If you're after a reminder of just how established craft beer culture has become in Australia, the fifth release of La Sirène's Bière de Cerise should do the trick. Why? Because the liquid in each bottle started taking shape way back in 2016.
Following its initial release a couple of years after the original wild ale was first put into oak with cherries, the beer has evolved as those barriques have been topped up with fresh beer every 12 months. The 2023 vintage slots neatly into the beer's lineage too which, for those familiar with past iterations, means it packs plenty into each sip.
Pouring a cloudy crimson, there's a jammy, cherry jus sweetness to the fore, presumably enhanced by the acetic (and one presumes other forms of) acid developed over the years of ageing and blending. There's something more earthy on the nose that reminds me of whole bunch wines, hints of almond / marzipan, and heaps of bracingly sour acid prickle on the palate. One to share with a friend and a rich ganache dessert.
The now Rezza-based team also put out a ginger beer earlier in summer, albeit one rather different to most. Not only does Ginger & Lime feature lime but it's malt-based and uses their house yeast. So, while it has the familiar cloudy appearance of such drinks, it veers into herbal, floral, lightly spicy territory as opposed to the more explicit sweetness and ginger heat found elsewhere, reminiscent in character of a central or northern European cordial or liqueur.
James Smith
Published February 20, 2024 2024-02-20 00:00:00
