Beer - #IPADay review - Mornington IPA

This quick post, in honour of International IPA Day 2012, (drunkenly) looks at the IPA from Mornington Peninsula Brewery.

I chose this beer because it is my most checked-in IPA on Untappd. The reason for that is because the Morningtoin IPA spent several recents months on tap at the bar of one of it's biggest fans, Brad Merritt...the owner of my local, Oscar's Alehouse. Hence, many friendly pints of this been have been consumed, in a row, a short stroll from home.

One of the youngest small breweries in Victoria, Mornington Peninsula Brewery had quiet beginings in 2010, but is now starting to make some serious noise. Lead by head brewer, Andrew "AG" Gow, Morington is now producing hit after hit of quality, good-drinkin' brews. Without straying too far outside of style and classic modern brewing, the brewery is growing quickly as it finds favour with Victorians with their fresh, richly flavoursome and balanced beers.

From the bottle the Mornington IPA pours a deep cloudy amber, a lovely hue, clearly full of yeastie floaties. This beer ain't filtered! The beer's head is gives good...size and whiteness. The head retains reasonably well but is a bit loose. The important part, when it comes to head, is that he legacy left behind...the lacing...is beautiful. The Mornington IPA gives good lacing.

The aroma is full and lush, robustly hoppy without punching up your nose. As described by the brewer, stone and tropical fruits like apricot and peach lead you into this beer. Late hop additions of Citra, Amarillo and Centennial give this IPA plenty of front hoppiness

This beer is spot on for body and carbonation. Actually, the look and feel of this beer is more along the lines of an English IPA, but the aroma and taste is all American hops. In the mouth the lushness continues with a solid malt backbone and long hoppiness that doesn't overstay it's welcome. There is sweetness a-plenty to keep you coming back, yet the hops are still king.

Yes, the Mornington IPA is a good honest local IPA. It's a beer to enjoy with friends at a bar or at home with a spicy curry dinner. Drinkable by the pint yet satisfying by the pot. A classic, tasty brew...and an excellent choice for IPA day.

We're heading back to Morington Peninsula Brewery for a quick visit (pizza lunch and beers) on Sunday, which is exciting because I love their space and setup, plus...they have just released a new Imperial Stout (...which I won't be able to drink because I'm driving)! Local beer joy. That's what it's about!

And then there was IPA Day hops p0rn...

Beer - VALE/IPA...from the bottle

I recently received a 4 pack of the newly bottled VALE/IPA via the generous PR machine at McLaren Vale Beer Company. Beer is always a welcome sight on my doorstep when returning home from long draining days at work. Most of all I appreciate the opportunity to sit at home, drink and carefully consider a new beer without the distractions of a public bar or the indecision of not buying this beer because I'm possibly in the mood for - or more interested in - something else.

VALE/IPA is not new, it has been available on tap for some time now. We first tasted it in draught form at the Court House Hotel back in June last year. The bottle release is new though...well, it was new a month and a bit ago, but I've been slack (aka really busy!).

So far McLaren Vale Beer Company have produced VALE/ALE (Australian Pale Ale), VALE/DRY (Australian Dry Lager) and VALE/DRK (American Dark Lager). Each of these Vale beers have been popular but very straightforward beers, lacking much to report back on or discuss other than "...it's a new beer". Essentially, they were very similar to many other beers available across the beer market, offering no real point of difference, "fashion claim" or excitement factor.

For a brewing company that proclaims itself as "Beer Designers" (which I interpret as a brand-centric business rather than a brewer/craft beer focused operation), there has been little in the way originality or uniqueness from the first three Vale beers. They are all well made, well rounded, session beers produced for the softer end of the "gateway" market, somewhere between mainstream lagers and approachable-ales-with-a-style that are seen as the entry point to drinking craft beer.

The Vale IPA is a little different though. This India Pale Ale has clearly distinguishable character and hop flavour to give it a unique position in a market.

Described on the bottle as an American IPA (I assume through the selection of the hops), to me VALE/IPA has the look, body, mouthfeel and drinkability of an English IPA with its dark body and creamy-like malty fullness. The noticeable difference since this beer was first released in draught form is that the bitterness has increased...and that serves this beer well.

I love it when a (craft) beer delivers on the description provided by its label. The VALE/IPA label reads that this beer gives "a firm bitterness showing passionfruit, citrus and stone fruit characters." Yes, that is all there and all works nicely for the beer.

Poured from the bottle, VALE/IPA is a deep cooper colour with a good sized white head. The nose is of a nice tropical citrus fruit hop aroma. The body is on the lighter side for an IPA whilst the carbonation sits about mid-range. The taste is hop dominated with a well balanced combination of some grapefruit, passionfruit and pine. The beer has a good length with a long but soft bitter finish, just enough to make it refreshing and sessional.

On top of the enjoyable and distinguishable flavour hit of VALE/IPA, something else is happening around this McLaren Vale beer that I had not seen happen around the other VALE beers - those in the "beer-nerd" circles that I tend to move in are more often than not giving this IPA a big thumbs up. This easy going beer, which placed 35th in The Critics' Choice: Australia's Best Beers guide this year, is finding favour with the harshest of hopheads!

I do like the packaging too. As much as I hate to admit it, packaging and labels can play a big part in my selection of a beer at the shops when looking for something new...or even for something to fit an occasion. The striking red label, definitely a unique shade as far as Australian beer labels go, suits the beer and gives it something of a trendy place on tables of bars and restaurants. It may even find a place around my home as a footy beer (Go Bombers!).

Is VALE/IPA a good beer? Yes. Is it a "gateway" beer (for those starting to develop a palate for flavoursome beer)? Definitely. The key influence that this beer has, which improves my inclination towards MVBeer, is that VALE/IPA finally provides character through a flavour, hoppiness and mouthfeel that will push drinkers further along the path of good beer discovery than just through the gateway of buying something other than a mass-produced brand-loyalist lager or pale ale sold by foreign brewing companies.

Well done McLaren Vale Beer Co, VALE/IPA is good beer.

The biggest plus with VALE/IPA is that is completely trumps the need for James Squire IPA (aka "Stow Away IPA"...which was the one remaining decent beer in the James Squire national bottled range for suggesting to craft beer newbies looking for a gateway IPA). Lion Nathan should now consider their IPA a defunct product. McLaren Vale's IPA is readily available nation-wide through the Woolworths portfolio of Dan Murphy’s, BWS and Woolworths Liquor (even my little local old-school Safeway Liquor in the hills), as well as many other liquor outlets. We even saw it in Braddon Cellars in Canberra, so it should be within reach of practically everyone, which is an excellent thing for a beer like Vale's India Pale Ale.

For those reading this who possess an advanced craft beer palate (aka the beer geeks), if you haven't had a chance to taste the IPA's from Mornington Peninsula Brewery yet...do yourself a flavour favour and track these down for a seriously good "MMM YES!" hit courtesy of a local craft brewer! Lush and bitter, they tick all boxes across balance, complexity, length and finish.

Beer - Catching up...(3 March 2012 Part 1)

Well, haven't I been a bad blogger! Have I been neglecting my passion for Melbourne's bustling beer, bar, band scene? I seem to have missed a massive February with blogger essential events like National SLAM Day, countless large music and mini beer festivals, even yesterday's American Beer SpecTAPular at The Local Taphouse, as well as bar news aplenty.

No, not neglecting...I've just been far too busy with my full time job, maintain my property and keeping fit. So, apologies if you're a keen blog reader! The last two weeks also involved a commitment to Half-arsed Febfast, in which we completely gave up all alcohol (plus junk-food, chocolate, ice-cream and chips) to focus efforts on maintaining good health and in support of health and addiction awareness. We also needed to find a near gear to boost our running training as we prepare to run the 14.38km Run for the Kids and the 13.2km Puffing Billy Great Train Race over the next two months. This goal was best served by a dry two weeks.

Whilst I'd love to blog here every day, obligation free rainy days like today are so rare for me at the moment. I also continue to write for Australian Brews News, which takes some priority, so keep watch there!

Thankfully, just quickly, I have some free space today to share about an excellent beer day, as well as a little boast about a very special international craft beer that I consumed last night (...which made this post far too long, so I turned that into Part 2).

Yesterday, we had a sensational day as we returned to the essence of that which makes us such big fans of the local craft beer scene - visiting breweries with friends and enjoying beers over good conversation in beautiful settings. We returned to the scenic Mornington Peninsula for lunch at Red Hill Brewery, followed by a tasting paddle of Hix Beer at the Hickinbotham of Dromana winery and then more beers at Mornington Peninsula Brewery.

For the day we were joined by BJ Shelton from Milwaukee, Wisconsin USA. BJ is a bar owner, musician, blogger, craft beer lover and honourary Australia (his wife, Jess, was originally from Australia). It was great to catch up again with BJ, who shares a passion for exploring local beer.

First we shared lunch with BJ and Jess and Red Hill Brewery, which was busy as many sought to escape the rainy day after visiting the popular Red Hill Community Market. Good thing we had secured a booking earlier in the week! Once again the food, beer and service was spot on. The improved Belgian Blonde, the current seasonal, provided excellent drinking on a gloomy wet day. It even paired beautifully with my steak sandwich. The relaxed setting with fresh food and beer provided a joyus lunch session, as has been the case every time I visit Red Hill Brewery. They just seem to have the prefect brewery cafe formula there.

With Jess heading home to return to parenting duties, BJ, Jenn and I continued onto the Hix brewery at Hickinbotham, which none of us had been to before. The characterful winery cellar door was busy, but everyone seemed to congregating around the wine tasting area. The beer bar off to the side was empty, providing a quiet and relaxed space for the three of us to enjoy ourselves over a tasting paddle of the 5 Hix beers.

Already family with the three bottled beers (Pilsner, Pale and Brown), Hix also offerred two beers which I had not encountered before - an Irish Stout and their seasonal Summer Ale (a Steam beer). Overall the beers didn't throw up many surprises, but it is definitely a location I'd be happy to visit again.

Sometime after 3pm we arrived at Mornington Peninsula Brewery. The rain was now pouring down hard as we took shelter in the warm brewery bar warehouse. MP's head brewer, AG, was just finished up a brew, a White IPA - a hybrid witbier India Pale Ale cross. It will be the first of the style to be commercially released in Australia, although Doctor's Orders will also be producing a White IPA in several months for the Great Australiasian Beer SpecTAPular during Good Beer Week). When his brewing duties were done. AG joined us for several beers. Dave and Karen Golding of Red Hill Brewery also popped in on their way home from a night in the city, leading to some insightful and entertaining brewer on brewer beery chat. There may have been an incident with a pillow-pet and a glass of Mornington Peninsula Imperial IPA.

I drank the Mornington Brewery Saison, which was lovely but didn't quite hit the mark of the three Saisons that I discussed in my last post. AG acknowledged that he wasn't overly happy with the Saison, with something not quite right lingering at on the back palate.

Horrendous weather continued to dominated outside, but it failed to attract from the good times inside, as the afternoon reaffirmed that craft beer people are good people - friendly and welcoming.

As the designated driver for a day, I kept my beer consumption on the soft side for the day, as I knew my reward was waiting for me at home...

...read 3 March 2012 Part 2 to discover that reward!

Beer - December Tasting Events

Summer is here and it is a magnificent time to be a craft beer lover in Melbourne, with a bunch of tasting events over the next couple of weeks providing the opportunity to experience some amazing beers.

I am locked in to attend two such events, both are after-hours tastings in speciality beer shops (Purvis Beer and Slowbeer) and both providing equally exiting line ups and excellent value:

PURVIS BEER - STRANGE AND UNUSUAL BEER TASTING
When: Wednesday 15th December 2010
Where: Purvis Beer Richmond, 292 Bridge Rd, Richmond
Time: 7pm - 8pm
Cost: $30 per head

• Mikkeller Drink Your Sorrows Away
• Mikkeller Oatgoop
• Nogne Sweet Horizon
• Nogne Red Horizon
• Nogne Dark Horizon
• Red Duck Ugly Duckling Braggot
• Nogne Imperial Dunkel Wit
• Sunshine Coast Chilli Beer
• Brewdog Abstrakt AB:02
• De Molen Revelation Cat Triple Hop Bock
• Heather Ale Grozet Gooseberry & Wheat Ale
• Heather Ale Ebulum Elderberry Black Ale
• Mikkeller Nelson Sauvignon
• Brewdog/Mikkeller Divine Rebel 2009 & 2010 Editions

More info on the Purvis Cellars website at: http://www.purviscellars.com.au/Tasting.aspx

SLOWBEER - JOLLY CHRISTMAS TASTING
When: Sunday 19th December 2010 (also on Wednesday 15th December)
Where: Slowbeer, 63 Burwood Rd, Hawthorn
Time: 7pm – 8:30pm
Cost: $30 per head

• Mikkeller Santa's Little Helper
• Delirium Noel
• St Feuillien Noel
• St Bernardus Kert
• Chouffe N’ice
• Baladin Noel
• Schloss Eggenberg Samichlaus
• Red Hill Christmas Ale
• Hunter Christmas Beer

More info on the Slowbeer blog: http://slowbeer.blogspot.com/

I believe that these tasting events may already be mostly booked out…so if you are keen to go along, check the above links for the details then get in contact with these shops asap to secure a spot.

Sticking with Slowbeer's Christmas theme...another super exciting event is Biero Bar's "A Nightmare Before Christmas" party. After their successful "Fright Night" event for Halloween, which debuted the first publicly available brew from the soon-to-open Moon Dog Brewery (an Imperial Pumpkin Stout), this next event will feature a very Christmasy brew from the Moon Dog team...an Imperial Gingerbread Brown Ale!

BIERO BAR - A NIGHTMARE BEFORE CHRISTMAS PARTY
When: Thursday 23rd December 2010
Where: Biero Bar, 525 Little Lonsdale St, Melbourne
Time: from 6:00pm til late
Cost: FREE!

• "Celebrate with live bands, mental tap beers and a crazy horror Christmas theme not to mention another one off beer from those boys at Moon Dog!"
• Tap line-up still to be finalised, but will include some crazy extreme beers with a Christmas horror theme, such as the Moon Dog Brewery Gingerbread Brown Ale! There has also been whisper of a Plum Pudding Rum Stout(!!)...but you'll have to get along on the night to see if that happens...

More info on the Biero Bar Facebook event page...and keep an eye on their recently-super-improved-and-now-awesome website.

Also happening and recommended...

RED HILL BREWERY - "HOT SUMMER NIGHTS" BEER APPRECIATION SESSIONS
When: Saturday 11th and Saturday 18th December 2010
Where: Red Hill Brewery, 88 Shoreham Rd, Red Hill South
Time: 6:30pm
Cost: $35 per person for tasting session (dinner and drinks extra)
Bookings essential: call 03 5989 2959 or email info@redhillbrewery.com.au

• "Guided sessions, hosted by brewer, vertical tastings of previous vintages from the Brewers Secret Stash, matched to special dishes. Followed by dinner...Red Hill Brewery style."

More info in the Red Hill Brewery newsletter at: http://www.redhillbrewery.com.au/newsletter/dec_10.html

And for the taste of something new, Victoria's most recently opened microbrewery - Mornington Peninsula Brewery - are bring their beers up to Melbourne for a free Friday afternoon tasting at Purvis Beer on Friday 17th December, from 4:30pm. A little more info about this tasting can be found on The Crafty Pint website.

I tasted the Mornington Peninsula Porter for the first time at Biero Bar on Wednesday night ($5 pint night!) and very much enjoyed it. It is quite a straight forward porter, true to style, rich and robust without being overwhelming or too malty. It has decent hints of dark chocolate and a little something else, a spice maybe, that I found hard to place (probably due to earlier enjoying a pint of BrewDog Hardcore IPA!).