New Beers
Barely a day goes by without another seasonal or one-off special flying out of an Australian brewery (if not ten). Here and in our weekly newsletter, we'll bring you news and, if we've sampled them, our take on as many of them as possible. Happy hunting!
Red Hill Weizenbock (2011)
Tapped September 16th, 2011
A beer whose popularity surprised the brewers, given strong German style wheat beers rocking in around 8% aren't exactly commonplace in Australia, the Weizenbock is Red Hill's first spring seasonal, a nice bridger as the weather warms up. When young, this dark beer offers up plenty of chocolate, toffee, clove and banana characteristics, with the sweetness balanced by some brewery grown hops and backed up by a gentle warmth from the alcohol. We've also tasted some bottles that were allowed to age… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Weizenbock
- ABV
- 7.9%
- Stockists
-
2013 stockists TBC but we know the first keg has been tapped at East Of Everything
Bridge Road Single Hop IPAs (bottled)
Tapped September 9th, 2011
A handful of bars around Australia have offered their punter the chance to educate themselves hoppily courtesy of Bridge Road's single hop IPAs and now you can do it from the comfort of your favourite armchair / hammock / ditch. We doubt you need telling about Galaxy, the big cheese of Hop Products Australia's development program in recent years that's doing its thing in beers across Oz, while Stella is described as its stepsister - a cross between an Aussie and European variety. The former is all… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- IPA
- ABV
- 4.8%
- Stockists
-
[Local Bottle Store & Provisions](/beer/bottleshop/the-loc
More stockists...
2 Brothers James Brown (2011)
Tapped September 9th, 2011
The funk is back in town. One of 2 Brothers most eye-catching beers of 2010 is back for another run. The James Brown is their take on big Belgian browns, featuring a truckload of candi sugar and described last year as "bananas coated in Nutella" by one appreciative bar manager. As for this latest version, brewer Andrew Ong tells us they've deliberately reined in the estery notes this time around. They're "still there but better balanced" he says. It's already on at the 2 Brothers… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Belgian Strong Ale
- ABV
- 8.8%
- Stockists
-
More stockists...
Tooborac Hogshead
Tapped September 8th, 2011
Tooborac's new brewer asked us not to do a listing for this as he's down to the last handful of bottles. But what the hey, it's such a good statement of where Chris intends to take the tiny brewery an hour or so north of Melbourne that we thought we would anyway. Having remade the brewery's Pale and Amber to his recipes, he's knocked out the driest of dry stouts and this over the winter months, this being a sizeable dark ale (his Porter we believe) that spent two months in a merlot barrel. The result… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Barrel-Aged Dark Ale
- ABV
- 6.3%
- Stockists
Mornington Peninsula Oatmeal Stout
Tapped September 1st, 2011
Not too long ago, it seemed you couldn't go a week without Mornington Peninsula sending another quality treat our way: IPA, Double IPA, Falconer's Amber and so on. Having given us just about enough time to catch our breath, they're back with an Oatmeal Stout. Resisting the temptation to go BIIIIG as many Aussie micros have done this winter, the aim instead has been to create a smooth, luscious beer. The man behind it tells us it's "deep, dark brown in colour, pouring with a tan head", has… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Oatmeal Stout
- ABV
- 5.9%
Holgate UXB (2011)
Tapped August 26th, 2011
When it's at its best, Holgate's ESB is one of few Aussie beers that can transport the drinker 11,000 miles to a pub in the UK without leaving their seat. And this, the UXB - or unexploded bomb - to give it its full name, is the ESB but bigger; 60% bigger to be precise, with the malt bill and hops boosted by that amount. This is only its second appearance, after it graced a few taps to acclaim around about the same time last year. As you'd expect, the result is a thicker-bodied beer, smooth and full… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- Extra Special Bitter
- ABV
- 6%
- Stockists
-
More stockists...
Holgate Nut Brown Ale (2011)
Tapped August 25th, 2011
The beer that Paul Holgate created to mark the brewery's 10th anniversary is back to warm the cockles during the colder months once more. Notable in that, rather than concoct something wild and crazy to mark the occasion he chose a style he loved and wanted to see more of Down Under, it's a beer that features roasted macadamia nuts added to the boil. A blend of six malts mean there's plenty of rich, dark chocolate, toasty and nutty flavours to play with and, in this year's, a drier, less sweet, finish… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Nut Brown Ale
- ABV
- 6.3%
- Stockists
-
The Deanery, Melbourne
Albion Hotel, Newcastle
[Great Northern](/beer/bar/great-northern
More stockists...
Mountain Goat DIPA (2011)
Tapped August 24th, 2011
Hot on the heels of the Seedy Goat Coffee IPA comes the return of Mountain Goat's Double IPA that first rolled out of the brewery last year. A bigger brother to the delicious Rare Breed IPA - and bigger even than last year's debut, with the 2011 model rocking it two fat ladies style at 8.8%, with the alcohol well hidden. Given we seem to recall the 2010 version was so full of hops it threatened to block the pipes at the brewery, that's quite an achievement. Expect plenty of malty sweetness and a… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- Double IPA
- ABV
- 8.8%
- Stockists
Little Creatures Dreadnought
Tapped August 19th, 2011
It's been a little while since the last Little Creatures Single Batch release - and a fair while since this one was originally conceived. The Dreadnought came about from an in-house competition, with head brewer Alex Troncoso setting his brewers and any other home brewing types within the Creatures family the task of coming up with something big and dark for a winter release. The winner was this, ramped up to a full brew length and now making its way onto taps and into bottleshops across the land.… Read more
Black
- Style
- Foreign Extra Stout
- ABV
- 7.4%
- Stockists
-
[Little Creatures](/beer/brewery/little creatures/)
[Blackhearts & Sparrows](/beer/bottleshop/blackhearts-sparro
More stockists...
3 Ravens Ravenator Bock
Tapped August 12th, 2011
One of the best received of 3 Ravens' limited run releases in 2010, the marvelously named Ravenator is back. Another to take its inspiration from Germany, this is a strong lager, one that was traditionally brewed dark, which is certainly the case here. Treated lovingly, as it should be, with a lengthy period of cool fermentation and maturation at the brewery prior to release, it's a beer from the Thornbury brewers to reward those who love their malts. On the nose, they come in the form of sweeter,… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Bock
- ABV
- 5.9%
Feral Boris (2011)
Tapped August 5th, 2011
One of the first Aussie beers to go really big when it was first brewed, Feral's Russian Imperial Stout weighs in at nigh on 12%. A big, bold, jet black, take-no-prisoners kind of a beer, a new batch has just been unleased by the Swan Valley brewers and started appearing on a handful of taps around the country. We've yet to get our smackers around the latest incarnation so are handing over tasting note duties to Al, who runs the Great Northern Hotel and has just taken delivery of a couple of kegs.… Read more
Black
- Style
- Russian Imperial Stout
- ABV
- 11.5%
Bright Stubborn Russian
Tapped August 5th, 2011
Anyone who follows Bright's new brewer Jon on Twitter will be aware that he's been getting rather giddy in recent weeks, first at the prospect of brewing a Russian Imperial Stout, then at naming it and now at releasing it. The last of these happens at the brewery today (Aug 5), with the brew at the heart of his excitement described as "intensely roasty and very full-bodied Russian Imperial Stout. Loads of dark fruit and mocha aromas, with a viscous, velvety mouthfeel." Sounds delightful.… Read more
Black
- Style
- Russian Imperial Stout
- ABV
- 7.5%
- Stockists
-
Slowbeer (Growler fills)
The Local Taphouse St Kilda (Growlers)
More stockists...
Mountain Goat Bigfoot (2011)
Tapped August 5th, 2011
There was mourning in parts of the craft beer community last year when it was announced there would be no Bigfoot. Given the previous year's batch had played a large role in an embarrassing evening at the brewery for The Crafty Pint, it might have been for the best. However, the big brother of the brewery's always lovely Surefoot Stout has been brought back out of retirement for 2011. It's pretty much the Surefoot but condensed, the result as rich and creamy as you could wish for in an imperial stout.… Read more
Black
- Style
- Imperial Stout
- ABV
- 8.0%
Bridge Road Stella IPA
Tapped August 4th, 2011
The odd keg (and one cask) of this beer have been floating around for the past week or so, but we thought we'd fire it up on Crafty on International IPA Day, on which it is being featured at a number of venues. The beer takes the concept of Bridge Road's Galaxy IPA, which has been brewed fairly regularly over the past 18 months, but uses a new hop variety developed in Tassie. From start to finish, nothing but Stella is used, allowing the beer to be a showcase for a hop described by Hop Products Australia… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- IPA
- Stockists
-
[Harts Pub](/beer/bar/harts-pu
More stockists...
2 Brothers Terminator
Tapped August 4th, 2011
Ideally, we'd like to work the phrase "I'll be back" into this review, but as it's the first time 2 Brothers have released the beer, we might just have to wait until they make another batch next year. Instead, we'll have to console ourselves by telling you all about it, it being a German style doppelbock. According to brewer Andrew Ong: "We followed the traditional German naming convention of doppelbocks always end in the letters 'â?¦ator'" while the brew itself was apparently… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- Doppelbock
- ABV
- 7.7%
- Stockists
-
Young & Jackson's
Dan O'Connell (Carlton)
Gertrude's Brown Couch (Fitzroy)
Dexter's (Clifton Hill)
Prince Albert (Williamstow
More stockists...
Stone & Wood Stone Beer (2011)
Tapped August 1st, 2011
Given the runaway success of their Pacific Ale, the Stone & Wood team has little time to do anything but brew batch after batch of it these days (well, when not surfing or hanging out at the beach, anyway). But they do like to find time for their annual Stone Beer brew, the beer that involves head brewer Brad Rogers pulling out the rocks he's been lugging around since his days brewing in Fiji, superheating them over a fire and using them in the brewing process. It's a recreation of an ancient… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Stone Beer
- ABV
- 5.3%
- Stockists
-
[Purvis Beer Richmo
More stockists...
Murray's Oak-Aged Heart of Darkness
Tapped July 30th, 2011
To mark the brewery's 500th brew, Murray's decided to put a twist on one of their most twisted beers, the big, dark, clash of styles Belgian Imperial Stout. It has spent time in American oak barrels previously used for Shiraz. According to the brewery, it's added a "beautifully integrated oak character. The beer features classic light tannins and vanillin oak character, which accentuate the strong chocolate notes of Heart of Darkness." It's only available in very limited numbers from Murray's… Read more
Black
- Style
- Belgio Imperial Stout
- ABV
- 9.6%
Hargreaves Hill Russian Imperial Stout
Tapped July 28th, 2011
You know when you take your first mouthful of a particularly feisty chili or curry and it sends your taste buds into overdrive, firing off warning messages to your brain that this one might just be too hot to handle? Then you soldier on and, palate suitably adjusted, it turns out you were just being a wuss. Well, it seems the same can apply to big bastard beers like this Russian Imperial Stout, the biggest beer yet released by Hargreaves Hill. After wallowing in the lovely rich aromas - dark caramel,… Read more
Black
- Style
- Russian Imperial Stout
- ABV
- 12.3%
Bridge Road Saison Noir
Tapped July 23rd, 2011
Bridge Road founder Ben Kraus is making a nice habit of pulling something special out of the bag to mark his brewery's anniversaries. And with this - a beer which suggests that while the first half of 2011 belonged to black IPAs the second will belong to black saisons, what with Doctor's Orders Synapse having appeared already - that tradition continues. You can plot the evolution that's led Ben here, from the spectacular Oak-Aged Imperial Porter of the fourth anniversary through last year's mightily… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Black Saison
- ABV
- 6.5%
Mountain Goat Coffee IPA
Tapped July 22nd, 2011
It's not that unusual to find coffee in a beer, although in Australia at least it has tended to be found in dark ales, porters or stouts, beers that often have some coffee like aromas or flavours from their malt bill. It is pretty unusual to find coffee in an IPA, which is the case in this collaborative effort from Mountain Goat and roasters Seven Seeds. After playing around on the pilot brewery, this is the first batch to make it into the public realm. Hold it to your nose and there's little to… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Coffee IPA
