The HK Beer Post

You didn’t think we’d go all the way to Hong Kong without sampling a local beer did you?  Of course you didn’t.  And so I present one of the most common tipples to be found at the eateries of Temple Street – Yanjing Beer.

Yanjing is a very basic beer, with no distinguishing features.  However, it is definitely not a bad beer, so it’s pretty easy to drink.  Also, for something so basic it is priced as you would expect – a 600ml bottle will set you back $5.50 … in Hong Kong dollars!  That equates to just 60 cents, or 33 pence per pint. I’m fairly certain the people who saw me buying it in the store saw the equivalent of Tesco Value Lager, but what the heck – it certainly hit a post conference spot.

Beer For The Season

We were out and about yesterday when, stopping in a local hostelry to slake our thirst, we discovered they had begun to stock Monteith’s, a nice range of beers out of New Zealand.

Upon a recommendation from bar staff, I selected their seasonal Summer Ale.  Amazingly, while it’s not an alcoholic ginger beer, that is a flavour which comes through strongly, and though I don’t normally like ginger beer, with a slice of orange this is quite drinkable and refreshing: a light Summer session beer.

Oktober

You’d think with all the beer reviews we’ve done recently we would have realised what month it is.  How could we forget Oktoberfest – the German festival adopted by beer lovers the world over. So that decides our evening activity then – we’re off out to sample some of Europe’s finest. Now we just have to decide on the accompaniment  -  pork belly, pork knuckle or classic bratwurst.

Prost!

A Moo Brew

While we were in Berry last weekend we stumbled across a bottle shop offering all manner of brewed suds, so for this week’s tasting report, since we were in dairy country with thousands of our closest bovine friends, we though it was appropriate to sample the wares of Moo Brew.

We chose two styles with which we are very familiar: the American style pale ale and the German style wheat hefeweizen.  I think it would be safe to say that if you like either of these styles, you’ll like Moo’s brews – they are pretty good representatives of what you’re looking for with each.  Personally I’d plump for the hefeweizen – it pours really smoothly; the cloudiness is just right, and it’s very easy to drink.  Another beer success – and according to the website, it’s available in Crow’s Nest too. 

Gulping Goblin

There are a few brewing operations in the heart of Sydney, but this one certainly puts the “micro” in microbrewery- the Happy Goblin Brewery less than an hour north of the city.  It was by complete chance that we discovered their pale ale in one of our local independent bottle shops, as it currently has but a few select stockists.  You can tell brewmaster Colin’s operation is small by the handwritten brew date and ABV on the labels.

This was an easily drinkable and enjoyable beer, and though I wasn’t blown away by it, I’d be happy to have it again.  I think there’s potential here. 

Beer By Murray

Along with our lingering craving for hot chicken, any time I fancy a beer I would really love to have the IPA from Sweetwater.  Sadly, we’re many thousands of miles from the nearest stockist, so I’ll stick local.  With that thought in mind, I recently encountered Murray’s Craft Brewing Co. who are based just a couple of hours to the north of Sydney.  Upon seeing their range of bottle conditioned beers – much like our old Scottish favourite Black Isle – I immediately got three to try.

I wish I’d done a little research before I opened the first, Murray’s Sassy Belgian Blonde. The first review I saw said “Biggest bottle explosion I’ve ever had. Fuck! Beer went fucking everywhere” which is funny because that is exactly what had just happened to me.  Which is a shame because this was a nice beer.  It had the right level of bitterness with subtle hints of dark caramel sweetness, and it went down easily while still leaving an impression.  I immediately regretted buying only one, and not just because I had accidentally wasted much of that one on the kitchen granite.

Interestingly, I thought the Pilsner had in essence a similar if more muted taste.  The biggest difference was that it was considerably more bubbly – which is probably the best way to describe the distinct carbonation as it was much more like a sparkling wine.  It was mildly enjoyable, and though there is nothing inherently wrong with it, it’s just not really my style.

The third beer was a little more of an enigma – their Nirvana Pale Ale.  At first, it had a distinct dryness that I thought would render it enjoyable but only in limited quantities.  However, that dryness didn’t build to the cloying mouthfeel I had expected.  Indeed it actually seemed to take on warm smokey undertones which were particularly enjoyable.  Again it was a shame I only had one.

Sassy Belgian was the standout of the three, but I would definitely drink the Nirvana again.

Not All Beers Are Created Equally

Or:  don’t take beer recommendations from someone who’s never even seen a passport.  It’s a rookie mistake I know but one I made when we went out for pizza one evening in Chattanooga.

The alarm bells should have been ringing when the guy at the bar had to check with a supervisor to see if passports were in fact a valid form of ID.  Still, I thought who better to recommend some good beers than the person selling them.  And so it was that I found myself starting the evening with New Belgium’s Mothership Wit.

I’ve drunk, and enjoyed, other New Belgium beers before, and similarly I normally enjoy wheat beers.  This however was quite disappointing.  Maybe I got a dodgy bottle or something, but it was like drinking water.  Minimal hops, wheat, malt … flavour at all in fact, and therefore minimal enjoyment.

Perhaps it was this big let down that meant I sort of liked the somewhat cheesy and seemingly commercial Monthy Python’s Holy Ale.

The beer was decent enough.  It was nothing special, particularly after some of the other beers we had while in the States.  It’s hard to give a full analysis because I think I enjoyed it simply because it was such an improvement over the other beer.

Of course, neither could live up to the deliciousness of the spicy chicken pizza with whole roasted cloves of garlic and roasted peppers that we’d ordered.  It was noms!

Sometimes it’s best to stick with what you know.  Next time we’re there, I think I’ll forgo their American brews and opt for a more established Belgian standby.

Day 11, Beer 4

As Amanda said with regards to the frozen custard, we don’t do junk food very often – it’s just that we figured that’s exactly what you’d want to hear about. Similarly, there are many days in which we aren’t trying new beers,  so please don’t think we’re turning into lushes here.  Just be grateful you’re not reading about how refreshing water is on a hot summers day!

Today, we bring you a beer from just over the border in North Carolina, from Asheville Brewing.

Shiva IPA is quite a decent brew. It’s a much more bitter example than the previous IPAs we’ve tried this trip, with quite a strong essence of grapefruit pith. It takes a little adjusting to, but I’d have to say it was definitely an improvement on the drinkability front from the Stone IPA, though the Stone is far superior overall.

The Sweetwater IPA is still the favourite though. 

Day 9, Beer 3

When it comes to local beer, you can’t get much closer to home than Chattanooga’s own Moccasin Bend Brewing Company. We decided to road test their Juniper Pale Ale, and for something so obscure it really does deserve a bit more exposure and recognition. It’s a nice slightly floral, refreshing beer- perfect for a hot summer’s day (it has been 94F/35C since we landed).  It’s not too complex and leaves you with the pleasant mouth feel of having just drunk a light fruit juice.

Support your local is a good motto, and if we were here for longer, I’d definitely be looking for a brewery tour. Well, that’s enough beer chat today – I’m off to joint a rabbit!

day six, beer two

After the previous wonder-brew, I felt I had two obvious choices before me: either try a different one of Sweetwater’s beers; or try someone else’s IPA.  I was clearly in an IPA frame of mind and plumped for the latter.

The IPA from Stone Brewing Company came highly recommended as a Californian brew in a pure Colorado style. I am definitely enjoying its strong flavour profile, which is quite different to the Sweetwater IPA.  To perhaps over simplify things: that was fruits with hops, while this is hops with fruits.  If IPA is your bag, this is a definite must.  However, I don’t think I could handle more than two pints of its hoppy intensity in one sitting!