As we've made our way around the country for our Year In Beer 2024 series of state by state by territory reflections on the past 12 months, the ongoing rise of lagers has been a common thread – which is something we'd written about in our national trends articles in both 2022 and 2023. And there has also been mention of how a greater percentage of limited releases are more "sensible" or tame in comparison to the higher-ABV, adjunct-laden explorations of yore. Both of which seem to make Moo Brew's New World Rice Lager very much of its time.
Not only is it a perfect encapsulation of those trends, it's also perfectly clear; if you find a brighter, more crystalline looking beer this year, then please send answers on a postcard to… As for the "new world hop twist", there's nothing demonstrably punchy – this isn't a West Coast pilsner, after all – but there's certainly a more pervasive, deeper bitterness than you’d expect of the OG Japanese rice lagers, plus hints of something melony, which I'm putting down to the Enigma hops. But, for the most part, it’s all about crisp, clean, dry, water cracker malts.
It's joined by another suitably summery release, Blackberry Sour, which feels a little like the sequel to the Anotherberry Sour of late summer 2023. Pour it into a glass and it looks like Tizer (I did reference Irn Bru in another sour beer write-up this week, so why not?), with aromas that meld lacto sourness with tangy berries, each seemingly egging each other on. It's a combination that brings a distinct palate-tickling quench, aided by a dry dry finish.
James Smith
NB These have already been out a couple of weeks at time of writing but my first delivery of samples didn't survive transit across the Bass Strait.
Published December 11, 2024 2024-12-11 00:00:00
