Mad Brewers Hoppy Hefe

Style:American Pale Wheat Ale
Alc %:7
Brewery:Malt Shovel Brewery
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:$9
Rating:7.5

Lovely white fluffy head that disappears and leaves lacing. A nice copper orange colour.
A really nice floral aroma with a pleasant resiny note- it's begging to be drunk!
The nose is reflective of the flavour but it doesn't quite reach the heights it promises- it's quite sweet and syrupy - the wheatyness is very low key- not getting banana noticeably, nor clove or coriander. Maybe their is a hint of lemon. The hops give a nice hit. Not overpowering.
All the same, since I have a sweet tooth I find it quite enjoyable. Yet not alot to it in terms of complexity of flavour.
Seen this around a bit and will probably miss it when it's all gone. Well done for a fairly large brewery.

Brooklyn East India Pale Ale

Style:English IPA
Alc %:6.9
Brewery:Brooklyn Brewery
Country:USA
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 355ml
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:approx $6
Rating:6.5

Nice white fluffy head. Nice orange copper body.
Bit of malt and a hint of citrus on the nose.
Quite a bit of spice up front that really has a sting/zing on the front of the tongue.
Not a bad balance here of malts and fruits- certainly not a hop bomb but fairly indicative of the style in my opinion.

I'm fairly sure I had this on tap at the brewery and I found this bottle more appealing. (Blast was more my cup of tea, but that has not been bottled, only on draft)
Not too bad, giving it 6.5/10.

Vale/Dark

Style:Euro Dark Lager
Alc %:4.9
Brewery:McLaren Vale Beer Company
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle
Where/When:Home, 2012
Cost:approx $5
Rating:6.5


I smell roasted malts mostly.
Nowhere near as smooth as I remember it- i think it was out of the fridge for a little bit that time.
The malts show up with a touch of caramel and a little sting of spice. Once it warms up a little the flavour fleshes out just a little- the malt and caramel become more pronounced and the spice sting softens.
Nothing mind blowing but fairly pleasant all the same.

Schneider Weisse Tap 1 Mein Blondes

Style:Hefeweizen
Alc %:4.9
Brewery:G Schneider and Sons
Country:Germany
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 500ml
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:approx $6.50
Rating:5

Big fluffy snow white head, cloudy lite gold colour body.
Clove and herbs on the nose.
Pear, wheat and clove with a little zing at the end- the clove is little strong. As it warms a bit of banana comes thru but then so does the clove come forward, which turns me off it a little. Also a slight watery note too which spoils it for me too. I'm kinda struggling to enjoy or even finish this beer- it's key features just arn't doin it for me.
I struggle to give it 5/10 and that's being generous.

Hitachino Nest White Ale

Style:Witbier
Alc %:5
Brewery: Kiuchi Brewery
Country:Japan
Tap/Bottle?:bottle
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost :approx $6.50
Rating:7.5

Small white head that almost completely disappears. Pours a pale light gold colour.

Nose is honey & (rock?) melon, kinda perfumery.
I'm totally wrong and agree with Todd Alstrom (Beeradvocate.com) who smells ginger/clove.
It's creamy. The spicy hotness from the clove and ginger appears pretty quick- there's a dry grainyness to it mid way along with some yeast action. I do love the heat of the ginger which is quite unique and strong and although I don't care for clove, it's subtle.
All that said it's moreish and unique. You should try it.

This is my first Japanese beer. I take back all that I've said about Asian beers- I generally regard them poorly as flavourless lagers made for humidity and swilling.

I didn't get alot of orange. I didn't get alot of coriander.
7.5/10

Sierra Nevada Celebration Ale (2011)

Style:American IPA
Alc %:6.8
Brewery:Sierra Nevada Brewing Co
Country:USA
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 375ml
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:$10
Rating:8/10

Nice off white fluffy head of approx 1 inch.
A nice vibrant orange colour.
I'm getting nothing on the nose- nothing. OK, not nothing but very little that I can put my finger on & say what i'm smelling.
A marmalade rich flavour followed with a lovely malt backbone and a nice hoppy finish- this is a very nice drop, quite balanced really as nothing seems particularly over the top.
It's not as amazing as BeerAdvocate.com would have you believe but I'm dead keen to get my hands on some more of these.
8

Schneidaer Hopfen-Weisse Tap 5

Style:Weizenbock
Alc %:8.2
Brewery:G Schneider and Son
Country:Germany
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 500ml
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:$11
Rating:8.5

I didn't take notes when I had this but I loved it- a nicely (great) balanced beer-just the right amount of hops and wheat at all the right places- hits all the right spots!!

It's delicious and very easy to drink, the abv didn't seem apparent until I finished this brew- a little too quickly!
I'd get this again and would love to try a dark version.
8.5/10

Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA

Style:US IPA
Alc %:7.2
Brewery:Sierra Nevada Brewing Co
Country:USA
Tap/Bottle?:bottle,
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:approx. $10
Rating:7/10

A nice just off white fluffy head of half an inch that dissapates. A nice copper orange body.

A rich sweet citrus (dried apricot) nose with a hint of caremel malts. Not bad.

The maltyness is really quite prevalent upon tasting- it's creamy, and juicy and spicy (pepper) also. The hops give off both the spicey hotness then followed with a citrus (grapefruit and orange rind) hit lastly followed by the melding of the malts and hops together that linger notably. This last sensation from this brew is not sitting with me well-  I don't know if the malt is roasted or not but it's just a little raw for me.

I've put off this review 'cos I was having trouble putting my finger on just what was putting me off this beer which has other characteristics that I really like but it's the raw malt finish that turns me off from loving this ale.
All the same I'm giving it 7/10. It's easy to drink but for me finishes in a way that spoils what comes before the last note.

Mountain Goat Steam Ale

Style:California Common/Steam Beer
Alc %:4.5
Brewery:Mountain Goat Brewery
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 330ml
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:??
Rating:6

May of poured too quickly as the white head frothed up to an inch and then dissapeared to a soft 1/4 inch or so. Body is a light pale yellow and cloudy.
Nose is yeasty/bready with a slight touch of lemon. Not overly appealing.
There's a slight peppery/spice to it up front which make me thinks it would go well with Thai/Asian food and easily quaffable.
What else is going on here?
It's got a grainy wheat beer mouth feel to it- flavours of yeast and breaddyness seem to dominate mid palate with a finish of more spiciness.
This is a reasonable drop that's pretty easy to drink- inoffensive but not ground breaking.
6/10

Feral Hop Hog

Style:American IPA
Alc %:5.8
Brewery:Feral Brewing Co
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle
Where/When:Home, March 2012
Cost:$10
Rating:7/10

Pours a lovely orange colour with soft bubbly white foam (approx 1cm)
Real nice fruity nose too:pineapple/fruit salad.
Soft on first sip, then a bit of passionfruit. The malt and orange flavours come thru and the hops pretty balanced, certainly not over the top.
This coats the mouth nicely- carbonation is mild- the bitterness hangs around for a bit but doesn't outstay it's welcome.
This is the first time I've had this from the bottle- from memory the tap version, which I totally loved! is more cloying and boisterous in it's flavours and hoppiness, so in many ways this is kinda dissapointing yet a fine drop all the same.
7/10

Coucher Patriot

Style:American Black Ale
Alc %:5.5
Brewery:Croucher Brewing Co
Country:NZ
Tap/Bottle?:bottle, 500ml
Where/When:Home, Jan 2012
Cost:$14
Rating:7


Dark coke like with a slight tan head of just under 1cm.
The smell at first was resinous hops but after it setteld they soften a little and a touch of pineapple and a hint of molasses.

This could be a baby brother to the Stone 15th Anniversary Black IPA. And given that this is not an imperial it's fair to say a good job was done here.

Little Creatures The Big Dipper

Style:Imperial IPA
Alc %:7.8
Brewery:Little Creatures Brewing Co
Country:Australia
Tap/Bottle?:bottle/Pint/568ml
Where/When:Home, Mar 2012
Cost: 4 pints for $20??
Rating:6.5

Copper orange in colour, nice off white 1cm head.Nice.
Nose is a little floral and a tiny bit funky. Nothing alluring.
Bit of orange, passionfruit with a subtle malt backbone.
Look, this is quite drinkable and i'd love to have one in the fridge at my disposal, but, unless I you read the label you wouldn't know you were drinking a 2xIPA.
So it's a decent drop but not depicting the intensity of 2xIPA's styles.
6.5/10