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

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.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Czech Pilsner, Japan, Suntory

Suntory The Premium Malt’s Master’s Dream

Thursday, 10 November 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Suntory
Country: Japan
ABV: 5%
Style: Czech Pilsner

Brewer Description: (from bottle) The Master Brewer’s dream brought to life. An unprecedented harmony of heritage and innovation in Beer.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.1
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.1

Intro: A 305ml pull cap bottle with a best before date of April 2017, poured into a Moonzen teku glass.
Appearance: It poured a wonderful clear golden orange colour with a slightly less than two finger white head that dissipated quickly and left some sparse lacing.
Aroma: On the light side, but there’s sweet malt, biscuit, grass, caramel and a touch of lemon.
Taste: Sweet malt, grain, grass, floral notes, lemon, apple and honey.
Mouthfeel: Medium to light bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: If only Suntory made their beers as good as their whiskies… Master’s Dream was easy to drink and was not bad, but at the same time nothing special either.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Estonia, Gose - Fruit, Põhjala x To Øl

Põhjala x To Øl Ginie (In a Bottle)

Friday, 28 October 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Põhjala x To Øl
Country: Estonia
ABV: 4.2%
Style: Gose – Fruit
Other Notes: 5 IBUs. Malts – Pale Malt, Wheat Malt, Oats, Cara Pale and Melanoid. Hops – El Dorado and Motueka.

Brewer Description: (from bottle) A gin-inspired Gose brewed by Põhjala and To Øl. This mildly sour beauty of a beer is spiced with pink Himalayan rock salt, coriander, juniper berries, spruce tips, rosemary, ginger and rose petals.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.4
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.3

Intro: A 330ml bottle with a best before date of 12th July 2017, poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a hazy orange colour with a less than one finger white head that dissipated quickly and left only sparse lacing.
Aroma: Mango, lemon, lime, touch of ginger and floral notes.
Taste: Lightly salty, lemon zest, lime juice, berries and lightly spicy.
Mouthfeel: Light bodied with low to moderate carbonation.
Overall: This was a bit disappointing considering the last Põhjala x To Øl collaboration I tried (Taanilinn Cognac BA) was a stunner. Perhaps it was the high hopes… The fruitiness was nice but carbonation was too low for a Gose.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, Belgian Pale Ale, Spencer Brewery, USA

Spencer Trappist Ale

Thursday, 27 October 2016 kitch Leave a comment

Brewery: Spencer Brewery
Country: USA
ABV: 6.5%
Style: Belgian Pale Ale
Other Notes: Hops – including Willamette and Nugget. Malts – including 2-row, 6-row and Munich.

Brewer Description: (from website) Our recipe was inspired by the traditional refectory ales known as patersbier (“fathers’ beer” in Flemish) in Belgium. These sessionable beers are brewed by the monks for their dinner table and are typically only available at the monastery. Spencer is a full-bodied, golden-hued ale with fruity accents, a dry finish and light hop bitterness. The beer is unfiltered and unpasteurized, preserving live yeast that naturally carbonates the beer in the bottle and keg and contributes to the beer flavor and aroma.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.61
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 750ml corked and caged bottle with a best before end date of AG 217 meaning 5th August 2017. Poured into a d’Achouffe tulip glass.
Appearance: It poured a slightly hazy amber orange colour with a two finger off white head that had good retention and left nice lacing.
Aroma: Banana bread, overripe banana, clove with a touch of caramel and mandarin.
Taste: Quite similar to the aroma with banana, clove and bready malt along with hints of mandarin, citrus peel, spice and nuttiness.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate to high carbonation and a dry finish.
Overall: This was quite good but perhaps also a bit normal. Not quite as complex as other Trappist Belgian Pale Ales.

words of another dreamy traveller