What's on the Christmas menu for you lot? I find it a good opportunity to break out a couple of cellar beers. Christmas staples will probably be Sculpin (thanks Uncle Dan) and Anderson Valley Gose. I love drinking a couple of special beers on Christmas day. I am thinking a Black Damnation and a Cantillon (Iris or RdG - possibly LPF). Have a dinner party on the 27th and thinking of breaking out a Mexican Cake. Keen to hear what others have on the hit list this year.
First time in a while it'll be at our place. So I can have a drink or two if I feel like it. But it's gunna be hot and I'll take it easy. In the last couple of years I've had a little success in getting people to try new to them beer with food (successes: Saison Dupont, Young's Chocolate Stout; failure: Rodenbach Grand Cru). So people can have anything there is, but I'll look to offer: Stiegl Grapefruit Radler: fine aperitif, particularly if it's hot. Weltenburger Pils: good but scares nobody off; Little Creatures PA; Kaiju Krush: a little lighter, a little hoppier; Holgate Temptress: not too sweet goes well with dessert. Saison Dupont: OK, you've drunk wine with main course, this lightens things up and goes well with all of the cheeses. Anyone who'd like to know what else might be good just needs to look mildly interested and we'll see how we go.
I'm going to take the opportunity to work through a bunch of my lower tier cellar stuff. Mainly old vintages of Aussie stouts like Clout, Wild Thing and Hargreaves Hill RIS that I inexplicably bought huge volumes of. Beyond that I'll subsist largely on growlers of hoppy stuff from local breweries.
The usual: lots of IPAs. Bought a six pack of SN Northern Hemisphere which is drinking well at 3 months old. Also tried the Shenanigans Tropical IPA which wasn't bad. Also tried Stockade Old Money last night which is pretty amazing... Garage Project Rosé de la Vallee was another Christmas purchase which I found unique and enjoyable.
I've bought some Mornington Pale Cans for the ones who aren't that interested, some Mornington Hop Culture Cans and a few Bottles of Saison Dupont for those who are. Heading down to Portsea, so going local and classic.
