Category Archives: My Rating (out of 5)

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), American Brut IPA, Beer Reviews, Heroes Beer Co. x Young Master Brewery, Hong Kong

Heroes x Young Master Dom Houblon Pêche

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Brewery: Heroes Beer Co. x Young Master Brewery
Country: Hong Kong
ABV: 7%
Style: American Brut IPA
Other Notes: Vintage 2018. Bière Houblonnée Brut à la Pêche

Brewer Description: (from can) bière issue d’une collaboration entre les pantalons rouges et les saucisses. (Translation – beer from a collaboration between red pants and sausages?)

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

Intro: A 330ml 360 lid can, canned on 20th November 2018, and with a best before date of 20th August 2019. Poured into a Holy Mountain tulip glass.
Appearance: A hazy golden orange colour with a two finger white head that dissipated fairly quickly but left some nice sticky lacing.
Aroma: Peach, canned peach, a little plastic-y, with a dash of lime.
Taste: Tart, peach, mandarin skin, wheat and a lime finish.
Mouthfeel: Dry, light to medium bodied with moderate fizzy carbonation.
Overall: I like the aroma, but the fruity peach flavours, while there, don’t last long, maybe it’s the strong dryness that kicks in. I preferred the original version more.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Avery Brewing Company, Beer Reviews, Stout - Imperial, USA

Avery Uncle Jacob’s Stout

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Brewery: Avery Brewing Company
Country: USA
ABV: 17.1%
Style: American Imperial Stout
Other Notes: Batch No.5. Stout aged in Bourbon Barrels

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Jacob Spears, our 6th Great Grand Uncle, is credited as the first distiller to label his whiskey “Bourbon”. He built his distillery in Bourbon County Kentucky in 1790 – 203 years before we began brewing. While obviously a bit too late to produce Uncle Jacob’s wash, we’ve instead created something far more complex. In his honor, we present this robust, silky smooth, full-bodied and altogether extremely American rendition of an Imperial Stout aged for 6 months in the very finest bourbon barrels. This explains a lot about our penchant for big brews! It’s in our blood!

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.59
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.4

Intro: A 12 fl. oz. bottle, Batch #5, bottled on 19th February 2016. Poured into a snifter glass.
Appearance: Dark dark brown to black in colour with a one finger mocha head that had decent retention and left sparse spotty lacing.
Aroma: Bourbon, roasted malts, chocolate, espresso, dark fruit, prunes, plum, raisin, oak, brown sugar and booze, with hints of caramel and banana bread.
Taste: Boozy, sweet-ish, bourbon, oak, some dark fruit, prunes, with hints of roasted malts and chocolate.
Mouthfeel: Medium to full bodied with soft carbonation.
Overall: Lots of booze and bourbon, with minimal and not enough Imperial Stout, roasted malts and chocolate. Perhaps closer to a Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy. Definitely a sipper, but also could have been a better balanced Imperial Stout. Just not to my taste.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), Beer Reviews, IPA - New England / Hazy, O/O Brewing AB, Sweden

O/O 50/50: Azacca/Citra

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Brewery: O/O Brewing AB
Country: Sweden
ABV: 6.5%
Style: New England / Hazy IPA

Brewer Description: (from can) 50/50 Series: Azacca and Citra hops.

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.77
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.6

Intro: A 440ml can, canned on 20th November 2018 and with a best before date of 22nd May 2019. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A hazy orange colour with a one finger white head that had pretty good retention and left some nice sticky lacing.
Aroma: Apricot, yoghurt, milk candy and citrus rind.
Taste: Sweet, tropical fruit, apricot, pineapple, lactose, milk candy, slight bitterness, citrus rind.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Fruity milk candy sweetness was perhaps a bit too sweet for me. The light bitterness wasn’t enough to fully balance it out.

3 - Indifferent (might buy, probably drink), American IPA, Beer Reviews, Stigbergets Bryggeri, Sweden

Stigbergets Vision

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Brewery: Stigbergets Bryggeri
Country: Sweden
ABV: 6.5%
Style: American IPA

Brewer Description: (from can) Mighty Bright IPA (not entirely sure what this really means…).

My rating: 3
My beeradvocate.com rating: 3.53
My ratebeer.com rating: 3.5

Intro: A 440ml can, with a best before date of 11th March 2019. Poured into a Lost Abbey teku glass.
Appearance: A lightly hazy golden colour with a two finger white head that had good retention and left some nice lacing.
Aroma: Orange peel, pineapple, fruit tea, pine, with a touch dank and herbal.
Taste: Lightly bitter, pineapple, citrus peel, fruit tea, pine, dank.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Balanced and easy drinking, but not the most exciting especially when compared to GBG Beer Week 2016 and Amazing Haze.

4 - Good (buy), Beer Reviews, Firestone Walker Brewing Co., USA, Wild Ale

Firestone Walker Feral Vinifera #4

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Brewery: Firestone Walker Brewing Co.
Country: USA
ABV: 9.8%
Style: American Wild Ale
Other Notes: Wild Ale fermented with grapes. Barrel ratio: 70% French Oak & 30% American Oak

Brewer Description: (from bottle) Feral Vinifera is our foray into a new and exciting adventure in the Santa Ynez Valley that expresses our collaborative effort with local grape growers and winemakers. We have carefully fermented, matured and blended this beer with our friend Andrew Murray, proprietor and winemaker at Andrew Murray Winery. The resulting cuvée and partnership of Sauvignon Blanc, Chenin Blanc, Viognier, and Chardonnay grape/beer fermentation bends the mind and senses. Dried apricots, guava, and vanilla mingle with Meyer lemon and roses. A funky, savory yeast bouquet lays down a firm foundation. A flinty minerality and oaky tannic depth add to body and structure that mingle with a soft-finishing acidity and fruity esters carrying assertive vinous perfume. Cheers!

My rating: 4
My beeradvocate.com rating: 4.41
My ratebeer.com rating: 4.3

Intro: A 375ml corked and caged bottle. Batch No. 004, bottled on 20th October 2017. Poured into a 3 Fonteinen stemmed glass.
Appearance: A brilliant clear golden colour with a one finger white head that dissipated quickly with a half replenishing thin layer, while leaving sparse to no lacing.
Aroma: Vinous, white wine, grape, oak barrel, apricot and a touch of vanilla.
Taste: What you’d expect from the aroma, Light sour, vinous, white wine, grape, dried apricot, woody, oak, and a hint of vanilla.
Mouthfeel: Medium bodied with moderate carbonation.
Overall: Wow, doesn’t feel at all like a 9.8% ABV brew. So easy to drink with nice aromas followed by even better taste. The oak comes through nicely and is complemented well by the vinous and fruity grape, white wine and apricots.