Breaking News: Lion acquires Little Creatures

This morning I found out via Australian Brews News that Lion (owned by Kirin) has submitted a proposal to the Little Creatures board to buy out any remaining shares and fully own the company. While some may see this as a sad day because Little Creatures is undoubtedly the most iconic and pioneering craft brewer in Australia, I see this as an opportunity for Little Creatures to go from strength the strength under the management of Lion.

Lion have subsequently owned 37% for quite some time, and have not really influenced the creativity or quality of the beer coming out of the Fremantle headquarters. This acquisition will most likely give Little Creatures a wider distribution network, capital to expand and increase production, as well as the opportunity to export into overseas markets.

This announcement comes only days out from the release of their latest Single Batch, and we really hope that Little Creatures continues pushing the boundaries as they have done so for the past 12 years.

Tre Amigos

Sierra Nevada Hoptimum

Finally!! The Sierra Nevada Hoptimum has arrived in Perth. One only need Google search the name to see hundreds of reviews and conversations on this very drink and realise the hype behind it is quite tremendous. The beer itself was created when the brewery was challenged by some beer geeks to make the ultimate whole-cone hop beer.

The Scent: The Beer poured a glorious dark amber colour. Even as I filled my glass I could smell an aroma of mangoes, pine, pineapple and overall fruitiness. If you could get beer scented freshener you would definitely opt for this one.

The Taste: Recently Perth has had some out of character weather including cyclone class winds, a tornado and heavy rains. However none of this had prepared me for the hop storm Sierra Nevada created. The beer has a smooth almost whiskey ale complexion about it and all seems calm initially. The first thing you taste is a hint of caramel which is followed by a tsunami of HOPS.  The whole-cone style hops, of which many were used in the brewing process, sing with flavour. You have to love Simcoe hops. You get a sweetness which is instant but not overpowering…at least not compared to the bitterness.

Talking about balance would be like talking about engine block measurements in relation to beer flavour. This was never meant to be a balance beer. It was meant to be explosive hops through and through. Regardless of what the official IBU is (100) the bitterness is off the charts. I came home from work rather tired and planned on an early night but after drinking this I’ll be up for at least another day. This is Sierra Nevada on a whole new level; they’ve gone from kicking a ball around for a local team to the English Premiere League in a matter of brews.

If you want to try something that is way out in the stratosphere of taste extravagance, love your bitterness or even just want to see what Sierra Nevada can do when someone challenges them…then give this über-hop beer a go.

Place: International Beer shop      Would I buy it again: Yes. But I would be prepared this time

YM

Coopers Thomas Cooper’s Selection Celebration Ale

You may be wondering why there are three posts of the same beer from the same blog. Well it’s not a coincidence or by accident; there’s a purpose. That purpose being that we wanted to give the most objective opinion on such a subjective topic. Unless you’ve been ignoring the posts we’ve been submitting this week, you’ll know Coopers has been at the centre of the stage. They’ve all been leading up to one beer. The Celebration Ale. There’s no point denying we’ve had our ups and downs with Coopers. There have been some not so crash hot ones, and others that we’ve been fond of. We’d like to say thanks to Coopers again, and also thanks to you guys for reading. We hope you enjoy the trilogy of Celebration Ale reviews! 

On to the beers…

The beer pours a cloudy golden-brown, giving off malty and grassy notes. Unfortunately, these more earthy aromas clouded the citrusy and more fruity hops that I was hoping for.

Even more unfortunately was the fact that the first sip didn’t raise the already lowered bar. My first thoughts were a subdued Coopers Sparkling Ale. It has the same earthy and grainy feel as the Sparkling, but with a tad less hoppy bite and slightly less body to it. The flavour finishes quite dry with an almost banana-y flavour.

I have to say, I am quite disappointed, because I know how good Coopers can be - their Vintage Ale. However, I do love the fact that they’re willing to brew something as a celebration of their legacy, I really do. It’s just they could have done sooooooo much more with the Centennial and Nelson Sauvin hops. Instead of embracing the hop and going for something big, bold and a real fist to the face, they seemed to dumb it down to something similar to a beer they already produce.

So I guess to wrap this up, I have to say it’s not a terrible beer in the slightest, and I really hope that’s not the message you take away from this. It’s very drinkable, despite being on the blander side of beer, but my disappointment that they didn’t take this one beyond the limits, and push their comfort zone just diminishes the whole experience for me. Bring on July I say, because when that Vintage Ale comes out, expect me to come back raving!

RS

Epic Armageddon IPA

Sometimes, but not always, a beer label is representative of the beer inside. I have previously found that many Australian beers do not do this, of which Beez Neez (a honey-wheat beer) is a perfect example. The beer is bland and lacking what the label promises, strong honey notes. There is a the slightest indication that they may have mixed in a few drops of honey, but other than that, it tastes exactly the same as Redback, an Aussie beer for the masses.

It was late last Friday night when I got home from work and took out this beautiful looking bottle, which I had recently purchased from the International Bottle Shop. RS had wanted one, and since the 2-pack was cheaper than single bottles, I thought why not and got one for myself.

After acquiring this beer, I hastily did some research on the Epic brand and found out that the Epic name comes from three principles on which the brewery is run.

1. Epic Flavour

2. Epic Challenge

3. Epic Journey

True to their word, this Epic Amargeddon IPA lives up to the name and is so beautifully constructed, I would have to rate it in my top 10 if not top 5 beers. The balance between the fruitiness of the hops and the bitter aftertaste is superb, and as the beer warms, the flavours become even more pronounced and awesome.

I found the grapefruit/citrus notes to roll off the palate, which moved into fantastic pine-hop aromas, leading to the strong bitter finish I mentioned before. The smoothness of the flavour transition, coupled with a gorgeous malt body give this IPA true class. This IPA is not just a tribute to West Coast IPAs, but rather takes hold of the baton and pushes it a few steps further.

If you can get your hands on one of these, do so, its seriously Epic!

Bought for 10.50 from the International Beer Shop

JG

Mac’s Hop Rocker Pilsner

Whilst I was in Melbourne on holidays, a very good mate arrived home from his 6 month road-trip around Australia. And so on a balmy Friday afternoon, I headed over to his place to catch up and hear some impressive stories. Before heading over, I quickly grabbed some beers from the fridge, and it just so happened that one of them was the Hoprocker pilsner from Mac’s Brewery. Lately, we (Tre Amigos) have been loving the New Zealand beers, due to their strong affection to increase and change the amount and number of hops in just about every traditional beer style, which has led to the creation of some awesome brews.

While I am not a massive fan of the pilsner style, the beer was right there in front of me, so I thought what the hell, and opened it. The blurb describes how Mac’s have slightly altered the combination of hops, adding both Sauvin (love these) and hops, to induce a complex bitter taste, but in a good way of course.

Sadly, on this occasion, I did not have  glass to pour the beer into, but from multiple google images, the beer looks crystal clear, with a lager-y gold colour as expected from a pilsner. A solid whiff of the beer brings both hay and fruity flavours, which are no doubt due to the altered hop varieties.

I found the Hop Rocker to be a tad winey on the palate, while the malt flavours were voluptuous and almost chewy. There is a definite fruitness about the beer, with hints of freshly cut grass, orange, melon and possible lemon? The hops definitely make the beer, but it is slightly let down by the lack of complexity and crispness found within the malt. I also found the beer to be a tad watery.

All in all, this beer is easy to drink, has some fantastic hop flavours, and is a perfect accompaniment for a warm summer’s afternoon. Sadly, I would not be persuaded to try this again or any of Mac’s additional brews, due to the beers ultimate lack of overall performance.

Bought from the International Beer Shop for $3.50

JG