Matso's Smokey Bishop
Matso's Broome Brewery

Matso's Smokey BishopMatso's Smokey Bishop
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From:
Matso's Broome Brewery
 
Australia
Style:
Munich Dunkel
ABV:
4.7%
Score:
77
Avg:
3.09 | pDev: 19.42%
Reviews:
12
Ratings:
20
Status:
Active
Rated:
Nov 15, 2021
Added:
Sep 30, 2008
Wants:
  0
Gots:
  3
No description / notes.
Recent ratings and reviews. | Log in to view more ratings + sorting options.
Ratings by Rwalford74:
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Rated by Rwalford74 from Australia

3.75/5  rDev +21.4%

Jul 19, 2014
More User Ratings:
 
Rated: 3.78 by Daneve76 from Australia

Nov 15, 2021
 
Rated: 4 by Breeza from Australia

Sep 08, 2014
 
Rated: 3.5 by jpd7374 from Pennsylvania

Apr 26, 2014
Photo of doktorhops
Reviewed by doktorhops from Australia

2.15/5  rDev -30.4%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Second and quite possibly the last Matso's brew I will ever purchase (well I might try the mango beer for a light chortle) is Smoky Bishop. Let's see if I can make it through the entire review without a Smokey and the Bandit reference even though I am dying to do one "Well, go girl, go!", dammit!

Poured from a 330ml bottle into a nonic pint.

A: Brownish/ruby clear body with a fizzer of a head that I recall being of the colour Ecru before it vanished into thin beer.

S: A whiff of Christmas pudding, hint of smoke and a solid enough malt base that one could almost take a bite out of it... but where are these hops the label mentions? There are added notes of mocha and metal.

T: This beer is terrible! Tastes of metallic soda water with beer flavours added to it. Quite possibly the worst beer I've had in a long, long time. There are notes of roasted chicory and chocolate but these flavours are overcome by that God awful metallic twang. A slight hop bitterness at the end reminds me that I am in fact drinking a beer.

M: Watery and over carbonated, also terrible. If this had some more body it might have lifted the rating a little.

D: Look its not tip it down the drain terrible but it's not far off. In retrospect the Pearlers Pale Ale doesn't seem so bad now. Disappointing Matso's... and forget about me buying the mango beer after this debacle. Any positives though? ... Ah-ha! It's probably the best dark beer you can purchase in Broome... unless they get Coopers there of course.

Food match: I really would not want to match this with any food, but if forced to do so would pick something mega-spicy.
Feb 24, 2014
 
Rated: 3.75 by magpieken from Australia

Jan 01, 2014
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Reviewed by machalel from Australia

3.27/5  rDev +5.8%
look: 3.25 | smell: 3 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 3.25
Appearance: Dark red-brown with a fluffy white head that settles quickly but remains for the whole glass. Small amount of patchy lacing.

Aroma: Faint caramel and toffee, with some hints of toast and chocolate. Not much here.

Taste: Quite malt-forward, with some biscuit and toast notes. Dark chocolate and coffee are present, as well as some dried fruit and caramel. A little bit nutty and slightly sweet. Finishes with a medium amount of bitterness.

Mouthfeel: Medium-thin body, but counteracted by the medium-low carbonation. Possibly a little thin, but it is too sweet to balance a thicker body.

Overall: Not bad, but has room for improvement. It feels like it needs to be "beefed up" a notch, and then it would shine. I would still choose this over many other Australian offerings, however.
Jul 30, 2013
 
Rated: 3 by pin from Australia

Jul 22, 2013
 
Rated: 3.25 by hopnerd from Australia

Aug 16, 2012
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Reviewed by SmashPants from Australia

2.39/5  rDev -22.7%
look: 4.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Bottle: stylish 330mL brown bottle, stylish label also. A very nice package indeed.

Appearance: pours a pleasant smoky red, light body. Rocky white head with a patchy, speckled lace.

Aroma: Not sure about this - sickly caramel and some metallic. Unexpected since it costs $80+ a case.

Taste: cloying caramel at the front, and a dash of chocolate. Nothing to back up the sweetness.

Aftertaste: sweetness fades somewhat, to be replaced by a kind of metallic fug. Not impressive at all.

Mouthfeel: I don't know how a beer can be light in feel and yet so cloying, but they have managed. Moderate carbonation.

Overall: a great disappointment. I was expecting a good-quality Australian dark lager / Belgian cross-over, I ended up with a lager with caramel sauce poured into it. Okay, it's not quite that bad, but for well over AU$90 - $100 a case in 2012 (it was $76 direct from the brewery!) this is one of the worst priced beers I have seen so far.
Jun 28, 2012
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Reviewed by mulder1010 from Australia

2.13/5  rDev -31.1%
look: 3 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2 | feel: 1.5 | overall: 2
330 ML bottle
Thanks to ADZA for the bottle

A--- Pours and settles like coke. Nice clarity and ruby highlights though. One finger light brown head that falls off to a decent collar. Some decent visible carbonation.

S-- Some coffee, some roasted malts, some chocolate and some light aroma's of smoke and dark fruits. First three most obvious.

T-- Carmel, coffee, chocolate, vanilla, roasted malts. Peters out a bit and becomes a lot of sweet carmel and vanilla that gets thin quickly.

M-- A bit under carbonated I think. Gets a thin sweetness that carbonation would hide real well and lift this. Takes on a cola sweetness. Exposes a thin body as well. More of a coke that is flat feel and heavy syrupy body.

O-- Could be good with some adjustments. Closer to what everybody else is saying in Toohey's New but with much less carbonation.
Jun 04, 2012
 
Rated: 3 by Taphouse_Traveler from Florida

Jan 31, 2012
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Reviewed by Macca from Australia

2.7/5  rDev -12.6%
look: 2.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
This pours ruby brown with no head. Looks like a glass of Coke. Dead.

Unattractive aromas. A bit like a macro lager but with a slight bit of dark malt but not enough.

A bit more dark malt on the palate but very thin flavourwise.

Thin body.

Not impressed with this. Like a Tooheys Old but not as good.
Jan 26, 2012
Photo of PolarBear3
Reviewed by PolarBear3 from Australia

2.49/5  rDev -19.4%
look: 3 | smell: 1.5 | taste: 3 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 2.5
Drank from my Duvel Tulip

A - Poured a dark cherry redish colour with off white head that dissipated fairly quickly.

S - Very ordinary aromas from this one. Get a slight sweet malt with a little coffee.

T - A little better with the taste. Sweet malts with some nutty toffee up front with a little chocolate and coffee at the back end but very dry on the finish.

M - Light bodied with medium carbonation

O - Very bland for my liking and lacks that big hit I am looking for.
Would not recommend but maybe better on tap.
Nov 19, 2011
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Reviewed by lacqueredmouse from Australia

2.09/5  rDev -32.4%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2 | taste: 2 | feel: 2 | overall: 2
Purchased at the International Beer Shop in Perth.

Pours a really pleasant smoky red colour, with a rocky head of Jerusalem-stone white. Patchy, speckled lace. Very light body, but the colour is really pleasant.

Nose is a bit unpleasant—slight metallic tones, and a touchy carbonation whiff that just accentuates it. A hint of meatiness on the back and just a suggestion of acidity, which is way, way wrong. Doesn't work for me.

Taste is similar, with metallic sharpness on the front, but a lingering sweetness that suggests musk and a little compound chocolate. It all cloys and leaves a messy residual character that doesn't sit right. Feel is too light. What with all the sweetness, it at least needs something to back it up.

All over the place. It reminds me of all the very worst craft beers Australia has. It's a different style than the generic Australian lager, but it almost feels as bad. Really unimpressed.
Aug 11, 2011
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Reviewed by eric5bellies from Australia

2.93/5  rDev -5.2%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3 | taste: 3 | feel: 2 | overall: 3
Drank on tap at Matso's Broome.

A - Pours a clear dark amber colour with an off White head that dies quickly.

S - Slightly metallic aroma, and some smokeyness.

T - Malty biscuit flavour up front followed by small smokeyness, a little dry on the finish.

M - Ligh to medium body with medium carbonation.

O - This is more of a dark lager rather than a Dunkel. The mouthfeel is much to watery.
Jun 18, 2011
Photo of CrazyDavros
Reviewed by CrazyDavros from Australia

3.53/5  rDev +14.2%
look: 4 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3.5 | overall: 3.5
Pours deep garnet with a large lasting head and rings of lacing.
Nose shows lots of sweet malt with nutty and caramel characters at the forefront. Roasted malt adds some extra depth. There’s a faint oxidised not which mixes well with the rich malt.
Flavours perfectly mirror the aromas. Maybe the roasted malt shows through a little stronger.
Carbonation is pretty full on.
Apr 16, 2011
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Reviewed by dgilks from Australia

2.76/5  rDev -10.7%
look: 3.5 | smell: 2.5 | taste: 2.5 | feel: 2.5 | overall: 3.5
Crystal clear red-amber colour with a light tan head. Poor head retention.

Dull, dusty, slightly malty aroma. There's a touch of nutty Munich malt as well.

Thin, insipid malt flavour with a metallic note. Not enough character here for a Munich dunkel.

Light body with moderately-high carbonation. This is too fizzy.

Overall, this disappoints. As a crisp, light flavoured lager it's fine but as a dunkel, it's pretty ordinary.
Nov 07, 2010
Photo of ADZA
Reviewed by ADZA from Australia

3.55/5  rDev +14.9%
look: 3.5 | smell: 3.5 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 3 | overall: 4
This beer pours a sherry red copper hue with average carbonation that leaves a half finger head with minimal lacing,the aroma is liquorice candy and some mocha,it has an average mouthfeel with tastes of chocolate,coffee and some subtle hops at the finish,not a standout beer and im still trying to determine this beers style as its def not a dunkel and more closer to a sharwz but just a little different but neverless an easy drinking beer whatever its true style.
Sep 09, 2009
Photo of LittleCreature
Reviewed by LittleCreature from Australia

3.7/5  rDev +19.7%
look: 4 | smell: 4 | taste: 3.5 | feel: 4 | overall: 3.5
Appearance - 4.0
Poured two fingers of beige head over a clear amber-brown body that looks to be highly carbonated.

Smell - 4.0
A promising aroma that is not dissimilar to that of many English ales. Baking bread, candied hazelnuts and butter are there, not much notable hop aroma.

Taste - 3.5
Very much malt driven with flavours of rye bread, burnt caramel and coffee. Moderately hopped for balance, finishes dry with plenty of flavour. There is a slight sourness which detracts from what is otherwise a nice tasting beer.

Mouthfeel - 4.0
Feels thick and creamy in the mouth with a moderate to high level of carbonation.

Drinkability - 3.5
I couldn't see myself drinking too much of this, but finishing the one glass was certainly not a struggle.

OVERALL - 3.75
I feel that this is a slightly higher score than this beer deserves, as I was close to giving it a 3 for taste, but in the end the depth of flavour won out. Flawed, but still good, it makes me very happy to see this style of beer being brewed in WA.
Sep 30, 2008
Matso's Smokey Bishop from Matso's Broome Brewery
Beer rating: 77 out of 100 with 20 ratings