Category Archives: 3 – Indifferent (might buy, probably drink)

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), American Double IPA, Beer Reviews, Hong Kong, Young Master Brewery

Young Master 1842 Island Imperial IPA

Thursday, 24 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Young Master Brewery
Country: Hong Kong
ABV: 8%
Style: American Double IPA
Other Notes: 80 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from bottle) 1842 Island is a bold Imperial IPA that coaxes out and showcases every facet of an outsized malt and hop bill. It’s potent hop character is supported by a robust malt backbone lending it incredible complexity. Savor every sip as the flavor nuances unfold and culminate in a lingering, satisfying finish.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.81
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.7

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 31st May 2017, poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass.
Appearance: It poured a hazy dark amber colour with slightly less than two finger off white head that had great retention and left nice sticky lacing.
Aroma: Strong caramel malts, citrusy grapefruit, pine and touches of floral elements.
Taste: Bitter and herbal with some grapefruit zest, caramel and toffee.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to low carbonation.
Overall: Nice lingering bitterness with pretty good malt and hop balance.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), American Pale Ale, Beer Reviews, Hong Kong, Young Master Brewery

Young Master Classic Pale Ale

Thursday, 24 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Young Master Brewery
Country: Hong Kong
ABV: 5%
Style: American Pale Ale
Other Notes: 35 IBUs

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A true classic that won’t go out of fashion, the Classic Pale Ale is designed to be versatile – you can drink it all day and in all seasons. With an elegant balance of European malts and new world hops, this has just enough fullness balanced with zesty and crisp hop flavour to suit all palates.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.58
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 30th June 2017, poured into a Mikkeller pint glass.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy golden orange colour with a two finger foamy white head that had great retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: A bit weak, but what I do get is lightly biscuit and toasty with tropical pineapple, citrus grapefruit, lemon and pine.
Taste: Biscuit and mango with hints of pineapple, orange zest, pine and grass. Finish is lightly bitter.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: A nice Pale Ale that is easily drinkable.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), American IPA, Beer Reviews, Canada, Driftwood Brewery

Driftwood Fat Tug IPA

Tuesday, 22 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Driftwood Brewery
Country: Canada
ABV: 7%
Style: American IPA

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Take a deep breath, sailor. It’s difficult to fathom, but such monstrous hop bitterness can be foiled by ample malt buoyancy; this hop monster dwells in the deep, its tendrils raised to Hoppy Nirvana.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.46
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.4

Intro: At first glance, there was no bottled on date, and I bought it anyway. Only after I got home and poured it out could I finally see this faint dating on the neck of the bottle in the light and I was kind of disappointed. To have a bottling date is great, but it should also be clearly shown… not hidden away only to be seen at certain angles. But anyway, this was a 650ml bottle with a bottled on date of 12th April 2016, poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy golden orange colour with a big three finger off white head that had good retention and left lots of sticky lacing.
Aroma: Strong orange, orange juice and orange zest aromas, tropical mango and passionfruit notes here and there along with pine and light caramel.
Taste: Lightly bitter citrus grapefruit, orange and orange zest. Sweet caramel malts, lightly biscuity, pine resin with a touch of pineapple.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: This IPA was pretty good with nice bitterness, albeit also a little on the sweet side for me with the caramel, biscuit and pineapple.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), American IPA, Australia, Beer Reviews, Pirate Life Brewing

Pirate Life Throwback IPA

Monday, 21 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Pirate Life Brewing
Country: Australia
ABV: 3.5%
Style: American IPA
Other Notes: 35 IBUs. Malts – Maris Otter, Carapils, Crystal and Wheat. Hops – Crystal, NZ Cascade and Simcoe.

Brewer Description: (from website) We love beer! We love beer so much that we want drink beer pretty much all of the time. Unfortunately the level of alcohol in most beer, with any hint of flavour, has quite the profound effect on us performing as a functioning and productive human. We need a reduced alcohol solution. Enter our Throwback IPA. Designed for intelligent and sexy humans who’d like to be able to throw back a few cans of a zealously hopped ale, endowed with an ample malt chassis, and still get on with their day.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.63
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 355ml can with no canned on or best before date, poured into a Spiegelau IPA glass.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy copper amber colour with a big three finger off white head that held its own for a while before suddenly collapsing on itself, while leaving some lacing.
Aroma: Tropical pineapple and passion fruit with citrus grapefruit, orange and orange peel. There is also some pine notes.
Taste: Strong biscuit malt backed with pine, citrusy grapefruit and orange zest. Nice bitter on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Crisp, light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Easy light drinking.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Farmhouse Saison, Japan, Tamamura-Honten

Tamamura-Honten Harvest Summer Saison

Monday, 21 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Tamamura-Honten
Country: Japan
ABV: 5.5%
Style: Belgian Saison

Brewer Description: See picture below since the description is in Japanese.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.66
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 330ml bottle, bottled in September 2016, poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy golden orange amber colour with a slightly less than two finger off white head that dissipated over a minute but left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Biscuit malt, tropical peach and apricot, bubblegum, lemon tea and some mild funk.
Taste: Sweet peach/lemon tea, tangy, bubblegum, pine, grass, mint with a touch of spiciness and light bitterness on the finish.
Mouthfeel: Dry, light bodied with high carbonation.
Overall: It’s not what I was expecting, but it’s ok. Perhaps a bit too sweet for me, in that I definitely can’t have more than one bottle at a time (and in fact probably even prefer to share a bottle). Having said that, it would definitely be a refreshing beer during a hot summer.

words of another dreamy traveller