There are advantages in being owned by a multi-faceted beverage company, one that makes juices, concentrates, wine, mixed spirits and gin as well as beer. So the crew at Vale and Fox Hat, part of the Bickford's group, decided to make use of their fortuitous position in concocting new releases for spring 2020.
In the case of Vale – you'll find Fox Hat's Bearded Mongrel here – it's a meeting of two warm weather favourites: a light tropical sour and gin. Renmark’s 23rd Street Distillery is where the collaboration unfolds, with a liberal dose of Signature Gin blended into a light-coloured sour base beer before tropical hops add to the feeling of summer in a can.
Tropical meets floral botanicals and juniper with a dash of wheat on the nose, and thoughts of zesty lemon peel flow across the palate alongside a welcome and restrained sourness, as the beer and spirit components play nicely together, sparking fresh, zingy, zesty citrus. Sprinkle in rosemary and a little clove, pineapple from the hops, and a dry finish and you've got a light, 4 percent ABV hybrid that leaves the drinker wanting more.
Matt King
Published October 13, 2020 2020-10-13 00:00:00
