With the cost of living – or, as you might like to put it, the cost of staying alive – alarmingly high these days, it’s fair to say that many of us are cutting back on spending. It’s not even just Rolexes and washer-drier combos getting culled from weekly shopping lists, either: it’s beer, too.
Having watched many of their customers shift from IPAs and specialty releases to more budget-friendly mid-strengths and session beers in the past year, the good folk at Moffat Beach Brewing Co have created Fridge Filler: a beer to fight the cost of living without compromising on quality (a trend we examined in a blind tasting earlier in the year). This is no mean feat given – as we explored – the cost of making beer has exploded in recent years.
For a 4 percent ABV beer, Fridge Filler is surprisingly full-bodied with a malty depth achieved from mashing at a higher temperature. The real trick, however, is the use of Columbus – a hop that's in far less demand than it once was but does the job in delivering plenty of citrus and pine notes along with a thwack of bitterness.
The result is an amber-coloured pale ale, which manages to be hop-forward, full-bodied and easy on the wallet all at once.
Brad Gellert
Published November 22, 2023 2023-11-22 00:00:00
