tj5553's Travels - Australian Beer Tasting #2
Hello All!
This day was mostly downtime, as after two days of sitting and walking around in the hot sun at the Australian Open, my wife wasn't up to doing much. That being said, it certainly didn't stop her from sending me all over creation to find a maternity swimsuit for her (we went to Cairns after Melbourne, so she needed one for snorkeling at the Great Barrier Reef).
Although I was pretty exhausted by the end of the day, I still enjoyed getting out and seeing a bit of the city. There were some very beautiful buildings and some neat sites that we just don't have here where we live.
Below you can see the Parliament House:
Here is a shot of China Town:
And when I finally managed to get her out of the room, we took a little walk around the blocks surrounding our hotel. This beautiful Cathedral was right outside:
Of course, after that walk she was tired again, so we decided to head back and head up to the lounge for some dinner and drinks.
The views from the lounge were great, as they let you see a large portion of the city. Below is one of the shots I took from the windows up there:
And in this one, you can actually see the grounds where the Australian Open is played (back left of photo):
We also got to see Lindsay Davenport in there, which, as someone who grew up watching her play tennis, was rather exciting to me! I felt it was too awkward to ask for a photo or autograph however, especially since she was with 2 of her kids. Just seeing her in person was pretty awesome nonetheless! (For those of you who are asking, "who the heck is he talking about?!", Lindsay Davenport was a former world number 1 women's tennis player.)
Anyway, back to the matter at hand, I decided to see what other beers they had, apart from the Hightail Ale I had already tried (and apart from another 1 or two I had tried but didn't care for to the point where I didn't feel it worth taking notes on them).
Fortunately, there was a new one in the fridge that day, Cricketers Arms - Keeper's Lager. I have stated before that I am not the biggest fan of lagers, but that is because they typically do not have much in the way of flavor and tend to follow the same pattern. Fortunately, this one was different.
As could be seen in the initial photo, this beer was very clear and bubbly, with a small, white head. The color was something of a pale amber/golden and the head dissipated quite quickly as can be seen below:
Here's a shot of the back of the bottle where it gives a bit of the background of the brew:
Keeper's Lager
| Keeper's Lager | Brewed by Cricketers Arms - Melbourne, Victoria, Australia |
|---|---|
| Style | Lager |
| Alcohol | 4.6% ABV |
| IBUs | 18 |
| Format | 330 mL Bottle |
| ---------- | ---------- |
| Appearance | Clear and bubbly with small, white head that dissipated quickly. Pale amber/golden color, very pretty for a lager. |
| Aroma | Grainy malt, bittering hops, slight floral/citrus notes. |
| Taste | Grainy malt forward, somewhat sweet. Light hop bitterness rounds it out. The strength of the flavor falls off fairly linearly, but still lingers nicely. Slight floral and fruity notes, particularly those of citrus fruit. These citrus flavors take a back seat to the grain and bittering hops, but they are distinctly there. |
| Mouthfeel | Light-bodied, medium carbonation, smooth finish, and a light, but distinct, aftertaste of malt. |
| Tasting Notes | Overall, nice beer! Definitely a lager, but a nice representation of the style, without getting crazy with it as many craft breweries have (don't get me wrong, I enjoy a more potent craft lager, but they seem to deviate a bit from the original style, which this one does not). Crisp and refreshing, but still maintains a good bit of flavor and a noticeable malty backbone. Would be a great beer to drink on a hot day or with a light meal, such as the seafood they recommend on the Cricketers Arms website. I think this would also go well with snacks, cheese and crackers, etc. However, I would not recommend drinking it with anything heavier than that, unless you don't mind the flavor of the beer being drowned out. Very smooth and easy to drink. The decently low carbonation, contrary to how it initially looks, makes it easy to drink 2-3 without feeling bloated. I enjoyed this beer and thought of it as a nice representation of a lager with flavor, and an example of what a mainstream lager should be. Unfortunately it would seem that many on ratebeer.com do not agree with me, but oh well, this is my review and I'll score this beer as I please! |
| Score | 7/10 (This is my subjective score) |
Glad to liked Melbourne - It is an amazing city.
Indeed it is! I wish I had a couple more days there to look around. I know my wife would have loved to visit some of the wineries if she wasn't pregnant.