Grand Ridge Brewery Box Set

[Dazza_devil]

I decided to buy a box set of Grand Ridge Brewery beers at the recommendation of the shop attendant and it wasn't cheap. Upon searching for a best before date I came up with nothing, but the box is laced with pictures braggin' about AIBA awards, the latest being 2004. .

Here's my thoughts as I try them,

Natural Blonde - ruined my crumbed whiting and salad. Tasted stale but I finished it.

Brewers Pilsener - foul aftertaste. Amongst the worst beers I've ever tried. Only thing it had going for it was it had alcohol in it but give me pure diluted ethanol anytime.

Gippsland Gold - almost undrinkable and I've drank some crap in my time. Not worthy of further comment.

Yarra Valley Gold - I thought I tasted a hop initially not sure, this one is drinkable but has a metallic twang.

Nut Brown Ale - Shit, and has the same metallic twang. Now I'm gettin pissed off. I reckon the boys should pay these dickheads a visit.

Hatlifter Stout - Roasted shit. On the blowa.



These beers are enough to put me off anything with a name that is remotely mountainous. How they ever won any awards leaves me disheartened with the industry. I'm hesitant in hitting the post button in the case that I may not be giving a fair review if this stuff is off, there's no date anywhere to be found but I don't think it's off, just really bad. I feel like a dickhead for buying it. 'World's Most Awarded Brewery', I think someone has some explainin to do. No Chemicals-No Preservatives-Fresh. Local.Pure. I'm just pleased they aren't Tasmanian. Perhaps it needs a few chemicals, the ones that make up a quality beer.

 

[dig]

I have never understood why small guys would risk their reputation by putting unstable beer out into the trade. If you serve it up over your own bar, it stays cold, turns over quickly (one would hope) and you can keep an eye on it, but in warm bottles that languish on shelves for god knows how long, you're courting disaster.

 

[Dazza_devil]

They wanna hope it does serve up more than OK over the bar.

 

[dig]

That 'Most Awarded Brewery' thing is a throwback to the days when you could enter a beer as many times as you liked in as many or as few categories as you wished. GR were famous for their 'scatter gun' approach to the AIBA. Rules have changed now.

 

[Dazza_devil]

Since when?

 

[dig]

I don't know. Two or three years?

 

[Dazza_devil]

Grrrrrrrr

 

[Jeff Margrie]

Hay Boagsy, I met Eric Walters who owns Grand Ridge brewery at a farmers market some time back. He was there promoting their beers with free taste testing. I tried all and found them quiet nice.

Anyway a guy came up to him and complained about purchasing some of their beer from a bottle shop and said it tasted foul. Straight away Eric said what did you buy exactly. Then Eric handed him a replacement 6 pack. He also said from time to time this might happen as you don't know how long it might have been on the shelf. He said to me and a few other bloks that where taste testing, if it happens give them a call and they will send out a free replacement.

So may be you should give them a call, and see what happens.

Make more homebrew that way you don't have to buy commerical beer that can taste like crap.

Cheers WoolBrew :icon_cheers:

 

[komodo]

I actually dont mind GRB beers at the brewery. I've made the trek a couple of times over from Inverloch as I like to go to the pub grab a bite then do the ridge road and come back to inverloch via yarram - a few good 4x4 trails out there too. Would I buy it in a bottle - no way every time ive had it out of a bottle I've nearly gagged on it. And this is before I started home brewing. I've read a few people have had similar experiance and I've read a few posts on here where more experianced members suggest they could have some fairly well know infection issues in their bottles/bottling

 

[Dazza_devil]

Hay Boagsy, I met Eric Walters who owns Grand Ridge brewery at a farmers market some time back. He was there promoting their beers with free taste testing. I tried all and found them quiet nice.

Anyway a guy came up to him and complained about purchasing some of their beer from a bottle shop and said it tasted foul. Straight away Eric said what did you buy exactly. Then Eric handed him a replacement 6 pack. He also said from time to time this might happen as you don't know how long it might have been on the shelf. He said to me and a few other bloks that where taste testing, if it happens give them a call and they will send out a free replacement.

So may be you should give them a call, and see what happens.

Make more homebrew that way you don't have to buy commerical beer that can taste like crap.

Cheers WoolBrew :icon_cheers:

No date on the bottles or package sounds like playin it safe to me.
This is more than an ageing issue. I don't appreciate being led astray and free beer for a year wouldn't convince me otherwise.
I hope Eric has enough room up his arse for a sixpack.

 

[zebba]

I've had a few of them but can only remember a couple.

The Yarra Valley Gold is alright, but there are just too many other beers in that style that are better. You're bang on about the metallic aftertaste, I got that too.

The Moonshine (Scotch Ale) is a great drop. I found it similar to Orkney Breweries "Dark Island", but a little less roast and a lot more body (I found the Dark Island to be a quite thin on the mouthfeel). I'd say their Moonshine was the best of that style that I've had to date, although admittedly I've only tried a handful of scotch ales. Still, I would happily recommend it for people to try.

 

[rosswill]

I decided to buy a box set of Grand Ridge Brewery beers at the recommendation of the shop attendant and it wasn't cheap. Upon searching for a best before date I came up with nothing, but the box is laced with pictures braggin' about AIBA awards, the latest being 2004. .

Here's my thoughts as I try them,

Natural Blonde - ruined my crumbed whiting and salad. Tasted stale but I finished it.

Brewers Pilsener - foul aftertaste. Amongst the worst beers I've ever tried. Only thing it had going for it was it had alcohol in it but give me pure diluted ethanol anytime.

Gippsland Gold - almost undrinkable and I've drank some crap in my time. Not worthy of further comment.

Yarra Valley Gold - I thought I tasted a hop initially not sure, this one is drinkable but has a metallic twang.

Nut Brown Ale - Shit, and has the same metallic twang. Now I'm gettin pissed off. I reckon the boys should pay these dickheads a visit.

Hatlifter Stout - Roasted shit. On the blowa.



These beers are enough to put me off anything with a name that is remotely mountainous. How they ever won any awards leaves me disheartened with the industry. I'm hesitant in hitting the post button in the case that I may not be giving a fair review if this stuff is off, there's no date anywhere to be found but I don't think it's off, just really bad. I feel like a dickhead for buying it. 'World's Most Awarded Brewery', I think someone has some explainin to do. No Chemicals-No Preservatives-Fresh. Local.Pure. I'm just pleased they aren't Tasmanian. Perhaps it needs a few chemicals, the ones that make up a quality beer.

I got the same six pack from Dan's and had exactly the same experience. Not one was drinkable. I thought stale. I assumed you can rely on Dan's for turnover to keep the beer fresh.

 

[peas_and_corn]

I had the same experience- there's a thread on AHB somewhere with my thoughts. I heard that the awards were won under a different head brewer, though I am not sure of the reliability of that info, since I am unsure where I heard it.

 

[Dazza_devil]

That would be right, win an award then put a heap of crap out there with the medal stamped all over it.
There must be some sort of regulation about selling a beer that's won an award being the actual beer that's in the bottle you purchase.
Yeah this beer won an award in 2003 but since then we wouldn't give a shit what it tastes like as long as it sells.

 

[bum]

I assumed you can rely on Dan's for turnover to keep the beer fresh.

Nope. Was talking to an employee of my local Dan's who said everything usually sits in some big central warehouse (think Bunnings) for ages before it goes out to stores.

 

[peas_and_corn]

That's how chain stores work.

 

[Swinging Beef]

I have never bought a mixed six pack of GR stuff, but all their beers I have bought as singles have been good.
The moonshine is excellent, and probably one of my top ten beers of all time.
I usually buy from our local bottle shop, and they are stored on the shelf, not in the fridge.

 

[Count Vorlauf]

Dan's buys in huge quantities then lets is sit around. I've heard of pallets of beer roasting in Queensland parking lots. Buy from the brewery (if you can) or a local independent. They buy in smaller quantities and turn it over.

Nope. Was talking to an employee of my local Dan's who said everything usually sits in some big central warehouse (think Bunnings) for ages before it goes out to stores.

 

[Dazza_devil]

This one came from the local bottlo and wasn't chilled when I bought it which was a day before I drank it.
Still have the foul taste in my mouth and I just ate a can of smoked oysters in BBQ sauce to try and drown it out.
I'll let them know at the bottlo, count my losses and never again.

 

[Pennywise]

I've had the Pilsner, Blonde, Gipsland Gold and the Moonshine, and to be quite honest the only one I'd ever buy again is the Moonshine, which is absolutly fantastic. The others leave alot to be desired