Coopers Sparkling Ale

Style:English Pale Ale
Alc %:5.8
Brewery:Coopers Brewery
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 375ml
Where/When:home, xmas eve 09
Cost:$45 for 24x 375ml bottles
Rating:8

Rolled the bottle.
Nice tight white head that dissapates.
Pours cloudy, orangey apricot colour. Looks clear as it comes out of the bottle tho.
Nose:can't quite pick it- a hint of apricot?? the yeast is there but not as dominate as I remembered. Maybe biscuity, slightly flowery.
Fruit up front, mild yeast note on the end.
A little bit of spice on the tip of my tongue which flatens out to a slight banana flavour.
The alcohol is deceptive. Nice mouth feel with moderate carbonation.

It's fruity and good to drink- nice to know it's there to turn to, but worthy of more praise than it gets- when you take a beer like this for granted and are always on the look out for something new, you don't drink it as much as you should. I bought a case knowing that it is a classic that i've had infrequently for years.

Coopers produce fine brews with an Australian take on whatever they brew- this is a prime example.

Barcade

Here are my notes:

22 November 2009 1:55:38 PM


First beer I had was Sly Fox Pale Ale pretty bloody good
I then got some beef jerky which was hot!
Then the pussy was all over me

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Clearly I'd had more than enuf and was too knackered to have a good look around Barcade. It was a pretty big day.

Dogfish Head 120 min IPA

Here are my notes:

18 November 2009 10:19:13 AM

Wow sorta like stongly alcoholic apricot nectar
There's an off spice on the nose that appears in the taste but it may just be the amount of alcohol- requiring very small sips at a time-a cross between a fruity spirit or liquor & beer
Not as sweet as nectar I must add

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Victory Rauch Porter

Here are my notes:

12 November 2009 2:41:52 PM

Next to no head
A little bit of BBQ smoke on the nose
A slight smokyness about this -roasted malts with a finish of bitterness-
The more u drink it the more tha smokeness became apparant but it's definetly mild NOT overwhelming.
A solid drinkable porter- not too strong in flavour or alcohol at 5.7%.
I give this a 7/10 - no funkyness here.

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Fette Sau BBQ

Borrowed from jmascio's flickr account. Thanks very much.

It was pretty packed by the time I got here, but since I was by myself I was able to get a seat.
I think I had a Sixpoint Ale of some sort tho I can't remember for sure.

Gotta say I thought it was a neat concept.

Spuyten Duyvil

After the Brooklyn Brewery I walked to Spuyten Duyvil which wasn't far away on Metropolitan Avenue.
I don't recall seeing any signage but the front of the bar looked familiar from the web site and I made my way in.
I sat down in a comfy chair and had a couple of beers- here's my notes:
First beer I had was Arcadia hop rocket ($5, 9%abv) which was super. Second beer was Sherwoods Forest Sheriffs IPA ($6) - super too, a bit more pine than citrus with a hint of apricot. Fuckin great - fruity and worthy of praise.
As I was finishing my last beer I shifted to a seat by the bar (it was starting to get busy by 5 ish) and started chatting to this local guy. He worked in finance (i think Wall St) and was layed off 12 mths ago because of the Global Financial Crises- he had enuf $'s up his sleeve so was just hanging out to the economy improves. He happened to just get back from across the road with some BBQ duck (or pig?) tongue which he kindly offered me some. I bid him farewell and made my way as planned to the BBQ place across the road, Fette Sau.

Brooklyn Brewery 'Tour'

I got up early one Saturday morning and went to see the All Blacks vs England game @ Baker Street bar. Then I went back to the apartment before making my way to Brooklyn Brewery for their tour which just involved a worker standing between a couple of vats talking about how beer is made and a history of the Brooklyn Brewery. It wasn't overly educational tho you had an opportunity to ask questions if you had any.
What was quite good for the locals is the drinking area- they had a fairly decent sized 'bar' with tables where people could sit and people could BYO their own food or order from some of the local joints that had menus near the entrance. It was very popular and therefore very hard to find a seat.
Anyway, I'd bought 6 tokens ($20) before the 'tour' and I had to do something with them didn't I?
I cued for ages and got a Pilsner and a Wheat beer which were both solid.
I cued again and got the East India Pale Ale and the Blast which were good aswell.
On the way out I got 2 t-shirts.

Brewdog Hardcore IPA

Brewdog Hardcore IPA
12 November 2009
(Brewdog Brewery)
$7
Looks v similar to the punk ipa
From the cask- warm/room temperture but the alcohol is notable as it warms yr throat
Weird having it this warm-the alcohol comes off as spicey.
It's like drinking wine- the taste, well,,,,,,,
Apricots (dried) and whiskey come to mind- I think this spent some time in a spirit vat........
I just checked the brewers notes & I probably couldn't b more wrong.... Oh well, they mention kiwi fruit and lychee and big caramel notes, still I can't help but think roasted malts.
At this temperture is very reminescent of a malted Irish whiskey, guess I'd like to try this cooled a bit.
How do I rate it then? For my palate not at all sessionable, however for people who like whisky and beer it may be a match made for the heavens.
I'm giving it 5.5
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Brewdog Punk IPA

12 November 2009

$7 for a pint
A pale gold with a nice head that fades and sticks to the glass
Nose: straw/hay, a little earthy
Taste : More cold tea like than citrus
Then again- a strong hoppy bitterness up front followed by a hint of citrus fading to a mild light bitterness
It's fairly drinkable- the bitterness is prominent rather than dominant
The fruityness/citrus up front is a little hard to pick as it moves into a toasted malt flavour
This grew on me- it became more complex each sip I had
6.5


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Dba Manhatten

5 November 2009
Saison DuPont
(Brasserie Dupont)

Served in a tulip
Little head that dissapears
Nice and creamy
Bit like a witte but more complex- a little funky tho
Not really my thing tho I understand it's v popular and infamous.

Harpoon UFO pale ale

28 October 2009 8:03:34 AM
Style:Pale Ale
Alc %:5.0
Brewery:Harpoon Brewery
Country:US
Tap/Bottle?:tap
Where/When:New York 09
Cost:approx $5
Rating:7

Little head
Mostly malty
Mild
No citrus/fruit giong on that I can notably taste/notice
Carbonation is mild too
Not a bad easy drinking beer

Not sure where I had this one.

Two Brothers Heavy handed wet hop ipa

Well I asked for that but I got the rye instead- which had that funky Celtic red thing going on - will I get the ipa like I asked? Hmmmm
Yes
Big serve- little head
Lots more malt - really flatens out or makes makes the citrus hit more mild.
Light on the carbonation
And a little less alcohol @ 5.7% where the otter creek was 10%

First time at the blind tiger in the "new" location on bleecker- Wednesday nite @ 10 the place is packed with all sorts of people- not at all conducive to tasting beer in a civilized manner
It's small & cramped, will have to come back when it's not so busy

Otter Creek Imperial IPA

At 10% abv it doesn't hit u straight away but it doesn't take long! Nice head that leaves a bit of lacing.
Quite bitter straight off actually- a burnt taste up front - the citrus is there but the burnt malt and alcohol seem to dominate- it's not super enjoyable but I keep going back for more.