Five Islands Rust

Brewed by Illawarra Brewing Company
Style: Amber Ale
North Wollongong, NSW, Australia

Serve in English pint, Shaker

send corrections   |   shelftag   |   edit barcodes   |   update pic

UPDATED: DEC 30, 2012 On tap at Josie Bones and Cookie. Nice malty ale, with good hop support. Aromas of caramel, with a hint of liquorice and citrus. Taste is sweet, with bitter notes, and average length. Palate is velvety, and medium bodied. Amber, with a frothy head.

Tapped pint at the brewery. Easy drinking session beer, average carbonation with herbal hoppy and malty notes. The flavour has a crystal malt backbone with some hops showing through and a nice long finish.

on tap at local taphouse darlo. quite a nothing beer, was expecting more but it was lacking. barely any malt, and only some bittering hops.

On tap at FIBC. Low aroma and bitterness, medium body with caramel notes. Described as moreish, however half the taster was all that was required.

When I was told they were out of IPA the guy suggested I try their Irish Ale (they are both hoppy, he said) which threw me a bit. Anyway this is yet another boring as hell Irish ale with slightly more hops and even less malt. Aroma of boiling wort, some roastiness, dry hops and ice cream cones (the cone, not the ice cream). More light roastiness in the mouth, lacking malt flavour, some astringency and bitter finish (for an Irish at least).

strange beer, non-nitrogenated, instead quite thin and hoppy. tasted to me like rockmelon puree with some pride of ringwood hops thrown in. interesting anyway

funnily enough the most bitter and hoppy 5 islands is the irish red. the guy said he wasn't trying to make kilkenny... smells of nutty malt (melanoidin he told us). tastes of powerful dry malt and heaps of peppery hops. very dry finish. i always thought irish reds were sposter be heavy on the butter and toffee but this one certainly aint. whatever it is, it's got plenty of flavour.