By VIC CROSSLAND: Raise a glass in congratulation to Old Coast Road craft brewer Andrew Harris. The glass is a pint of English-style bitter, perfectly pulled from a beer engine, or handpump, he’s brought in from Yorkshire and installed at his Myalup brewery-restaurant bar.

A series of steady pulls on the handle syphons the beer from the cellar-temperature keg, down the swan-neck spout to the bottom of the glass, lifting the foam to the rim.

Harris has adapted Harris Bitter Ale to suit the traditional delivery system. The unfiltered beer, brewed with prime Maris Otter barley malt and English hops, is darker than the light-copper-coloured 3.7 per cent original. “There’s a touch of dark malts which give chocolate and caramel notes,” Harris says.

The head is firmer and laces well from natural carbonation. And, tellingly, the alcohol level has come down to 3 per cent, similar to an English mild. “This makes the excise duty lower so Harris Bitter can sell for $6, about the same price as a British pint.”

The project involved technical as well as brewing skills. Harris has devised a thermostat to keep the keg under the bar at 8C and on-demand valve to maintain CO2 levels. He has ordere1200

By VIC CROSSLAND: Brewers at Little Creatures just keep on hitting the high notes with their Single Batch limited releases. The Quiet American once again displays perfect pitch.

Billed as a showcase for the Fremantle brewery’s latest consignment of US hop flowers, this magnificent strong ale nevertheless owes at least half its attraction to Belgium. The hybrid brew contrasts signature Belgian yeast, malt and candy characters with the impact of ubiquitous Cascade and Chinook hop flavours and bitterness.

This autumn Single Batch is good enough to emulate the appeal of Little Creatures’ The Big Dipper IPA – No. 6 in The Critics’ Choice list – and should not be missed. It’s on tap at the brewery bars and some pubs and in pint bottles, but hurry while supplies last.

The Quiet American is top pick of three ales new to the market. While the others make no claim to follow Little Creatures’ audacious style, they cater to an eclectic audience.

Vale IPA from South Australia is “more robust” than the successful Vale Ale, though designed as sessionable refreshment rather than a sensation for beer buffs. Vale head brewer Jeff Wright says a big IPA is every brewer’s favourite, but acknowledge1200

Willie Simpson: Coffee, chilli, chocolate, rum, beetroot, sweet potato, coconut and pine needles are just a selection of the more exotic ingredients used in beers created for the Great Australasian Beer SpecTAPular.

To be held at Melbourne's Royal Exhibition Building, and inspired by European and American craft beer events, the festival brings together more than 60 microbreweries, each of which creates a special brew for the occasion. Visitors will find bars selling the beers, vendors with food, seminars and hundreds of places to sit and enjoy the occasion.

Organised by Steve Jeffares and his Local Taphouse team, the festival's brief to the brewers, invited from both sides of the Tasman, is to concoct something new. ''It's the ultimate recycling project,'' a participant and the owner of St Peters Brewery, Matt Donelan, says. ''Instead of throwing out my Christmas tree, I turned it into beer.'' Using a pine tree to flavour a brew sounds unlikely but it's not entirely without precedent. ''While on holiday in New Zealand, I tasted [Mussel Inn's] Captain Cooker, which is made with manuka branches and leaves,'' Donelan says.

''Originally, I was thinking of using a eucaly1200

By Willie Simpson.  We can put a man on the moon but we haven’t yet developed the technology to allow him to enjoy a beer on the way. Not quite, anyway, according to space engineer Dr Jason Held, who is developing Vostok – a so-called “space beer” - in collaboration with 4 Pines Brewing.

 

Vostok is based on the recipe for 4 Pines Stout, with a modified carbonation which is more suitable for zero gravity and other conditions experienced during space travel.

 

“Gases and liquids don’t separate at zero gravity, which makes dispensing difficult but also means any burp will be wet,” Held warns. “[Personally] I like to drink the dark stuff – porters, stouts and dark ales, but stout also has the best ‘wiggle room’ for changing carbonation levels whilst still keeping taste.

 

“We knew we had to reduce carbonation but didn’t know how much. Removing all the bubbles in the beer just results in an alcoholic tea, so the task [was in] finding that sweet spot between flavour, bubbles and comfort.”

 

After conducting initial taste tests, Held dropped samples of different recipes from a high tower at a Queensland research station – “To give a brief glance of how beer bubbles respond to ver1200