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This week has been a cracker for us here at Pirate Life Brewing with a couple of great days under our belt. It all kicked off on Australia Day when our IIPA, Pale Ale and Throwback IPA jagged spots 3,4 and 11 respectively in the 2015 Hottest 100 Aussie Craft Beer Countdown. The results were pretty amazing and it was awesome to see that Australians are loving our beers. Once again big thanks everyone across the country for their support over the past 11 months and cheers to everybody who got on board and voted for us.
Also congratulations to our fellow Aussie brewers, the high standard of beer in the countdown is a testament to a lot of hard work and the top 100 continues to improve and diversify each year which can only mean more great beer to drink for years to come. Details of the countdown including a bit of an infographic can be found at The Crafty Pint.
This week also marked the launch of a collaboration beer with local Adelaide restaurant Madame Hanoi for their first birthday celebrations. Madame Hanoi is an Espresso Bar and Bistro headed by chef Nic Watt which creates amazing French Vietnamese inspired food.
A while back they approached us interested in making a beer which would pair with their menu and also hold its own as a session beer for the customer who wanted to tip a few back at their bar. The result of a lot of experimentation and brainstorming was a French Vietnamese inspired beer: A Saison infused with the fresh flavours of Vietnamese cooking: Rice, Mango, Kaffir Lime and Coriander.
We brewed the first batch a few weeks back with the crew from Madame Hanoi making their way down to the brewery to give us a hand peeling, deseeding and blending up 40 kg of mango which was added to the brew in the mashtun, kettle and whirlpool. Kaffir Lime leaves and Coriander seed were added at the whirlpool to impart their signature aroma and a touch of spice.
The beer drinks exceptionally well with soft notes of Kaffir Lime and Coriander on the nose and a palate brimming with tart mango and a rich rice texture. The launch took place on Thursday night with the crowd treated to plenty of great food, good music and loads of Madame Hanoi Saison. A big thank you to all the people at Madame Hanoi for not only the opportunity to brew such a unique beer but also for all their hard work and help along the way. The whole project was a lot of fun for us and the brewery smelt of Kaffir Lime the entire time the beer was fermenting which is about as good as it gets.
So thank you again to Madame Hanoi and to everyone around Australia for their support, it’s been an epic week!
Cheers - PLB Crew
