Banks Brewing Way Too Much Serenity & Probable Paws (with Otter's Promise)

Countless Melbourne brewers have taken the Hume up to the High Country to get their hands on fresh hops but Banks took the road less travelled: the Maroondah Highway. What does that road and the many other highways along the route get you that the Hume doesn’t? Bonnie Doon and all its serenity. Way Too Much Serenity is a celebration of not just Hop Product Australia’s fresh Galaxy but the pub meal at Bonnie Doon on the way home to Seaford. Maybe it’s all thanks to that time in the pub but this particular wet hop IPA is a little left-of-centre for one featuring Galaxy. While passionfruit might often be the hop’s best-known flavour, Serenity brings an intense wave of watermelon that tastes almost as if the entire fruit has been thrown in too thanks to it moving between the juicy flesh and lighter, refreshing rind. Beyond that melon, there's a light white grape flavour, soft touches of tropical fruits and balance brought by the malt that heads towards dry biscuit territory.

Also fresh and hoppy from Banks is their collaboration with the excellent good beer haunt that is Otter’s Promise. Probable Paws is a California IPA made with Cryo Mosaic, Strata and Simcoe hops to celebrate just how awesome (or pawesome if you will allow me the indulgence) the Armadale bar and bottleshop is. United, those hops give fresh orange juice, berry and passionfruit notes with a touch of dank.

Will Ziebell

Published March 31, 2023 2023-03-31 00:00:00