On Tuesday the 24th of October I visited the BentSpoke Brewing Co. in Canberra, ACT. The brewery was opened in 2013, about three and a half years ago. It operates with a three vessel, 12 hectolitre brewhouse and has seven fermentation tanks, five 24 hectolitre and two 12 hectolitre. They also have six bright tanks for delivering their core range of beers to tap, as well as one bright tank that is used for kegging their seasonal brews. They use the system to brew three to four times a week.
At the bar they have their six core beers on tap as well as eight rotating seasonal beers. They also have two through the hand pump and one that runs through their ‘Hopinator’ , while I was there this was their Barley Griffin which was run through Galaxy Hop flowers. Last week it was their Descent 17 Imperial Stout which was run through cherries and cocoa nibs, it sounded wonderful.
All of their packaged beer is produced off site at Mitchell where they have a 50 hectolitre system and a seven head filling canning line. They hope to open a retail bar there in 2018. They try to be environmentally friendly with all of their spent grain going to local farmers as stock feed.
The brewery bar was designed from the floor up, so they have made it the way they want it. All of the beers are plumbed through stainless steel piping that compliments the look of the venue.
They have a great food menu at the bar as well.
The beers that I sampled were:
Mort’s Gold, 4.5% abv, 30 IBU, this is a Pilsner with a golden colour and a subtle fruit aroma. It has a nice malty flavour on a gentle bitter finish.
Sprocket, 7.0% abv, 45 IBU, this is a summer IPA with a hazy golden colour and a tropical fruit aroma. It has a sweet tropical fruit taste and then a generous fruity bitterness on the finish.
Crankshaft, 5.8% abv, 35 IBU, this is an orange IPA with a cloudy orange colour and a citrus hop aroma. It has a strong orange, citrus flavour with a big hop bitter finish.
Big Nut, 7.5% abv, 45 IBU, this is a dark Ale with a black colour and a roasted coffee malt aroma. It has a wonderful rich malt flavour of nuts and coffee on a mild bitter finish. Very nice.
Cluster 8, 8.8% abv, 65 IBU, this is an Imperial IPA with a golden amber colour and a sweet fruity aroma. It has a great sweet fruity taste that turns into a rich but mild hop bitter finish.
Cluster 12, 12.2% abv, 65 IBU, this is a Triple IPA with a copper colour and a fruity citrus and pine aroma. It has a full fruity flavour of sweetness with hints of citrus and stone fruit before a generous, resinous hop bitterness on the finish.
Stratus, 8.0% abv, 62 IBU, this is a New England IPA with a golden colour and a strong fruity aroma of citrus and tropical fruit. It has a super citrus fruit flavour on a good, lingering, resinous hop bitter finish. True to the style.
Cluster 16, 16.2% abv, 52 IBU, this is a Belgian quadruple IPA with a dark amber colour and a sweet fruit aroma. It has a wonderful, strong, rich fruit cake flavour with a very serious kick. Magnificent!
Barley Griffin, 4.2% abv, 22 IBU, this is an Australian Pale Ale with a straw colour and a subtle sweet citrus aroma. It has a sweet initial malt taste and then a mild fruitiness on a gentle bitter finish.
Braddon Bitter, 4.2% abv, 36 IBU, this is an English Bitter served on the hand pump. It has a sweet caramel malt aroma and a lovely malt flavour of caramel and toffee on a mild bitter finish.
Red Nut, 7.0% abv, 56 IBU, this is a Red IPA with a dark amber colour and a pine hop aroma. It has a sweet malt initial taste that transitions quickly into a big fruity, resinous hop bitter finish.
Blow Your Bagpipe, 8.1% abv, 25 IBU, this is a strong Scotch Ale with a dark brown colour and a mixed aroma of malt and fruit. It has a sweet, rich, fruity flavour. Quite delicious.
I really enjoyed all of the beers that I tried at The BentSpoke Brewing Co. they have a very extensive selection and are really putting out some amazing flavours. They also produce a cider and a ginger beer for those that are not into beers. I really recommend visiting this venue if you have the opportunity.
I would like to thank Tracey for taking the time to talk with me when I visited.
