Posted on 30/05/22
Soooo for those not yet in the know, Moersleutel largely brew up thick, sweet and sticky, high-strength stouts that many believe to be among the best you can find anywhere in the world.
And this week, we managed to gather up no fewer than NINE of them!
Plus, there’s new hop brilliance from Azvex and Track, and Arbor’s latest experiment with Azacca is a joy. Ready?
Here are the best new beers we’ve unearthed this week.
Meet Moersleutel! As you may know, Netherlands-based Moersleutel largely brew up thick, sweet and sticky, high-strength stouts that many believe to be the best beers in the Netherlands – and among the best the world!
We’re lucky to have in no fewer than NINE of their gloopy dessert stouts, including the 12% Intergalactic Bounty Hunter Imperial Coconut & Coffee Stout and May The S’mores Be With You Imperial Marshmallow Chocolate Cookie Stout.
The best of all though, for me, is Willy Tonka: Tonka & Chocolate Imperial Stout – a dense and roasty imperial stout with a tonka spiced kick and intense chocolate flavours.
Immense!
Sticking with the theme, next on the dark hit list this week is Paranormal’s The Opposite Imperial PX Sherry Stout, brewed in collaboration with Moersleutel!
Here you have a heavy base stout dripping with dark chocolate, all blended together with specialist Pedro Ximénez Sherry.
This is deep, rich, and indulgent, fruity and oaky, after-hours deliciousness.
The final Moersleutel beer I want to give special attention to is Mexicoffeecake Imperial Stout, which showcases some of the best can art you’ll ever see.
Pour this for a sticky-sweet Mexicake concoction, complete with Chipotle, Cinnamon, Cacao Nibs and Vanilla.
To finish Mexicoffeecake 2022 Moersleutel added fresh brewed coffee, infusing this monster with the complete imperial stout flavour profile: rich, roasty, sweet, spicy with coffee and chocolate… all in one beer!
If you don’t want this, why are you even reading this post?!
There are three new lines of Azvex to explore this week, the biggest, thickest and richest of which is The Fermi Paradox DIPA.
At 9.2%, this is almost TIPA territory. It’s a soft, super creamy, and indulgent faceful of tropical fruit.
It’s Verdant dialled up, in what some are already saying is their Beer of the Year.
Get it in – you won’t regret it.
Track’s Full Dome DIPA has attracted similar admiration.
This is another massive, thick and creamy DIPA from a brewery capable of craft brilliance.
Freshly squeezed orange, blended mango, sweet melon and a little bitterness – this monster has multiple dimensions. Enjoy trying to work this glorious beast out.
More and more brewers are using Azacca hops right now, and Arbor are the latest hit brewery to follow suit.
Massive Azacc NEPA is mango, pineapple and tangerine, plus a little spice, which gives this an interesting edge.
Headlining the category-defying beers this week we have Elusive’s Happy Land Cherry Wheat Beer.
This starts with the underlying banana, cloves and cinnamon that are so common in wheat beers, but Elusive’s addition of sour cherry puree launch this into the stratosphere.
A wheat beer with sour cherry tartness and a vibrant red colour. This is not your average wheat beer!
Cider fans, we’ve upped our Ascension output with three more cans of fun: there’s now Sour Cranberry Cider on offer, Blackcurrant Lemonade Cider and, best of all, a Pineapple & Lemon Wild Cider.
It turns out there’s more to cider than Strongbow and black.
Finally, for craft lager fans, you need to get in on Arbor’s Vienna Lager – this is thick and full-bodied but still crisp.
And, like all Arbor Ales, it comes in full PINT cans!
If Azvex’s DIPA proves too intimidating for you, ease yourself in with Concrete Rocket and/or Suburban Crocodile IPA. Ditto Track: get in on Infinite Trees Strata West Coast IPA for a 7% helping of hoppy brilliance.
There’s a big bunch of new Newtown Park to delve through too, including Daydreamer Session IPA. Not all beers need to be 7% plus!
More fresh Arbor too! There’s a single-hop Citra Pale Ale, a Lemon & Lime Pale, and the juicy Space Hardware New England IPA that has hops aplenty.
Really, though, you have to try something by Moersleutel this week. This brewery have a rep for brewing some of the best stouts in the world for a reason – and it is a special weekend ahead!
The cut off date for last orders is Tuesday at 1pm – but get your order in early to avoid any upsets!
Enjoy the big weekend!
Oli, Olly & Charlie
(The three people behind Craft Metropolis)
Step 1
We trawl the globe tasting great beer
