Author Archives: Rob Nesbit

About Rob Nesbit

Beer drinker and all round annoyance. Likes drinking, football, cricket and having a good time.

Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science

Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science!

Dr. Brauwolf 

Brewed by Dr. Brauwolf 
Zurich, Switzerland

https://drbrauwolf.ch/

Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science

Dr. Brauwolf is a Swiss version of Breaking Bad, but instead of Walter White step forward Stefan Wolf, the owner and visionary behind Dr. Brauwolf. In the place of crystal meth we have beer. Dr. Brauwolf is where beer meets science! 

The brewery is still very new in the market, just opening in August 2017. They make 5 different beers and a monthly beer that changes every 30 days or so. All beers produced are the hard work of Lidka and Stefan, two young scientists, who bring a systematic and methodical view to the world of craft beer, with just a dash of fun as well to spice things up (no doubt!). 

Their tasting room (“The super lab!”) is open to all, and the couple are more than happy to invite people to their public tastings and brewery tours where you can have the chance to meet the brewers and to visit the company. But remember all you have to do is respect their chemistry! (cough!) 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Rye IPA: 6.1% ABV

Dr. Brauwolf ‘s “craft beer of the month” so this is a beer I am looking forward to so. 
Also on the label we are told that this is “where beer meets science”

It looks absolutely fantastic, a great white fluffy head, with a lovely colour of amber orange.

There is some slight lacing, and the head maintains well. There is some small amount of sediment buzzing around inside, showing that this beer is alive! 

It is truly an excellent looking beer, one of the best lookers I have had in a long time.

For the aroma, the smell is very good, a typical IPA smell, very fruity, and very hoppy. Not bad. 

On the taste it was very fruity, bit like a Club Orange with a load of hops in it, which sounds strange but that’s what it felt like to me. And everyone loves Club Orange! 

Was hoppy, got the sweet rye and barely, I got a bit of caramel (possibly from the Rye). Smooth enough to enjoy and very fruity, really like this beer a lot.

Hoppy, but light enough to enjoy for me who is someone who sometimes struggles with IPA’s, it was a beer that I drank over the hour, a beer to sit down, slowly sip and enjoy the football, perfect! 

Would love to drink some more of this beer, will definitely have to check it out again. Recommended. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Boho, a Czech style Pilsner: 5.2% ABV

Dr Brauwolf, Boho, a fresh local craft beer from Zurich, concentrating on the Bohemian Pilsner beer style. 

On pour, got a nice whitish head, light clear golden coloured beer, the nice Pilsner look that we all love so well. 
Head is fine, smallish but maintains well. 

Oh boy, the smell is strong and typical of a Pilsner. Malty and spicy, perfume aroma as well. Nice.

Went on a bit of a journey with this beer. To be honest wasn’t liking it initially, thought it was far too hoppy and bitter on the taste, a bit too sour and bitter at the front.

But after a while when I started to drink more of it, it settled down, or rather I did, and I started to enjoy the tastes. By the end I wished I had another few to skull down!

Definitely a very tasty brew, complex, the Saaz hops doing the business by the end. Got the spices and malts as well. 
A hoppy, strong pilsner. 

Ok, enjoyable enough. Yeah not bad.

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s H2OP, a non alcoholic Hop water: 0.0% ABV

This one stands out from the collection as it comes in a green bottle and its actually water! But it isn’t just any old water, it is water with hops! 

On the pour was a bit surprised as it was very fizzy, bubbling all over the place, was not exactly expecting that.

Looks ok, a well carbonated mineral water, nice and sparkling. 

Has a smell of hops, easy to find, and generally a pleasant smell. 

Get a hoppy taste. Has a slight citrus taste as well. 

Pure clean Swiss water with a hint of hops. Nice and refreshing. Better than tap water for sure!

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Red Ale: 4.8% ABV

A lot of carbonation, very lively on the pour. This resulted in a very frothy head. The colour was dark red. All looking great. Head settled well after a while.

A nice aroma of toasted malts was very prominent. 

Taste was light, a little sweet, with a nice caramel flavour. 

Soft on the tongue, very smooth and very easy to drink. Fruits at the back ground, the malts lingering, and the beer is perfectly balanced. 

Overall its a nice red ale, nothing that is going to amaze but good enough to enjoy while the TV is on the box.  Not bad. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Chocolate Stout: 7.4% ABV

A previous “craft beer of the month” choice from the Brauwolf boys. 

On pour, I get a lot of carbonation, a lot! When it all eventually settled it results in a very big frothy tanned head. The colour is pitch black. All in all its a nice looking beer, very nice appearance.  

Smell is very chocolaty, very nice on the nose. Get the chocolate malts, the cocoa and the barely. A nice aroma. 

On the taste I found it a little too sweet for me to be fully enjoyable. The chocolate was very strong in the taste and the hops were also quite difficult.

The malts, barely, and other flavours and tastes don’t really have a chance to shine as the coconut chocolate takes over from start to finish. 

If you like your chocolate heavy on then this is the beer for you, but I am not a chocolaty person so……..

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Witbier, a Belgian style wit beer: 4.6% ABV

A fresh local craft beer coming all the way from the wonderful city of Zurich.

Remember a Witbier (white beer in Flemish) is wheaty, fruity, and spicy, and usually very smooth. 

Decent enough white frothy head on the pour, a nice pale golden colour, looks ok, a typical Witbeer look. Head maintains very well. Not a bad looker. 

Nice sweet smell, very nice. Can smell the yeast and all that wheat, pleasant on the nose. 

Very fruity on taste, as to be expected got the orange peels straight away, very nice to taste, refreshing actually.

Also got the coriander easy enough to taste and also quite nice in the mouth. 

Yeah I liked this beer, was very easy to drink, very smooth, crisp tastes from the wheat, nice and fresh and very relaxing to drink. Nice one to experience on a beautiful hot summer’s day. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s APA, an American Pale Ale: 5.3% ABV

On pour I get a nice white frothy head and a dark golden orange colour. Looks good, very appealing. Some lacing.

The aroma is malty and very hoppy. Bit strong on the nose, very pronounced with the hops. 

Taste is hoppy, especially at the start, but its all slight and not over bearing.

It is light bitterness and light maltiness, its a light drinking beer, easy to drink and smooth.

Didn’t get many flavours or any fruit tastes, and overall it is the aroma that stands out in this brew. Too light in the taste for me. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Vanilla Cream Ale: 5.0% ABV

Another “craft beer of the month” special here. 

The appearance is not the best, truth be told it is not much to look at, and the head dies a death. Hazy amber colour. Some sediment Knocking around. 

Wow, what a fantastic smell.  Wow, the vanilla is very prominent on the nose. Also smells like a nice perfume as well. Lovely smell, nice.  

On the taste, got the vanilla ice cream, very overpowering but all good. It is so nice to taste I ran to the wife to get her to try, and she doesn’t even like beer! Just showing how exciting and fun this beer is. It really is a light vanilla ice cream, very soft on the tongue mixed with some malts and wheat to give you a fantastic beer. Don’t know if I would drink a lot of these beers but the brewer gets the balance just perfect.

What it lacks in looks, the taste and aroma certainly makes up for that. Lovely, very exciting beer. Recommended. A FUN beer! 

 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Dr. Brauwolf’s Black IPA: 6.0% ABV

A black IPA? Because it is black is it a porter or a stout, but how does that work in an IPA? So lets see…..a black IPA is a relatively new style originating from the US, basically it is a hop forward beer that happens to be as black as any stout! Can sometimes be classed as a Cascadian Dark Ale, a nod to where it originally came from, the Cascadia region of north-west USA and parts of British Columbia in Canada, and an Indian Black Ale, but overall it is termed a Black IPA.

Looks nice enough on the appearance, got a lovely creamy white head and a dark black coloured beer. Some good lacing. Not a bad looking beer.

Get a stouty smell, coffee aromas and toasted malts. Smells like a regular IPA too. 

Nice mouthfuls from the beginning. There is a slight “Guinness taste” there alright. But its not quite a full stout, and that’s why it is an IPA, even if it is full of the dark roasted malts and coffee flavours that you can expect from a regular stout but there is something else there.

It is not that bad, smooth and enjoyable enough all the same. 

The hops have a bit of a kick, a bit bitter and sweet, but its slight and manageable, a nod to the fact it is an IPA after all.

Overall it aint a bad beer, certainly worth a tryout and it just about strong enough and tasty enough to be enjoyable. 

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bierenvanbegeerte.be

Kamil

Kamil

Brewed by BierenVanBegeerte
Berchem, Belgium

www.bierenvanbegeerte.be

Kamil

Bieren Van Begeerte is a Belgian brewery that focuses on specialty and custom made beers.

Founded in 2001. Beginning small, in the centre of the beautiful medieval city of Antwerp, and with a lot of trial and error, but fire in their belly, they started to produce some very tasty beers that seemed popular with the general public. 

Kamil was their first baby! Proving to be a success leading them to expansion and a movement to a bigger brewery to Berchem on the outskirts of Antwerp. Onward and upwards! 

Since 2001, Bieren Van Begeerte have always relied on their own recipes with hop varieties that is grown with great care on their Lints hop field. As small-scale micro brewers, they value local quality produce with the best sourced ingredients resulting in beers that stand apart from the rest. Modern creations in a classic type beer market. 

Review: 33cl. Bottle of Kamil, a Belgian ale: 6.5% ABV

Lovely clear yellow coloured beer, with a nice smallish white head, looks ok. Some carbonation and good lacing. Head maintains. 

Smell is nice with sweet malts, and a bit citrusy, a strong enough smell and piercing on the nose
The smell is pleasant.

Initial taste is hoppy, a very hoppy taste, typical of a Belgian ale, hitting you at the start. Sweet and bitter.

Nice n tasty, lots of flavours and strong tastes. 
Hops are not too overbearing though, nice and light enough to appreciate. 
Full of tastes, getting the barley, the wheat, the fruits, and, of course, the hops. 

When you look at it you think it will be nice and calm, it looks lovely and unassuming but boy do the looks deceive, quite hoppy when you get into it. The calm before the storm so to speak!

A typical strongish Belgian ale, nice and tasty.  A good beer to sip and enjoy. 

Review: 75cl. Bottle of Kamil Greenstone, Strong Belgian Ale : 8% ABV

In a nice long brownish bottle, the Greenstone is a collaboration brew done with De Proefbrouwerij. 

A bottle fermented beer that uses organically grown barley malt. 

Had a lot of carbonation on the pour, took a little while to settle. But amongst all the froth emerged a lovely white headed beer with a nice dark hazy orange colour. It was very appetizing on the eye. 

Naturally it had good lacing, and the head maintained throughout (even if my sanity at drinking so much beer and watching the football didn’t!).

Top marks for appearance, it looked magnificent.

On the smell I got a very fruity aroma, of oranges and apples.

For the taste, I got a very strong hoppy beer, quelle surprise its a Belgian! The hops are strong and it is bitter, but they are manageable enough to enjoy, and actually add to the experience of this beer. 

Strong, nice to drink over time, and with the 75cl bottle you have that time needed to fully appreciate this beer.

A strong beer, with the spicy flavours, the hops, grains, the citrus, and the organic barley, all swirling around in your mouth, balanced and making this beer a particular favourite. Its playing a rock n roll tune with my taste buds. 

Full of tasty hops and very bitter. Great big mouthfuls to enjoy, and my head was buzzing a little after it, but my mood was pleasant and I was just happy to have enjoyed a good long beer. 

Review: 75cl. Bottle of Moktamee, Belgian Ale: 6.5% ABV

Moktamee is a specialty beer coming in a big 75cl bottle. 

The appearance is one of a very dark amber colour with some reddish hue, and a nice white frothy head that does stick around.

Some good lacing on the glass too.

Looks great, in fact looks better than that, looks majestic. A very good looking beer.

Has a hoppy enough smell on the nose. 

Oh my, the taste is very hoppy, very bitter, the hops making a very strong impression on the tongue. 

Nice big mouthfuls swilling around, lovely stuff, the barley, the wheat and toasted malts doing the business. 

Bit strong too, a good strong Belgian beer. 

Perhaps not overrun with a lot of unique flavours, but I thoroughly enjoyed it while I watched the football. Very hoppy but very manageable though, and it had me buzzing by the end of it. Loved it. 

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Bura Brew

Bura Brew

Bura Brew Optimist Golding Ale

Brewed by BURA BREW D.O.O
Style: Golden Ale/Blond Ale 
Ul. Mate Vlašića 26/19, 52440, Poreč, Croatia

https://www.burabrew.hr/

Bura Brew

Founded in 2015 by a trio of friends, Alessandro Zecchinato, Veronika Becker and Claudio Rossi, Bura Brew is an independent craft brewery hailing from the small Istrian town of Poreč, a popular summer resort on the coast of the Istrian Peninsula in western Croatia.

It was when Italian born Alessandro Zecchinato lived and worked in Dublin, Ireland that he got a love of the craft beer movement and seeing the potential of the market decided to try and bring some craft beer innovation to Croatia. But why Croatia? Well, he also met Veronika Becker in Ireland, fell in love and married her! Veronika was born in the former Yugoslavia, can speak Croatian, and so had experience of the region. With Claudio, a close friend, they all studied the industry inside and out and received a lot of useful information from Irish and Italian breweries, both big and small, and so in March 2015 they founded Bura Brew d.o.o. 

The location of Poreč was chosen, a beautiful town that attracts a lot of tourists and business, and so great potential for a new beer on the scene.  The brewery relies on manual labour and hand made products and has an open relationship with the locality, offering free tours and free tasting sessions. 

They produce three types of beers: An Optimist Golding Ale, A Redsand Amber Ale, and a Tornado IPA. The three beers are unfiltered and unpasteurized nor processed in any way using only the best of natural ingredients. To preserve a natural carbonation, the beers are bottle fermented.

Although its still a very new brewery the beer is popular all across Croatia and must be so in parts of Europe as I got my bottles here in Basel, Switzerland! Not bad for a young beer. 

Review: 33l Bottle of Bura Brew Golding Ale: 5.0% ABV

A golden ale that is unfiltered and bottle-conditioned. With a nice looking logo on the bottle, looks like an Inca design not sure of its relevance to Croatia. 

On pour I get a beautiful golden colour with a decent sized creamy white head. it looks great, a good looking beer, beautiful.

Head maintains and all is well with the appearance.

For the aroma I get a lot of fruits on the nose, very nice, some malts as well. A really nice smell. 

On the taste, it hits you from the start, the hops. Manageable hops, a light bitterness, not too strong making the beer not bad to sip on and slowly enjoy.

Not a whole lot of hops in the back end of the beer, more in the front.

Had good tasty mouthfuls that were very enjoyable

A light tasting golden ale, easy to drink and about as much as can be expected from this kind of beer. Nice and smooth, and a very clean ale..

Did the job, went down well and I only wish I had more to finish off. That really is the best compliment a beer can have, too few to drink!!!

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Gallas Cerveja, an artisan from Lisboa

Gallas Cerveja, an artisan from Lisboa

Gallas Cerveja

Brewed by Gallas Microbrewery
Rua do garrido 54A, Lisbon, Portugal 

http://gallas.beer/

Gallas Cerveja, an artisan from Lisboa A new and exciting artisan brewery in the historical heart of Lisbon, Portugal producing beers that are both innovative and different to the mainstream. Try the Gallas Beer!

Gallas Cerveja, an artisan from LisboaInaugurated in 2018 by brewer Gustavo Gallas, the beer that bears his name is the result of his love for brewing high quality beer for many years. Here beer is made according to the old traditions, with dedication, passion and totally handcrafted processes all with the best locally sourced ingredients from the beautiful and sun land that is Portugal. 

The Gallas brewery make a Belgian Wheat Ale and an IPA, and sell not just within Portugal but also to selected distributors across Europe and further afield. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Gallas, Wit Cinco De Abril: ABV: 5% vol

Coming in a brown bottle that has a very interesting cartoon picture of two army guys hanging out of a tank with roses in its gun. Also there is a happy go lucky woman with flowers in her hair. While at the background there are big juicy looking oranges to signify that this is a fruity number. Perhaps after you down this beer, a feeling of immense joy and peace with the world comes upon you. That’s a tall ask as I can be a grumpy bastard at times, but let’s see……..

Gallas Cerveja, an artisan from LisboaChrist on a bike, this beer is just full of carbonation, a lot of it! This all results in a huge frothy white head that takes a little  while to settle. After all that we get a pale yellow looking beer that looks ok. Later the colour goes a bit hazy and cloudy. 

On the nose I get the fruits. The orange is quite striking on the nose. Also get the malts and coriander, all making a pretty nice smell. 

The initial taste was a bit of a surprise, it was quite strong and not what I was expecting. Very fruity, and a bit sour. I guess that was the instant hit from the oranges. Definitely a knock out blast to the taste buds early on. But interesting all the same and very tasty. 

Has a lot of interesting flavours, and is a beer to enjoy slowly and sip.

Got the hops and the coriander taste and also found the yeast which gave it a bit of a kick. 

So overall a nice enough beer, full of nice flavours, I really love the orange taste in the beer, and it had a slight kick to it with the alcohol which I felt after, which I always like. 

Review: 33cl Bottle of Cerveja Capar India Pale Ale: ABV: 5.6% vol

Gallas Cerveja, an artisan from LisboaOnce again a nice logo and bottle, certainly catches the eye for sure, as this time we are treated to a bikini clad lady on a beach, images of relaxing on a beach with a nice cold cool beer at hand.

For the appearance I get a cloudy looking orange beer, with a minimal white head. Beer becomes cloudier and darker over time. 

Gallas Cerveja, an artisan from LisboaThe aroma was intense, a really lovely smell, very fruity and really strong on the nose. Got citrus hops. It had the “wow factor”, was really nice and exotic. It smelled like a grapefruit.
The aroma makes this drink, is very inviting and one can’t wait to start drinking. 

Taste is very bitter and hoppy, a usual IPA style beer, getting all the hops and fruits. 
Overall its not a bad beer and certainly does the business watching the football on a hot Saturday afternoon. 

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Icelandic Arctic Pale Ale

Einstök, beer from Iceland.

Icelandic Arctic Pale Ale

Brewed by Einstök Ölgerð (Einstök Beer Company)
Style: Arctic Pale Ale
Akureyri, Iceland

http://einstokbeer.com/

Icelandic Arctic Pale AleIt wasn’t that long ago that beer, all beer, was banned in the tiny North Atlantic island. Due to religious reasons, alcohol was not allowed, for fear of its corrupting influence. This was changed in 1933 in a nationwide referendum where 57.7% of the voters approved of lifting the ban. But before we congratulate common sense, beer was only to be allowed if it had an alcohol content not more than 2.25%.  Of course this just led to a thriving black market in stronger strength beers smuggled into the country and also beers sold by home brewers that were laced with strong spirits. Finally in May 1988, the government passed legislation legalizing beer above 2.25% ABV. The lifting of restrictions on beer is celebrated as Beer Day on March the 1’st, a day that all beer lovers on the island hold dear. Since then beer, wine and spirits are sold widely and consumed as in any other country. 

Located just 60 miles south of the Arctic circle in the fishing port of Akureyri is the brewery Einstök Ölgerð (Einstök Beer Company). Tapping into pure fresh water that comes directly from prehistoric glaciers flowing down from the majestic Hlíðarfjall Mountain and ancient lava fields, Einstök are able to produce top quality craft brews.

At present, Einstök brews Icelandic White Ale, Icelandic Arctic Pale Ale, Icelandic Toasted Porter, and two seasonal brews: Icelandic Arctic Berry Ale and Icelandic Doppelbock, selling all over Iceland and further afield to the USA, Scandinavia, most countries in Western Europe, and some in the east, such as Poland and the Baltic States, making it the largest exporter of alcoholic beverages from Iceland. Not bad for a brewery that has only been on the go since 2011. 

Review: 330 ml Bottle of Einstok Icelandic Arctic Pale ale: ABV: 5.6%

Rather cool pic of a stern looking Viking on the bottle.

On pour I get a deep dark orange coloured beer with a decent sized white frothy head. Looks good, very appetizing. Head maintains well and lasts. Not a bad looking beer..

Smell is not bad, nice n fruity, malty, and a bit sour but with nice fruity notes. Citrus is fine on the nose. 

On taste, fuck me, found the initial taste very hard hitting and very hoppy. It this really a regular pale ale? Tastes more like an IPA, fuck me. I think they called it an Arctic Pale Ale to differentiate between the two. Its their own creation, a Viking version of a pale ale!
Too hoppy for me, a bit bitter, very difficult to enjoy, at least initially. 

But it managed to settle down after a while, or perhaps I did, and I gradually started to enjoy it after a few more sips. It is really a slow burner that takes its time on your taste buds.

It certainly is a tasty beer, with a lot of interesting flavours. Got malts, the cascade hops which are very present, caramels and grains.

By the end of it I liked the beer, it certainly grew on me over the course of the session. I also got to see why they called it an Arctic Ale rather than an IPA, as it does lighten up near the end, thaws out! 

An interesting beer that I would like to try again for sure.  Liked it, it grew on me!

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