Set in a beautiful part of northern NSW, the New England Brewing Company is making some fantastic beer. It can be a little hard to find in Sydney, but I was lucky to have a friend buy this for me from the brewery to celebrate the birth of my daughter. A seasonal brew, the ‘Frederick India Black Hop Cannon’ is a big, danky, resinous and delicious beer. Make the effort and seek them out, or buy online.

Bottle. Pours black with a ruby red tinge and well retained cappuccino coloured head. Fresh hops abound, with pine, grapefruit and cut grass dominating the flavour spectrum. It’s very bitter throughout (although there is some sweet malt at the beginning), full of grapefruit, resinous pine, spiciness and roasted malts towards the end. A really well balanced beer, despite the incredible amount of hops.

Appearance: 4/5
Aroma: 8/10
Flavour: 8/10
Palate: 4/5
Overall: 15/20