Previously, we covered some lesser known German Alts. In this second installment of The Missing BJCP Styles, we’ll be going Down Under to investigate some beloved Australian beers. First we’ll look at Australian Pale Ale, also known as Australian Sparkling Ale, a style that has been kept alive by Cooper’s - though I hear some other examples of this style are popping up at brewpubs across Australia. After the Australian Pale/Sparkling Ale, we’ll venture into Australian Dark Ale and finally end with Australian Wheat Beer.

I must note that this information came (almost) straight out of the latest draft version of the “2008 Australian Amateur Brewing Championship Style Guidelines“. So a big thanks to the folks at the AABC and the contributors that helped to put these guidelines together. I say “almost” above because I did make one edit that I felt needed, which I will denote below with italics.

One of the main distinctions of Australian beers in general is the use of unique Australian hops and yeast strains. So, if you’re making any of the below, make sure you get the appropriate hops and yeast.

Note that the descriptions below are in flux, and the AABC will be revising these later this year. More Specifically, Australian Pale will probably have a big revision, the Dark Ale will probably be merged with Mild Ale and the Wheat ale will move into Kristallweizen. If and when these things occur, I’ll edit this post to reflect any changes made.

Next time, I’ll be continuing with Australia - posting about a few Australian Lagers: Australian Lager, Australian Bitter, and Premium Australian Lager.

Appearance: Gold to deep amber. Traditionally cloudy from chill haze and/or suspended yeast, but not dark and murky. Moderately high to high carbonation. Head retention reasonable to very good.

Aroma: Medium to high fruitiness from high primary fermentation temperature, supported by a light malt aroma. Hop aroma low to none. Distinctive fruity ester profile - especially pear. No diacetyl. No DMS.

Flavour: Initial light, sweet, or bready malt flavour. Caramel malt flavours absent. Medium to high fruitiness. Even malt/hop balance in flavour. A mild but distinctive peppery, herbaceous flavour from Pride of Ringwood hops is desirable. (English or German hop character acceptable for historical versions). Medium to high bitterness, which should never be crude or harsh. Dry finish from high attenuation and sulphate water. Bitterness may linger, but should not completely overpower the malt flavour. The best examples will display a long dry finish with a balanced aftertaste. No diacetyl.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body from high attenuation. Suspended yeast and/or protein may give an impression of substance, but heaviness of body or syrupiness from residual dextrins should be penalized.

Overall Impression: Similarities to British IPA, but more even malt/hop balance from absence of late or dry hopping. Always a fruity, full flavoured session beer, with a dry finish well suited to a hot climate, but open to some interpretation by brewers: historical versions may give an impression of wholesome sustenance - modern versions may be of a lighter, more refreshing nature.

Comments: An early Australian style which has evolved very little, but stood the test of time owing to its uniqueness and depth of character. The cloudy appearance, light bready flavour of Australian malt, distinctive yeast signature, and peppery character of Australian Pride of Ringwood hops, combine to produce a unique pale ale of substantial flavour and character. Bland examples, particularly those lacking fruitiness, should be penalized.

History: Brewed in Australia from the early 1800’s by British immigrants to the new colony, as an alternative to the expensive imported Burton pale ale of the day (eg. Bass). Distinctive in its use of local ingredients and water, and high temperature yeast strains, which generate a unique ester profile. In the hotter climate, these high attenuating, low flocculating strains may have evolved from powdery Burton yeasts through top-cropping over time. The style itself is not well documented, but fortunately an original example has survived in the form of Coopers Sparkling Ale. Founded in 1862 in Adelaide S.A., the family owned and operated Coopers Brewery is Australia’s only surviving independent brewery from colonial times. Coopers have steadfastly resisted the trend to lager brewing – their distinctive ale yeast strain has been in continuous use for almost a century. As recently as the 1980’s Coopers ales were still brewed in open fermenters of native jarrah wood, and matured in oak casks prior to bottling. Something of a misnomer, Coopers Sparkling Ale is traditionally cloudy. A lighter version, brewed since the late 1800’s, was re-released in 1988 as Coopers Original Pale Ale. Both are unfiltered, non-pasteurized, and bottle conditioned using the same yeast as in the primary fermentation.

Ingredients: Lightly kilned Australian 2-row malt, eg. Schooner, infusion mashed. Judicious use of crystal malt may add some colour. No adjuncts, cane sugar for bottle priming only. Originally a proportion of cane sugar was used to dilute excessive protein levels of early colonial malt. Early versions used English, German or locally grown hops - nowadays Pride of Ringwood, bred in Australia from English Pride of Kent in 1965, is used exclusively in Coopers beers. Coopers yeast, readily cultured from the bottle sediment. (Whitelabs WLP009 Australian Ale Yeast may be similar). Moderately carbonate water, high in sulphate. Note: Carbonate (alkaline) water may impair clarity, but excess levels can lead to astringency, or inappropriate coarseness in flavour and/or harsh bitterness in aftertaste.

Vital Statistics:
OG: 1040-1060
FG: 1006-1012
IBU: 30-45
ABV:4.2-6.2%

Commercial Examples: Coopers Sparkling Ale (5.8% ABV), Coopers Original Pale Ale (4.5% ABV)

Appearance: Mid-brown to dark brown, sometimes almost black and opaque. Low to medium carbonation. Excessive carbonation or flatness should be penalized.

Aroma: Mild malt aroma, with low to moderate fruitiness and toasty or light roasty notes. No to low hop aroma, caramel or diacetyl. Any yeasty notes or phenolics should be penalized, as should any excessive fruitiness or sweet caramel characters. Slight chocolate is acceptable. Clean aroma is essential.

Flavour: Mild maltiness with no hop flavour or diacety. Low to moderate fruitiness, light roastiness can be evident. Dry maltiness on the finish. Clean and quaffable. Low to medium carbonation. Any phenolics, diacetyl, yeasty flavours, astringency, harshness, or noticeable sweetness or alcohol, should be penalized.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium body.  Low to medium carbonation.

Overall Impression: A dry, mildly flavoured session beer. Malt evident but evenly balanced by hop bitterness.

Ingredients: Pale and chocolate malt, clean bittering hop such as Pride of Ringwood.

Vital Statistics:
OG: 1040-1050
FG: 1010-1016
IBU: 15-25
ABV:4.5-5.3%

Commercial Examples: Toohey’s Old Ale

Appearance: Pale straw to light gold. Excellent clarity. Large creamy head with excellent head retention. Generally very pale. High carbonation and protein content contribute to a thick creamy head.

Aroma: Wheat malt aroma complemented by hints of clove, vanilla and banana. Little or no hop aroma. Wheat malt aroma should dominate with underlying spicy clove-like phenols and fruity (banana) esters complementing. Hop aroma, if present, should be subtle.

Flavour: Mild, slightly sweet beer with low hop bitterness and little to no hop flavour. Wheat malt flavours should dominate providing a slightly sweet finish to the beer. Hop bitterness should be low and hop flavour low to undistinguishable. Only noble hops should be present.

Mouthfeel: Light.

Overall Impression: A mildly flavoured, malt dominated, session beer with excellent head retention.

Vital Statistics:
OG: 1040-1050
FG: 1006-1010
IBU: 10-15
ABV: 4.2-5.1%

Commercial Examples: Redback.

Other Missing Styles to Be Covered Soon:
Kellerbier, Gose, Wiess, Honey Beers (not Braggots), Classic American Cream Ale, Czech Dark Lager, English Pale Mild, Scottish 90/-, American Stock Ale, English Strong Ale, Non-alcoholic “Beer”, Malt Liquor, Imperial/Double Red Ale, Imperial/Double Brown Ale, Imperial Lager, Imperial Pilsner, Imperial Porter, Rye IPA, Dark American Wheat/Rye.