OnTap Magazine

POISON CITY BREWING DURBAN POISON 5 The Poison City Brewing contract brand was perfectly positioned to take advantage of the legalisation of marijuana for personal use in 2018 when they released South Africa’s first “cannabis infused” lager. While this was absolutely a gimmicky beer, following a trend which has subsequently lost favour, it showed just how much success can be achieved through being on trend and having a strong branding and marketing plan. MITCHELL’S BREWERY BOSUNS BITTER 1 This one is personal for me. My craft beer awakening was drinking Bosuns bitter every Tuesday night at the Radium Beer Hall. Mitchells was the first craft brewery in South Africa so any of their beers could be considered pioneers, but their bitter will always hold a special place in my heart and as one of South Africa’s first ales (at least since the end of the 19th century) it is definitely an essential piece of recent beer history. THREE SKULLS BREW WORKS X VALLEY BREWERY VALLEY OF THE SKULLS 2 Officially South Africa’s first collaboration beer, brewed in 2012 by Cape Town’s Valley Brewery and Joburg’s Three Skulls. This was a hard-hitting black IPA – a novel style at the time. The beer was repeated annually until Three Skulls closed in 2015. It was later taken up by Afro Caribbean Brewing Company, whose owner Greg Casey orchestrated that original collab, and the iconic ale is released periodically in tribute. ANVIL MJOLNIR IPA 3 IPAs in South Africa are controversial. Many will argue that most of our IPAs lack the hop intensity and alcohol level required for the style. When Mjolnir IPA (appropriately named after the mythical hammer of Thor) hit South African palates there were no such inferences. That this beer went on to win a gold medal at the International Beer Challenge in 2016 is further proof of its status as a leading light for IPAs, especially in the north of the country. AGAR’S BREWERY TOMAHAWK IPA 4 Another genre-defining IPA is the offering from Agar’s. Staying true to the classic West Coast style at 7% ABV it is crammed full of hop flavour and aroma yet dangerously drinkable. Undoubtably this beer set the benchmark for IPAs in Gauteng. RICHMOND HILL BREWING CO. CAR PARK JOHN 6 We South Africans are extremely dedicated to our pale gold lagers, and most breweries have realised that they need to brew something similar to garner broader appeal. Not so with Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth) based Richmond Hill who have stuck to their guns with their ‘entry level’ beer Car Park John. This amber ale has all the drinkability of a pale lager but with enough character to keep the craft beer drinker happy. The success of this beer for Richmond Hill shows that not every brewer needs a light lager look-alike. ontapmag.co.za | Spring 2021 | 45