Archive for the ‘Witbier’ Category

Kooinda Belgian Witbier

Monday, December 19th, 2011

Here is my second tasting of a Kooinda or Happy Place Brewing Co. brew and this time round it’s a not so limited release….come to think of it I haven’t strayed too far from the Karaka at all and I’m not really sure why?

This is a hand crafted, unfiltered Belgian Witbier that is brewed with wheat and Pilsner malts.  In keeping with Belgian Witbier tradition Kooinda have also spiced up this beer with coriander and sweet orange peel.  It comes on tap where available and in 330ml bottles sporting a deep orange label.  It has an ABV of 5.5% which equates to 1.5 standard drinks per bottle.  You won’t find this brew in BWS, Dan Murphy’s or 1st Choice so don’t bother looking for it there and depending on where you do find it expect to pay around $5 per bottle.

My bottle poured with a massive foamy white head that quickly dissolved to leave just a white ring with no lacing.  It had that typical cloudy straw colour which one come to expect of a traditional Witbier.  Both the sweet orange peel and coriander were noticeable in the aroma which was good to see.   Unfortunately though I found the taste to be thin and light on, it started off refreshing, finished dry but left a metallic like tang in my mouth.  The beer also seemed over carbonated for what it was.

Kooinda have done a decent job of creating a traditional Witbier in most aspects but in the taste department I found their version to only be reminiscent of the real thing.

Quick Facts: 5.5% alcohol – 330ml brown bottle – Pop top

FYI Kooinda Boutique Brewery will be open to the public this Thursday 22nd December 2011.  Their address is 28 Culverlands St, Heidelberg West, Victoria – ‘Take Yourself There’ as Kooinda would say.

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Kooinda Karaka Belgian Witbier

Wednesday, October 26th, 2011

How would you feel about trying a traditional Belgian Witbier with a berry twist?  Well that’s exactly what Karaka is said to be, but how big is this berry twist exactly?

Kooinda Karaka comes from the Happy Place Brewing Co in Heidelberg West, Victoria.  Kooinda means ‘Happy Place’, though I’m not sure where this meaning originates.  The Kooinda Boutique Brewery currently produces 800 litre batches of hand crafted brews, with regular offerings including an America Pale Ale, Belgian Witbier, Black IPA and Golden Ale.  This particular brew is currently limited to 250 bottles, but the brewers are hoping to make another batch in the near future.

$37 – that’s what my friend and I paid for a 750ml bottle of this limited release beer and I’ll tell you why we did so, the label!  The purple label on the front of this bottle (actually the only form of labelling on this bottle whatsoever) reads the following in white text:

This delicate, easy drinking beer is a traditional Belgian Witbier with a berry twist. The beer is crafted with coriander & sweet orange peel late in the brewing process. Then racked onto fresh raspberries & secondary fermented for seven days. The beer is reracked onto karaka berries for another week.

So that in a nutshell was what sealed the deal for our $37 expenditure that evening and the following afternoon with cracked it.

Now for what would we believe was sold as having an abundant amount of berry zing to it, actually had very little.  We both agree that the berry factor seemed non-existent in this brew, neither of us could taste nor smell raspberries or karaka berries – which are a hybrid berry that can be likened to a mild blackberry in flavour.  This was really disappointing as we both expected a lot more from $37 worth and I don’t take that amount lightly in the beer realm and I’m sure a lot of others would agree.  We did however smell and taste the coriander and citrus elements.  This beer pours an amazing, lasting white head full of tightly packed bubbles with a slight pink colouring to it.    It’s a misty reddish-orange in appearance and simply beautiful to look at – if I could rate it on appearance alone it would get 5 out of 5.

Karaka was not exactly what my friend or I were hoping for in a $37 bottle of beer, though we both are grateful to have tasted it.  It certainly has the taste and appearance of a Belgian Witbier but there’s no berry twist to it.  So with that said if you’re happy for an Australian take on a Belgian wheat beer without a berry twist I’d give it a go.

Rating (out of five):


Quick Facts: 5.5% alcohol – 750ml green bottle – Pop top

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