Holgate Hopinator

Style:Imperial IPA
Alc %:7
Brewery:Holgate
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle
Where/When:Home, Sept 2010
Cost:$7
Rating:6.5/10

Next to no head - very dark copper with a hint of ruby when held up to the light.
Caramel, malts, hop resin. A little bit of orange.
Taste:Some nice fruit up front-but not alot.
Lots of malt in the middle palate finishing with some lasting bitterness.
I thought this was an OK drop, not a lot of Imperial IPA's around in Oz, but nothing outstanding all the same.

Bridge Road Beechworth Pale Ale

Style:American Pale Ale
Alc %:4.8
Brewery:Bridge Road Brewers
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle
Where/When:AFL Grand Final Day, 2010
Cost:approx $5
Rating:5

Nice orange copper colour. Small white head.
Lovely sweet dried apricot on the nose-very pleasant & fruity.
Not getting much of the sweetness upon tasting...getting a bit of malt- grainy, biscuity but also a slight earthy woody-ness that really puts me off.
I don't believe this fits the style.... I searched all over the bottle for a use by date, looked under daylight and the glass seemed stained inside from sediment or 'cos it was past use by date?

Nice creamy mouthfeel with medium carbonation.
Presentation is classy with the golden label.

Samuel Smith's India Ale

Style:English India Pale Ale
Alc %:5
Brewery:Samuel Smith Old Brewery
Country:UK
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 500ml
Where/When:Home, Sept 2010
Cost:approx $10+
Rating:7/10

Nice light copper colour, fluffy white head that disappears to edge of the glass bubbles.
Subtle hints of malt and citrus zest/peel. Yeast present too. A little tea as well.
The tea makes it way to the palate- quite mild/medium flavour wise- it's all about the malt and hops-tho, i must say i get a bit of pineapple.

Pleasant, easy to drink calming ale, not at all confronting or big and powerful like it's American counterpart. A nice quaffing ale.
I like this, it's intriguing in it's mildness and quite session able. Nice bottle too!
7/10

Stone and Wood Pale Lager

Style:American Pale Lager
Alc %:4.7
Brewery:Stone & Wood
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 375
Where/When:Home, Sept 2010
Cost:$5 approx
Rating:6

Little white head that disappears.
Very light straw golden colour.
Sweet, lightly herbal, slightly grassy.
Sweet and spice- fairly well balanced, easy to drink with medium carbonation, more spice than lasting bitterness, slightly reminds me of a Redback Wheat beer.

Pretty easy to drink and undoubtedly vying for wide appeal- nothing outstanding is the result.
6/10

Sheaf Stout

Style:Milk/Sweet Stout
Alc %:5.7
Brewery:Fosters/Carlton & United Breweries
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle
Where/When:Home, Sept 2010
Cost:$15 a 6 pack (375ml bottles)
Rating:7/10

Pours dark with a nice fluffy tan head that disappears.
Nose has a scent of cinnamon and spice... faintly roasted.
Sweet and juicy; roasted malts with slight coffee notes- pleasant mouth feel too.
Flavoursome, smooth and well balanced.

A really solid stout that isn't that heavy.

Tennent's Super Strong Lager

Style:Euro Strong Lager
Alc %:9
Brewery:Tennent's
Country:Scotland
Tap/Bottle?:Can
Where/When:Home, Sept 2010
Cost:approx $7
Rating:5.5/10

Head dissapears fairly quickly.
A light copper, fairly clear. Quite alot of bubbles.
Nose:like a stale bar the nite after. A little sweet/sugary- some type of grain i can't pick.
Nothing hoppy up front with a slight oillyness in the mid palate. It seems gassy yet a little tepid.
It doesn't really taste like anything i've drunk recently- the alcohol is hot and peppery-there is nothing like it in Australia- such a strong beer it doesn't take long to catch up with you.
It's not a pleasant drop to drink.

The reason I got it was 'cos of a beer I had in England back in '94 that was similar- high abv and known for being the beer of choice by homeless men- i've only had that drop one other time which was in a irish bar in my home town. So I just had to try this.
I find it easier to drink than some of the funky ales i've had- it's not hard to drink but it's not pleasant or enjoyable to drink . So i'll give it a 5.5/10

Holgate Hopinator

Style:Double IPA
Alc %:7
Brewery:Holgate Brewery
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle,330ml
Where/When:Home, Sept 2010
Cost:$8approx
Rating:6/10

Off white head. Leaves just a little layer of bubbles.
Ruby copper colour.
Nice sweet malty nose. Definate fruit- grapefruit. A little toffee. Now it's been in the glass a while i get a little bit of pine.
Rounded malt up front. Burnt toffee is sharp on the tongue with residual bitterness.
If a I savour a mouthfull I get the pine & grapefruit but otherwise it seems all malt.
From my experiance of some US 2IPA's I've had- this is pretty similar- the malt/burnt toffee is very bold. So, it's true to style in my mind.
Creamy, fresh and well carbonated.
Overall the burnt toffee was just a little over powering for me- so not something I would drink more than a bottle of at a sitting.
Not as good as I'd hoped for.