At Crafty, we like to think we're on top of things when it comes to new beers coming out of Oz's craft breweries. So we were most upset when at a beer vs wine dinner at The Courthouse in North Melbourne earlier this month, the owner pulled out a bottle of this, Hargreaves Hill's latest Abbey Dubbel. How'd he get one before us, hey? Jesting aside, given it appeared rather late in the course of the evening, we wouldn't want to say too much of our recollections, other than it was a beer boasting layers of flavour, the richness of mouthfeel Hargreaves captures in many of its beers and a drier, spicier finish than we recall in earlier versions. Instead we'll leave it to brewer Simon Walkenhorst to tell you it's "brewed with a complex grain bill consisting of Dingemans Special B, providing depth of colour, chocolate malt and acidulated malt to add some raisiny notes and acidity. We gave it a warm fermentation with Westmalle yeast, which lends some fruitiness and a little bit of sarsparilla bite."
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