What beer to give Santa?

By the end of the week, Santa will be travelling around the world, delivering gifts to good boys and girls (and hopefully some adults too – I hope he got my list).

I might be getting a little old for Christmas, but I love this time of year when the decorations come out, the Christmas themed sweets and desserts go on sale and people frantically run around trying to get gifts.

I very much want to be a father one day and experience the other side of Christmas, I hope that one day my child/ren will ask ‘what should we leave for Santa?’ because I will have the perfect answer for them.

BEER!

I hope there is some Kahlua in that milk...

Growing up, my brothers and I used to leave out a Boag’s Draught stubbie for Santa, he must love Tasmanian beer because he would leave the stubbie empty for us to find the next morning.

I do have a theory though that Santa might drink different beer around the world, if he lands in Japan he might like a Sapporo (it snows up there over Christmas, so it will still be cold once he gets to it). If he goes to Mexico he would probably like a Corona (but does he prefer a lemon or lime wedge in it?)

If Santa was coming to visit my family what should I leave out for him?

He is driving a sleigh so there is drink driving to consider, but then I don’t want to give him something that will leave a bad taste in his mouth meaning he won’t leave anything.

I wonder if he brought me the carton I wanted?

Personally, I think Santa deserves something nice for the hard work he is putting I over Christmas Eve, I would leave out a Boag’s Red (being that it matches his suit) or even a Boag’s Premium because I only get them for special occasions.

What beer do you leave for Santa, does he always drink it?

Merry Christmas,

Dave

So many beers to choose from...

Ocho Festive Peril

Santa will have earned many of these in a few days!

I have been in Peril for most of December when it has come to beer.

My plan was to find a few Christmas beers to talk about and occasionally brag about my homemade beer advent calendar.

My local stockists didn’t get the amazing brews they usually stock, so I’ve had to order some of my own (still waiting).

In the meantime, I went into Crown Cellars for maybe the twentieth time in the past month and Ocho (a local company) has come through. Brewdog have also released more of their Hoppy Christmas IPA so I scored one of them to have on Christmas Eve.

I've got one of these in the fridge!

Ironically, Ocho’s new festive beer is called Festive Peril.

Ocho is the brewery that made Papa Noel last year, one of the three beers in my very own homemade Christmas six-pack, themed after Christmas pudding.

Ocho has x3 new beers, Festive Peril is on the right

Festive Peril’s description is simply “Liquid Christmas cake, layers of rich, sweet malt, dried fruit & a hint of booze.”

To get myself into the season I cracked a cold one, and wow on first tasting it is very rich.

At 9% (2.4 standard drinks) this beer was strong in flavour and alcohol content.

It was difficult to drink, if you have a few it will probably get better, but after just one I felt just like England in the Ashes so far – hit for six.

It was a good beer to get me into the mood but this ‘Belgian Dark Strong Ale’ was too rich for my liking.

What have you got on your Christmas wish list?

I check my tree daily to see if there are any more presents, maybe some beer or even a voucher.

I wonder if I'm on the naughty or nice list?

My advent calendar is almost empty, I’ll have to update the Facebook page with what I’ve had so far (hit the like button to receive information on beer and funny things I share).

Cheers,

Dave

James Squire Swindler Tropical Pale

It was my birthday recently. For a present I received a 6-pack of James Squire Tropical Pale, they must have known me very well. I hadn’t sampled this product yet but being a James Squire beer, I knew it would be fantastic.

James Squire boasts an ambitious range of beers and now have one with summer in mind, with tropical, citrus and melon flavours felt in every sip I have enjoyed each of these beers.

I have covered a James Squire beer before and plan to do more so I won’t go into the brewery’s story every time, but I just want to remind you that James Squire is a company that acknowledges Australia’s convict heritage and claims the original James Squire was the first real beer brewer in the colony, going from convict to beer tycoon.

This beer is a perfect thing to have in your hand over the summer with a set of thongs in the other as you turn over the sausages on the sizzling BBQ.

A great birthday present

A good but frustrating thing about this large-scale craft beer company is that they have so many different and interesting beers that when it comes time to choose one I can’t decide on just one.

On a Melbourne trip I was heading from Bar A to Bar B and stumbled upon an actual James Squire bar, with each of their main beers on tap… I stayed for one and vowed I would return one day.

Go ahead, enjoy summer and try another fine beer by James Squire.

Cheers,

Dave

Boags: A Trip Down Memory Lane

Recently I noticed in a picture on Facebook someone drinking a can of Boag’s Draught, except the can was white. They have been green for as long as I’ve been drinking so I guessed that the person has had it somewhere for 30 years and finally decided to drink it.

But on a recent visit to the Boag’s Centre for Beer Lovers I discovered that Boag’s is actually remaking the old-style cans for limited release.

Available in 24 packs and 30 blocks you can have the chance to collect a piece of Boag’s history.

I’ve tried to collect information about the style and history of the old can design but haven’t come up with anything yet.

Back when the cans did have this simple design they were yet to know of the great success they would have in the early 2000’s winning many international awards.

Boag’s Draught has undergone changes in recent years, mainly to lower the alcohol content to make it cheaper and another change to lower the sugar content.

Cheers,

Dave

A beer from a different time

100th Post

When I started this blog, I had no idea that it would run for this long let alone reach 100 posts.

I didn’t realise I had so much about beer to share and still have a lot more to talk about.

We have looked at beers from all over the world, including mainstream, craft and even ones that barely earn the name beer.

BeerFest continues to be my #1 event!

I’ve challenged myself to compare similar types, drink unusual quantities and keep you up to date on new beers that hit the market.

Some of my most memorable highlights have been the Christmas advent calendars and visiting the growing number of beer festivals in my local area.

A fun lead up to Christmas

The VB challenge didn't go to plan...

A bottleshop attendant recently told me that I should claim my beer purchases on tax, I wish I had thought of that a long time ago…

I will never forget my time in the land of the rising sun

I plan to keep doing Dave’s Beers of the World, one day soon I would even like to have some unique merchandise to give to my followers, all two of you.

Sometimes the boot needs to come out!

Anyway, I didn’t just write this to inflate my ego any more than it needs, I stumbled upon an early Christmas beer that I wanted to share with you.

Christmas has come early for me with Brewdog’s Hoppy Christmas, a festive IPA from Scotland.

Merry Christmas!

“Sitting at 7.2% this festive pale ale is an ode to one of our favourite hops. May hope flakes deck the halls and carpet the streets with the tangy sweet citrus aroma of papaya and pineapple. Hoppy Christmas is a single hop simcoe IPA, with a toasty caramel malt backbone, big tropical aromas, and a bitterness that lasts ‘til new year.”

Hopefully I can find a few more of these by December.

Cheers,

Dave

We made it to 100 posts!

Scary October Beers

October would have to be one of my most exciting months for beer, first you have Oktoberfest then if you can survive that, Halloween, not that it quite feels like it has taken off in Australia yet – I’m still looking for pumpkin beer – there is still the scary vibe that comes with it and luckily some spooky ales in the local bottleo’s.

First up is Rogue’s Dead Guy Ale, the name is morbid enough to classify for the scary category. For a 6.8% beer this had a rich taste, unlike anything I’ve ever had before.

This is a crazy tasting beer!

The description on the can read “Dead Guy Ale is a maibock style ale with a robust malt profile and a sweetness that is balanced by the liberal use of bittering hops.”

I’m sure a can of this could bring the dead to life.

To top it off I also got a Heretic’s Evil Cousin, an 8% double IPA.

Worth it!

I really liked this one, it had flavour and character, it reminds me of a joke about Tasmanian's where other Australian’s think we have two heads…

The can describes it as a resiny citrus and pine joy with an easy drinking malt character.

Both of these American craft beers were just two of many that I am starting to see pop up.

I’ll find some more scary ones to show you sometime soon.

Until then,

Cheers,

Dave 

Weihenstephaner Pils

October is almost over, but I finally made it to a German festival.

Grindelfest at Grindelwald, Tasmania, was a lot of fun, advertised as a family event there were lots of activities for the kids while the adults partook in beer and food.

Between plastic steins of Carlton Draught, pretzels, bratwurst and even a tornado potato I enjoyed every moment of it.

Enjoying the great Tasmanian weather

Bratwurst "German sausage"

The only issue I had was their beer, I was hoping for something German to suit the event, but Carlton Draught was all they had available. Once I got home I opened a Weihenstephaner Pils, a real Oktoberfest kind of beer imported from Germany.

A bit hard to pronounce it is a great sized bottle at 500ml and has the typical old German beer feel to it, more of a punch than anything in Australia.

Weihenstephaner Pilsner is a traditional Pilsner style beer with a smooth, pale malt background and the grassy, floral aromas of European Hallertauer hops. Sweet and well balanced with a refreshingly crisp finish.  

https://www.danmurphys.com.au/product/DM_904073/weihenstephan-pilsner-500ml

This Pilsner is just one of many beers the brewery exports, I’ll have to try the others someday.

The Weihenstephaner range

The beer festivities for Oktoberfest are coming to a close but Halloween is on the way/ already here and I actually found some decent horror themed beers to share with you.

I picked up a German hat there to 'blend in'

Until next time,

Prost

Dave

Bitburger Premium

I have been trying to decide which German beer to start with, Bitburger boasts that it is Germany’s #1 draft beer, a good start.

This beer is good but it packs a good bitter punch, the first couple took a while to get down but after that the others didn’t last long.

Four million hectolitres of this centuries old German product is brewed each year so there are a lot of people that also agree this is worth drinking.

It tastes like beer heaven

This description comes directly from their website: “Its refined herbal notes are delicately poised, followed by a nutty and honeyed aftertaste. The overall impression of this gently sparkling beer is one of deep harmony, with the unmistakeable bitterness of the hops balanced and contained by an agreeable, mellow sweetness in the body.” 

http://www.bitburgerinternational.com/bitburger/products/bitburger-pils/

It looks like the six-pack I got is actually the real thing - because it was brewed in Germany - many international beers are brewed to a recipe at a different source and therefore different to the original product.

Made following the German purity laws it only contains water, malted barley, hops and hop extract.

I’ve just had my last one, time to go searching for something else to drink.

Cheers,

Dave

Oktoberfest 2017

It's Oktober! Bring on the celebrating!

Hello fellow beer drinkers, it’s a special month for us, October is around the time when Germany have their massive annual beer celebrations for Oktoberfest, just because we aren’t in Germany it doesn’t mean we can’t enjoy the same kind of fun.

This month I will be hunting around my city, looking for places that are celebrating Oktoberfest while also on the lookout for some amazing German beers.

Last year I posted a blog about when Oktoberfest actually is (it starts in September), but I didn’t explain how it came about.

There is something I love about this event... the beer! 

Oktoberfest’s roots actually came from a royal wedding in Munich on October 12th 1810, between Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese.

Citizens were invited to attend to celebrate the event which was so popular it was decided to be held again the following year but as a horse race and agricultural event.

Look at all those jugs... of beer!

The celebrating continued over the years where beer stalls begun to pop up, by 1896 the beer stands became tents and the beer culture took over to become what it is now, more than a hundred years later.

Forward to today and I was heading to Saint John’s for my (at the moment) weekly visit, they had advertised a German platter on their Facebook page on Thursday, by Tuesday though it was gone, another blow was learning that they also had several German beers on tap, all gone by the time I visited though, a chance missed.

Wish I could have tried this...

Saint John's Oktober feast

Let's go!

At Grindelwald on October 28th, Grindelfest will be held again, this time it will be a more family orientated event but still promises an Oktoberfest style, I’ll try and get there.

I’ll keep searching for things to eat and drink around Launceston, I might even bring the boot out of storage and show you how to drink!

Prost (cheers),

Dave

History found at: http://www.muenchen.de/int/en/events/oktoberfest/history.html

Pictures are from Google and Saint John Craft Beer's Facebook Page

What the German's like to eat

Iron Jack Lager

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Australian bottleshops are now stocking yet another beer in a saturated market, Iron Jack, a midstrength lager is hoping to capitalise on any room left from XXXX Gold and Great Northern.

Their unique spin is that it’s for the Australian country man, who goes out bush and likes to have a few.

Lion who already have a good chunk of the Australian beer market have just released this beer with high expectations.

In cans and stubbies

A lion spokesman has been quoted saying that “There is a market for contemporary and sessionable mid-strength beer, with really low bitterness and a bit of hop aroma to start with, but finishes really clean,” Lion brand director, Jack Mesley explained in an exclusive interview to launch the product.” (https://www.beerandbrewer.com/lion-announces-launch-iron-jack-mid-strength-australian-lager/)

I was lucky enough to try one before its release, in my opinion, it tastes like a weak Toohey’s Extra Dry.

I hope it does become successful, the midstrength market is dominated by Queenslanders, I haven’t discovered yet where this is being brewed.

Let me know what you think when you try one.

Cheers,

Dave

Bombers Kolsch Ale

This is probably going to be my most passionate post on this blog.

My football team has made it to the finals of AFL in 2017, at the same time they have just released a limited supply of specially labelled beer, I'm watching the game while typing this, win or lose I'm pretty happy.

Essendon have joined with Colonial Brewing (Victoria) to make a special hand brewed batch of it's great tasting Kolsch Ale.

Love the design

Several players were involved in making this and getting it ready to ship to thirsty fans.

Michael Hurley helping to stack cartons

The only downside to it is once I've drank them all they're gone as the supply sold out pretty quick, luckily Colonial make regular Kolsch Ale so if the Bombers do make it to the next game I will still enjoy their flagship beer for 2017.

Go Bombers,

Dave

EFC 2017!

Snake Venom Beer

A special beer brewed in Scotland, this beer is quite rightly named because enough of it will probably kill you. Looking to create the World’s Strongest Beer, Brewmeister Brewery experimented to create a brew that is 67.5% in alcohol content… you read that right, 67.5 bloody percent!

A good whiskey is usually around 40% so this is something spectacular.

Because of the hazardous level with the beer it actually has a warning label on each stubbie, the brewers strongly recommend to not have any more than a small shot per serve and to drink it like a spirit.

It probably kicks like a snakebite too...

Snake Venom was created by using smoked peat malt and two kinds of yeast, it gets its high alcohol level from freezing several times during the fermentation process.

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It does cost a bit but it will definitely give you a buzz.

Who wants to come to Scotland one day and try this with me?

Cheers,

Dave

Information collected from http://www.executivestyle.com.au/worlds-strongest-beer-contains-675-alcohol-2wcv0