Watts River 6 Celebration Ale

It’s been six years since Watts River opened their brewery in Healesville and they’ve celebrated that milestone with class, tradition and provenance. Their 6 Celebration Ale takes its inspiration from strong Belgian Trappist ales and is also a tribute to their region thanks to the inclusion of locally-grown black truffles from Yarra Valley Truffles.

As well as including mushroom’s decadent cousin, 6 makes use of malts grown on cofounder Ben Hamilton’s family farm (as do many other Watts River beers), Topaz hops, the Brussels strain of yeast from Melbourne’s Bluestone and candi syrup. Fittingly for an ale of celebration, there are a lot of rich flavours that spill from the glass, with sweet fruit cake notes of raisins and stewed plums joining chocolate fudge and caramel. Those truffles meanwhile seem to bring a soft touch of umami which provides a savoury balance to the beer’s sweet side.

Will Ziebell

Published November 17, 2022 2022-11-17 00:00:00