Sydney Brewery - Pyrmont Rye IPA - Beer Review

Review Date: 26/11/2021 
Brewery Name: Sydney Brewery
Beer Name: Pyrmont Rye IPA (definitely a missed opportunity - why is it not called a "Rye-PA"!?)

"Crafted with three varities of U.S hops, a bitter spiciness of pine & savoury malt, our Pyrmont Rye IPA presents itself as a beautiful dark amber, perfectly balanced with a sweet, fruitful aroma. Pyrmont Rye IPA really is a ripper!"

Sydney Brewery - Pyrmont Rye IPA

General

Alcohol By Volume (ABV): 6.5% (High Strength)




Label/Design: 3/10 - plain & simple design
Serving Style: Can - 355ml
Region of Origin: Pacific (Australia, New Zealand)
Style Family: IPA
Malts/Adjuncts: Rye, Unknown
Hops: 3 US Varieties (Unspecified)
IBU's: Unknown

Appearance

Colour: Deep Amber

Clarity: Slight Haze
Collar of Foam & Head Retention: Good (more than 60 seconds)
Foam Texture: Fluffy

Carbonation (Visible): Slow
Alcohol Aroma: Mild

Aroma

Esters Aroma: None
Phenols: None

Flavour & Aftertaste

Alcohol Taste: Noticeable
Hop Bitterness: Aggressive

Malt Sweetness: Medium
Astringency: Low
Palate/Mouthfeel: Full Bodied (Round, Rich & Creamy)
Palate Carbonation: Medium
Length/Finish: Medium (15 to 60 seconds)

Oxidative/Aged Qualities: None

Overall

Sydney Brewery Pyrmont Rye IPA in the Craftd Alpha glass

Drinkability: 7/10
Overall Impression: 7/10

Notes: Overall an enjoyable beer and a good example of an American IPA. It has strong flavours - the unmissable classic American hop flavours always pair well with the caramel notes, presumably from crystal malts being used. Enjoyable but not sessionable with plenty of flavour and alcohol content.

Coconspirators Brewing Co - Who Put Their Hand In The Kooka's Jar - Beer Review

Brewed By: Coconspirators Brewing Co (Brunswick, Victoria, Australia)
Beer: Who Put Their Hand In The Kooka's Jar? (Pastry Stout)
ABV: 9%
Malts: Pale, Munich, Rolled Oats, Roasted Barley, Crystal
Adjuncts: Lactose, Cacao Nibs
Hops: Bravo
IBU: Unknown

Coconspirators Who Put Their Hand in the Kooka's Jar in the Craftd Alpha glass

"We've teamed up with Kookas to raid the cookie jar and bring you this 'monster' beer. Chewy chocolate and refreshing raspberry come together for a delicious midnight snack. A perfect pastry stout so decadent, you won't care how the cookie crumbles."

Review

Who Put Their Hand in the Kooka's Jar is a fun-sounding dessert beer with a really cool and enticing can label design. Released by Coconspirators Brewing Co, we came across this one as part of a mixed variety pack of craft beers.

As you can see from the overview above - there's a large variety of malts involved in making this beer which leads to a mixture of complex flavours, however, it really seems to miss the mark in terms of enjoy-ability and balance.

From the can we get a very dark - deep brown or perhaps even black hue, that has also seeped and dirtied the colour of the thick foamy head that sits on top.
First impressions on the nose are predominantly raspberry, but very slight hints of lactose sneak through as well.

In terms of mouthfeel, the term "chewy" used by Coconspirators themselves is accurate and apt and really sums it up well.



Initial taste with each sip is sweet - very sweet. The malt combination works well to provide a thick and robust platform, but "zingy" was a word that quickly came to mind to describe the harsh tartness that followed - and this is where the problem lies with this beer. The initial sweetness is very quickly overwhelmed by this tart raspberry flavour and really sticks around on the tongue - leaving a tangy and astringent after taste that diminishes the enjoyment. This is most likely from the raspberry's - which seem to have imparted more of their bitter notes than sweetness - and combined with the tart flavours of cacao nibs - it all becomes a bit much.

Coconspirators Who Put Their Hand in the Kooka's Jar Can

We found the flavours did mellow a little as the temperature of the class rose a few degrees so was closer to the recommended serving temperature for a stout beer like this - or perhaps our senses were just dulled a little from the 9% ABV.

Unfortunately this one was not particularly enjoyable, especially when compared to another dessert beer we reviewed recently - Deed's Brewing Double Imperial Brown Ale - which although is a different style of beer, uses similar ingredients in lactose and raspberry which have been combined for a much nicer and more "dessert-like" beer.

Rating

5.5/10

Ocean Reach Brewing - Hazy IPA - Beer Review

Brewed By: Ocean Reach Brewing (Phillip Island, Australia)
Beer: Hazy IPA
ABV: 6%
Malts: Unknown
Hops: El Dorado
IBU: Unknown

Ocean Reach Brewing - Hops to Home - Hazy IPA Can

"A single hop Hazy IPA packed with bold tropical fruit flavours, reminiscent of pineapple and mango. So ride, boldly ride, to the end of the haziness. Rise, boldly rise, till you find El Dorado"

Review

Another special release beer in partnership with Hops to Home - Ocean Reach Brewing's Hazy IPA is another tasty example within the Hazy IPA genre.

The timing of this tasting was excellent - with our latest SMaSH brew using the same single hop variety, El Dorado, as what this Hazy IPA has.

The can design itself is pretty cool, with it's elements giving a subtle nod to the South American myth of El Dorado.

Opening the can and pouring into our Craftd Alpha glass, and unsurprisingly we have a light straw coloured beer with the slightest of golden tinges poking through. A prominent white fluffy cloud-like head settles on top and slowly dissipates away.

Ocean Reach Brewing Hazy IPA in the Craftd Alpha glass

As you'd expect, we've got lots of fruit notes - we picked up alot of stone fruit and melon flavours and not so much of the pineapple and mango that were claimed in the tasting notes. But in any case, the flavour is good and surprisingly complex considering there's only a single hop variety involved (hence why we wanted to test this hop for ourselves in our own beer).

There were some slight piney and dank undertones, and the bitterness tended to linger in the mouth. We also picked up a noticeable alcohol taste which is not entirely surprising given the 6% ABV, but perhaps seemed a little more pronounced than in other hazy IPA's we've had.

Mouthfeel is nice and light, making for an overall enjoyable beer and an excellent example of what can be achieved with a single hop variety like El Dorado.

Rating 

7.5/10

Inkbird ITC-308 Wifi Temperature Controller - Review

Temperature control is a very important aspect of a successful fermentation. Since fermentation is an exothermic process (ie. creates heat) - temperature control is vital to ensure off flavours associated with high fermentation temperatures are suppressed - leading to a better tasting final product.

BrewZilla Brew Day - El Dorado Smash

Here's a run down of our recent El Dorado SMaSH brew day! Our first attempt at a 30 minute boil, and our best result in terms of hitting efficiency targets.

El Dorado SMaSH Pale Ale Recipe - All Grain

Having never brewed using Maris Otter pale malt before, or El Dorado hops - we figured it was time to make a simple brew using these two ingredients to really see what they're about. We'll also be trying a new yeast for the first time - Lallemand's Verdant IPA. We're also attempting our first 30 minute boil with this recipe.

Bentspoke - Cluster 8 IIPA - Beer Review

Brewed By: Bentspoke Brewing Co (Braddon, Canberra, Australia)
Beer: Cluster 8 Double IPA (2021 Release)
ABV: 8.8%
Malts: Unknown
Hops: Mosaic, Simcoe, Amarillo, Centennial, Citra
IBU: Unknown

Bentspoke Cluster 8 Can

"This is a release we as brewers always look forward to putting into cans. One of our favourite BrewPub beers and experiences, we get to share with the rest of the country. As always, cluster 8 is big, hoppy yet well balanced and of course, best enjoyed fresh!" 

Richard Watkins - Co-Founder and Head Brewer 

Review

"Big and Bold" are the two words Bentspoke themselves use to sum up their 2021 release of the Cluster 8 IIPA - turns out it's a very accurate selection of words indeed.

Just about everything about this beer is big and bold. The can itself being predominantly black would no doubt have been in bold - had it been a font. And the three small logos on the front of the can (bottom, middle) indicate loads of hops, heaps of malt and lots of yeast.

Pouring out of the can we get a deep golden colour with a noticeable amount of haze - no doubt from the huge hop presence this beer contains. They've gone with a tried a true mixture of new world hops in mosaic, simcoe, amarillo, centennial and citra so there's just no way it could ever not taste great. To sum it up briefly we'd say "tropical", but more specifically we picked up notes of orange, mango and passionfruit.

BentSpoke Cluster 8 in the Craftd Alpha glass

The first sip is just like an uppercut to not just your tastebuds, but all of the senses. The first thing that hit us was the big alcohol presence, but then the juicy hop flavour pushes through, resonating within the mouth before the clean malty backbone makes itself known.

Plenty of carbonation and plenty of flavour, it's almost like a meal in a can - speaking of which, make sure you don't go attempting this one on an empty stomach - at 8.8% ABV it takes no prisoners.

Big and bold indeed, this is one very full on double IPA that should not be missed. As an annual release we're already excited to try the 2022 version.

Rating

9/10