It's less a case of big and bigger than bigger and biggest as Uraidla set a pair of brooding beasts free from their Adelaide Hills brewery. One is a red IIPA at 8.3 percent ABV, the other an 11 percent ABV triple IPA, both aiming to maximise flavour while keeping drinkability in mind.
Taking inspiration once more from their home region's mystical past, Druid's Fluid replaces the medicine a druid of yore might have doled out to his people with a blend of specialty malts (for the red double IPA's deep copper hue) and Mosaic, Centennial and Nectaron hops, charged with balancing out the malt sweetness with bitterness.
They contribute a good whack of resin and a touch of tangerine citrus on the nose, while the slick, oily mouthfeel sees the sweet malts lay down the base – crystal nuttiness and toffee – which in tandem with the resin and tangerine created the impression that there's a red frog lolly embedded in there somewhere.
As for Omnipresent, it's one of Uraidla’s biggest beers yet: a triple IIPA in which Riwaka, Mosaic and Citra hops are ever present, alongside a clean yeast strain often used for West Coast IPAs that was fermented cold to allow the hops to pop even more.
It pours just like a classic West Coast too: burnt orange in colour and with brilliant clarity. Juicy orange citrus starts the show, with a touch of mandarin, some pink grapefruit, and ever so subtle hints of pine. There's a crystal sweetness intertwined amongst the citrus, with a decent yet balanced hit of bitterness to finish, alongside just a little warmth, as to be expected from a double digit ABV beast.
Matt King
Published October 17, 2023 2023-10-17 00:00:00
