What did I unwrap today?
Young Henry’s Hop Ale
English IPA, 6.0%
One of the wave of new up and coming breweries in the inner west of Sydney, these guys are on fire! Another is Batch Brewing Company, have I mentioned them before?
I’d really like to visit these guys one day, I hear that they are kind of the new rock stars on the craft brew scene! They have a great mantra, it’s about collaboration…pure and simple. This is how they describe themselves:
“We’re open to working with anyone that shares our pride, care and passion for what they produce, whether that’s music, art, food or anything else. We’ve been fortunate to host some truly amazing and talented people at our brewery to share ideas and brew beers.”
I like this idea, and it has led to some fun and interesting beers along the way!
My thoughts on the beer
This is the second time I have tried this beer, and to be honest, the first time I was a little confused as to what it was trying to be…quite dark, yet very hoppy, and just simply called a “Hop Ale”. Second time around I did a little bit of reading and had a far more educated tasting session! Yes, it is just called a Hop Ale, and the guys call it like it is:
“Some people might call this beer an India Pale Ale, but we’re not sure what defines an IPA these days; is it English? American? West coast? East coast? No coast? So we prefer not to worry about ticking boxes and just call this beer what it is: Hop Ale.”
Fair enough! So it pours a dark copper/auburn/deep red perhaps…hold it up to the light and you will see how different it looks! On the nose you have a malty/caramel base with some slight fruity overtones coming through. Down the hatch and its a real mix…slightly piney, fruity, malt driven and then it hits you with a nicely balanced bitter finish.
What food would go with this beer
So I will have to take the word from the wise on this one and turn it over to another beer blog mate over at My Shout Beer Reviews. Roy recommends a cheddar with this type of beer, noting that it’s: “a good match with an aged cheddar or smoked cheese. The higher hop content will assist in cutting through the bigger flavours of the cheese allowing more subtle flavours to appear.” Thank for your expertise, Roy!
See you tomorrow for the next beer in my Advent Calendar. To see my other Advent Calendar beer reviews, click here. Feel free to shoot me an email or leave a comment, or you can share my posts and photos on facebook, twitter, or instagram!
Oh, and if you didn’t catch my Video Beer Review Debut, check it out here!
Cheers to Xmas Beers!