The weather is warming up, so I’m back on the beer blog! I’ll admit I’m not terribly familiar with this style of beer, only having tried it once or twice before. After telling him of my preference for bright, tangy pale ales, the fella at Sword’s in Vic Market actually tried to discourage me from trying this one. I don’t think he thought it was generally poor, just so far from my stated preference that I might blame him for a poor choice. Undeterred, I gave it a shot.
They say:
Barons Lemon Myrtle Witbier is the real Australian version of Belgian-style white beer. Flavoured by native Australian Lemon Myrtle, this beer is a perfect balance of zesty lemon rind and ripe citrus fruit flavours. Being bottle-conditioned, this cloudy ale is lively on the palate yet surprisingly smooth.
I will agree that there were traces of the ‘ripe citrus flavour’ they are talking about, but nowhere near enough. White beer conjures up visions of a bland drink, I’m afraid this is a pretty accurate in this case. Certainly, the Belgian style as we know it from the commercial imports is not big on flavour and character, so maybe this is well in character… there were no vices in the flavour. What I wasn’t so impressed with was the gas – this was a fizzy drink! So much so, that it got in the way of the taste – you just couldn’t take a mouthful and savour it without it threatening to explode in your mouth.
OK, so he tried to warn me, so I can’t be too harsh. It’s not bad – just for me, it isn’t that good either. The one thing he got wrong was telling me that they were from Western Australia – this puzzled me a little, because I thought the sandgropers would turn out a ballsier brew. Only when I was writing this post, did I realise they are from Sydney… explains a lot.
Barons Brewing
Level One, 1 Moncur Street, Woollahra, NSW, 2025
http://www.baronsbrewing.com/
Tried Feral White, a Witbier which IS out of Western Australia? That’s quite a nice drop, I’m not a big fan of the ‘fruitier’ beers but the spice in this one was quite well-balanced and made for a very interesting taste, anyway. Not the kind of beer you’ll knock off half-a-dozen of while watching the cricket but a good ‘occasional’ drink.