This dark bottle with a menacing black label fronted by a scary bull tastes just like a  classic European Lager/pilsener. Not sure what I mean? OK, let me put you in the mood. Close your eyes, then think of the European lagers that you are familiar with, you are at the pub and decide to skip the local draught and pick something with the exotic European name. Now try and imagine what it tastes like. Now you have a fair idea of what we are dealing with here. Except this one is brewed an hour northwest of Melbourne rather than in Europe

The appearance is a light, almost sunshine yellow. There is a nose of Grass and Earth to the brew also, although, the words manure and fertilizer also came up while the nose was being discussed, it certainly makes you think of being out in the countryside and all the delights that come with that.

There is a slightly rusty and metallic taste, when you first sample the beer, but the flavour grows on you after a few mouthfuls. After mouthful one, you don’t love it, but as you get to sip three, you start to enjoy it. To be honest, it’s hard to decide whether you like it or despise it. It is a mystery to us here at The Beersampler. It was a hate-love-hate-love thing with this one. But by appearance and taste this certainly a German or Czech beer.

This one is a rollercoaster ride of a beer, you hate it, then you love it, then you hate it again, then you love it again. In the end you’re not quite sure what to think. It’s the kind of beer that I can imagine would taste better on tap than out of the bottle, though, so on that basis, it would rate 3 barrels.

Holgate Brewhouse has a website here and they also have a list of venues and stores where you can purchase your own Pilsner and enjoy the ride.

Amber Ale. Not a variety regularly sampled and reviewed on this site (partly because one of the samplers doesn’t like it much), but it appears to be one that will have to come up more often as more and more breweries are trying their hand at this variety of a Pale Ale. This particular one even appears like a pale ale to a point. With a light and cloudy appearance through the glass and only the slightest hint of an Amber tint.

It is more of a winter beverage. The sort of thing you want to come home to on a cold winter’s evening, sit down on the couch, watch some footy (or whatever winter sport takes your fancy) and have one or two. This is not a beer we’d take down to the beach on a 40 degree day. As it doesn’t have quite the refreshing spark as some of the paler ales we have sampled but more of a comfortable warming feeling with some fruity citrus flavors and a long lasting bitterness in the mouth. There is a bit of a sweet note to this one.

If you’re looking for a session beer or a regular quaffer, we would go elsewhere, but if you’re looking for an interesting accompaniment to a meal or something to warm you up after a day on the ski slopes or whatever you sporty types get up to, this could well be the beer for you. Also, if you are looking for a brewed medieval beverage and can’t find any Mead, then this Amber Ale might be right up your alley.

This is a 3 and a half barrel job.

The Red Emperor Amber is made by the guys at Fishrock Brewery and the beer can be bought at these places.

Bohemia is the old name for a part of the world which now covers about two-thirds of what we now know as the Czech Republic. It is the home of Bohemia crystal, it is the name of a Punjabi rapper, and it is the original home of a town called Plzeň. Plzeň is the fourth most populous city in the Czech republic and seemingly unrelated to beer, but it is the home of Pilsener, and according to the Czechs any beer brewed outside this area is not a true Pilsener, much like the whole Champagne and Sparkling wine thing.

Even if this is not a true Pilsener, it is a pretty excellent Australian attempt at it. The brew has a beautiful lighter yellow colour, making it look like a plain and not particularly interesting lager, but it has some complexity of flavour. There is a bite or a kick to this one, with a floral nose that entices you in.

The beer is very refreshing on the palate. It has a hoppy and floral aroma and taste, but it is all well balanced. Nothing overpowers anything and the touch of bitterness certainly adds to the thirst-quenchingness of the beverage.

This is a real hot, sunny day libation. A real session beer and on the day we sampled it, it was the one that went down quicker than the others.

We were very happy with this one and rated it 4 barrels.

Matilda Bay Brewing has a website here and a tool where you can enter an Australian postcode and the site will find your nearest stockists here.

When looking at a beer there are sometimes things that stand out. For example in this case, the first thing you notice is the label. It isn’t the sort of label we would normally be attracted too here at The Beersampler. The labels that attract the eye are usually understated with a touch of elegance or even a childlike naivete. This label is a bit different. It is dark and glossy with a picture of a bushranger and a Southern Cross and writing that appears to have been fashioned from some broken rocks. It is a bold label and the beer inside befits the label.

There is a beautiful light amber color to this brew, and it is possible the most active glass of beer we have ever seen. The bubbles in the glass all seem to have some form of ADD and as can be seen from The (other) Beersampler’s pour, if the glass is not correctly tilted, it produces a rich foamy head. It has a light floral aroma, there are notes of citrus and hop on the nose and the palate too. The elements of sweet and bitter, Citrus, Hops and Floral qualities are all well balanced.

This was a favorite of The Beersampler and only misses out on the last half barrel due to the labelling. Overall 4 and a half barrels.

Here is the brewers website and here are some places you can wrap your smackers around a glass or two of the stuff.

This is just a post to let everyone know that The Beersamplers have not forgotten about the blog, they are just working on a few things including the design of the site, the address, the host and lots more sampling being done…

We hope all have enjoyed their festive season and we’ll be back with some new reviews and a new look blog in the coming days and weeks…

A glass of cold refreshing beer

Produced by the Feral Brewing Company in the Swan Valley, the label tells us that this is a white beer in the Belgian style.
 
There is, as with many Belgian White Beers, a touch of citrus on the nose. And it has the appearance of a true European White Beer. However, it doesn’t have the same taste as a European White. 

In the brewing of the beer a touch of orange peel is added and this stands out in the taste of the brew. But overall the Feral White is a lot crisper and cleaner than most whites. In fact to the Beersampler it sits somewhere between a Mild Lager and a European White in flavour. It is kind of reminiscent of the homemade lemonade your Mum used to make, but she never made it quite like this.
 
Overall, it was a pleasurable beer experience and one we will be sampling again on a hot summer’s afternoon.
 
3 and a half barrels.

Every now and then, a beer comes along that makes you glad you are a beer drinker and glad you are drinking that beer at that particular time and overall glad you are alive. This beer, produced by Murray’s Brewery at Port Stephen’s Winery, is one of those beers.
 
Right from the get-go, the attractive and playful label, the light amber colour, and even the bubbles in the glass playfully darting to the surface all point to a beer that is a delight to drink.
 
Alive is the first word that comes to mind when looking at and tasting this beer, it has a complex flavour, slightly citrusy, but not overly-so, a well-reounded and delicious taste experience.