A night of Dieu du Ciel at Nectar
May 19, 2010
Regular readers of the Thirsty Critters blog might recall a post about a wonderful beer tasting night held at Nectar in West End last February. We were lucky enough to be invited back last week, this time to sample the Dieu du Ciel range of beers.
As with the previous night, it was a casual affair, with a few familiar faces and many new faces crowded around the wooden bench at Nectar. As you might expect when you put a room full of beer lovers together with good food and beer, there’s a lovely relaxed atmosphere and plenty of conversation amongst strangers. Karl and Mez from Nectar provided us with some outstanding tapas from Fino Fine Foods to kick the evening off – a Tasmanian brie, spicy salamis, huge chili peppers, olives and hummus.
Before we got stuck into the Dieu du Ciel Karl got the beer tasting kicked off with two new additions to his store – Baltika Wheat and White Rabbit White Ale. The Baltika Wheat was a pretty good example of the style, and the White Rabbit White Ale maintains the quality set by the Dark Ale.
Listed below are the the Dieu du Ciel beers that we were lucky enough to taste. All were briliant, just like the Southern Tier range at the previous tasting night. Brisbane beer lovers really are spoiled for choice now, with both Australian craft and imported speciality beers abundant in our stores.
- Rosee d’ Hibiscus – A very light, fruity, spiced beer, possibly the lightest-tasting beer I’ve ever had! Perhaps a bit too light?
- Route des epices – A rye beer with a lovely caramel taste with a surprising spicy finish
- Derniere Volonte – A Belgian pale ale with perfect bitterness
- Corne du diable – A typical English IPA
- Peche Mortel – One of the best of the night, an imperial stout chock-full of flavour
- Aphrodisiaque – An American stout with chocolate and vanilla overtones but very little bitterness. Very drinkable, especially for those who aren’t usually a fan of stouts.
To finish the evening Karl broke out a couple of special Mikkellers and Murrays for the occassion, but they’ll remain nameless. Head into Nectar and ask Karl what they were, and buy a few great Dieu du Ciel while you’re at it!
Archive – Brisbane’s newest boutique beer bar
May 11, 2010
A few weeks ago rumours started circulating about a new boutique beer bar to be opened in West End. Before I knew it, the thing was open for business! Located under Uber in West End, Archive a spacious bar with plenty of couches, pool tables and outdoor seating. It has a great 60s/70s decor theme and looks like the kind of place you could happily spend a few hours relaxing in.
The decor isn’t what you’re interested in though right? It’s the beer! I was pleasantly surprised to find that the entire place is devoted to Australian beer – there isn’t a single international in the fridge. Commendable! The music policy also appears to be 100% Australian.
You can find pretty much the full gamut of ‘standard’ Aussie craft beers in the fridge – Burleigh, Matilda Bay, 3 Ravens, Feral, etc. On Sundays all bottled beer is $5, which is an excellent price for quality craft beer at a licensed venue. There is also 5 taps, which is currently not too adventurous (White Rabbit, Stone & Wood, etc) – but still eons better than the usual swill.
I would definitely recommend heading down there to check it out. I’m yet to eat there, so if you have any experiences with the dining there, let me know how it is!
