CRAFT brewer Matilda Bay has proved just as adept at inventing intriguing names for its specialty beers as it is at making them.

This is the crew, after all, that dreamed up Barking Duck (a farmyard, Saisson-style ale); a red lager dubbed Rooftop Red named in honour of a Paul Kelly song, and Dogbolter dark lager.

It should come as no surprise when new brewer Scott Vincent and his team didn’t hold back when coming upwith a moniker for their latest brew.

Inspired by the animal of the same

name, Fat Yak is a 4.7 per cent,

hop-driven US-style pale ale

characterised by a hint of

passionfruit.

Why FatYak? ‘‘It’s big (in taste),

but it’s a bit cuddly and

approachable,’’ Vincent says.

‘‘It’s not an overly bitter beer, but it

works quite well.’’

Extrafood was fortunate enough to

sample Fat Yak at its birthplace, The

Garage brewery inDandenong.

Wecame away mightily

impressed. Not too bitter, Fat Yak’s

hop-driven fruity characteristics

linger as it disappears down your

throat, leaving behind a refreshingly

clean impact on the palate.

It’s a beer that sacrifices nothing

when it comes to flavour, which is

exactly what its makers wanted.

Vincent says Fat Yak is designed to

fill a gap left by the excellent but

much more robust and fuller

flavoured Alpha Pale ale in the

Matilda Bay stable.

Many drinkers found that

particular beer somewhat polarising.