the mainstream.
Rating: 7.4 / 10
Link: Angus Beers
Tags: Beer, NSW, pilsner, red angus, tasting
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Monday, May 11th, 2009
I have been lucky enough to have enjoyed this beer many times on tap at the Lord Nelson hotel in The Rocks area of the CBD. But until yesterday had never seen it for sale in the bottle, all of this changed when i wandered into the Australian Wine Center at Circular Quay for a look and saw it nestled up the top of the beer fridge. Seeing it in bottle form was too much to handle! I decided i had to drop what i was doing and give it a proper tasting as all the times i have tried it previously my judgement has been a little bit skewed by previous beers enjoyed.
Pouring the dark brown coloured beer into a tasting glass showed a lively head which quickly subsided, leaving the liquid with a thin covering of light brown foam. The aroma was rather gentle, consisting of toasted grain containing nutty hints.
Upon tasting the drinker his hit in the front of the tongue with a sharp blast of bitterness that then seems to smooth out mid palate with flavors of coffee and caramel. Which then fades to leave a slight bitter aftertaste accompanied by a gentle sweetness.
Verdict: A very easy drinking beer with plenty of flavour. Maybe not for everyone, but one or two of these adds a welcome interlude to an afternoon session.
Rating: 7.1/10
Link: The Lord Nelson Brewery
Tags: ale, lord nelson, NSW, review, tasting, the rocks
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