New Beers
There has never been a time like now: more breweries releasing more new beers than ever before. Here, in The Crafty Cuppa, and in our weekly newsletter, we'll bring you details – and, if we've sampled them, our honest, independent take – on as many of them as possible. Enjoy!
3 Ravens Double Ale Noir
Published April 8, 2011
The latest limited release (very limited release) from 3 Ravens has undergone quite a journey. It takes the concept of last year's first Ale Noir (a Geelong Pinot Noir barrel-aged take on their Dark smoke beer) and adds another dimension. The barrel that was used last time around was refilled with Dark beer which spent ten months maturing. A second batch of Dark was placed into a fresh Pinot barrel for six weeks and then the two were blended. The result is a 6.5% beer that brewer Dave Brough says… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Oak Aged Smoke Beer
- ABV
- 6.5%
- Stockists
-
[Blackhear
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Murray's Retro Rocket
Published April 2, 2011
Now here's a beer that's got Crafty intrigued. Billed as Australia's smallest IPA, it's a 2.8% beer that somehow packs in a lot of flavour - including pretty fierce bitterness, according to brewer Shawn Sherlock when we caught up with him last month for an interview we'll be running on the site soon. According to Murray's, it's brewed with British malts, "carries a big, almost over the top hop flavour and aroma" and is coppery red in colour. Perfect with tandoori chicken or a tikka masala… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- Light IPA(!)
- ABV
- 2.8%
- Stockists
-
[Beer DeL
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Burleigh Brewing Fanny Gertrude's Bickie Beer
Published March 31, 2011
Fanny's back! The beer that made its debut on tap at The Local Taphouse's Great Australian Beer SpecTAPular had a genesis as unusual as the actual brew itself, with deliveries of ingredients held up by the Queensland floods, thus making it a race against time to have it ready for the festival. As for the beer, the Gold Coast brewers added everything you'd expect from an Anzac bickie - coconut, golden syrup, oats - to create a really rather unique beer. Equal parts cream soda, nuts, toffee and the… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Cream Ale
- ABV
- 5.0%
- Stockists
-
IN BOTTLES:
Archive West End
Nectar
Sp
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Murray's Angry Man Brown Ale
Published March 29, 2011
Given his regular musings online, one wonders if this is a beer based on Murray himself. Either way, when we tasted last year's batch, it found favour with Crafty. Big Brown Ales are a treat if done well (think Baird's from Japan) with everything - hops and malt characters - cranked right up for a palate-coating beer journey in every mouthful. We're yet to taste this year's version, which is the first time the Angry Man has ever been bottled as well as kegged, but are told it's "bitter up front… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- American Brown Ale
- ABV
- 6.5%
- Stockists
-
Penny Blue
Newcastle: BYO on Beaumont (Hamilton), Bottle O Lambton, Bottle O Wickham, Cellarbrations Adamstown, Delany Hotel, Warners At The Bay
Sydney: C
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3 Ravens Uber Blond
Published March 28, 2011
It might sound like the return of Brigitte Nielsen, but this is in fact the latest release under Thornbury brewer 3 Raven's Uber range, one which sees them take their Blond (or Golden Ale, depending how you know it) as a starting point then head into strong lager territory. Looking towards Europe - in particularly Germany - it's a recreation of an altbier, albeit something of an Uber version of that (its subtitle "Sticke Alt" means secret altbier - the one you'd have to request from the… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Altbier
- ABV
- 6.4%
- Bitterness
- 30 IBU
- Stockists
-
Baden Powell Hotel
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2 Brothers Grizz
Published March 24, 2011
For Grizz, 2 Brothers returned to the land that gave them the inspiration to start their own brewery in the first place: the US of A. The beer that was originally introduced as a seasonal but has become a key figured in the 2 Brothers permanent lineup is an American amber inspired by Mack and Jack's Amber from Redmond, Washington. It delivers a great balance of rich, caramel and toffee malts with piney, earthy, citrusy and slightly spicy US hops, making for one of the best examples of the style… Read more
Red
- Style
- American Amber Ale
- ABV
- 5.7%
- Awards
Gold – Australian International Beer Awards 2017
The Thorny Goat
Published March 11, 2011
You could have some fun with this one. Grab a mate, pour them a glass and offer it up without warning. Practically black, shot through with blood red tints if held to the light, and with a hint of tan in its head, they'll be certain they're about to tuck into a porter or lighter bodied stout. At this point, we should point out that this will work better if said mate has no sense of smell or a bad cold at the time, as otherwise the pretense will collapse well before the drink enters their mouth thanks… Read more
Black
- Style
- Black IPA
- ABV
- 6.8%
- Stockists
-
Corner Hotel, Richmond
McCoppins, Fitzroy and Abbotsford
Church St Cellars
Vaucluse Hotel
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2 Brothers Chief
Published March 7, 2011
This 2 Brothers seasonal release has previously only been available in draught form - and, being based on the Oktoberfest beer style, usually timed to hit taps around October. Given the Oktoberfest beers were spawned from the German Mí¤rzen style - a strong lager brewed in March to last through the summer when hotter temperatures could affect brewing conditions back in the Middle Ages - it makes perfect sense to release some in March too. So here comes The Chief in bottled form (plus a few kegs).… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Oktoberfest / Märzen
- ABV
- 6.0%
- Stockists
-
[Valley Cellar Door](/beer/bottleshop/valley-cellar-do
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Bright Pinky Framboise
Published March 6, 2011
They've been feeling fruity up in the Victorian mountains, it seems, with Bright deciding to mark the end of the summer with a raspberry lambic style beer. Brewed using 60kg of locally grown raspberries from Bright Berry Farms, the brewers tell us it pours an "eye-catching red/pink colour" and has a "distinct berry aroma" that "leads into a tart upfront flavour which is instantly recognisable as raspberry". It's the first time they've made the beer in three years but… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Fruit Lambic Style Ale
Murray's Imperious
Published February 12, 2011
A massive beer to launch a massive new range from Murray's, the Imperious is to Belgian beers what the Wild Thing is to stouts. This experimental Imperial Belgian Blond is the highest ABV beer Murray's has brewed to date. It contains a blend of British and German malts, fresh New Zealand-grown hops, and a classic Belgian yeast strain. This gives it a classic Belgian yeast profile ' strong esters and light phenolics - along with a tropical hop character (sweet mouthfilling apricot/stonefruit-like… Read more
Golden Yellow
- Style
- Imperial Belgian Blond
- ABV
- 11%
Stone & Wood Red Relief
Published February 12, 2011
Originally under construction for The Local Taphouse's Great Australian Beer SpecTAPular - and intended as a prototype for a potential third permanent member of the brewery's lineup - this beer became a fundraising tool when the floods hit Queensland early in 2011. Given it's a red beer and it was hoping to raise around $20,000 for the Flood Relief appeal, the name came easy. As for the beer, it's a darker beast than anything (except perhaps their occasional Stone Beer release) to come out of the… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- Red Ale
- ABV
- 4.7%
Bridge Road Chevalier Dunkelweizen
Published February 11, 2011
With so much attention lavished on the other two members of the Chevalier range - the Saison and Biere de Garde - the Dunkel's been shunned a little: it's like the Beechworth Cinderella that's picked on and kept out of sight by her ugly sisters (although we're not suggesting there's anything ugly about either of those beers - quite the opposite). But just as Cinderella had her little glass slipper, so the Dunkelweizen has a little trick up its sleeve, in the form of a brand new recipe from brewer… Read more
Dark Brown
- Style
- Dunkelweizen
- ABV
- 5.2%
- Stockists
Little Creatures East Kent Goldings
Published February 11, 2011
hey seem to like bucking the trend at Little Creatures. First their Pale (or Live as it was then) introduced the Aussie beer drinking world to US style hoppy pales. And now, while everyone else is using their limited releases to create something wild and crazy, they're firing out rather more traditional beers under their Single Batch banner, such as the Oatmeal Stout and now this, the East Kent Goldings Ale. It's a single hop affair, using the classic English hop that features in some of their other… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- English Bitter
- ABV
- 4.5%
- Bitterness
- 30 IBU
- Stockists
-
Little Creatures, Freo
[Carwyn Cellars](/beer/bottleshop/carwyn
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Murray's Punk Monk
Published February 11, 2011
Punk by name, yet refined by nature, this seasonal from Murray's might sport a ravishing pink label but inside it's all rather elegant. For those who've gorged on some of the brewery's big, bold expressions of intent in recent months, it's a chance to give your palate a different sort of work out, one in which it is caressed by what brewer Shawn Sherlock claims is a hybrid of a few Belgian styles, influenced by Saisons and Belgian Blond Ales with a nod to Belgian Trippels. The classic estery and… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- Belgian hybrid
- ABV
- 7.5%
2 Brothers The Guvnor
Published February 10, 2011
ON TAP TWO NIGHTS ONLY!!! We like it when the brothers go big. First there was the Voodoo Porter, weighing in around 7% and so good it won a medal at last year's Australian International Beer Awards. Then came the funk: James Brown, the big Belgian armed with 1000kg of candi sugar that won an army of fans and was described by Biero's beer man as "bananas coated in Nutella - awesome!". And now they're back with their biggest beer yet: The Guvnor. An English barley wine packing a whopping… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- English Barley Wine
- ABV
- 10.3%
- Stockists
-
GABS at The Local Taphouse St Kilda
Mountain Goat The Craig
Published February 4, 2011
So, there's a brewer at Mountain Goat called Craig. Craig was tasked to create a beer. He chose to brew a US-style Pale Ale, using Willamette hops to stand out from the herd. When the time came to tap the beer, it needed a name. "What shall we call it?" said the Goats. "How about The Craig?" came the reply. "No. We're not calling it The Craig," said Craig. "Tough. It's The Craig," came the reply. And so The Craig was tapped on the day the brewery flooded. It's… Read more
Rich Brown
- Style
- US Pale Ale
- ABV
- 4.4%
- Stockists
Hargreaves Hill AD
Published February 3, 2011
In keeping with the brewery's philosophy of creating traditional beers comes the return of the Hargreaves Hill Abbey Dubbel, their take on the Trappist style of strong brown ale with its origins in Belgium. Theirs is a faithful recreation, weighing in around 7.5%, that uses a special strain of Westmalle yeast from Belgium. Hargreaves founder Simon Walkenhorst will tell you of "notes of raisin and sarsparilla gracing the palate, which is quite dry and lightly bitter giving a pleasant perception… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- Abbey Dubbel
- ABV
- 7.5%
- Stockists
Red Hill Belgian Blonde
Published January 26, 2011
Of all Red Hill's seasonals, this one seems to fly under the radar a little. Yet it holds its own as part of their Belgian trilogy alongside the Temptation and Christmas Ale. Full-bodied and creamy in the mouth, it offers up a mix of caramel malt characteristics, some spicy notes, a slightly sour tang and hoppy bitterness. They've only brewed one batch this year so you'll have to head to the brewery to taste on tap or pick up in bottles.… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Belgian Blonde
- ABV
- 6.5%
- Stockists
Hargreaves Hill Yarra Valley Pilsner
Published January 14, 2011
The release of Mountain Goat's summery Skipping Girl on Wednesday doesn't appear to have stopped the rain so perhaps the release of a second seasonal this week from Victorian brewers will do the trick. This time it's the latest batch of Hargreaves Hill's Yarra Valley Pilsner, brewed with Summer Saaz, a variant of the famous Czech hop variety and lightly dry hopped. It's on tap in Melbourne from today and will be on the lineup of Aussie hoppy beers at Tuesday's Ale Stars session at The Local Taphouse… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- Czech Pilsner
- Stockists
-
Lincoln Hotel, Melbourne
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Mountain Goat Skipping Girl
Published January 12, 2011
Despite the continuing rainfall, the Goat team is manfully pursuing its mission to bring summer into our lives with another one-off summery release. We'd heard they were concocting an American Wheat but, when this was raised with head Goat Dave at the brewery his reaction suggested that, once more, it's more of a mixed bag rather than anything too definable. What it is, then, is a light yellow coloured hazy number that throws up plenty of lovely light tropical fruits from the inclusion of mucho Kiwi… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- Summer Ale
- ABV
- 4.7%
- Bitterness
- 30IBU
- Stockists
