Black Sheep Brewery “Monty Python’s Holy Grail” Ale

Tasted Wednesday 28 October 2009. 500ml bottle, 4.7% Alc/Vol

England

A fairly standard English Bitter style. It has a good clear amber colour with a creamy but thin head. Quite malty on the nose showing caramel, grassy/hay, yeast, floral and faint citrus notes.

Soft and malty on the palate with caramel and fruity notes. A gentle creamy/yeasty characters and late bitterness rounded it off. Overall quite pleasing, a little light but very easy to drink. Found the flavours were a bit more pronounced when it warmed up a bit

Great Divide Brewery Hercules, Double IPA

Tasted Wednesday 28 October 2009. 355ml bottle, 9.1% Alc.Vol

USA

“An extreme style with flavour that is hell-bent on palate destruction….“

I’m a hophead. Thought I’d make that clear, although many of you would have figured that out by now.

Hearing that this beer was available again got me salivating – quite disgustingly so…….

And yes it has lived up to my expectations and it’s been a number of years since trying it last. Quite simply this is full on – malt and hops jostling for attention but I feel that the malt dominates the most. Big sinus clearing, pine scented hops bounce out of the glass with toffee apple and malt extract.
The palate offers a big malt character again, rich and full. Molasses/golden syrup-like, oily alcohol that tries to rear its head but is battered back down with the said malt and building hops. While the hops build and extract themselves and crash on the rocky shores of my tongue leaving a pleasant wake of bitterness, I feel the malt needs to be toned down some.

Nevertheless it is an extreme and challenging beer that is strangely addictive. A big thumbs up from me.

Great Divide Brewery Belgica, Belgian-Style IPA

Tasted Wednesday 28 October 2009. 355ml bottle, 7.2% Alc/Vol

USA

“Rated as one of the world’s best breweries, Great Divide Brewery is not afraid to push the boundaries. These beers are a must for hop heads…..”

This beer will divide (no pun intended) beer folk. What is a Belgian-Style IPA anyway?
To me this tastes like a massively hopped Duvel. A strong golden ale on steriods this pours a suspicious bright yellow colour. Big fruity notes leap out of the glass – lemon and peach with pine needles, fresh hay and malt.

Lively, light bodied yet full flavoured with a glycerol/oily texture giving a fuller impression. Citrus flavour generously spreads itself throughout with some sweet malt, spicy hops that build in intensity and leave a wake of bitterness on the finish. An oddly refreshing beer, with bite.

While I do believe that this is a good beer, my overall impression is that the flavours are not harmonious, they work a little against each other rather than flowing seamlessly.

Some will like this, some won’t.

Purvis Cellars Oktoberfest – Top 20 Selling Beers

Thanks to all who attended our beer festival. By all the feedback an enjoyable evening was had by all. Approximately 200 people attended the event and a lot of beer was sold – so thanks again to everyone.

Below is a list of the top 20 selling beers of the evening – in no particular order

Phoenix Premium Lager – Mauritius

Coniston Bluebird – England

Eggenburger Urbock 23 Degrees – Austria

Epic Pale Ale – New Zealand

Founders Organic Long Black – New Zealand

Harrington’s Brewery Wobbly Boot – New Zealand

Innis & Gunn Oak-Aged Ale – Scotland

Kooinda Pale Ale – Australia

Leffe Vielle Cuvee – Belgium

Mac’s Sassy Red – New Zealand

Matilda Bay Fat Yak – Australia

Mountain Goat Steam Beer – Australia

Sunshine Coast Brewery Hot Chilli Beer – Australia

Schneider & Brooklyner Hopfen Weisse – Germany

Skalak Premium Lager – Czech Republic

Stone & Wood Pale Lager – Australia

Trumer Pils – Austria

Unibroue La Fin du Monde – Canada

White Rabbit Dark Ale – Australia

Zywiec Polish Lager – Poland

Oktoberfest 2009 @ Purvis Cellars

It’s that time of year again. We are hosting our own unique style of Oktoberfest beer tasting. Showcasing beers from around the world with a few locals to ‘em honest! Book now! More details about the beers to taste will be available closer to the date. Included also will be a selection from our New Zealand craft beer shipment.

When: Wednesday 21 October 2009. 6pm – 8.30pm

Cost: $10 per head. Includes 10 tasting tickets.

Where: Purvis Cellars

Bookings: By Phone 03 9888 6644 or in store.

The Mussel Inn

Some quirky New Zealand beers are now available at Purvis Cellars….check these out!

The Mussel Inn Dark Horse Porter. Very dark and roasty – not too dry. A solid and dependable performer – pulls away strong at the finish.

The Mussel Inn Golden Goose Lager. A hoppy golden lager. No shell, no feathers, just pure gold.

The Mussel Inn Captain Cooker Manuka Honey Beer. A red brown beer flavoured with the freshly picked tips of the Manuka tree. A very distinctive beer with proven medicinal qualities. The only one out of 240 New Zealand beers to rate 10 out of 10 in Keith Stewarts book ‘The complete guide to New Zealand Beer’. Also featured in ‘Best – a New Zealand compendium’. Compiled by Ella Griffiths, published by Awa Press. Also available on tap at Hopgood’s in Trafalgar St. Nelson, The Abbey at Appleby and Jester House in Tasman.

Purchase them at Purvis Cellars here

Three Boys Oyster Stout

Tasted Wednesday 30 September 2009. 6.2% Alc/Vol, 500ml bottle

New Zealand

Quite possibly this is the best Three Boys beer.

This is a very smooth and complex beer. It pours black with a brown, tightly packed, head. There are coffee bean/dark cocoa, mocha-like aromas, dark dried fig/plum and seaspray.

Rich and deep and velvety smooth on the palate with carbonation that is perhaps a little too obvious. It has bitter/sweet roasted malt flavours, dark cooking cocoa, charred nuts, crushed seashell minerality and sweet creaminess. There is a lovely bitterness that slowly builds on the finish and lingers.

Lighthouse Brewery Cheeky Little Lager

Tasted Wednesday 30 September 2009. 4.5% Alc/Vol 500ml bottle

New Zealand

With a label like that you have to wonder if there is anything to like inside the bottle.

Fortunately there is.

While it is uncomplicated this beer is surprisingly pleasing. However you would need to like lagers. Pale straw in colour with a very white head.

Light malt on the nose with some grassy, wet hay notes and lemon. The palate is very light, cleansing and crisp with light malt again and a pleasing lingering hoppy bitterness on the finish.

I can imagine a few “cheeky lagers” while throwing an arm over in the backyard this summer.

Red Hill Brewery Temptation – Strong Belgian Style Golden Ale

Tasted Tuesday 24 September 2009. 8% Alc/Vol, 330ml bottle

Australia

From memory this is fairly consistent in flavour to last year’s release, although my memory can be dubious at the best of times. However this is a fine beer. Light golden in colour with flowery, yeasty aromatics combined with some subtle citrus and banana.

Light yet full flavoured on the palate with just the right amount of soft malty sweetness initially then finishing dry with lingering hop bitterness that seems to slowly build. In between is some lovely delicate citrus and spice flavours and a warm alcohol bite that is neatly wrapped up and kept in check. Overall this beer is very refreshing, well balanced and dangerously drinkable.

Dark Star Espresso Coffee Beer

Tasted Tuesday 8  September 2009. 500ml Bottle, 4.2% Alc/Vol

England

Well this was just plain disappointing. It had a dark brown nearly completely black colour and a fast fading off white head.

It certainly smelt like coffee but the kind of wet used coffee grinds from the percolator. Some charry notes and a hint of chocolate and nutty almond character were evident.

Here is where the beer really falls down though. Instead of a rich, full palate (and it doesn’t need to be a whopping malt driven beer to be any good) it was thin, watery, dry and bitter with stale coffee, weak malt and no length of palate.