Random Thoughts.........

[waggastew]

So I went and played a round of golf at the local course this afternoon. I don't play that often so of course the score was high, plenty of shots into the woods, but a nice walk all the same. On the topic of beer the golf club (and we are talking a town of 10,000 people on the Mid-North Coast) the bar had:

1. Anchor Steam in the bottle - The beer that started the craft brew thing 40 years ago! In Wauchope! At a club thats all pokies! Better than the selection at Castle Hill RSL after the NSWAHC.

2. Anchor Liberty in the bottle - A nice woody/herbal IPA. My first choice, barman thought it was a bit pricey at $7. Didn't have the heart to say Carlton Draught is a bit pricey at anything above 20c a schooner

3. JS Squires Ace of Spades Porter on Tap

Now this last beer is the topic of this post. It smelt great, chocolate/coffee/roast but clean. It tasted pretty good, mostly clean bitterness with a hint of choc/coffee. This is a very well made beer, probably a bit corporate/clean but still very well made.

The megaswill hop bombs get a hammering for going cheap on the hops but the dark beers tend to hold their own.

Discuss...................

 

[Bribie G]

I think there is a new trend emerging due to the "tap contract" thing. For example in Taree and district over the last year a number of pubs and clubs now have a couple of JS on tap, and the Old Bar club has White Rabbit Dark. Yum.

The brewery reps go around and talk venues into trying something different, the "something different" of course being an "entry level" craft beer style thing such as Fat Yak or 150 lashes that is brewed by a subsidiary of the Big Two. Maybe the reps offer all sorts of incentives and kickbacks - who knows. But at the end of the day they have got the beer on the bar in one of their contracted taps.

This is interesting, one wonders if the Big Two are going to fight a proxy war with these craft style beers - after all with mainstream beer consumption falling this could be a way of tweaking the market in favour of Big One or Big Two. A lot of younger males are now tending towards Fat Yak or JS brews. Often in Taree at the Royal Hotel on Victoria Street that Lion have tarted up for them, they have run out of one or other of their two JS on offer .... "We sell a fair bit nowadays", and it's not exactly hipster town as you well know.

 

[mje1980]

If I have to buy beer, the JS porter is pretty good for the price IMHO. Enough character to be interesting, but I could have a few. Funny, it used to be tooheys old, but now I prefer this, though old isnt bad. Dark beers are under rated for session beers IMHO. The JS 150 seems inconsistent to me. These days I'll often not drink if the best beer at the bar is super dry haha

 

[jlm]

I reckon you're right. There's many around these parts that put tooheys old as their go to drink when at the local, myself included (or I used to back in qld).
I'd say none of the sessionable mega darker beers could hold their own against the likes of an emmersons porter ( I know, they're mega now) or lobethal red truck.....yet they cop less shit?
Why?
Well I'd put it down to the fascination with brewing hoppy apa 's and ipa 's. nothing wrong with that but I reckon when a commercial brewery puts out an alleged hoppy ale it results in a chorus of "tastes like dish water, my shit has more hop aroma".
I raise my eyebrows at these statements quite a bit, if you can't taste the galaxy in a 150 lashes then there's something wrong.
Yet I've never heard a complaint about not enough malt in a squires porter....

 

[Ducatiboy stu]

I dont mind good Tooheys Old.Most places I go if Coopers isnt on tap then Old will be.

 

[yum beer]

JS Porter is the beer that opened my eyes to the dark side....its very hard to get hold of around here though and no chance of getting it on tap.
Tooheys old when out.

Talking taps though, recently ventured to one of the locals for an afternoon schooey with a brew buddy to try the Matilda Bay IGP Aussie Ale.....have not heard of it anywhere else....******* rubbish, maybe thats why, trying to offload it on unsuspecting little town pubs. It was a little better than Minimum Chips but only just.

 

[Bizier]

The megaswill hop bombs get a hammering for going cheap on the hops but the dark beers tend to hold their own.

Discuss...................

That is not apples and apples mate.

Hops are expensive. Ludicrous amounts of hop are ludicrously expensive.
Roast malts pale in comparison for impact vs price (pun intended).
Dark beers are also a lot less fragile than a beer with a hop load just waiting to convert into an ox bomb.

 

[waggastew]

That is not apples and apples mate.

Hops are expensive. Ludicrous amounts of hop are ludicrously expensive.
Roast malts pale in comparison for impact vs price (pun intended).
Dark beers are also a lot less fragile than a beer with a hop load just waiting to convert into an ox bomb.

Totally agree with the cost and storage perspective. The market also must have something to do with it. Give a Tooheys Old drinker a JS Porter and he.she would be chuffed. Give your average Super Dry drinker a Feral Hop Hog and stand back.........

Speaking of storage, my worst EVER schooey of Tooheys Old was had at the Macquarie UNi bar in the late 90's. Had to have been sitting in the line a good few weeks. Since then I have tended to drink it only in 'old man' pubs/clubs etc where you now its moving.

STew

 

[Diggs]

Question on Olds? Does it have any reference to the"old" beer sitting in driptrays that they used to sell off? Would this also explain the "New" being new beer (ie fresh pour)?

 

[barls]

I think there is a new trend emerging due to the "tap contract" thing. For example in Taree and district over the last year a number of pubs and clubs now have a couple of JS on tap, and the Old Bar club has White Rabbit Dark. Yum.

The brewery reps go around and talk venues into trying something different, the "something different" of course being an "entry level" craft beer style thing such as Fat Yak or 150 lashes that is brewed by a subsidiary of the Big Two. Maybe the reps offer all sorts of incentives and kickbacks - who knows. But at the end of the day they have got the beer on the bar in one of their contracted taps.

This is interesting, one wonders if the Big Two are going to fight a proxy war with these craft style beers - after all with mainstream beer consumption falling this could be a way of tweaking the market in favour of Big One or Big Two. A lot of younger males are now tending towards Fat Yak or JS brews. Often in Taree at the Royal Hotel on Victoria Street that Lion have tarted up for them, they have run out of one or other of their two JS on offer .... "We sell a fair bit nowadays", and it's not exactly hipster town as you well know.

grew up there. its an amazing thing that they have good beer there now. it use to be ether new or vb

 

[Bribie G]

grew up there. its an amazing thing that they have good beer there now. it use to be ether new or vb

Even though (or probably because of) there isn't a Dans in town the local bottle shop range is actually quite spectacular. Old Bar bottlo is a Cellarbrations and they have a heap of parallel imports like Dutch Hooten lager, Greek Mythos etc and in town the BWS and LL have an impressive range of craft and imported beers - far better than anything available in Caboolture/Morayfield that is similar and size in population and similar demographics.

I suppose it's due to being in an isolated location where it's just mountains and forest for an hour North or two hours South to the next city, they have to stock a bit of everything.

 

[Batz]

Random Thoughts.........

Friendship

It does not always work but without it we would not be here. It's sad some can not give or accept it.

 

[barls]

Even though (or probably because of) there isn't a Dans in town the local bottle shop range is actually quite spectacular. Old Bar bottlo is a Cellarbrations and they have a heap of parallel imports like Dutch Hooten lager, Greek Mythos etc and in town the BWS and LL have an impressive range of craft and imported beers - far better than anything available in Caboolture/Morayfield that is similar and size in population and similar demographics.

I suppose it's due to being in an isolated location where it's just mountains and forest for an hour North or two hours South to the next city, they have to stock a bit of everything.

was planned but shelved. still in the store list on the work system though.

 

[warra48]

The local course waggastew mentions is my golf club.

I've been really chuffed over the last few weeks to have the JS Porter on tap. I used to have the Tooheys Old, but the JS Porter is better, more body, less sweet, and showing some more dark malt complexity.
One of the barmen told me when it first went on tap they blew through their stock on the first day.

Haven't noticed the Anchor Steam and Anchor Liberty in the bottles at the club. Will have a look for it after my game this Tuesday. I've had the Steam before from the bottle bought from a bottleshop in Thornleigh in Sydney, and wasn't overly impressed, not really a style to push my buttons. Will try the Liberty if it's still available.

 

[mckenry]

This has nothing to do with golf or the price of beers in golf clubs. Its just a collection of random thoughts I have had today, reflecting on another perfect brew day. I hit all my targets volumes and gravities spot on, but that will have to do.

1. I've been getting back to originals. What I mean is, I've found myself thinking about Cascade and WLP001
2. I've been doing simple single infusion with a mash out.
3. Ive been doing Single hop at 60min lagers. Again, with one of the originals (to me anyway) WLP830

Just thought I'd share how good things are when you KISS.

Edit - remember when Amarillo was cool? I am drinking an all Amarillo Amber and its delicious. 60,10, flameout and dry. 100g in 20L all up. I was over Amarillo a few years ago, after being taken by it. Nice to revisit.

 

[Gr390ry]

This is my local course as well, played a couple of weeks ago and was dismal. I haven't notice the steam ale, thanks for the tip off!

I was in Queenstown, NZ two weeks ago for a work conference. Beers were all paid for where ever we went and it was craft heaven there plus everything on tap was served in pints. Makes me sad to think I'm not there now!

 

[warra48]

It's no longer my golf club since moving to Corlette.
I now play at Nelson Bay Golf Club. The best beer on tap is Carlton Black. The rest are not worth the bother. Had a bottle of Guinness there last week and was very disappointed. Lacking body flavour bitterness and complexity, all the things which go to make a great stout.

 

[Donske]

1. I've been getting back to originals. What I mean is, I've found myself thinking about Cascade and WLP001

Edit - remember when Amarillo was cool? I am drinking an all Amarillo Amber and its delicious. 60,10, flameout and dry. 100g in 20L all up. I was over Amarillo a few years ago, after being taken by it. Nice to revisit.

Haha, 2 of my regular beers are an all Cacade APA and an Amarillo and Ahtanum APA, both very simple malt bills and US-05, there is nothing better than an easy drinking pale ale, especially as the weather warms up.

 

[menoetes]

I've gotta say that I don't rate the James Squires range of beers on the whole, it's better than most tap beers but not my favorite.

With the one exception being the AoS Porter. Unfortunately, even the First Choice near my place doesn't seem to stock more than a carton of it at any one time. When I see it I grab it and I wish my few attempts at Porters had turned out as nice...

Having said that, once (in a curious moment) I mixed a 150 Lashes Pale Ale and a Chancers Golden Ale together - it tasted surprisingly good! Pretty random, huh?