Jade Flavell and the Wheaty brewers are always keen to experiment in search of something new and better, and that's the case with Dirtweed, a cold IPA to which they've added coriander seeds inspired by research from the States that this can help hops pop. They used smaller Australian-grown seeds that offer citrus and viewed as appropriate for this style.
Despite the name, this is an incredibly clean beer, in which the hops truly do shine. Pouring bright yellow, Dirt Weed takes on melon, a little resin, some white wine grape and lime aromas. If you hadn’t been told there was coriander in this beer, you'd never know. Flavour wise, the resin pops a little more, with the other characters more muted, while the initial sweetness dries out nicely, with a noticeable but balanced bitterness.
Given their ubiquity, and the number of new beers tapped at The Wheaty, it might come as a surprise to learn Hold 'Em is their first hazy pale, a 4.7 percent ABV beer featuring a variety of mainly NZ hops. The brief – easy-drinking, full of good hops, drier than most – has been met. The NZ hops sing with typical white wine grape, gooseberry, and a little rockmelon. There's a savoury bite that rides alongside those fruits, while the bitterness is non-existent in a seriously quaffable hazy pale.
The Wheaty crew loves a collaboration with friends and their list of alumni is impressive. This time around, New Zealand maltsters Gladfield flew in to brew a big malty beast: an 8 percent ABV rye stout fermented in the brewery's oak foeder featuring Gladfield's ale, rye, Vienna, Shepherd’s Delight, Eclipse, wheat, light chocolate and dark crystal malts.
And what a big stout Foeder Rye Stout is: thick, sticky and rich, it lingers in your mouth like molasses while serving up a tonne of roast, dark chocolate, a little coffee, a hint of rye spice, some woody oak and smooth vanilla – the last of these particularly pronounced on the nose. Add in some dried fruit sweetness and you've got a malty, oaky, stouty beast on your hands.
Matt King
Published June 11, 2024 2024-06-11 00:00:00
