Poured into the glass it had a beautiful dark amber colour, slightly cloudy with an even white head. I was already feeling good about this. Getting closer now, a pleasant, clean aroma and on the tongue there was a powerful citrus bitterness - mmmm!

More careful inspection failed to reveal much in the way of floral tones, but there’s a good hard hit of liquorice malt to balance it out. I have always associated American styles with too much sugar and not enough character, so this is either out of character or out of the box. Well worth a try.

They say:

Pale golden appearance, Floral piney aromatics, Five hop flavours, Five species malt blend

The bare facts:

The Three Ravens Brewing Company
1 Theobold Street, Thornbury, Victoria 3071
www.3ravens.com.au

I have to say (as I slurp the last of the stubby), that it fails to deliver - at least on my lofty expectations. We have a clean, well balanced Pale Ale. The characteristics are there, but slightly lacking punch. There is the bitterness of citrus peel, but without the fragrance. There is hops, without the bouquet.

A really good beer has a signature - something you recognise like an old friend when you take that first mouthful. Crackenback doesn’t have that.

They say:

Crackenback Pale Ale, our flagship beer, is an award winning pale ale that embodies the classic style of Australian Pale Ale (sic). Brewed with two-row malted barley and lightly kilned specialty malt, giving it a golden to amber colour, the bright perky maltiness is perfectly balanced by a delectable aroma and bitterness from three types of hops. (etc…)

What?!? There was malt in there? hmm, must have been spread a bit thin!

Snowy Mountains Brewery
303/10-12 Clarke St. Crows Nest, NSW 2065
www.snowymountainsbrewery.com.au

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/

The Beast is an IPA with such a powerful range of flavours that you would think it ran a risk of turning into a bit of a mess, but it stays true to style and shines through with all the things you look for in a satisfying drink - there’s a ripping hops aroma, the burnt caramel flavours, the citrus aftertaste, and a hefty alcohol content!

Jamieson Brewery
Eildon Road, Jamieson, VIC
www.jamiesonbrewery.com.au

The beer is good too. I was recommended it by a guy at Swords in Vic Market after mentioning that my favourite drop was Little Creatures Pale Ale. Well, he knew his stuff, because this is a nice drop - similar to Little Creatures, but with a bit more body in the hops. There’s citrus flavours, but they’re not as flowery. Perhaps not as immediately accessible, but well worth getting acquainted with.

They say:

Temple Brewing Company is dedicated to brewing distinctive handcrafted beers from the finest ingredients. Temple Pale Ale is full flavoured with a clean bitterness and a rich malt character balanced by a unique blend of spicy floral citrus hops.

Temple Brewing Company
Level 8, 124 Exhibition Street
Melbourne, Victoria 3000 Australia
www.templebrewing.com.au

They say:

Our Pale Ale is formulated in the American style. With well balanced malt flavour and hop bitterness. It is an easy drinking ale with the fresh, crisp citrus flavours and aromas of the hop varieties featuring.

I’d pretty much have to agree with this, though I don’t know what the ‘American style’ is supposed to mean. This looked like a lager - lovely rich amber colour with a fine, creamy, wheat coloured head. The initial flavour was of burnt caramel, followed closely by that citrus hit and an aftertaste of fragrant hops.

If I had a criticism, it would be that the balance was a bit on the safe side… maybe that’s the American bit. It was just a little too sweet and uncomplicated to be a drink you’d look forward to again and again. On the other hand, it was a fine drink - thoroughly enjoyed it and would rate it as one of my favourites - close to the top. I’d say any visitor to Mount Beauty would be well advised to take home a few souvenirs. Not sure if it’s available down here in the city, but it’s apparently well liked up in the Kiewa Valley. Lucky them!

Sweetwater Brewing Company
http://www.sweetwaterbrewing.com.au/
13 Wallace Street, Mount Beauty

They say: The colour of burnished copper, strong with a caramely sweetness. A malt driven beer [...] blend of English Malts, some of which are dark roasted to impart the toffee and sweet flavours of this ale.

…And for once, I agree totally with their spiel. It’s a rich handsome colour in the glass and the immediate sensations of caramel and toffee are right there up front. Way too sweet for me, but there may be people who want this in a beer. The sort of drink that works well with cold weather, open fires and hearty food… I guess that’s what they want up in Scotland!

The bare facts:

Red Hill Brewery
88 Shoreham Road, Red Hill South, Victoria 3071
www.redhillbrewery.com.au

They say: Pale and crisp light bodied ale, fruity with a restrained hoppy dryness…

Certainly, it looks great in the glass - a lovely colour, but you sort of expect something pretty bright and sharp on the tongue… somehow it doesn’t happen. I think this is my favourite Red Hill brew, but it still falls short for me. Not bad, just not remarkable, I think overall Red Hill need to be a bit braver with their flavours. Middle of the road drinks might be OK for the big commercial brewers, but a smaller operation needs to make it’s name somehow.

The bare facts:

Red Hill Brewery
88 Shoreham Road, Red Hill South, Victoria 3071
www.redhillbrewery.com.au

They say: Jet Black and one to be savoured. The mouth feel is silky smooth, the nose has roasted malt and a touch of caramel.

The website goes on to say a lot of things - some make sense, others ring less true.

It’s rich, dark and tasty. Possibly a bit sweeter and easier to drink than that well known Irish brand of stout. Pungent molasses flavours and a smooth finish make it a quite drinkable drop. The website goes on about a lasting and beautiful white head’, but poured from the bottle, I found it less than aesthetically pleasing. Perhaps sensing my disappointment, the head vanished quite quickly.

The website also says: “This fine ale is only available from the brewery”, but I got mine in a stubby from Vic Market, so there’s obviously going to be some discrepancy between the beverage poured from the bottle and that from the brewery tap.

As, I said, Stout is not my usual choice, so I’m probably never going to rave about one. I suspect this one wouldn’t please many regulars though - somehow it seemed clumsy and unfinished.

The bare facts:

Red Hill Brewery
88 Shoreham Road, Red Hill South, Victoria 3071
www.redhillbrewery.com.au