Port Klang, Selangor, Malaysia, RM5.60
Well I'm in Malaysia so it's time for a Malaysian beer, in this case Jaz, the beer. The name reminds me of long ago when I was atrociously strutting my stuff at an underage nightclub with a couple of mates. One of buddies was approached by a girl and somewhat originally asked if he was wearing "Jazz"; ever since I've been amused by DT's response of "No babe, Old Spice". Anyway back to Jaz the beer, it's made by the Napex Brewery in Port Klang and that's about it.
It's a relatively clear and light and a bright gold colour. There were lots of big airy bubbles and a frothy head that quickly collapsed into nothing. The nose isn't particularly exciting; there are traces of Weetbix and an interesting soapy/sherbety element, that reminds me a little of the 'talc' aroma you find in white wine. The palate is even less 'exciting' then the nose and doesn't really taste of anything; if I was pushed I'd say maybe there's the slightest trace of citrus. Jaz Beer is typical boring Asian larger; while nothing's particularly wrong with it, it certainly has nothing to recommend it; a total non-event.
Visit brewery website.
Mexico, $22
I hate tequila and have a healthy scepticism of Mexican restaurants so deciding to try this was a chance for the good people of Mexico to woo me. It's made by the giant Modelo group who produce Corona amongst a host of other things. Know as "la crema de la cerveza" or "the Cream of Beers" Negra Modelo is apparently Mexico's biggest selling brew.
Pouring it into a glass it's a deep brown colour, but still quite clear with a beautiful amber sparkle to it. The head is initially big and airy, but quickly collapses to nothing but a few tiny bubbles. The nose is really subdued with a slight smell of caramel and dark sugar. Having a sip things are again pretty quite; there's a bit of a caramel thing going on alongside a bitter sweet chocolate flavour. The finish has a slight sourness, but there's no hint of hops. It's not at all heavy or rich and feels light and airy in the mouth. There's been a bit of trade off here; flavour's been swapped for refreshment which probably makes it a good drink for the hot Mexican desert. Negra Modelo isn't a bad beer, and while it lacks guts and flavour it's a hell of a lot better than tequila or a $150 serve of cornchips.
Visit brewery website.
Hite Beer
Seoul, Korea
Another country, another average beer. I'm drinking this as I look out the window of our hotel in Seoul. The view is a mix of old and new; the tatty Daerim Arcade merges with more modern, but just as ungainly buildings; further into the background bare gardens surround Jongmyo, Seoul's royal shrine and hills of the Changdeokgung and Changgyeonggung palaces. Made by the Hite Brewery Company, this is one of Korea's three main commercial beers and is widely available. The label claims it has a "FTK" or "Fresh Taste Keeping System", though it looks like a normal crow-seal to me.
The beer is a yellowy, straw colour with a light fluffy head that quickly dissipates. The nose offers nothing interesting, actually nothing much at all. If I really snort there's hints of preserved lemon and public urinals. The palate is just as disappointing with a little sourness and a slight taste of stale Wheet-bix. To be honest my flavour profile is almost contrived as Hite Beer tastes of nothing, smells of nothing and for all intents and purposes is an absolute non-event. A pitiful, pale beer that would probably quench a thirst, but isn't good for much else.
Visit their cool looking Korean website or the boring corporate English website.
Taiwan Beer
Taipei, Taiwan, NT$52
I was in Taiwan, so I had Taiwanese beer. I bought this from 7/11, just like all the locals seem to do, and drunk it in our hotel room before heading out to the Shilin Night Market. It's made by the Taiwan Tobacco and Liquor Corporation and posses an amazing 80% share of Taiwan's beer market. Rice is added to the fermentation process which is supposed to give it a distinct taste.
Taiwan Beer is a pale golden colour with a soft frothy head. The nose is pretty vacant with nothing much but a whiff of yeast; virtually dunking my nose in and sniffing really hard there's also a slight aroma coriander seeds and citrus peel. The palate has a slight sweetness, creamy texture and a little yeastiness, but is again totally lacking in flavour. Taiwan Beer is light in colour, light in aroma and light in flavour; a drinkable but non-engaging and disappointing drop.
Visit brewery website.
Liefmans Frambozenbier
Dentergem, Belgium, £2.40
Fruit beers are always going to be controversial; I can remember the heated debate the resulted when a certain old bloke I went to uni with whacked a few bananas in his homebrew for the first time. This raspberry ale from Belgium is a bit like a little Christmas present; it comes wrapped up in tissue paper and is sealed with a mini Champagne style cork; all very festive. The labelling says there's 12.5% raspberry juice added.
Liefmans Frambozenbier has an intense head of small, frothy bubbles. It's a deep brown colour with orange hints aro
und the edges. The nose - yes, you guessed it - smells of fresh raspberries. The palate has hints of sweetness, yet it's not as overbearing as I thought it would be. The raspberry flavours are there, but there is also traditional beery bitterness. I'm amazed at how well balanced this is; it's refreshing and easy to drink, yet not overly sweet or syrupy. A lot better than other beers I've tried in this style, an absolute cracker. Visit brewery website
Colomba Biere Blanche
Furiani, Corsica, France, £1.49
Having never had a beer from Corsica I thought this could be the first. Colomba Biere Blanche is manufactured by a mob called Brasserie Pietra, who also make an interesting sounding beer flavoured with walnut flour. It apparently follows a traditional recipe using mountain herbs, which includes a big ball of tree strawberry, juniper and myrtle added to the cooking wort.
Poured into a glass the beer is a fantastic cloudy, lemony yellow colour; with opaque thickness about it. There is a big head of tiny intense bubbles that linger. Colomba Biere Blanche has a zingy nose with hints of yeast, lemon, coriander seeds and an interesting herbal edge. On the palate these herbal, almost green flavours continue and are accompanied by a citrus sharpness. Really a very flavoursome drop with a palate dominated by herbal flavours rather than more traditional sweet, “hoppy” beer flavours. A beer that grew on me; Colombra is worth a try.
Visit brewery website
Warsteiner Premium Verum
Warstein, Germany, $8.80 One of the great things about drinking beer is every sip lets you enter into a world of miss-represented masculine stereotypes ... remember those 'classic' Australian VB ads that promoted "a big cold beer for a hard earned thirst”. Well I’d just finished moving house and reckon I had a “hard earned thirst”. This bottle was in the fridge and it earned the honour of being the first “big cold beer” drunk in our new home.
Poured into the glass this Pilsner style beer is a beautiful glistening golden colour, with a spongy, airy head and chunky bubbles. The nose has strong, obvious, slightly sweet yeasts that carry on right through to palate; I'm thinking something reminiscent of baking sour-dough. Initially clean and refreshing it builds through to a fuller aftertaste with hints of both sweet fruitiness and lovely bitter hops. A very drinkable drop; and while there's probably beers with more flavour out there, I was reaching for another one pretty quickly.
Visit brewery website.
Coopers Sparkling Ale
Adelaide, South Australia, $14 (approx)I love beer. This is probably a pretty good thing as Australians are considered a nation of beer drinkers, yet in reality they often drink pretty average stuff. Internationally we are represented by some bad stereotypes and there's much more to Australian beer then pint cans o
f Foster brewed under license in the UK. Australian boutique breweries are starting to emerge and a whole hoard of home brewers, like the infamous Fat Nick Harrison, make pretty good stuff, yet there are also a couple of good, large scale, commercial enterprises. Family owned Coopers is one such exception who is battling the trend of mass produced generic beer. When I saw stubbies of their Sparkling Ale in Taste I got very excited.
Sparkling Ale is a heavier, fuller flavoured beer that the website claims has been brewed following basically the same recipe since 1862. It is top fermented, contains no artificial flavours or preservatives and is bottle conditioned. The beer itself is a rich golden, amber colour and looks exactly like beer bloody well should. The bottle conditioning process means that each bottle contains a flotilla of obvious sediment - whether you roll the beer to disperse these chunks into a cloudy haze or leave them lurking around the bottle for a 'sparkling' beer with final big gulp is often debated. Coopers Sparkling Ale has a full fruity smell with noticeable hops and big, hollow, but not overwhelming froth. It tastes ... well good, with an obvious fruitiness, with a slightly bitter palate and hints of mellow hops in the background. This beer is still wet and refreshing and unlike some of heavier ales that you need a knife and fork for, this really is a drink that manages to merge flavour with refreshment.
Australia is not just about superb wines; give Aussie beer a go and get stuck into a Coopers 'red'.
Visit brewery website
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