Beer – #86 – Valley Brewing Co – Muster

Valley Brewing Co – Muster – they’re in Geraldine this is a 4.4%ABV beer in a 330ml bottle. I bet you never had one of these.

It’s a “Red Ale” , and that’s pretty much all there is to know. Except that like the Yeastie boys this is brewed at the Invercargill brewery. Valley Brewery also make what would appear to be an average rated Pale ale.

So it appears I found a beer that not a lot of people know about, and that worries me. A bit.

And so to the chase.

Hoppy on the nose, so far so good, but then it’s a bit thick and almost wet weetabix like as an aroma. Don’t ask. It’s a bit Prometheus monster, a throw together. There is tangy, there is sweet, there is frowning.. This can’t be a good thing. This feels over carbonated too, despite having no head or lacing in the glass.

I like a “Red Ale”, and if I was out and this was on tap I’d give it a nudge. Just the one time though. There is no depth in this, or width, there is no fore or back taste. I’m not being cruel but this isn’t something you should be enjoying outside of Geraldine, where no doubt it’s a crowd favourite.

A local beer for local people. The pdubyah-o-meter at it’s most generous gets to a 4 arbitrary things from its equally arbitrary number. This is neither craft, or a good beer. It doesn’t deserve a space on a shelf a single bottle sale, it’s suitable for mainstream 6 pack buy and get what you get. It’s ghastly.

I wish I’d saved my premium money for a better beer. Even a home brew.