Barely a week goes by without another seasonal or one-off special flying out of an Australian brewery. We’ll do our best to know what’s coming when, where it’s going and – where possible – what it tastes like before it goes on sale. Be aware, however, that just because a venue’s getting a beer doesn’t mean they’ve tapped it. They tend to go fast too so check they’re not sold out first!
| Beer | Details | Where | |
|---|---|---|---|
2 Brothers |
2 Brothers Kung Foo Released on 4/01/12While there are a multitude of breweries producing summer ales and IPAs for the warmer weather 2 Brothers are offering their own summer session beer, but it’s a little off centre from the norm. Opting for a different summer direction, 2 Brothers have brewed up a Rice Lager to quench the thirst of Melbourne’s south east. The beer itself is a simple solution to the rising mercury. A light, straw coloured lager that is crisp and refreshing all the way down to the bottom of the pint. The nose has some light lemongrass and passionfruit notes and this follows onto the palate of a very quaffable summer beer. A simply flavoured (and very drinkable…) beer for us to enjoy this summer. DE |
Rice Lager 4.7% |
2 Brothers |
Hargreaves Hill |
Hargreaves Hill Russian Imperial Stout (bottled) Released on 2/01/12One of the biggest beers ever produced in Australia is now available in a very limited run of 750ml bottles. Hargreaves Hill’s RIS weighs in at more than 12% ABV and packs just as much flavour. One friend of Crafty who likes his uber-beers went so far as to claim it could be the best Victorian beer he’d ever tasted when it was on tap in 2011. If you missed out then, grab a bottle or two before they’re gone – and don’t worry about whether it’s too hot for such a beer now as they’ll last a fair while. Here’s what we had to say about it when it was available in draught form. |
Russian Imperial Stout 12.3% |
Hargreaves Hill |
Monk Brewery & Kitchen (WA) |
The Monk Amber Released on 27/12/11The latest seasonal from The Monk has the brewers behind it excited. It’s “fantastic”, apparently, a single hop showcase, no less: an American amber ale bittered and dry hopped with NZ Nelson Sauvin. “We thought we’d use the rockstar hop-of-the-moment in this offering, and we’ve deliberately left it unfiltered to keep the good stuff in,” says brewer Steve. Blending roasted malts with said hops, it’s a fruit and nut affair with some caramel and passionfruit flavours in there too. “Both myself and Paul [his co-brewer] absolutely love it and are immensely proud of it.” Blimey! |
American Amber 5.5% | |
Moon Dog |
Moon Dog Symbiotic Solipsism Released on 26/12/11It’s always nice to see brewers joining forces with other producers to expand their horizons. Already the Moon Dog chaps have hooked up with neighbours Mt Goat and CUB for the Abbey Collabbey beer brewed for Good Beer Week and now they’ve made a beer in cahoots with Coffee Supreme, namely a coffee and raspberry amber ale. The coffee is of a roasted nature (as opposed to the more fragrant “green bean” type found in Mt Goat’s Coffee IPA, for example) and the raspberry comes across fresh and fruity, with bitterness minimal and alcohol barely noticeable. The various elements all sit nicely together, but our bottle was lacking carbonation. As a result, it would be good to revisit one with the requisite bubbles to see just what the brewers intended. |
Coffee & Raspberry Amber 7.9% 30 IBU |
Slowbeer |
Murray's (NSW) |
Murray's Anniversary Ale 6 Released on 23/12/11Is there anything the brewers at Murray’s won’t give a Belgian twist? Is there a level of alcohol content that will ever prove a step too far for them? Who knows, but it’s generally plenty of fun finding out. It’s the time of year when the NSW brewery brings out its Anniversary Ale, which in the past has tended to be a barleywine of one sort or another, occasionally with a touch of funk added. This time, they’ve given it the aforementioned Belgian twist, creating a 15% beast of a beer of which less than 1,000 750ml bottles have been produced. It contains a whopping five different yeasts and has spent time on two different types of oak, so should have enough complexity to keep even the fussiest of drinkers sniffing and sipping into the new year. You can watch head brewer Shawn Sherlock cracking a bottle in the brewery here too. |
Belgian Barleywine 15% |
Murray’s |
Moon Dog |
Moon Dog Gingerbread Brown Released on 22/12/11“Ain’t no stopping us now-ow! We’re on the move. We’ve got the groove.” Don’t know about you, but we can really see the Moon Doggers prancing around like McFadden & Whitehead performing their disco classic while knocking out what, at present, seems to be an unstoppable line of crazy beers with silly names. Not in a Hey, Hey, It’s Saturday! racist embarrassment kind of way, more a kind of “Yes. We. Can.” attitude, boosted by a subtle undercurrent of gay abandon. Latest off the conveyor belt is the Gingerbread Brown, which, according to one of the brewers “funnily enough, smells like gingerbread.” Given it was racked onto 50kg of gingerbread baked by Biero, perhaps we shouldn’t be surprised. It also tastes “spicy, brown sugary, bready, treacley… and gingerbready!” There’s little bitterness, just lots of spice and sweetness. And flared bottomed good times, no doubt. |
Spiced Brown Ale 7.5% |
Biero |
Mornington Peninsula Brewery |
Mornington Peninsula Aussie Ale Released on 20/12/11Over the past 12 months, the chaps at Mornington Peninsula Brewery have proven themselves as adept at brewing quality limited release beers as conjuring interesting images to go with them. None, however, has been quite as interesting as that drawn up for this, their Aussie Ale, a beer made with all Australian ingredients that’s been tapped at the brewery bar just in time for Christmas. Deep golden in color, brewer AG (when not dipping his toes in Port Phillip Bay) told us that “the Australian yeast-strain offers a cloudy backdrop. Yeasty esters and fruity hop aromas lead into a crisp palate of mild hop bitterness and soft bready yeast. Moderate carbonation with a medium to light body.” He also added: “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie…” You know the rest. |
Australian Ale 5.1% | |
Lord Nelson (NSW) |
Lord Nelson One Eyed Rye Released on 19/12/11Having turned to Belgium for inspiration for their last seasonal, the delicious Anniversary Ale brewed to mark 25 years of bringing real beer to the people of The Rocks, the Lord Nelson brew team are back on more familiar territory for Christmas. The One Eyed Rye is a traditional ale made with 50% rye malt. For those unfamiliar with rye malt, it can impart a rather unique character, frequently richer in body and often lending a slightly spicy, smoky malt character. It’s appearing in a few Aussie craft beers these days, but rarely in such a high proportion as here. According to the good folks at the Lord Nelson, this one is: “Luxurious and malty on the palate with a drying finish and lifted florals on the nose coming from dry hopping with Amarillo.” On tap the pub now. |
Rye Beer 5.1% | |
3 Ravens |
3 Ravens Smoked Wheat Released on 16/12/11The Thornbury brewery continues to plunder every nook and cranny of the Germanic beer world, coming at us this time with a beer that combines elements of two of their regular beers: a bit of smoked malt and a bit of fruity wheat beer yeast. It might sound an unusual combination to the newcomer – mixing elements of earthy, woody, campfire like aromas with the banana and clove esters of the wheat yeast – but they sit together rather well. It’s not bananas on the barbie, instead a cloudy copper coloured beer with a surprisingly full body for a reasonably low alcohol content beer and some malty sweetness. |
Smoked Wheat Beer 4.7% | |
Mountain Goat |
Mountain Goat Imperial Pilsner (2011) Released on 14/12/11Or more accurately, an Imperial Keller Pilsner, apparently. In other words, unfiltered and designed to be tapped and quaffed asap. It’s the second stab at a big ol' pilsner from the Richmond crew, one head brewer Dave Bonighton described as “a Black Forest Wolf in Western Districts sheep’s clothing?”, a comment that can possibly be ascribed to the fact he came up with it on the day of the brewery’s Christmas party. The beer is a strong, unfiltered, cold conditioned “forever”, spicy, malty, hoppy lager with an aroma Dave says is “slightly yeasty/spicy, but subtle, with no hint of the booze.” It’s packed with German Pilsener and Light Munich malts and Czech Saaz Hops and is only going to be appearing at a handful of places outside the brewery. We’ll let you know where once they’re out there. |
Imperial Pilsner 7.5% 50 IBU |
Mountain Goat |
True South |
True South Clock Tower IPA Released on 7/12/11Launched in celebration of the brewery’s second birthday, the Clock Tower is named after Black Rock’s landmark and is also the first beer made solo by head brewer’s Sam’s sidekick Brian. An American style IPA, it’s crammed with big aroma hops, including Cascade, Galaxy and Simcoe, the result being a beer that seemed to find favour with folks at its launch party. As for the brewers' description, expect: “a rich, slightly hazy copper colour”, “intense tropical fruits: mango, paw paw, lychee, passionfruit and resiny pine notes”, “a strong, slightly numbing pine like bitterness with stone fruit undertones and a crisp, refreshing hop character finish”. Blimey – it’s a wonder they had time to make the beer with all that describing to do. Anyway, it’s out now so you can decide for yourself. |
US IPA 5.5% 42 IBU |
True South |
Mountain Goat |
Mountain Goat Skipping Girl (Andy'd Remix) Released on 7/12/11Anyone who’s been to Mountain Goat in the past couple of years will know Randy, the glass cylinder that allows them to add hops, spices, coffee beans and the like to their beers just before they leave the tap and hit your glass. Now they’ve added Andy, Randy’s cousin, who is “a late hopping device for pre-packed bottles and kegs; in other words the beer gets Andy’d in tank, not just before your glass.” Skipping Girl first reared her head last summer and was Crafty’s pick of the one-off summer releases from Goat. Back then, we said it was a: “light yellow coloured hazy number that throws up plenty of lovely light tropical fruits from the inclusion of mucho Kiwi hops, has a delicate, spritzy palate and cuts off nice and dry (thanks to the 30% wheat malt) with a decent dose of bitterness”. With more Kiwi Motueka thrown into Andy, expect mucho mucho Kiwi hoppiness this time around. |
Summer Ale 4.7% | |
Moon Dog |
Moon Dog Black Lung Released on 6/12/11The Black Lung first appeared as a teaser keg at Josie Bones during Good Beer Week, where its no holds barred smokiness was undermined a little by a lack of body. No such problem this time around as it gets a full release, complete with tweaked recipe and a rich, smooth mouthfeel. Considering there’s both peated malt and a bourbon barrel at play, it’s a surprisingly rounded affair, with plenty of sweetness in the malt profile to balance the smoke and oak. The effects of the bourbon really come into play in the mouth, rolling around your tongue in such a manner as to make you wish it was mid-winter again. Well, almost. The chances of some still being around Crafty Towers next winter are slim, however, as this is our pick of the Moon Dog releases to date. |
Barrel-Aged Smoked Stout 7.7% 40 IBU |
Carwyn Cellars |
Moon Dog |
Moon Dog Perverse Sexual Amalgam (bottles) Released on 5/12/11The beer that debuted at The Crafty Pint’s first birthday bash, Festival of the Frothy, is back in a strictly limited bottled release. So limited, in fact, the brewers are already bemoaning how little of it they have and it’s only just started leaving the brewery. More has been laid down, but will be months away. The Amalgam is likely to be the first of many wild or sour ales from Moon Dog. It’s a lightly carbonated dark ale that spent several months in oak with some tart cherry plums and comes complete with a suitably twisted label reminiscent of Chris Cunningham and Aphex Twin’s Monkey Drummer or the denouement of Air’s How Does It Make You Feel? video. Inside, the sourness of the aroma is leavened by hints of sweetness (the dark muscovado sugar perhaps) and a touch of oak and the tartness of the flavour is again held in check; there’s nothing sharp here, rather similarities to a bretty wine. Perversely quaffable. |
Wild Ale 6.9% 14 IBU |
Carwyn Cellars |
Moon Dog |
Moon Dog Henry Ford's Girthsome Fjord Released on 5/12/11So, it’s got a ridiculous name, is described as a “Bulgo-American India Brown Ale” and has a list of ingredients that could be entered into a short story competition; little wonder there’s lots going on in Henry Ford’s Girthsome Fjord. A typically Moon Doggian mangling of styles, this has hops aplenty, a splash of brown sugar to accompany the malts and a mix of yeasts, including a Belgian Trappist one that does its level best to dominate proceedings. Not that that’s an easy task. Its distinctive character might pop up first on the nose and linger fruitily in the mouth, but as you work your way through this deeply dark brown beer, don’t be surprised to have whiffs of treacle or sweet chocolate raise their head, even a hint of piney NW US hops. There’s plenty to chew on too, and surprisingly little noticeable bitterness given the hop content in an undeniably girthsome beer. |
Belgian India Brown Ale 8.9% 65 IBU |
Carwyn Cellars |
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