Taphouse Spectapular - 12th Feb

[vykuza]

We had a great afternoon at the Darlinghurst taphouse, and even though the weather was a bit of a downer, the staff all looked like they were having as much fun as the punters. Good on them!


Our group of five went through the entire menu (between us, not each) and there were some highlights and lowlights among the bunch.

Lowlights:
Otway Blueberry Hefe: smelled like blueberry sweeties and didn't taste of blueberry or hefeweizen. Which is a little strange. Nobody went back for more of this one.
Lobethal/Brewboys Quince Pale Ale: smelled delicious, with the subtle quince coming through. Tasted like chewing on a cereal cardboard box. Massive wet cardboard off flavours.


Highlights:
Docs Zephyr was a dangerously drinkable wit, with a big lemon hit. Lovely.
Holgate the Empress - amazing. Served much too cold (so I had another beer and waited it out). Rich, thick but not too sweet. Lovely coffee and chocolate notes without being harsh. If I made a porter, imperial or not, 10% as good as this one I would be chuffed.
Murrays Imperious: One of the standouts as something quite different. An 11% Belgian blonde with NZ hops. It was complex, delicious and moreish. Dangerous considering the alc content!

If I could choose a keg of anything on tap yesterday it would be the Feral Karma Citra. Black IPA with Citra hops. Well balanced, good strong bitey dark malt flavours, bitter - but not too bitter (at 47ibus) and quite approachable. I would buy this regularly if it were for sale. Can't say enough good things.

Torn, but worth mentioning: Wig & Pen kb through the randall was a mixed one for me. The berlinner weisse was excellent, but the fresh cherries gave it a slightly fishy flavour that was a bit strange. From the upstairs bar it was much better.

 

[redbeard]

Slow service downstairs was due to mostly everyone buyng paddles. Those drinking the regular size were quick to get served. My fav was the Murrays & the Hills maibock, the WignPen Berliner, Docs Zephyr & the 4Pines Wee Heavy.

 

[BrenosBrews]

Another great Spectapular! 20 brand new craft brewed beers from a broad mix of Australian brewers. I don't think there was a bad beer amongst the lot. My highlights were the Wig & Pen Cherry Berliner Weiss, Feral Karma Citra & 4 Pines Wee Heavy. I can't think of another event in Australia with such a unique range of beers from Australian craft brewers.

I was there from about 1pm until 5pm and was never in line for more than 10 minutes, which can quite easily be the wait on a busy Friday or Saturday night at this bar or many others. There was a line to get in at the start and later on in the afternoon and I'm sure there would have been in the evening but I'd rather that than having the place so packed you can't move and are waiting more like 20 minutes for a beer.

In regards to the hipsters/too cool for skool comments does it really matter? I thought good taste transcended gender, race, sexual orientation etc. so wouldn't it also transcend fashion styles?

Sure, there will always be places that are frequented in the short term because it is trendy/popular/the in place but the winner on this occasion is craft beer is it not?

 

[petesbrew]

Very lucky to score an emergency leave pass for this, if only for a few hours. Great to catch up with some mates.
Did pretty well with a couple of paddles

* Cucumber Sandwich - Summer Ale (Mountain Goat, VIC, 4.2%)
* Anzac Bickies - Oats, coconut and vanilla ale (Burleigh Brewing, QLD, 5%)
* Cherry Bomb - Cherry and coconut porter (True South, VIC, 5%)
* Zephyr (Double White Ale, NSW, 5.6%)
* Chocolate Chilli Porter (Hunter, NSW, 5.8%)
* 2 Hills Maibock (Collaboration between Hargreaves Hill and Red Hill Breweries, VIC, 6.8%)
* Wee Heavy (4 Pines, 7.8%)
* Karma Citra - Black IPA showcasing the Citra hop (Feral, WA, 5.9%)
* Big Red Rocket - Imperial Red Ale (Bridge Road, VIC, 9%)
* Imperious - Imperial Belgian Blond Ale (Murrays, NSW, 11%)

All tastings were fantastic, but I reckon the Anzac Bickies had too much vanilla.

 

[Sammus]

Had a fair whack of everything. Highlights of the day were undoubtedly Wig&Pen's Berlinerweisse. Served through a randall full of cherries downstairs, and straight upstairs. Couldn't decide which was better. Safe to say that berlinerweisse is now on the cards for an upcoming brewski.

 

[.DJ.]

Highlights - S&W Red Relief
BerlinerWeisse
Karma Cirta
Lowlights - Quince Ale
Big Red Rocket

I was going to put the Murrays offering in the "lowlights" but it was my last beer so the taste buds werent at full capacity but something with it didnt sit right with me.. Can even say why...

Weirdest part of the day was lining up at 12.00pm to get into a pub!! Alcoholics ANYONE??

 

[barls]

i was in that line, i prefer the term drunk as i dont go to meetings

 

[fcmcg]

Reading the line up it seems that all the brewers are reading from the same 'hip things to brew' book. Same themes being repeated. Obviously an article on cheery and coconut in commercial brewers quarterly.

In general sounds like an interesting line up. Was it worth it ferg? I personally couldn't be arses waiting that long for some beers. I'd rather just buy similar ones from purvis et al and enjoy them in comfort if it was that much if a shit fight

Mate,
I guess in the end it was worth it.There was some interesting beers and as others have pointed out , some real stand outs and some not so.
I have to agree that the black IPA was a cracker too , and i had a large one of those as well .Also big ups to Doc , for his moreish Zephr!!
Despite not having to que for a beer at my place , the sheer list of different beers was enough to get me out for an arvo.
Lining up to get in a venue is a right royal pain. The mate i was with and i were saying Saturday that we wouldn't come again to a taphouse event , but by yesterday we had both chaned our tune. Interestingly though , the Canadian one wasn't nearly as busy at the same time of day.
The other thing that i have to agree with is the "Hip things to brew book" .I also think that we will be following American brewing for a while longer , yet.
I'm wondering why none of the brewers made a Kvass or a Gose ? Or even some of the Lacambre beers ?
I still stand by my comment of the "too kool for skool " crowd and i guess if these people are starting to get a liking and appreciation of different beers , then its all good for the craft brew scene.However , i did hear more than once , from some 20-somethings behind me in the bar que..."oh shit lets just get the 10% ones..."
But at the end of the day , it was a cracking day .
The only real lowlight...$6.50 for a pie & sauce ? Get real....the food there on these special taphouse events is , in my opinion , ALWAYS way overpriced