PDubyah: Beer - #376 - Tuatara

Monday, May 12, 2014

Beer - #376 - Tuatara - APA

Brewed by Tuatara Brewing Company this in the style of the American Pale Ale and they are in Paraparaumu, New Zealand

A custom made complete with scales and ridges - 500ml bottle, 5.8% ABV and 2.4 standard drinks worth, 50 IBU and about 170 ish calories a serve

Hopped With Chinook to bitter, and Simcoe and Zythos to flavour and dry-hop.

Barack Obama isn’t the only American to be returned by popular demand. Tuatara’s famous, original APA is back, accompanied by the seductive aromas and flavours of its all-American hopping regime. American Pale Ale is the wild colonial iteration of the famous English IPAs of the nineteenth century. In a country whose idea of an urbane well-bred Englishman is Piers Morgan, American Pales make the most of a hop breeding culture originally founded by Californian hippies, the kind who got their start in more illegal forms of horticulture. Tuatara reflects that freewheeling adventurousness from the giant fruit on the nose to the fabulous bitterness at the end.

Not a lot of aroma on opening to make a pick, but I get a light vinegary thing, I don't know I make a lot of this up.

Pour is a lot darker than I might have thought, I should think more. Aroma though really comes to life with a lot of toffee and raisins, I wish I was making it up, and a lot of bready yeast too .

Head dies a little to make this drinkable... and that little gap leads to an interesting mouthful of beer.

So this is an APA, pay attention! But I don't get a high bitterness 50 is below IPA and about a high stout level. Which it is.

So reset and try again, and you get a lovely mouthful of sweetly caramelled bitter beer with a nice carry. The hops make themselves known in the whole thing, so you know you're drinking a hop focussed beer. It's very clever.

So aside from the bready-ness of the aroma this is totes the best beer I had today, or the last few days. It's not however a do a lap of honour beer, or one where you buy it don't like it and I pay you back the money.

The pdubyah-o-meter rates this as 8.5 a of its unfathomable scale of righteous from the imponderable measure of things. Lets face it the start point is 7 and that's a beer I finished and didn't frown about. This is a step above that because it looks and tastes great, but not spectacular.

Bizarrely for middle of May I'm going to be cooking on the BBQ - we have a sirloin thing and it is mothers day, I can't expect wife to do everything.

The double dip review

Am I enjoying it? Yes it made me smile

Would I have another? Yes I'd easily go again

Would I share with a friend on a porch and set the world to rights? Yes I would because this is just one of those beers.

and there I was bopping to the WhiteStripes - Hotel Yorba

[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DZPEUyiNcjA&w=420&h=315]

AMERICAN PALE ALE

American Pale Ales are light in color, ranging from golden to a light copper color. The style of this beer is defined by the American hops used. American hops typically have high bitterness and aroma.This is a perfect beer for big fare like grilled burgers or combination pizzas, as well as lighter fare like sushi and green salads.