Stone & Wood Kellerbier
Stone & Wood

Pours a pale golden colour with an odd tinge of green to it. Slight turbidity to it. Head is white, generous when poured but sinks to a thin film. Great trails of lace remaining behind. Decent keller appearance, head could retain better though.

Smells quite musty with some earthy fruit notes on there. Quite bitter with citrus rind, white grape skin and even a lychee skin aroma. Yeah, it's tangy but bitter. Good resiny hop notes and a slight hint of wet wool. Nice keller characters, could be stronger but pretty nice.

Taste is okay, not quite as intriguing as the nose, however. Fairly tangy up front with citrus and some sherbety notes that descends into a quite bready mid-palate; some raw cereal grain character. Gets slightly dank on the back with resiny hop notes that are quite well blended in and smooth, well-rounded I guess, with no sharp edges. Slight roughness from carbonation but otherwise an okay texture. Rather thin, but finishes with a fine lager crispness.

Overall, not mind-blowing and lacking in the keller mustiness on the palate. But it was just what I needed after the hike up Albion Street.

On tap at the Darlo Local Taphouse.

Pours a light and bright yellow colour, with slight haze in the body. Head is a big frothy cushion at the start, and collapses pleasantly after a while, leaving some solid and sudsy lacing. Light in the body, with lots of carbonation. Needs a bit more haze to my mind, but it's decent enough.

Nose is minimal. No musty cellar characters, minimal funk - it ends up dry with just a whiff of clear German hops. Tiny hint of yeasty bread, but not a lot. It's clean enough, but not that exciting.

Taste is clean, but more like a traditional German lager, perhaps a Munich Helles, than it is a Keller. Clear on the palate, with slight yeastiness, perhaps a hint of zest which moves it a little closer, phenols noticeably absent.

There is perhaps a slight hint of cellar mustiness on the back, but only barely, and probably only because I'm looking for it. Feel is clear and light.

It's tasty enough and very quaffable, if missing some of the classic notes which delineate the style. But again, it's another great, sessionable brew from the boys from Byron; one I'd be happy drinking on a regular basis.

A - A 2cm white head with decent retention a top a light golden beer that is fairly clear.
S - Herbal, light floral and spicy hop notes with a light bready malt touch.
T - Very similar - more spicy hop notes come through in the taste. A tasty bready malt character.
T - Light bodied, medium to high carbonation and a touch of bitterness.
D - A highly drinkable, pretty tasty & refreshing beer.

They should replace their boring Pale Lager with this year round!