Now that they’ve got their hands on a spangly new brewery, it seems the Moo Brew team is having a little fun. The Tassie brewers began pumping their range of Moo beers out of the new brewhouse a few weeks ago, leaving the former brewery at the Moorilla Estate headquarters to become a plaything where their imaginations could run wild. Since then, they’ve released details of a hop harvest beer made using locally developed Summer Saaz hops and now comes news of number two, the marvellously named Saison DeMoo.
It’s destined to be released under the Mona label, Mona being the outrageously fantastical Museum of Old and New Art opened in February by Moorilla owner David Walsh. As such, it will only be available at the onsite Mona Winery Bar and in the bar inside the underground museum itself. Except… as part of the beer’s launch there will be a simultaneous tapping of kegs at three venues: the New Sydney in Hobart, Beer DeLuxe in Melbourne and The Wheaty in Adelaide will all get one 50l keg to tap either at the end of this month or in early May.
The Saison name was originally given to a family of beers brewed by farmers in southern Belgium brewed during the winter to provide refreshment to seasonal workers (saison is French for season) on the farms in the warmer summer months. According to Moo brewer Owen Johnston, the idea with theirs was “to pay homage and interpret the style with inspiration”. It uses traditional floor malted Bohemian Pilsner malt from Germany – the oldest form of malted barley – as the base malt as well as raw spelt, following the farmhouse tradition of including raw grains in the grist.
The former main Moo brewhouse turned brewers' plaything
“The origin of the yeast strain is reputed to be a small garage brewery in Blaugies, Belgium, focused on the revival of the saisons brewed previously in the region,” says Owen. “Bushy Park, north of Hobart, provides us with a tangible link to the local seasonal agricultural roots of the classic Saison.”
He describes the DeMoo as “medium bodied and pale orange in appearance with a complex flavour profile developed by the yeast, creating esters balanced with spicy earthiness. It finishes slightly tart with a peppery dryness.”
Dates for the three city tapping are yet to be confirmed, but we’ll let you know as soon as they are. As for the future of the Mona range, Owen says it will be for “entertaining and challenging beers” that, if well received and enjoyed by the brewers themselves, will be brewed more than once.
