We’ve opened a beer with a lot of things in our time. As a group of mates we would regularly try to pop the lid with the strangest things we could find.
At the time of print we’ve used beer bottles, the spokes of a bicycle, a hair-dryer, teeth, a dumb-bell and a comb.
While all of the above took a certain amount of innovation and beer inspired invention I don’t think we’ll ever reach the zenith of beer bottle opening in the way that this elderly gentleman has.
While I mostly write about beer, and have the occasional rant about what I generalise as “stuff”, a couple of times I’ve written about going to the gym, this exercise thing.
I’m lying on the couch right now feeling a little sore after going to the gym after work this evening. I’ll be a little sore tomorrow, not to bad. Apparently this is what happens when you get back into a routine of exercise. Now I wouldn’t say my routine is all that rigorous, its more opportune, I get there when I can.
This is probably not as often as I should but it has resulted in me not needing to go to the Osteo any more, and more recently people have actually commented that I’ve lost weight. I don’t actually think I’ve lost any weight, and certainly arent weighing myself regularly, I just think that some of flab may have become muscle, just a bit anyway.
I didn’t really have a goal when I started going to the gym (still don’t) other than getting fit. The best thing about going to the gym has been that I’ve remembered that I still can exercise. It seems that all those years of footy training went lost completely. I’m putting a fair lump of achieving this to my PT, Ebony. She may not look it but she is evil, that however has gotten me back on track to being fit.
Not a bad thing I say. If you’re a bit slack and thinking about restarting some kind of fitness get stuck into it. From my experience get someone to give you a hand, outsourcing is always a good idea.
Oh and it helps you claim that you have earned your beer 
Cheers D
About 5 years ago I started brewing. Around the same time I started listening to the Jamil Show on the Brewing Network. This was two guys John and Jamil going through every beer style in-depth and giving a recipe. Back then I was all about getting the recipe, thinking that was the secret to brewing good beers (all the recipes were aware winning ones) but through listening to two blokes on the other side of the world, sometimes drinking coffee, sometimes half cut I learned that the recipe was far from the most important bit. Temp control, water chemistry, yeast health, and don’t worry about all the bullshit that doesnt really matter. These guys really helped my brewing, I think Jamil was the main brewing influence here.
I still listen to the Jamil Show, but now it focuses on recreating beers from commercial breweries, with a blind taste test to verify the recipe. I’ve also met Jamil a couple of times, and had him taste one of my beers. This resulted in him having a story about how using the right malts is important (I was using Australian malts to substitute US and UK malts, worlds apart) and I got my stout recipe sorted out (got a medal in a home-brew comp with it). He’s a good guy and he has helped my beers out immensely.
Anyway he has now done what all homebrewers at one stage or another hope to do, he’s opened his own brewery. Well not exactly, he’s brewing in some sort of venue share arrangement, but he’s making his own beer – Heretic. I’m happy that he’s living the dream, but I’m also a bit jealous. So when I heard they had some of his beers at Grain and Grape it was a no brainer that I wanted to try them. So far I’ve only heard good things about them, mainly from the guys on the Brewing Network. They are his mates but they wouldn’t blow wind up his arse, if they didn’t like them they wouldn’t talk them up.
I’ve just cracked open a bottle of Heretic Evil Twin, “A Bold West Coast Red Ale”. So what do I think? Its dark, darker than what I’d expect from a red ale, it almost looks like a brown ale. On the nose I get a bit of malt and a bit of a citrusy hop aroma, definitely an American beer. The taste, well its hoppy, but not crazy bitter, more of a tasty mouth coating hoppy but without that puckering bitterness that can come from some mega hoppy beers. I think I like this beer. No I know I do. It’s great to have a beer that’s traveled from the other side of the world arriving so fresh. Its a really vibrantly flavored beer, and I really like the hops in it, I’m guessing its a mix if the C hops (cascade, centennial, chinook….) not really sure but I like it.
I also like the lableing. Cool evil head. Looks like some kind of computer game devil head. And look at all the crap in the background? what am I doing, yes thats an Easter Egg with no ears and a Humpty Dumpty egg still unopened.
If you go to the Heretic website it says “This blood-red ale may not be what you might expect from a malty and hoppy craft beer. Evil Twin has a rich malt character, without being overly sweet. It has a huge hop character, without being overly bitter. It is a great example of a bold, rich, balanced craft beer, without being heavy and hard to drink in quantity. Our Evil Twin is only bad because it is too good to resist“. I tend to agree.
Grab yourself one of these if you get the chance, I’m not sure what I’d pair this beer with. Its pretty bold and dominating so I guess it’d need something that hits the same spot. I think the name red ale is a little off for this beer, it kind of understates it. Its more of a red IPA, a bit like the 8 Wired Tall Poppy. Bloody good beer though, well done Jamil. Thanks for the beer, and all the help with my beers, from my first all grain recipe to me figuring out how to manage yeast properly. Keep cranking out beers like this and I’ll keep figuring out how to find them in Australia.
There is a large part of me loving this beer just because its a home brewer gone pro. Thats what I want to do. Time for me to get serious about that dream again. I need to sell some beer.
Cheers D
Well they were some damn good beers, even though it was the same beer, just reloaded a number of times. I think the Matrix did that? They didn’t use hops though. Tonight all of the taps at the Royal Standard Hotel (its near the Vic Market) were turned over to Prickly Moses Raconteur, where one beer was reloaded 5 times with single hop iterations. All good, well nearly. No actually they were all good, I just didn’t love them all.
Original, Rewaka, Bramling Cross, Citra, Galaxy and Simcoe.
I liked them all. The Rewaka was fruitty and spicy, the Bramling Cross was herbal, blackberry, aniseedy and a dirty bitter (OK I didn’t live this one), Citra had a massive orange juice citrus hit, Galaxy was just good and drinkable with a bit of passion fruit, and the Simcoe, really good and drinkable.
Really rare that a 100% Simcoe beer would be the drinkable one.
Well done to Hendo and the Prickly Moses crew, nice beers, nice event. I liked it but I’m tired so that’ll do me for tonight. Still a little tired from GABS.
Cheers D
In my next Good Beer Week session its the Raconteur Reloaded at the Standard Hotel, thats where I’m off to now. More info to come
Cheers and Beers
D
The Great Australasian Beer Spectapular was excellent, don’t let any talk of long waits for beers or other negative comments put any other thoughts in your head. This was an awesome event. The beers, the food, the layout, the venue, the fact that it was about beer tasking and enjoyment rather than some sort of trade display. Also personally I love the idea of a shipping container with 60 taps sticking out of it. I want one.
After GABS I kicked on a bit, few more beers, more discussion about beer, and I think I ended up agreeing to do a half marathon. Thats not good, however a mate has to do the same distance with a dwarf on his back. Not sure that’ll happen. Anyway I am a bit hungover today so I’ll go straight to it and list my tastings with the comments I wrote down. The way I attached the beers was a paddle of fruity and belgo, a paddle of IPA, a black paddle, a sour paddle and a greatest hits what havent I had paddle. I also had a burito
So there it is, there were a few other beers later on but that’s enough of a list for now. My favorites were the beers by Moondog, 8wired, Illawarra, Yeastie Boys and the Garage Project, but I also didnt have any I didnt like.
Might be time to think about another coffee. Well done GABS, that was a great day, looking forward to seeing you again next year, might even do two sessions.
Cheers
Always a good start when you break a glass. And I think there might be a tiny bit of glass in my finger.
NO! There will be no signs of softness! The Great Australasian Beer Spectapular is this Saturday, must be hard and ready for GABS, a broken beer glass will not slow me.
Yesterday I pondered over how I should plan for GABS, its only days away. This also leads us to how should I plan for Good Beer Week, but that’s not really a concern for me right now, I’ve got a couple of events booked in, nothing special, and I have to go to Sydney for work and go to a Game of footy so my events will be limited. Really not impressed by the work bit, bastards.
Anyway to help me think further about GABS I’m having a beer that I think will espouse what GABS is about, Melon Gibson from Moon Dog. 
I’ve had McGuava from the same series, which I quite liked, this ones not to bad either. A simple beer, pillsner, raw wheat and wheat malt. Sounds like the malt bill from something I’d make at home. There’s water melon in the beer, can’t get much of that and some lacto. Thats the bit in this beer that’s familiar to me, and I’ve only just clicked at what it reminds me of. This beer has the faintest hint of a lambic or geuz. I think its meant to be of the berlinervise style (yea I spelt that wrong I think) but I dont really know the style so cant comment if they’ve hit it on the head or not. From what I’ve read about the style this isnt sour enough. It is however very drinkable. Simple and drinkable but with enough to keep the beer geek interested. It’s probably closer to a saison in my mind, but the mouth feel is different. All I could say is I’d perhaps like it bigger.
Love the beers these guys make, it’s just home-brew in bigger batches. Hats off to them I say. Looking forward to their beers on Saturday.
Now back to the plan, bugger it I don’t have one. If you are looking for one I suggest looking at Beer Bar Band: Good Beer Week Survival Guide it’s a little too planned and safe for my mind. Taking water, planning transport, take a pen and paper. This is drinking not a school excursion James! na actually he’s right and when I’m nursing a hangover on Sunday I’ll wish I’d paid more attention to his guide.
Ah I’m a fool.
Going to finish my Moon Dog Melon Gibson now (nice beer, did I mention that?) and find something to eat.
Cheers D
First impressions first “That’s a bloody good stout”.
I’ll get back to that later. This weekend Good Beer Week starts, and with the start of that we have the Great Australian Beer Spectapular. A shit load of great Aussie (and NZ beers) all served in an environment full of beer geeks at the old exhibition building in Melbourne. Big day, too many beers, and most of those beers will be big beers I’m thinking. There is something like 60 beers on offer, more than can be tasted in the 4 hour session. Many of these beers will be from brewers that I have a man crush on.
This presents a problem for me – how will be able to cope with this. I want to drink it all! but alas I can’t.
What do I do? I need a plan, but I don’t like plans, well not outside work.
James from Beer Bar Band has advised “pick the ones you really want to try…go for them…then anything else is a bonus” and “focus on the beers that are really limited and won’t be realised afterwards”.
Great advice but I still have no idea where to start??? Here is the list (and yes its at the bottom of the page. Its big and has a number of IPA’ish and Belgo inspired beers. A number of black ones too. If you have any idea where to start leave me a comment, any direction to pick winners out of this lot will be greatly appreciated.
Now to what I’m drinking now, an easier choice as it was in my fridge. Its “Ace of Spades” Stout from Brewboys, a SA based mob, two guys making good beer in Radelaide (I think). Their website is a little light on for info on them but I think I went to beer school with one of the brewers at Brewboys, Simon – if this is your beer two thumbs up.
As the first line said, this is a bloody good stout. Its black as black can be, has a really nice smooth mouth feel and a nice depth of ash to it, that really roasty character. It goes right to the edge of an aniseed flavour but doesnt quite go there. I like it. There is a bittersweet character to this beer and its great.
I also love the packaging. How can you go wrong with a playing card? and who ever invented the playing card is well dead so there’s no need to pay any royalties to anyone. The name also pays homage to the Motorhead song by the same name “Ace of Spades“. Actually that’s a lie, I have no idea what the brewers were thinking when they made this beer, but they made a good one. But I do hope they had Motorhead crancking when they brewed this beer.
Simon if this is your beer, well done fella, nice to see a fellow beer school student from all those years ago knocking out some great beer. Actually thats 3 of my fellow beer student beers I’ve tasted, Simon making 3 after Glen and Hendo.
Might need to make my own beer soon.
Anyway ideas for how I should tackle GABS please people.
Cheers D
* ABVs are approx at this stage. There will also be cider, wine and soft drink available for sale. Water is free of charge. |
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I think its been well over a month since I had a full week in the office. Public holidays. Work events. I think there may have been a sickie in there too. This has resulted in general business for me that has meant some of the things I prefer to do (brewing and blogging) and things I should be doing (going to the gym more) going by the wayside.
This evening I’m blogging and a little earlier I went to the gym, but no brewing this evening, or scheduled in the near future. I’m a bit bummed about it. I need my zen time. Perhaps there will be a day off next week for brewing? sooner rather than later I think otherwise the well of zen may run out.
I will however rant on a list of things that are not really connected, here I go;
I need to brew something but until then……..
Cheers D
yes yes yes I know, another saison, this time Belgian Farmhouse Ale SAISON from St Feuillien. I put the word saison in capitals because its done that way on the bottle. As for this post, I’m not going to write a whole lot other than it’s not to bad, a worthy step in the journey to discovering what a good saison is. It has a little bit of an after taste on the back-end though, interesting.
Anyway I’m lazy so that’ll do for today, oh and no photo.
Cheers D
PS - Lest we forget
