HBA Hoppy Brown Ale
Stockade Brew Co

So far, so ok for Stockade, who don’t appeal to me at all with their marketing, however their Duel Hoppy Lager wasn’t bad, it was a bit of alright. This time they’ve released a Hoppy Brown Ale (I guess as an Ale-y complement to Duel?), this American Brown is no lightweight either at 6.8% ABV it sits right in that spectrum I like to call the “Mmmm zone” (because of all the yummy beers that sit in said spectrum). Now I understand that their Mountie Maple Stout was a real tasty treat, however I’m having difficulty locating that one, until then hopefully this will tide me over (if not I’ve got an Omnipollo Noa Pecan Mud Cake to fill the void!). PS: This bottle was provided to me by a Stockade rep, thank you kind lady!

Poured from a 330ml bottle into a nonic pint.

A: Deep burnt umber with a touch of haze body and a thin cream-coloured head that sticks around as a light splotchy lacework. The colour is pretty spot on, and the lack of a head isn’t uncommon at 6.8% ABV - looks good. 7/10.

S: Aroma is dark fruit (raisin/prune) forward, touch of sherry as well, hops present as more of a distant floral note - hopefully that will change in the flavour... or hopefully not... I can’t decide - Brown Ales are delicious due to their malt-driven flavour profiles, but recently Stone Mocha IPA has taught me that seemingly discordant flavours can work well together. Hint of milk chocolate as well. Needs a bit more gusto, but otherwise good. 6/10.

T: Dark fruit, toffee, nutty and milk chocolate characters front to back of palate. Hops add a slight floral/citrus note before leaving an astringently bitter aftertaste - it’s not overpowering, but it’s there and enough to negate any goodwill from the addition of hops. There’s sweetness as well, but in this case it’s just a touch on the drier side for a Brown Ale and needs a bit more sugar IMO. 6/10.

M: Body is good, mid to light, borderline medium bodied with a thin but reasonably dense carbonation - Stockade did good here. 8/10.

D: Given the 6.8% ABV the aroma/flavours of this Hoppy Brown Ale were a bit lacking - there needs to be more going on at this level of alcohol content to justify it. Stockade beers (so far for me) have been a bit too muted flavour-wise and if I was to pull a few names out of my hat for examples of Aussie brewers who don’t mess around here I would say: Modus Operandi, Pirate Life, Prancing Pony, HopDog... I could actually go on, but look to these brewers Stockade. 7/10.

Food match: This brew is right in that medieval-roasted-game-zone.