Brass Monkey Stout

Well I've been in Australia for over 2 months now so I figure an Australian brew should be reviewed. I actually had a couple of notes on some beers that I had but somehow...I lost them. But not Brass Monkey Stout however. First let me say, Australian beer generally sucks a hairy nutsack. They don't like to have any beer over 5.0% because they have too many problems with the drunk public. I've only found 2 Aussie beers that were over 5.0% and this was one of them. They also just aren't flavorful like the beers that we usually review. Now this can be attributed to many factors. One people are going to buy them no matter what. A typical pint at a bar out here is $10 and everyone goes out and buys it, even backpackers. Two people want something cold and refreshing on a hot ass day not heavy and weighing them down. Three, like I mentioned before apparently they have a real problem with binge drinking and alcohol related problems here. Four is that I may just be accustomed to the typical west coast, particularly Northwest microbrews and their styles and may not be very open minded to the Aussie styles but I still think they're crap.

Anywhom, this is about Brass Monkey Stout. This is actually one of the better beers out here and one of the only two I've been able to find that's more than 5%. It's 6% ABV which is more than any other by a long shot. And it's the same price as all the watered down ones. It's sold solely at a bar called Brass Monkey in Northbridge, Perth, WA. It's their only homegrown microbrew. Straight up, this is a good stout.

You get roasted nuts, chocolate and coffee on the nose and then in the taste as well. It's got a very flavorful and smooth but lasting finish. It's the same Guiness style that needs time to accumulate foam head properly but it's even darker than that. Even though it's a Stout, my goodness it's refreshing. When I first arrived in Perth and had time to kill I stumbled onto this place and 2 of these. I felt pretty welcome after this for sure. It's interesting to have such a dark and rich beer that is refreshing at the same time. I can only assume that this was the idea with the brewers when they wanted to make a stout for WA people.

Honestly I would just put this at a good stout. It's interesting how refreshing it is rather than heavy but I don' think this would even pass in many bars in Oregon compared to the flavorful stouts there. I've had this again a couple of times and it doesn't have much re-drink value. I'm not even counting on beer to be good here. If I want some alcohol that tastes good I go for the wine because that's the best bet here. Now that's not to say there are absolutely no good brewers out here. Check out Burleigh Heads Brewing in Queensland. They've got good stuff. But the fact is the beer culture and appreciation is just not as complex as it is back in the States.

Beermigos Rating: Onesy Brew. Look it's good and all but it's not something to make a habit out of. It's enjoyable but nothing special.