Einstok Icelandic White Ale

Einstok Icelandic White Ale

Style: Wit or White Ale

Alcohol Content: 5.2%

From: Akureyri, Iceland

Purchased From: A wine shop in Brighton. Can quite remember the name

http://einstokbeer.com/

The Einstock brewery is located just 60 miles south of the Arctic Circle in the fishing port of Akureyri, Iceland. There, the water flows from rain and prehistoric glaciers down the Hlíðarfjall mountain and through ancient lava fields, delivering the purest water on earth and the perfect foundation for brewing deliciously refreshing craft ales.

From the land of the Vikings!

Colour: Once poured into the glass you are presented with a very pale yellow almost white liquid (as the name suggests). On the pour, you will get a luscious white head that is very bubbly. This will completely disappear after a couple of minutes. No foam is left in the glass at all which is quite strange for a beer of this style.

Aroma: Very faint grassy and gassy aromas are given off by this brew. In fact, the aromas given off by this beer are very similar to those given off by Duvel which i reviewed earlier in this blog. Smelling deeper you can pick up very faint notes of coriander and lemon peel. I must admit this is not the most inspiring beer i have ever smelt. It just feels as if its missing something for my taste.

Body: This beer is quite light which i was not expecting from this wit beer. There is a very low level of
carbonation which makes this beer very drinkable. There is not a hint of stickiness at all.

Taste: Rather surprisingly for a wit beer i can taste a mix of apples and pears (and before you ask that's not my attempt at cockney rhyming slang). There is also a mix of pine and grassy notes followed by a mildly acidic aftertaste on the palate. As these flavors are very delicate, this is not a beer that's going to punch you in the face. Its a easy drinking beer that would go very well with your roast dinner on a Sunday.

Similar to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/duvel.html
Different to: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/02/skinners-heligan-honey.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery

Moa Brewery Blanc

Moa Brewery Blanc

Style: Kristallweizen

Alcohol Content: 5%

From: Marlborough, New Zealand

Purchased From: A wine shop in the Brighton (the name escapes me)
http://www.moabeer.com/

When the Moa Brewery was built it was plonked between the vines in the world famous winemaking region of Marlborough, New Zealand, which isn’t surprising considering the founder of Moa, Josh Scott, is a winemaker and according to him, “It takes a lot of beer to make a good wine”. Conveniently, it’s quite a nice place to live and provides the perfect environment for brewing. The brewery opened in 2003 and this year celebrated its tenth anniversary.

The name “Moa” (New Zealand’s giant dinosaur bird) also derives from the region, as in the early days Josh hand delivered brews to archaeologists working a Moa bone dig near the brewery. Even half-cut they found some Moa bones, so archaeology can’t be that hard. In case your interested this is what a Moa actually looks like.
                                      

What a big boy hey? Lets see if there beer can match the bird. For this review we will be looking at the Moa Blanc which i came across in Brighton, tucked away at the back of a wine shop. Thanks to the beautiful Emma for helping pick this one out.

Beautifully simple label

Colour: A beautiful sunshine yellow with a majestic thick white head on the pour. It looks like a very good German Kristallweizen (the filtered alternative to unfiltered Hefeweizen Weiss beer). The head will die down to a low foam after a few sips which is a real shame. I always enjoy a nice lingering head on a Weiss beer.

Aroma: As with most Kristallweizen beers, the filtering has slightly dulled down the aromas of this beer. Taking a deep sniff I can smell faint hints of grass and oranges, lemons and limes. Hop aromas are very minimal from this beer.

Body: Rather light for a wheat beer. The mouth feel is very smooth and not sticky at all. The minimal hopping of this beer helps to create a very crisp finish which is very strange for a Weiss beer. All credit to Moa for trying something a bit different when creating a Weiss beer.

Taste: I took my beer out of the fridge for a 15 minutes before drinking it. On hindsight, I would of kept it out of the fridge for a lot longer before sampling this brew. To be honest, this is not the flavorsome Weiss beer I have ever had. In the mouth you can pick out hints of wheat and very faint hints of bananas. Really trying to pick out flavors I drank very slowly swilling the beer from taste bud to taste bud. Luckily, I could also pick out notes of lemon and limes which is complimented by hints of grass. There is a slight phenolic finish which helps to clean your mouth out after every sip.

Something Similar: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/duvel.html
Something Different: http://beefsbrewery.blogspot.co.uk/2013/01/flying-dog-doggie-style-pale-ale.html

For the latest news on reviews follow me on twitter @beefsbrewery