Tun Bitter

This American supplied beer to Australia has been giving me nightmares.

The Dave’s Beers of the World seasoned drinking team selected this for our next session drinking beer, however it was all gone before I even got a taste.

The review I was given was pretty bad, that it was a bad beer and drinking in even small quantities results in severe headaches the following day.

Nevertheless I was still determined to try just one, it only comes in a 30 block, but I was able to get one to try.

It comes to our shores by Woolworths, who have BWS and Dan Murphy’s – the main stores that sell it.

At first glance it looks like a beer, very pale in colour, it doesn’t have much of a noticeable smell either.

The taste is where my nightmares begin, it taste reminds me of fake beer, it is weak and watery.

It left a bad taste in my mouth.

That is all I have to say…

Cheers,

Dave

Worlds Biggest Selling Beer

What is the world's biggest selling beer?

If I asked you what you thought the world’s biggest selling beer was, what would you guess?

Good guesses would include the ubiquitous Corona and Budweiser.

I was hoping it would be Boag’s Draught but apparently I’m wrong.

These figures are from 2012

Whether it is the best tasting or most exciting beer is still up for debate but Snow Beer, brewed in China is #1. Primarily sold in China – a country of one billion people, it has a yearly output of around 61 million hectolitres, which is an f-ton of beer (according to The Ultimate Book of Beers, 2015).

Until I read it in a Beers of the World book I was recently given for a present I wouldn’t have believed that this beer that I have never heard of before sells more than any other brew in the world.

Not just China but the world apparently

This post is unique in that I’m writing about a beer I’ve never tried or even seen in the flesh, but I thought that I should share this with you, for Dave’s Beers of the World, Snow Beer by sales is the most popular beer in this world.

It is a pale lager with only 3.9% alcohol so it is a tease between a mid and full strength.

I want to drink you ;-)

I like the look of the green label and bottle from pictures I’ve seen, and recently I was informed that it is being sold in QLD, Australia.

I will endeavour to try this and let you know what I think.

Cheers,

Dave

I'll have my beer cold please =)

Easter Drinking

It's Easter time!

Happy Easter fellow drinkers.

Hope you are having a nice break/ not working too hard, I’m working most of the long weekend so I feel your pain. In between though I’ve been getting in the Easter mood and eating a lot of chocolate.

I’ve also found the perfect drink for Easter.

Image from Saint John Craft Beer Facebook page

La Sirene Praline Belgium Chocolate Stout from Victoria, Australia.

It was on tap at Saint John Craft Beer, I had to go and sample it before the keg ran dry, stout is usually a darker and richer feeling drink. The smell of this stout before I even tried it got me excited, a very chocolatey feel to it, the taste is what you would imagine. The chocolate taste overpowers the stout and makes it something easy and pleasant to drink. After a couple of schooners I got a Canimal of it to take home.

The Canimal

An awesome feature of Saint John, choose a beer they have on tap and they fill a 946ml can of it and seal it to drink later.

Another great Easter drink!

Imperial Chocolate Stout.

After I drank the last of the chocolate stout at the bar I heard about a special batch out in the back bar, made by the same brewery, the Imperial version is stronger and it is also amazing in every way.

In case you were wondering what Imperial meant in beers

“The term "imperial" was used in the 1800's for beer (usually stout) that was brewed in England but then shipped to Russia - specifically the imperial court of Russia! Brewers later started using the term more generally to indicate their top-of-the-line luxury beers.

With beers coming from American craft brewers these days, "imperial" is an indication that the beer is going to be big and bold regardless of the style. The hops and malts used during brewing are doubled or even tripled, and the resulting beer can pack quite an alcoholic punch ranging from 8% to 12% ABV.” http://www.thekitchn.com/beer-labeling-what-does-imperi-112370

Cheers,

Dave

La Sirene make Belgian and French style ales 

Dainton Brewing

I recently tried another of Dainton Brewings’s fine products so I’m compelled to tell you about them if you didn’t already know.

Dainton Brewing is an Australian Craft Beer Brewery based in Carrum Downs Victoria, their products have been popping up at Saint John Craft Beer in Launceston.

The man behind all of this, Dan Dainton has been brewing out of his garage, luckily he is now building a brewery so he can make a lot more of his popular product.

The range is constantly changing with seasonal and popular demand beers being brewed.

These are the fine Dainton products I’ve had so far:

Santa’s Cherry Sack Attack – This is the latest one I drank, in March would you believe. Made with Australian cherries. I loved the design and the description on the label “Good old Santa’s sack is here to floud your flaccid faces of Xmas cheer and sour beer, he’s coming soon to grace us. Popping cherries to the nuns tart and ripe they bite, on your tongue and out your buns the flavour is so nice. So here comes your jolly saviour thrusting from the rear, his sack’s so big and full of flavour he is coming twice this year.”

Samurye Lager – This is an amazing feat of beer creativity, with samurai in mind this beer is different but better than so many others at the same time. “Brewed by the spirits of craft brewers who were once warriors, this particular elixir showcases fruity and citrus hop characteristics, a lightened body from the rice and the subtle spice of rye.”

Some honourable mentions

Good Son Golden Ale

Impale Ale

Insane Uncle I.P.A

Dainton have impressed me not only with their creative labels but their fantastic product. I will continue to keep you updated on their other products as I get access to them.

Cheers,

Dave

Saint Mihal

The latest beer I've tried

Je mappelle David

Je suis australien

I once took some French lessons and this is mostly what I remember.

I have finally found a French beer, Saint Mihal, has reached local bottleshops in Tasmania.

For a long time, I didn’t think the French drank beer because I haven’t seen any before.

Saint Mihal is 4% in strength and only comes in a 330ml can.

My first impression is that it smells unlike any beer I’ve had before and I can say the same about the taste. It’s drinkable but not something I would have very often.

Come on France, lift your game!

The ingredients are disappointing: water, barley, maize, hop

extracts and caramel - things that are common with lower quality beer to make it cheaper to produce and leave you with a bad taste in your mouth.

A commentator on Beeradvocate.com had this to say about Saint Mihal:

“From can, pours pale Amber with thin layer of film on top. Aroma cardboard, bread and malt. Taste A hint of bubblegum, or fruit tingle, candy like very different but drinkable.”

Viva la France

I like France and many things French, the few French women I have met are amazing, but I hope that Saint Mihal doesn’t represent all that France has in beer, I’ll be on the lookout for a redeeming French beer – one that doesn’t smell like cardboard.

Cheers

Dave

Esk Beerfest 2016 The Hangover/ Debrief

This was the feeling for day two of Beerfest

The local beer drinking event of the year came to an unfortunate end Saturday night.

I was one of the first in the gates on Friday afternoon and left at close, similar to Saturday I didn’t miss much and gave it a good effort.

Four Beer Sampler from Double Head Brewing

Even though I took notes along the way I had to piece together what I got up to so I could be as accurate as possible.

Esk Beerfest by the numbers:

How many drinks were advertised:          250+

Actual number of ‘drinks’:                     155? (give or take a couple, this figure includes spirits, wines, mead, non craft beer etc)

How many drinks I had on Friday:          13

How many drinks I had on Saturday:       22+

How much I spent:                                 $350~

I can’t believe it myself when I crunched the numbers and will probably be on water only for the next week or so…

Moo Brew, classy as always

Red Duck had a lot to choose from

The Beer: This event is the Holy Grail of beer drinking and I tried to make the most of it. There were around 23 different Breweries, most with a variety of their best brews on offer. Red Duck from Ballarat had a large selection, including Hodor – an 11% Imperial Porter, did you get the Game of Thrones reference? Morrison Brewery had six of their amazing beers on tap and Devils Brewery were back in fine form.

BEST BEER AWARD: Wow, this was a tough one. I started the event with my favourite from last year and have now found a new one – Sunny With a Chance of Awesome by Last Rites Brewing Company. Not only did I try this in its natural form I had a hopinatored version as well. Until yesterday I had never heard about a hopinator, I was very curious! This website explains it better than I can:

“They’re glass cylinders of various shapes and forms through which beer can be diverted on its merry way from keg to tap to glass. They’re designed to hold whatever a brewer or barman thinks would add to / alter / screw up their beer to change the taste for the drinker. And, as one of the enthusiastic, knowledgeable staff points out, they’re a great way to educate the punter about what does what in beer.” http://craftypint.com/news/109/Hopinators-Hit-Hobart

Sunny With a Chance of Awesome is a summer pale ale using citrus hops. The hopinator version is unlike anything I’ve ever tried before, which is why it wins this year’s award.

The Cider: I actually drank quite a bit of cider over the two days, trying different brands and flavours. Apple Cider is of course the original kind of cider but I prefer to try different fruits, Coal Valley Cider had the most variety with Lemon, Pear and Cherry to name a few. Red Brick Road were also there, with their Mean Green hop infused cider still on tap, I had a couple of those.

BEST CIDER AWARD: 4 Brothers Cider Co were amazing, their products were also fantastic. A mainland group that had four ciders available, their best was the Passionfruit which wins the award.

The Food: As I mentioned earlier I believe that there was less food on offer and my favourites from last year weren’t there either. I still had some amazing food from the Pie-O-Matic, including the Pyengana Steak and Cheese and the Mexican Pie. Dapper Dogs Mobile Kitchen had some amazing Bratwurst looking hot dogs, I had the Booze Hound – the sauce was made with Morrison’s very own Smoked Chilli IPA. The Burger Junkie Van had hamburgers and fries. The Boag’s Container Bar even had pizzas they were making, having a mushroom pizza at the end of the night was an amazing way to finish the event.   

Awesome hot dogs!

BEST FOOD AWARD: The Best Food Award goes to Burger Junkie for their Beef, Beer Mustard and Crispy Pancetta Burger, this was one of the best items I got to eat at Beerfest, a burger is usually a good companion with beer.

Boag's made pizza, delicious

There is beer in the sauce!!!

Boag's stall

The Stalls: This year I was very impressed with the stalls, more so because of the souvenirs that were for sale. I love spending money on alcohol branded things – especially stubby holders. T-Bone Brewing Co had hats and Growlers, The Boag’s Bar had stubby holders and hats, there was even a Beerfest T-Shirt up for grabs.  

BEST STALL: The clear winners are the Iron House Brewery, not only did they have the biggest selection of items to buy (plus a lot of amazing beer to choose from) but the staff were super friendly and happy to chat with people. I already had a t-shirt from Festivale but this time around I added a stubby holder, coasters and Growler to the collection.  

My first time drinking mead, it was interesting

The taps for Wanderer Mead were awesome!

That finishes the Esk Beerfest for 2016. Thank you to the people who joined me and shared their drinking experiences, I’m going to start saving for next year.

Good times with great people =)

Cheers

Dave

Trying out my new shirt

Esk Beerfest 2016 Day One

The time has come to drink beer

The time is upon us, the Esk Beerfest has opened in Launceston, dust off your stubby holders and lather yourself in sunscreen, it’s time to drink some beer!

Officially I was one of the first in after the 45 minute delay in opening and was quick to scout around for what drinks were on offer.

The first beer.

I started the event with my #1 beer from last year – not another f$cking pale ale by Devils Brewery.

After 13 beers and ciders I had a great first night and have now had time to collect my thoughts on what it’s like.

Many of my favourite brewers were there some with merchandise for sale and there is some amazing food to get into – gourmet pies and hamburgers.

Pyengana Steak and Cheese Pie - amazing

Stout I think....

But there were a few things that are missing:

# Saint John Craft Beer do not have a spot this year which is sad because they bring a different kind of beer to the festival.

# Henry’s (non-alcoholic) Ginger Beer was AWOL as well, I will also make a point that non-alcoholic options were few and far in between, I couldn’t even find where to buy a bottle of water.

# Tornado potatoes are nowhere to be seen… I had four or five of these last year and they didn’t show this time…

# The food in general appears to be lacking, no roast rolls or salt and pepper calamari, all amazing things to have while drinking lots of beer…

# There was a promise of whiskey this year, at this stage I’ve only located one whiskey stall, I was hoping there would be more of a variety.

This year the organisers have boasted they have 250 beers and ciders available, 50-100 more from last year even though there seems to be less vendors. I will spend day two counting how many there actually are because I’m already calling myth busted.

Overall I’m excited to take part in Beerfest and wish it lasted more than a night and a day, it comes once a year so I will make the most of day two.

Reminiscing about the past in the Boag's Bar

Once again I will be awarding the ‘best of’ in several categories (best beer overall, best stall, best food item, best cider etc), if you come upon something that stands out amongst the rest today let me know!

Kicksnare Brewing hard at work

Kicksnare 5-pack sampler!!!

Hope to see you there today!

Dave

Cheers!