Darlo Ale Stars - July - India Pale Ales

After searching far and wide, we have got our hands on some tasty brews for our next Ale Stars in Darlo. A little from column A and a little from column B, we have got English and US style India Pale Ale's covered with this lot:

1. Samuel Smith IPA

2. Meantime IPA

3. Jamieson's The Beast IPA

4. Emerson's 1812 IPA

Its the usual deal - $25 for pizza and beer, (and trivia) - and of course A.G. the Ale Star Czar is in charge and will talk us through it. Kickoff 7pm sharp.

Looking forward to seeing you there.

Star Spangled SpecTAPular update

With the Star Spangled SpecTAPular coming up this Saturday I've been a little preoccupied...

I've been receiving dozens of calls from punters asking how much it costs to get in, what time it starts etc. and I think the day is going to be a cracker for beer lovers and fun lovers alike.

Of course the answer is that it doesn't cost anything to get in other than a gold coin donation. The money collected will go toward the Fred Hollows Foundation thanks to James who put this very worthy cause forward. The day starts at 12 noon and finishes up at 1am.

Last ANZAC Day SpecTAPular we managed to raise around $1,800 for Legacy and I think we'll do that again next year. Kinda makes you proud to be an Aussie - well done everyone! So we're hoping to raise just as much if not more this time.

But on to the most important stuff....the BEER....

For those of you that missed the line up, I've included the list again below. I was a little worried that it was going to be all too challenging for the public... but going through the list again there are definitely plenty of more 'accessible' beers to get stuck into as well. Almost all the beers have now arrived, even the Rogue Ales, with only the WA ones left to land.

We've also received some awesome Rogue merchandise thanks to Dave at Innspire which we'll be auctioning, raffling and giving away on the day.

In other news, it's looking like Steve (our design guru from Catsart and St Kilda Ale Star) will be making it to both venues in the same day. In a moment of inspiration, he decided it would be a good idea to to film the experience of going to both....so stay tuned for some footage.

Can't wait to see y'all there!!

And the beer line up again....

From the famous and spectacular Rogue Ales, we have the following awesome beers for the first time on tap anywhere in Australia:

Dead Guy Ale (German Maibock)

Chocolate Stout (American Stout)

Saint Rogue Red (American Red Ale)

Hazelnut Brown Nectar (American Brown Ale)

XS: Imperial IPA (American / Double India Pale Ale)

XS: Imperial Stout (Imperial Stout)

For anyone who wants to know a little more about Rogue Ales, it's worth checking out their web site. The About Us page is a great little story too.

And, for the Aussie beers that we've managed to squeeze into this somewhat looseley defined theme.....

2 Brothers Voodoo, VIC

(Baltic Porter - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Arctic Fox Amber Lager, VIC

(American Amber Lager - 1st time on tap in NSW!)

Bootleg Brewery Epic 2IPA, WA

(American / Double India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in VIC & NSW!)

Brewboys Brown Bomber, SA

(American Brown Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Bridge Rd Saison de Coing, VIC

(Fruit Beer / Candied Quince Saison - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Colonial Brewing IPA, WA

(American Pale Ale / India Pale Ale hybrid - 1st time on tap in NSW!)

Holgate Brewhouse Nut Brown Ale, VIC

(American Brown Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Hunter Beer Co. Cranky Pants IPA, NSW

(India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Moo Brew Pale Ale, TAS

(American Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in NSW & 2nd time in VIC!)

Mountain Goat Steam Ale, VIC

(Steam Ale / California Common - 1st time on tap in NSW!)

MT Brewery Yippy IPA, QLD

(India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in VIC & NSW!)

Murray's Icon 2IPA, NSW

(American / Double India Pale Ale - back by popular demand!)

Red Duck Bengal IPA, VIC

(India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Two Meters Tall Cleansing Ale, TAS

(Real Ale / American Blonde Ale - 1st time on tap on the mainland!)

The Prof Wraps up the Ale Stars Session o Winter Ales

For those of you like me who love the Prof's wrap up, here it is...

** NOW SOLD OUT** Beer Diva - Beer & Food Tasting @ The Local Taphouse (Darlo) - 23rd June

We have a great line-up of beers for our beer and food tasting dinner next Tuesday night. 8 beers will be served along with 5 delicious courses of food, all for only $60.00 per head!! There are only 5 places left, so book now on the right hand side of this page!

Here are the beers:

• Fransiskaner Hefeweizen
• Murrays Whale Ale Witbier
• Trumer Pils
• Bridge Road Chevalier Saison
• Wicked Elf US Pale Ale
• Mountain Goat Hightail Ale
• Dogbolter Dark
• Holgate Chocolate Temptress Porter

Book via the right hand side of this page. We will be starting at 7pm.

Hope to see you there!

Cheers,

Kirrily - The Beer Diva

St Kilda Ale Stars - Winter Ales

Another month, another cracking Ale stars session last night. Winter Ales were the tipple of choice and a record breakingly huge crowd rocked in.

We tried Holgate's Nut Brown Ale, Lobethal Chocolate Oatmeal Stout, Meantime Winter Time and Young's Christmas Pudding. The most popular drop was the Nut Brown Ale - Shandy's favourite from the Holgate range but this was closely followed by the Youngs Christmas Pudding despite the fact that it was described by Tom from Goat as 'the most interesting beer I've tasted in ages...but I don't like it'.

After being lambasted for his high brow (nigh on impossible) trivia in May, Shandy came to the party with some more accessible questions and the competition was hot. Team 'High Table' came through with the goods despite a mid season slump in the form of a 1 out of 5 second round. They came home with a wet sail, scoring a perfect 5 from 5 in round three to displace the Prof from his throne of trivia whiz for the second consecutive month.

Speaking of the Prof, it was revealed last night that Shandy will take a month of paternity leave and his ample shoes will be filled by one Professor Pilsener for July's Ale Stars. Its sure to be a great night, with Shandy's instructions to the Prof to be 'not shit' and 'not better than me'. It will also be the third month in a row the Prof won't win the trivia which means we are all in with a good chance of victory.

You can check out pics from the night here...

The next Ale Stars, hosted by the Professor, will be held on July 21. See you there.

A Beer Chick on Russian Stouts...

So I was getting excited about all the great beers that tend to emerge at this time of year when the weather conspires to keep us indoors and we look to ways of warming ourselves from the inside and out when I came across this great article by the Beer Chick.

Here's the article as it appears in Beer for Chicks...

CATHERINE THE GREAT - THE 1ST BEER CHICK

Did I tell you that I'm dating a hot Russian guy now? Oh yes, I am. And for some reason, I seem to be drinking a lot more Russian Imperial Stout (RIS). (I know there's a real dirty joke in there somewhere, but let's not go there.) Of course, hearing the name of this beer, one assumes that it comes from Russia. But you know what happens when you assume?

NOT from Russia, this amazing style of beer is actually a British invention. The Anchor brewery (no not the one in San Francisco) were the originators of this strong dark and rich beer that is generally much maltier, smokier and stronger than other English or Irish style stouts. Why Russia then?

Well, supposedly, in days of yore, the Empress of Russia Catherine the Great loved the style and demanded large quantities of the ebony elixer shipped to the Baltic and beyond. Some say that the beer was fortified with a high percentage of alcohol in order for it to make this long journey over land. Fortunately the beer lasted the distance and Catherine's love of this stout made it immensely popular not only in her native Russia, but in England as well. In fact, it is said that her support of the beer way back in the 1780's is what has contributed to this beer style's popularity even today.

I love this style, but previously, I really only drank it in the winter, when the alcohol would warm my bones when the temperature would dip below 60 degrees (c'mon, I'm in L.A.) But now that I've been concentrating on things Russian, I realize that it's a wonderful year-round beer! Here are some of the Russian Imperial Stouts I've been imbibing as of late:

Old Rasputin Russian Imperial Stout
North Coast Brewing Company - Ft. Bragg, CA
Tsarina Alexandra, the last Tsaritsa of Russia is known for her destructive and notorious friendship with the mystic Grigori Rasputin. And while this Old Rasputin from North Coast might be dark, there's no hidden agenda here! This beer is like espresso, with secondary notes of bittersweet chocolate and licorice. Its deliciously deceptive at 9% abv. This is my go to RIS.

Ten Fidy Imperial Stout
Oskar Blues Brewery - Lyons, CO
Thick, black and super creamy, this RIS is huge. Huge coffee and huge chocolate this beer has a hot malty dark molassas sweetness. Lots of smokey goodness in this beer. Oh, did I tell you that its in a can? Gotta love that! 9.5% abv.

Dark Lord Imperial Stout
Three Floyds Brewing Co. - Munster, IN
Super rich with big chocolate and vanilla, this beer comes in at a huge 13% abv. Super sweet and smooth, this beer has roasty and smokey notes almost like charcoal, with - dare I say - notes of soy sauce (but in a good way.) Virtually no head, this beer is like engine oil (also in a good way.) Darkness is spreading ladies and gentlemen.

The Czar Imperial Stout
Avery Brewing Company - Boulder, CO
Once again, this RIS shines with flavors of cocoa, bittersweet chocolate, caramel, toffee. Big espresso flavors with tons of sweet dark fruit. This one actually has a nice hop presence providing a bit of a balance. But its still a sweet, creamy, fruity, smokey dream. 11% abv.

I know I said it before, but it's important to remind y'all that Russian Imperial Stouts generally have a very high alcohol content. We're talking 10% and upwards. You know I'm okay with that, but be careful when you're drinking these, as you can easily end the night ass up. As a matter of fact, these beers used to be marketed using the tagline "Strong as a double scotch, less than half the price." YEAH! In this economy, we need some more bang for our buck. Speaking of the Russian hottie...

4th July - Star Spangled SpecTAPular - Line Up Confirmed

OK, so lots of people have been asking me what the final line up is for the next installment of The Local's seasonal beer festival, the 'Star Spangled SpecTAPular' on 4th July.

So here goes....(drum roll please)....

From the famous and spectacular Rogue Ales, we have the following awesome beers for the first time on tap anywhere in Australia:

Dead Guy Ale (German Maibock)

Chocolate Stout (American Stout)

Saint Rogue Red (American Red Ale)

Hazelnut Brown Nectar (American Brown Ale)

XS: Imperial IPA (American / Double India Pale Ale)

XS: Imperial Stout (Imperial Stout)

For anyone who wants to know a little more about Rogue Ales, it's worth checking out their web site. The About Us page is a great little story too.

And, for the Aussie beers that we've managed to squeeze into this somewhat looseley defined theme.....(another drum roll please)....

2 Brothers Voodoo, VIC

(Baltic Porter - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Arctic Fox Amber Lager, VIC

(American Amber Lager - 1st time on tap in NSW!)

Bootleg Brewery Epic 2IPA, WA

(American / Double India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in VIC & NSW!)

Brewboys Brown Bomber, SA

(American Brown Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Bridge Rd Candied Quince Saison, VIC

(Fruit Beer - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Colonial Brewing APA/IPA, WA

(American Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in NSW!)

Holgate Brewhouse Nut Brown Ale, VIC

(American Brown Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Hunter Beer Co. Cranky Pants IPA, NSW

(India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Moo Brew Pale Ale, TAS

(American Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in NSW & 2nd time in VIC!)

Mountain Goat Steam Ale, VIC

(Steam Ale / California Common - 1st time on tap in NSW!)

MT Brewery Yippy IPA, QLD

(India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in VIC & NSW!)

Murray's Icon 2IPA, NSW

(American / Double India Pale Ale - back by popular demand!)

Red Duck Bengal IPA, VIC

(India Pale Ale - 1st time on tap in Oz!)

Two Meters Tall Cleansing Ale, TAS

(Real Ale / American Blonde Ale - 1st time on tap on the mainland!)

So there you have it peeps! I'm pretty excited about the line up packed full of sensational beers and plenty of exclusives. A couple are being brewed specifically in time for the event and don't officially have a name yet, so we're feeling pretty lucky. The line up is almost good enough to get Steve on a plane and back here to taste all the beers before they run out!

Looking forward to seeing you all at both Melbourne and Sydney for the next installment of the SpecTAPular series of beerfests....

Best beer bars of the world...

With Steve galavanting around the world as we speak its appropriate I came across a post on Beeraholix that lists one person's best beer bars of the world. Obviously he's yet to have a Taphouse experience.

Whilst Steve has probably been to all of them (and may indeed be sitting in one right now), I've been to none of them so this article is enough to make me want to pack my bags and escape Melbourne's winter. I like the sound of Burp Castle!

My only concern is in a list of best beer bars in the world there seems to be little representation of venues outside of the US.

Click here to view the list.

Change of date for Beer Diva Beer Dinner

Just a quick note to let everyone know that this month's beer dinner with Beer Diva has been brought forward a day to June 23rd. We still have a few places left so get in quick an book via this blog (on the right hand side of this page).

For those of you who don't already know, Kirrily has been asked to judge at the Great British Beer Festival. Here's what she recently had to say:

It's official... I am packing my bags and will be heading to London where I have been invited to participate in the judging for The Champion Beer of Britain and also to speak alongside Roger Protz at the Great British Beer Festival in the first week of August! The Festival, organised by CAMRA (Campaign for Real Ale -www.ggbf.camra.org.uk) is hailed as Britain's biggest beer festival, and brings together over 450 real ales, ciders and international beers. I will definitely know my milds from my bitters when I return!

We had a great group at last month's Ale Trail tasting class, thanks to all of you who braved the ferocious Sydney weather that night to come along. This month we are running our 'Hosting a Beer Dinner' tasting class on 17th June where you will walk away armed with everything you need to hold your very own beer dinner at home...how fun!

Beer Diva have also teamed up with The Local Taphouse in Darlinghurst and together we will be showcasing some of their amazing tap beers and matching these to incredible food, come along on 24th June for a great night.

A cracking winter night of Porters in Darlo - Ale Stars wrap up

Here's what Jeff had to say about the night:

Tuesday night saw the third ever Darlo ale stars and it was another cracker. The lure of great beer proved too much and once again the restaraunt was packed to the rafters with eager lovers of the frothy stuff. It was awesome to see a lot of new faces incuding a group of Americans bringing an international feel to the night, and also great to see a few groups keeping up their 100% attendance record. The "Beer Monsters" nestled into their corner, and "lusitania" teamed up again to see if they could make it a hatrick of quiz wins, while AG welcomed us all and introduced us to this months flavour - Porters.

The Beer Monsters - OK so it's from last month - who forgot the camera?

After another typically great delivery by our Ale Star Tsar, on the history and brewing methods that make Porters unique, we were all well and truly ready to get stuck into the first of the night. Porters first appeared in the 18th century and came about as bars blended dark and light beers to create a strong, yet affordable ale for the railway workers... The Porters! The style died out for a while but is having a rennaisance, of sorts, mostly thanks to American breweries (and now many others) turning out some real crackers.

Like all good sessions we kicked off with the least challenging of the pack and the first train out of the station was Emersons London Porter. The Kiwis get a lot of stick over here, but there's nothing bad we can say about this little beauty. The Emerson Brewery has been belting out some great beers and this is no exception. It had a sweet chocolatey aroma, a smooth taste and a roasty, coffee aftertaste.

The crowd was loving it, and the chatter about raisins vs currents, coffee, chocolate and all those other things we talk about when tucking into quality Porters could only be interupted by equally enjoyable pizza from the Norwegian Siren in the kitchen!

The quiz got into full swing and with our carry over champs being slugged with a handicapp this week, the field opened right up and that free round of beers was up for grabs.

Controversy flowed, commments flew and the tech-bell, usually reserved to get clarification on something a little too techy for the newbies, was now being used to bring order to the excited mass now ready for beer no. 2.

Out came Samuel Smith's Famous Taddy Porter... a belter. Michael Jackson, not the one glove wearing guy that likes little kids and a monkey named Bubbles, but the world's most respected beer writer, considered it one of the top 5 beers in the world. Most people gave it the thumbs up over the Emersons, but there seemed to be more excitement about what was to come. More pizza, more quiz questions and more talk about raisins, chocolate, viscosity and malt and we were ready for the one it seemed like everyone was holding out for... Meantime London Porter.

To say it was worth the wait is a gross understatement. To say it was the favourite of the night is also an understatement, and to say it's a beautiful beer would be the biggest understatement of all. It's a smooth, perfectly balanced, rounded beer that you could drink all night... and then some.

Rounding off the night in style was the Murrays Best Extra Porter. We were fortunate to drink the last bottles left in the Country and Shaun, Murray's Brewer, felt that the year it spent in the bottle had aged it well and it was certainly at it's best.


(Some of) Team Lucitania - OK, OK - again from 2 months ago. Can someone please bring a camera in July?

So, another cracking Ale Stars night in Darlo. Specal thanks to AG for another awesome job up the front, Jess for keeping the peace with the bell, aul, Nicki, Siren and the Local team for keeping the glasses topped up and hot pizza coming through the door. A special mention must go to team Lusitania, who would have won the quiz, again, but for being hobbled by a nasty handicap dished out in the interest of fair sport... I think I heard "Melbourne Cup" used to justify it.

Stay tuned for the beer style for next month, it will be another great night. Make sure you book in early becase we're going to have to start capping numbers to make sure we all fit and all get a seat.

St Kilda Ale Stars - June final lineup

Another month, another mouthwatering lineup of beers for Ale Stars. This month St Kilda Ale Stars look at winter ales.

Here's the lineup:

1. Youngs Christmas Pudding Ale

2. Lobethal Chocolate Oatmeal Stout

3. Holgate Nut Brown Ale

4. Meantime Winter Cheer

C0me and try these beers, have a bite to eat, and try and beat the prof at trivia... St Kilda Ale Stars, Tuesday June 16th, 7pm sharp.

Cheers.