In a meeting of minds, Jayne Lewis from Two Birds and Hamish Coates from Rocky Ridge wanted to celebrate her pre-beer, West Australian winemaking background with a release timed for WA Beer Week. After settling on a sour beer, seasonal serendipity struck as the mature elderflower tree behind Rocky Ridge’s small bar, Darleen's, was in full bloom, with the resultant onsite hand-picking of the delicate flowers extending the brewery’s normal terroir 15 kilometres beyond the farm gates.
Beginning with Rocky Ridge's house culture primary ferment, Elder Sour was later embellished with champagne yeast to create a light spritz. The expression of Hallertau Blanc and Saaz hops’ white wine like characters, in concert with the elderflower, salt addition and firm acidity, had one launch venue manager draw parallels with Gewürztraminers or a dry riesling. We’ll take their word for that and in the meantime enjoy a very refreshing start to the warmer weather.
Guy Southern
Published November 22, 2018 2018-11-22 00:00:00
