Where were you when you first tried The Kalash? Mine took place under the shining lights of GABS in Melbourne’s Royal Exhibition Building back in 2016 when Hop Nation first brewed it. Those were different days, Hop Nation’s founders Sam and Dunc had nothing but a trestle table serving as their stand, a jockey box and a few bottles of the bourbon-aged beer to crack open (those were much simpler times!). But while the brewery, their festival showing and the barrels used for the beer have all changed over the years, its release has remained a constant.
The Kalash 2022 follows a similar groove to recent years, spending four months in bourbon barrels and picking up a rich swell of caramel, burnt sugar and vanilla. They’re flavours that all meld with dark chocolate, roasted espresso and underlying herbal notes to make for a beer that continually surprises and impresses as you slowly make your way through the glass.
Whisky Edition meanwhile is the third time Hop Nation have partnered with their mates at Bakery Hill Distillery and sees them take a portion of imperial stout and place it in a barrel that's spent a decade aging single malt whisky. The result is a beer that's quite heavy on the peated whisky, with a salty minerality, leather and tar all joining richer linings of dark chocolate with stewed fruits.
If you’d like to take a walk down memory lane with The Kalash, the brewery’s created vertical tasting packs that include these two beers and each Kalash going back to 2019.
Will Ziebell
Published July 21, 2022 2022-07-21 00:00:00
