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!
One Drop Slip Dart, Body Count & Pineapple Imperial Slushy Sour
Published April 14, 2022
I recently wrote about some of the more extravagant One Drop releases, so figure it’s probably time to even up the ledger a bit with something a little more within the realms of normality. To that end we’ve got a gorgeous Czech pilsner, a hopped up hazy and – checks notes – a pineapple imperial slushie sour. Well, two out of three ain't bad... I’m always excited to see breweries take on a Czech pilsner. With more malt than a German and less hop than an Italian, a Czech style for me is the… Read more
Golden Yellow
- Style
- Czech Pils, Hazy IPA & Slushy Sour
- ABV
- 5.5% & 6.1% & 8.5%
Stomping Ground Bearbrass
Published April 14, 2022
There’s a fair bit of history to this limited release tin from Stomping Ground. For one, the name Bearbrass was among the first that European settlers knew Melbourne as, apparently due to a misunderstanding of Birrarung, the name of the Yarra River in the language of the Wurundjeri. Fast forward quite a few decades and Collingwood’s first brewery in some years opens and among the first beers they pour is a nitro milk stout named after that early peace of the city's history. It's been a staple… Read more
Black
- Style
- Milk Stout
- ABV
- 4.5%
Shark Island Sandshoes XPA
Published April 13, 2022
Taking title inspiration from another of their local surf breaks, which itself references the Dunlop Volleys required to reach the break across a cunji reef, Sutherland Shire brewers Shark Island have entered the XPA game with Sandshoes, a new addition to their core lineup. With an ABV of 4.5 percent and bitterness set to 30 IBU, everything about this beer is as to the point as a Great White. The colour is the colour of beer. It’s that simple; picture amber that has seen a ghost. Upon cracking… Read more
Golden Yellow
- Style
- XPA
- ABV
- 4.5%
- Bitterness
- 30 IBU
- Stockists
-
Launching at the brewery on April 14
With Norma's Burger Bar
And 30% off growlers
Order online here
Liquor Emporium St Peters
Bottle Keg Can Jannalli
Taren Point Ritchies IGA
Loftus Liquor
More stockists...Selected Dan Murphy's and BWS
Range Brewing Full Circle #3, Without Doubt & River City Pils
Published April 13, 2022
Range Brewing’s release schedule never exactly seems to slow down but these four beers from April 2022 quite nicely capture the brewery’s ethos. Full Circle is the third iteration of the fundraising beer, with support this year going to Range’s mates at Loop Growers, who Range have been sending their grain to since thei very first beer. The Queensland farm uses closed-loop and sustainable practices to grow organic fruit and veg but unfortunately, a lot of that infrastructure was washed away… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- Pale Ale, IPA & Pilsners
- ABV
- 4.8%, 6.5%, 5.3%
Dollar Bill Lichtenhainer
Published April 13, 2022
When it comes to beer and cider releases, you could never accuse Dollar Bill of not following their own path and this core range beer, introduced into their lineup in 2022, is a perfect example of that. Even with so many beers across myriad styles being so frequently released in Australia, Lichtenhainer remains a rarity, with the German ale's unique combination of smoke and sour not often brought together locally. Dollar Bill’s take on the historic style sees the brewery use oak-smoked wheat and… Read more
Golden Yellow
- Style
- Lichtenhainer
- ABV
- 7.8%
Site Fermentation Poject: Lapin 2021
Published April 13, 2022
Lapin is a longstanding part of Hop Nation’s limited-release calendar, with the cherry-soaked sour sitting under the brewery’s Site Fermentation Project banner. Like the rest of those Site beers, the 2022 release - which celebrates the 2021 cherry harvest - has a new look thank to the brewery's longtime collaborator, Steve Leadbeater's artwork and comes in 375ml glass bottles. Starting life as a foeder-aged golden sour ale, Lapin 2021 was then refermented on Victorian Lapin cherries that were… Read more
Red
- Style
- Mixed Culture Beer With Cherries
- ABV
- 7.1%
Black Arts Table Beer
Published April 12, 2022
Table beer joined Black Arts’ core range in 2022 and like many beers from the small Melbourne outfit, the beer’s very much inspired by classic styles from Belgium. More specifically, it’s designed for sharing across a table with friends, with the 3.5 percent ABV low enough that you might choose to crack it during lunch over dinner. Pouring with a slight pink hue and quite an enthusiastic carbonation, those fruit flavours are a mix of berries without any sweetness, with hints of strawberry,… Read more
Red
- Style
- Saison
- ABV
- 3.5%
Black Arts South Coast Sour
Published April 12, 2022
Like their popular core range Bière de Coupage, Black Arts’ South Coast Sour is a mix of the old and the new, a blend of mature and sour golden ale with a West Coast IPA. It means the oak-aged sour IPA combines upfront notes of pine, citrus and stone fruit but instead of any real bitterness, you're met by a cavalcade of funky flavours. Alongside those classic West Coast hops are farmhouse elements providing a solid funk that matches overripe fruit with an earthy finish. Meanwhile, the original… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Oak-Aged Sour IPA
- ABV
- 6.2%
Young Henrys 10 Years Strong Barrel-Aged Red Ale
Published April 12, 2022
When I received the email telling me Crafty Pint fan favourite Mick Wüst wouldn't be available to review Young Henrys' tenth anniversary beer, meaning I would have to do it in his stead, I knew I was having a good day (sorry, Mick!). Just reading about this beer – a barrel-aged red ale – I already wanted to inject it. Ten years of Young Henrys: yep, amazing, so many achievements, great job, etc... OK, I’ve been polite enough, I can’t wait another second, I want to drink this damn beer now! What… Read more
Red
- Style
- Barrel-Aged Red Ale
- ABV
- 8.0%
Tallboy & Moose Dark Nebula (with Carwyn Cellars) & Chubby Bunny
Published April 12, 2022
Whether it's the downtime provided by Easter or the many beers brought by the hop harvest that make this time of year matter to you, Tallboy & Moose might well have you covered. Dark Nebula was brewed with Tallboy’s neighbours and close confidants, Carwyn Cellars, with the collaborators securing fresh Eclipse hops from the High Country and getting those flowers into the Black IPA the same day they were picked. The autumnal release provides quite a hit of coffee that's soon joined by dark chocolate,… Read more
Black
- Style
- Fresh Hop Black IPA & Marshmallow IPA
- ABV
- 6.3% & 6.0%
Rocky Ridge's April 2022 Foursome
Published April 11, 2022
Winter might be drawing ever closer, but the team at Rocky Ridge are holding onto what’s left of the warmth in WA’s South West and spoiling punters with a range of pale-erring quaffers: two fruited sours and two approachable IPAs. Kicking off with Mel’s Gin Sour – in its second iteration – you'll find bright acidity and sweet, ripe melon character dominating alongside a touch of soft, herbaceous character and a strikingly clean finish that allow light spice aromatics to linger. A refreshing… Read more
Golden Yellow
- Style
- Sours & IPAs
- ABV
- 4.0% & 3.5% & 5.5% & 6.5%
Cheeky Monkey Imperial Monk, Huzza Wouie & Cupcake Beer
Published April 11, 2022
Flexing their creative muscles, Cheeky Monkey have dropped a trio of beers that range from the tried and tested to the downright outrageous. The tried and tested comes in the return of the South West stalwarts' famed Imperial Monk American red IPA, landing at a sizeable 7 percent ABV and boasting an equally large helping of specialty malts that yield robust notes of toffee and well-toasted bread. Hop additions are well-equipped to counter said rich sweetness: sticky pine, grassiness and citrus all… Read more
Red
- Style
- Imperial RIPA, Hazy Mid IPA & Cupcake Beer
- ABV
- 7.0% & 3.3% & 5.8%
Burnley Brewing White IPA
Published April 9, 2022
In 2021, multiple Burnley Brewing cans were designed by Melbourne artist Lily Suwitra and, with 2022 now well underway, the brewers have welcomed a new artist-in-residence for the year. Throughout 2022, we'll be seeing multiple cans designs by Hannah Rae Powell – whose work you can find here, while fans of the brewery might well recognise some of the four-legged inspiration for the White IPA's label. As for the beer, it’s the not-often-seen combination of a Belgian witbier and American IPA known… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- White IPA
- ABV
- 5.8%
Colonial Brewing Tropical Lager & Autumn Ale
Published April 9, 2022
Colonial Brewing seem to be keeping their feet in two seasons at once with this twin release. Starting with summer (which is also known as "all year" in Colonial's original home of Western Australia), Tropical Lager is a pretty traditional Munich-style helles that’s been given a not-so-traditional hit of Centennial and Mosaic hops before being dry-hopped with Idaho 7 and Bru-1. The sparkling and ultra-lean lager has the slightest note of biscuit from the malt base with a soft bitterness… Read more
Red
- Style
- Tropical Lager & Amber Ale
- ABV
- 4.5% & 5.7%
One Drop Imperial, Double & Smoothie Sours
Published April 8, 2022
Trying to keep abreast of everything Botany superstars One Drop are doing is an exercise in futility. Take your eyes off them for a couple of days and BAM!, "Here’s another eight new beers plus a new type of hopping technology we invented." There’s no other way to say this. The four beers I’m about to talk about are obscene. Practically everything single aspect of each beer is a full-scale assault on several senses at once. Take any one of these beers and send it through a wormhole… Read more
Red
- Style
- Imperial, Double & Smoothie Sours
- ABV
- 7.7% & 8.3% & 8.4% & 7.8%
Bridge Road Hazy Harvest & Dark Harvest (2022)
Published April 8, 2022
There aren’t too many independent Australian breweries that have been around for 14 years and far fewer (if any...) have been continually making beers with fresh hops for that long. But Bridge Road are such a brewery, with Ben Kraus having first driven down the road to Myrtleford to get his hands on Hop Product Australia’s hops from the bine back in 2009. While there is an important air of continuation to such beers, 2022 sees some significant changes too, with both the Beechworth's brewery's… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Fresh Hop Beers
- ABV
- 6.4% & 6.6%
Future Mountain A Million Stars (2022)
Published April 8, 2022
Future Mountain’s A Million Stars is a beer made for when the days start getting cut short, with the dark farmhouse ale using a mix of dark and lighters malts with a medley of spices to create a beer destined to be shared with friends by a fire. Those additions include cardamom, black pepper, star anise, rosemary and juniper berries while further herbal and fruited aromas are brought by Hallertau Blanc and Mangum hops. At first, the cardamom is the most distinct of those flavours, providing a… Read more
Black
- Style
- Dark Farmhouse Ale
- ABV
- 5.5%
CoConspirators Brewing The Investor & Brewpub Series: Pale Ale
Published April 8, 2022
Since their Brunswick brewpub opened in the final weeks of 2021, it’s safe to say the team at CoConspirators have been busy. Having built that brewery with help from supporters via equity crowdfunding, the team was quick to invite those who chipped in to develop their own beer. Clearly, there must be IPA fans among those equity investors, with the resulting beer, The Investor, a West Coast featuring Australian Eclipse and American Mosaic hops. It seems too many chefs don't necessarily spoil the… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- West Coast IPA & Pale Ale
- ABV
- 7.1% & 4.3%
Barossa Valley Brewing Double Mosaic NEIPA
Published April 8, 2022
From late 2020 onwards, Barossa Valley Brewing have spent considerable time exploring hops via their Hop Focus NEIPA series in which hazy beers with soft bases are packed with a single hop. It all kicked off with Mosaic; now, in 2022, the South Australian brewers have decided to turn things up a little with a Double NEIPA series served in 440ml cans. The first release sits at 9.5 percent ABV and, fittingly, they've launched it with Mosaic, which delivers quite a sticky level of mango, peach and… Read more
Golden
- Style
- Double NEIPA
- ABV
- 9.5%
Wolf of the Willows Hawaiian Sour
Published April 8, 2022
Following some time spent in Thailand and LA during the second half of 2021, Wolf of the Willows have again popped down to the beach with their Hawaiian Sour. The tropical fruit cream sour features pineapple juice, key lime, coconut and vanilla with further tropical fruits being teased out of Vic Secret and Citra hops. Rolled oats and wheat in the malt makeup help ensure Hawaiian Sour has quite a soft and fluffy body, which provides a creamy base for those tropical flavours to leap from. Of those,… Read more
Pale Yellow
- Style
- Tropcial Fruit Cream Sour
- ABV
- 6.2%
