31st March 2020
This Tuesday was difficult. More bad news for me, as my loss of income due to this wretched virus will not be compensated. While there are many folks worse off than I am, this is still a pretty miserable situation, and it can be difficult to think beyond everything I’ve worked for and lost. I’m very fortunate to have JB, who is such a positive person and can always see the silver lining in any situation. Tuesday is still Tuesday, and that means having a few virtual beers with our UK friends for Craft Beer Hour, a happy tradition made all the more important by current events, when our community can come together, share in each other’s company and focus on the joy that good beer can bring. I always love taking part in Craft Beer Hour despite the 6 hour time difference (like I need an excuse to start drinking at 3pm!), and this Tuesday the connection felt more important than ever. It was a hot one here in ATX, which meant beers in our cute but somewhat overgrown garden (or yard, I am told), and as Craft Beer Hour segued into Top-Brews-Tues (another fun online beer-conversation with folks on this side of the pond) I wanted to choose something both special and summery to savour.
Austin Beerworks – Science Defiance Sour IPA
As soon as I saw this new ABW release I knew this would be our first to-go-beer stop on getting back into the city. I have a bit of a Sour IPA crush at the moment, and full confidence in our awesome friends at ABW to deliver something pretty spectacular. Turns out (unsurprisingly) that I was right – we absolutely could not get enough of this funk-tastic, yeast-forward, bretted-hoppy-oakey delight. The combination of flavours might sound like too much but actually they came together in perfect harmony so that the beer was both bright and zingy with a sherbety mouthfeel but also retained a nice long finish of rustic hops and wood. We began drinking our 750ml (just $10 – absolutely bargainous!) on our balmy patio, then brought it in as we cooked chilli-garlic stir-fry prawns (shrimp) with hoi sin and mango, which paired beautifully with the last of the bottle – another challenging day made good. We love ABW and are already missing our regular visits to their super-cool taproom. This is going to be a long month, and I have no doubt we’ll be back for resupplies soon!
Craft Beer Amethyst 