Monthly Archive for January, 2008

The final catagory in the 2007 ‘best of’ nominations is for alcohol of the year.

While it could be argued that any alcohol that gets you drunk is a winner, the best ones are those that get you there comfortably. To decide the winner of this prestigious award the whole package of taste, innovation, alcohol content and social stigma (i.e, is it wanky?) and price must be considered.

In regards to price, the overall cost of beer increased by 2% in 2007 due to increased ingredient import costs and pressure from boutique beers sales. To counteract this fluctuation Fosters pulled a dodgy by decreasing the alcohol percentage of VB by .1% to save money on taxes (Thanks to Count Knuckles for this info).
As if this wasn’t enough Fosters further kicked drunk men while they were down by reducing the volume of Cacade premium from 375ml to 330ml. This therefore results in 12% less beer for the same price. Fosters marketing manager Ben Summons (now you know who to send hate mail to) tried to defend this move by declaring that “It’s about helping a boutique brewery punch above its weight and take on international brands,”. They also stated that market research suggested that drinkers found the old bottle “clunky” and hard to hold and this move is “part of the elegantising of beer.
First of all I would have to reply that Cacade is not a boutique brewery and second of all I’ve never seen anyone say “geez I’m having a hard time holding my beer”. Here’s my solution; if it gets too heavy then hurry up and drink it. I hope these scummy cost cutting measures don’t get to out of hand otherwise before you know it they will be getting rid of the old trusty VB longnecks.

Ranting aside I still took the opportunity to visit the Cascade brewery in Tasmania as part of a bucks weekend. Even though I was really hung over I still enjoyed the sight of all those bottles of beer literally rolling off the production line. I also had the chance to try their new nondescript Wizards Smith Ale and their Cascade Blonde beer which is one of the best Blonde style beers i’ve tried.

While in Hobart I was also lucky enough to attend the 2007 Beer Fest. During this event I made the most of the generous sample sizes and managed to try a lot of boutique beers as well as some old favorites. At the Coopers tent I tried their new Best Extra Stout which was surprising easy to drink and tasted great. I was also introduced to an interesting selection of beer from Barons Brewering Co. including the usual standards of Larger, Bitter & Pale and the unusual taste of their Black wattle and lemon myrtle native range which was interesting to say the least.

The selection at the James Squire booth also impressed and while they’re a bit expensive to regularly consume I highly recommend them if your looking for a full bodied flavorsome beer.

I also took advantage of the Belgium beer tent which offered my old friend Chimay Bleue. I then tried a new Triple drink which nearly tasted as great as Chimay. Unfortunately I don’t remember the name of this beer but hopefully I’ll stumble upon it again someday.

To continue the Belgium theme I also attended a beer tasting day in Melbourne at the Belgium Beer Cafe in the Eureka Tower. It was an excellent opportunity to try plenty of great beers, including Stella Artois, Hoegaarden, Leffe Blonde or Brune, Lucifer, Brugge Blond, La Guillotine and Duval (which I managed to win a prize pack of).

While beer was the most dominant alcohol this year (we are in Australia after all) there were also a few spirits/mixers worth mentioned. I discovered a particularly good alcohol supplier at Chadstone called boutique Le Vin, which offered a number of interesting spirits and liquors. The best of these included a caramel whisky and a musk flavoured liquor (40%). This latter creation combines perfectly with lemonade (tastes like musk sticks) or if your really brave you could try it with vodka for a whooping 70% alcoholic kick. However this liquor looses points due to its pink color and hence fag factor. This shop also stocked a beer called Delirium Tremens which is Latin for “trembling delirium,” indicating a violent sickness induced by withdrawal after alcohol abuse. While on the pricey side at $7 a bottle it’s the best tasting golden ale I’ve ever tasted and it was appropriately voted as the worlds number one beer in 1998.

In Hobart I was introduced to a couple of mixer drinks at a bar in Salamanca place. We managed to beat the bars record for consuming the most jager bombs at once. It was quite a sight to see one Jager shot spill into the redbull and push over the next shot to start the chain reaction for another 30 drinks. I also tried a cocktail called a Shitbloke (aka trendy), which is made of ginger ale, vanilla vodka and lime. In summer time this drink goes down a treat and is just as good as a Gin & tonic at beating the heat.

Well that’s about all the interesting drinks that I can remember drinking in 2007 (who said alcohol ruins your memory?), but I’ll briefly mention another few that the Hundredpennies boys have been drinking during last years podcasts. Matilda Bay produce a couple of awesome beers in the form of Beez Neez (honey) and Redback (wheat). At the Matilda Bay Garage Brewery in Dandenong a rather unique pale ale called Pepperjacks was also created ,which contains an interesting blend of shiraz grape juice, hops and malt grain.

The boys also tried some Boags Classic Blond (not to be confused with light beer) and Thailand’s best selling beer Chang. I should also list the beer Miller Chill but only so you can avoid this terribly salty bile tasting beverage (sounds refreshing doesn’t it?).

Well that’s about it I hope you enjoyed my rundown of nominees as much as i’ve enjoyed drinking them. Again feel free to vote on any of the nominees listed by leaving a comment. Also remember to stay tuned for the Best Of 2007 awards podcast which we will be recording this Wednesday.

Cheers and all the best in 2008.

Beer Nominees

1. Beez Neez: Matilda Bay Brewing Company
2. Redback: Matilda Bay Brewing Company
3. Pepperjack: Saltram Winery
4. Classic Blonde: J.Boag & Son
5. Cascade Blonde: Cascade Brewery
6. Best Extra Stout: Coopers Brewery
7. Chang: Beer Thai Company
8. James Squire Golden Ale: Malt Shovel Brewery
9. James Squire Amber Ale: Malt Shovel Brewery
10. Baron’s Lager: Baron Brewery
11. Baron’s Lemon Myrtle: Baron Brewery
12. Baron’s Black Wattle: Baron Brewery
13. Duval: Brouwerij Duval Moorgat Brewery
14. Delirium Tremens: Huyghe Brewery
15. Chimay Bleue Grand Reserve: Bieres de Chimay Brewery

Spirit / Liquor Nominees

1. Musky Liquor: Boutique Le Vin
2. Caramel Whisky: Boutique Le Vin
3. Shitbloke: Vanilla vodka, ginger ale & lime
4. Jager bombs: Red Bull & Jagermeister