HAPPY AUSTRALIA DAY!!!
I hope wherever you are around this great land, whether its at a barby, at the Big Day Out, or even at work, I hope it is a great day.
Now down to business. The votes have been cast and they have been counted (incidentally the counting part is not something I would wish on anyone).
Almost double the number of people than last year voted for their top 10 Australian Craft beers of 2009 and more than 450 beers received at least one vote. Voters were from all over Australia.
Congratulations to all of the brewers for their great beers...I hope yours is on this list.
Drumroll please.....
1 Little Creatures Pale Ale (WA)
2 Murrays Icon Double IPA (NSW)
3 Matilda Bay Fat Yak (VIC)
4 Mountain Goat Hightail Ale (VIC)
5 Hargreaves Hill ESB (VIC)
6 Matilda Bay Alpha Pale Ale (VIC)
7 Feral Hop Hog IPA (WA)
8 White Rabbit Dark Ale (VIC)
9 Knappstein Reserve Lager (SA)
10 Jamieson Beast IPA (VIC)
11 Little Creatures Bright Ale (WA)
12 Coopers Pale Ale (SA)
13 James Squire Golden Ale (NSW)
14 Stone & Wood Draught Ale (NSW)
15 Holgate Chocolate Temptress (VIC)
16 Murrays Nirvana Pale Ale (NSW)
17 Bridge Road Bling IPA (VIC)
18 Coopers Sparkling Ale (SA)
19 Feral White (WA)
20 James Squire Amber Ale (NSW)
21 Moo Brew Pale Ale (TAS)
22 Murrays Grand Cru (NSW)
23 Kooinda Pale Ale (VIC)
24 Hawthorn Pale Ale (VIC)
25 Coopers Vintage Ale (SA)
26 James Squire Mad Brewers 10 20 Commemorative Ale (NSW)
27 2 Brothers Growler (VIC)
28 Red Hill Imperial Stout (VIC)
29 Bridge Rd Chevalier Saison (VIC)
30 James Squire Hop Thief (NSW)
31 Brew boys Ace of Spades Stout (SA)
=32 Holgate ESB (VIC)
=32 Mountain Goat Steam Ale (VIC)
=34 Barons Black Wattle (NSW)
=34 Moo Brew Imperial Stout (TAS)
36 Red Hill Scotch Ale (VIC)
37 Temple Saison (VIC)
38 Mountain Goat Rapunzel (VIC)
39 Coopers Extra Stout (SA)
40 Wicked Elf Pale Ale (NSW)
41 Boatrocker Alpha Queen (VIC)
42 James Squire India Pale Ale (NSW)
43 3 Ravens 55 (VIC)
=44 Grand Ridge Moonshine (VIC)
=44 Mountain Goat IPA (VIC)
46 Moo Brew Dark Ale (TAS)
47 Coopers 62 Pilsner (SA)
48 Lobethal Pale Ale (SA)
=49 Bridge Road oak aged Imperial Porter (VIC)
=49 Grand Ridge Gippsland Gold (VIC)
=49 James Squires Sundown Lager (NSW)
=49 Murrays Anniversary Ale 4 (NSW)
53 Feral Boris Russian Imperial Stout (WA)
54 Brew Boys Maiden Ale (SA)
=55 William Bull Red Angus Pilsner (NSW)
=55 Red Hill Temptation (VIC)
57 Murray’s Pilsener (NSW)
58 Little Creatures Rogers (WA)
59 James Squire Porter (NSW)
60 Lord Nelson Three Sheets (NSW)
61 Feral Razorback Barleywine (WA)
=62 Murrays Wild Thing Imperial Stout (NSW)
=62 Nail Brewing Stout (WA)
64 Brewboys Seeing Double (SA)
65 James Squire Pilsner (NSW)
66 Holgate Brewery Hopinator (VIC)
=67 Bridge Rd Brewers Beechworth Australian Ale (VIC)
=67 Matilda Bay Dogbolter (VIC)
69 Sunshine Coast Munich Dunkel (QLD)
70 Colonial IPA (WA)
=71 Bridge Road brewers Chevalier Bier De Garde (VIC)
=71 Mountain Goat Surefoot Stout (VIC)
=71 Nail Ale (WA)
=74 Hargreaves Hill Pale Ale (VIC)
=74 Otway Estate Prickly Moses Red Ale (VIC)
76 Barons ESB (NSW)
77 Bright Brewery Staircase Porter (VIC)
=78 Gage Roads IPA (WA)
=78 Holgate Big Reg (VIC)
=78 Murrays Sassy Blonde (NSW)
=78 Stone and Wood Pale Lager (NSW)
=82 Barons Pale Ale (NSW)
=82 Bridge Rd Celtic Red (VIC)
=82 Flying Horse Dirty Angel Porter (VIC)
=85 Bridge Road The Harvest Pale Ale (VIC)
=85 Feral Fanta Pants Imperial Red Ale (WA)
=87 2 Brothers Voodoo (VIC)
=87 Matilda Bay Beez Neez (VIC)
=89 Burleigh Hefeweizen (QLD)
=89 Coopers Dark Ale (SA)
=89 Murrays Dark Knight (NSW)
=92 Holgate Double Trouble (VIC)
=92 Red Duck Bengal Tiger IPA (VIC)
=92 Wig and Pen Russian Imperial Stout (ACT)
=95 Colonial Kolsch (WA)
=95 Holgate Nut Brown Ale (VIC)
=95 Lord Nelson Old Admiral (NSW)
=95 Red Oak Organic Pale Ale (NSW)
=95 Wig and Pen Brewers IPA (ACT)
=100 Bridge Road Pale Ale (VIC)
=100 Red Oak Belgian Chocolate Stout (NSW)
We'll pick a random voter out of hat shortly and they will win a case of each of the Top 5 beers (subject to availability)!
Cheers,
The Local Crew.
Sorry to be a pedant/spoilsport/whatever, but what are the James Squire beers doing up there? I thought they were ineligible because the label is owned by Lion Nathan and therefore not a craft beer. (Not that I would have voted for them anyway, but the instructions were pretty clear.)
ReplyDeleteApologies - I've just been told that James Squire and Matilda Bay are eligible. Whoops!
ReplyDeleteI'm actually qutie disappointed with most of the top 10.
ReplyDeleteJust to clarify what JPS is saying, "the beer must have been brewed in 2009 in Australia by anyone other than Fosters or Tooheys main operations (so Matilda Bay and James Squire are eligible)."
ReplyDeleteHey Katja,
ReplyDeleteWhat is disappointing about the top 10??! With the exception of one or two, I think they're all great beers..
I expected the most widely distributed beers to feature prominently at the top of the poll as it is open to craft beer lovers around Australia (not just drinkers at the Taphouses)..
The interesting thing to me is the heavy prevalence of hoppy beers (APAs, IPAs etc) at the top of the table..
I think the list, and the top ten or so in particular, reflects the way that craft beer has found new markets - more widespread general acceptance. It's great to see so many 'popular/populist' brands popping up.
ReplyDeleteI guess we have to remember that, for every one of 'us' who has more experience of craft beers, there are hundreds of 'them' who are just starting out on the journey and are standing where we were a few years back.
All good for the 'industry'!
Cheers
Prof. Pilsner
Yeah, sorry about the mix-up earlier. I thought that I'd read "ineligible".
ReplyDeleteAnyway, great initiative, and I'm already working out some rules to set myself for next year's list (this year, the sole one was no more than one beer per brewery).
I have one question, though: where is last year's list? I did a search on this blog and couldn't find it. I'm a bit of a stats person, so I'd like to do a comparison!
@JPS.
ReplyDeleteHere you go!
http://thelocaltaphouse.blogspot.com/2009/01/hottest-100-aussie-brews-of-2008.html
Steve... I guess cuz there is quite a bit of Creatures and Matilda Bay beers there... although i suppose there could be more... but to me, that's a lot. Not that I wouldn't drink them (cuz I would). I guess it's as Prof said... which is what was in my head when I saw that. I'm still disappointed that Little Creatures is #1. There are so many more great smaller brews... I'd expect a good brew from a brewery that can make quite a bit (although that's not always true). Oh well. I guess it's good that VB is not at the top of the list....
ReplyDeletetwo of my favs made it to the Top 10 (Jamieson's Beast & Feral Hop Hog) which is great 'cos they are outrageously awesome brews that hopefully more people will get to try
ReplyDeleteHolgate Hopinator: definatley one of my fav hoppy beers, nice sweet malt musical character fills the mouth with a fantastic hop biterness. awsome
ReplyDelete