Beer Reviews: October 2015
At the end of each month we are now collecting our beer reviews on one page. They can be found at our Beer Reviews page.
Our most upto date Australian craft beer reviews can be found on our Instagram and Facebook pages.
For the month of October 2015, these are our reviews:
Hargreaves Hill Brewing Company Schwarzbier (4.9%) – Dark, smooth and soft, this is a gentle lager in all but the colour. East drinking with a light lingering taste of mild coffee and vanilla. Very nice.
Duckstein Brewery Swan Valley tasting paddle at the brewery with Hefeweiss (5.2%), Pils (5.0%), Dunkle (4.9%), Altbier (5.0%), and the seasonal Summer Ale. Great design paddle with some tasty beers.
The WA trip continues with a visit to the iconic Little Creatures Brewing in Fremantle. Of course a glass of the Pale Ale (5.2%) alongside the brewery only Queen of Tarts (4.7%). A gorgeous raspberry wheat ale. Sweet up front with the forest fruits with a dry finish and tasty tartness.
Last chance for a Duckstein Brewery Margaret River tasting paddle as a new owner takes over next month with plans for new name and new beers. The four seasonals today with Wolf Pale Ale (5.5%), Rye Ale (4.5%), The Columbus IPA (7.2%), and Blondie (5.2%). Really nice strong solid Rye.
Second stop today at the Ironbark Brewery with a tasting paddle of Aussie Pils (4.4%), IPA (6.0%), Munich Lager (5.0%), Alcoholic Ginger Beer (3.5%), and Poppett Ale (4.6%). Just five of the ten beers on tap.
Elmar’s in the Valley tasting paddle at the brewery in the Swan Valley. The five are Ein Stein Pilsner (4.8%), Kick Back Wheat Beer (4.8%), Over Draft Alt Ale (4.8%), Schwarzbier (5.0%), and Dunkle Weizen (5.2%). Great range especially the seasonal Schwarzbier.
The only brewery on the beach? Blacksalt Brewery at Salt on the Beach cafe in North Fremantle. It’s actually on the beach, and a gorgeous location. Three beers on offer – Pilsner, Blonde and a Dunkle. Lovely place to enjoy a beer or three.
The Old Brewery, Perth tasting selection of all ten beers on tap – Narrows Lager (3.5%), Riverside Lager (4.7%), Heritage Wheat Beer (5.0%), Angus Pale Ale (5.6%) plus the seasonals of Stirling Schwarzbier (4.7%), Commune Bonum Alt (5.4%), Angus Brown Ale (5.8%), Eliza’s Saison (7.4%), Tomahawk IPA (7.8%), and Tomahawk Barleywine (8.5%). Great Schwarzbier and Saison.
Final brewery for the day is the The Monk Brewery & Kitchen. Tasting paddle of Common Ale (4.7%), Reserved Mid (3.5%), Extra IPA (6.3%), Vintage Ale (5.2%) and the seasonals of Spring Break (5.0%), and The Bounty (5.5%). Extra IPA was really impressive as was the Vintage Ale. The seasonals started well with the Spring Break being a great Belgian Ale and the Bounty being a coconut infused porter, but both finished overly boozy and last their essence.
Great tasting paddle at the Moody Cow Brewery in WA. Featuring Black Dog Pils (4.9%), Pale Ale (4.6%), Grunta’s Original Ale (4.4%), Simply Red Irish Ale (4.7%), Fergus Dark Ale (4.2%) and in front the Zest Lemon and Lime Lager (3.2%). Solid range of tasty, and drinkable beers. Loved the Red and the Dark.
Eagle Bay Brewing Co tasting selection at the brewery with Kolsch (4.7%), Vienna Lager (4.9%), Steam Ale (4.9%), Mild Ale (3.5%), Pale Ale (5.1%), ESB (5.4%), plus the Single Series Cacao Stout (5.3%). Love the Stout and Pale Ale. Great venue with a large veranda overlooking some gorgeous green countryside and the Indian Ocean.
Cheeky Monkey Brewery & Cidery Blonde Capuchin (4.9%) and Old Reliable Pale Ale (5.0%) in cans direct from the canning line at the brewery. Fresh as can be. These taste exactly the same as they do on tap at the brewery. Love the branding as well with full details of the ingredients on the back.
One of the country’s more remote breweries, Jarrah Jacks Brewery & Woodsmoke Cafe near Pemberton, WA. And situated at the top of a hill with a gorgeous view on this warm day. Lovely tasting paddle of all the available beers – Lumberjack Ale (4.7%), Marron Poachers Ale (5.0%), Arthur’s Hop Ale (2.9%), Swinging Axe Irish Red (6.0%), Snake Choppers Brown Ale (6.0%) and another Irish Red. Arthur’s Hop being the stand out.
Feral Brewing Company “Will’s Tray” tasting paddle at the brewery in WA. This is the tasting paddle of the beers generally only available at the brewery and includes (left to right) Knuckles American Pale Ale (5.2%), Kelis Saison (6.5%), The Jackal Australian Sour Ale (4.0%), Ace of Base Belgian Golden Ale (7.7%), Fantapants Imperial Red Ale (8.7%), and Ashy Larry Oaked Porter (6.7%). The Knuckles was really interesting as it was a coffee IPA which took some getting used to. Probably the standout was the Saison which had a strong lemon aroma and taste, although all were excellent. Well worth a trip to the brewery just to try the brewery range, never mind trying Hop Hog and Feral White at their home.
Old Coast Road Brewery, WA tasting paddles of the core four beers of Pilsner (5.0%), Acres of Wheat (5.3%), Harris Bitter (3.8%), and PBH Strong Oaked Porter (5.7%) with four of the nine seasonals and special brews with Robust Porter (8.8%), Munich Helles (5.9%), German Kolsch (6.3%), and Blueberry Ale (4.2%)
Mash Brewing Co. award winning Copy Cat American IPA (6.8%) and Grasscutter Summer Ale (4.4%) tasted fresh at brewery in the Swan Valley, WA. The IPA really is worthy of awards. If you love Hop Hog then you’ll love this copycat.
Homestead Brewery tasting paddle at the brewery with (left to right) Brauhaus Lager (4.8%), Kaisers Choice Hefeweizen (5.0%), No 1 Belgian Pale Ale (4.8%), Thunderbird Pale Ale (5.2%), Rising Sun Belgian Summer Ale (5.6%),and Velvet Black Cherry Sour (9.8%). A solid range with the Hefe really standing out with its lovely banana and clove aromas and tastes. Probably the best Hefe we’ve tasted outside Germany.
Mash Brewing Co. core range tasted at the brewery. With (left to right) West Coast Wheat (4.5%), Pale (4.5%), and Freo Doctor Pale Lager (4.5%). A good range fairly true to their styles that were all easy drinking.
Stone & Wood Brewing Cloud Catcher (5.5%) – back again on taps, this big brother to Pacific Ale is more robust and packs in more flavour. The fruitiness is deeper with some nice spice overtones. A good dry bitter aftertaste rounds out a smart drinking beer.
Your Mates Brewing Co. Pale Ale (4.5%) – First beer from the new Sunshine Coast brewery launched at the beginning of the month. An easy drinking pale with a subtle hop aroma that’s refreshing in the current warmth. Nice bitterness that stays with you. Going down so well that second brew batch already on its way.
Noisy Minor Brewing Company Bad Wolf Imperial IPA (8.8%) – Nice golden colour that bursts with citrusy hop aromas. Smooth resiney mouthfeel with a sharp bitter taste. Hides the ABV very well for what could pass for a session IPA.
Little Creatures Brewing Dog Days Summer Beer (4.4%) – More sampling at a backyard brew day. Went down really well with everyone with one friend describing it as a “Corona Killer”.
Feral Brewing Company Sly Fox Summer Ale (4.7%) – Light in colour but heavy on the taste. Strong dominant citrus hop aroma with a slightly fruity taste. Great dry bitterness as the aftertaste. Definitely one to revisit often in the coming long summer
Mountain Goat Beer Summer Ale (4.7%) – light straw colour with a subtle fruity aroma. The fruit continues through the taste making this light feeling beer easy to drink.
Rocks Brewing Company The Hangman Pale Ale (4.9%) – strong aromas and tastes, but easy drinking. It’s all citrus and pine, but balanced by a strong malt backbone. One of the best pale ales around.
