The label on the bottle reads “Great Things Take Time“, the guys from Stone Head seems to be needing some more time with their Hazelnut Chocolate Stout. Not a very impressive work at all.

There’s a small head to the beer when poured which disappears very quickly. The aroma is so faint that I could hardly get any sense at all what they are trying to achieve.

When I took my first sip of the beer I thought to myself, “Have they mistakenly dropped a bunch of limes in their fermentation tank?”. A weird sour taste took me aback like there’s no tomorrow. What the hell have they been trying to do?

After a few more sips I kind of got used to the sour flavour, but it was still no pleasure to the palate. I start feeling some chocolate flavours but it´s all overpowered by the sour taste. Slight hint of hazelnut but there’s no depth to the flavours and they disappear as fast as the beer went down my throat.

The hazelnut chocolate stout has a medium body and could be quite easily drinkable if the taste was better. Although I’ve had way worse beers, I see no particular reason why anyone would prefer this stout over others.

Stone Head

Stone Head is a Thai Craft Beer brand that operates their own brewery in Koh Kong, Cambodia. Like many other Thai Craft Brewers, they escaped the country to pursue their passion and with the intent of selling their beer legally in their home country. As you might know, brewing beer is illegal in Thailand and getting the necessary licenses to do so is near to impossible. Currently, their brewery in Cambodia has the capacity to produce around 3000 litres a day. One of their passion is also to include traditional Thai ingredients to their beer.

You can read more about these Thai Craft Beer Brewers and their beers at:
https://stonehead.beer

Got Happy New Beer’s pilsner at The Fat Cow on Ladphrao Road.

First, I need to say that the beer looks fantastic. It pours with an impressive frothy head and it looks a bit hazy like many Pilsners do. I do, however, like my Pilsners crisp, and while Happy New Beer’s pilsner is smooth, it lacks the crispiness of the Czech-style pilsner I normally like. That should mean it’s definitely made in the way the Dutch make their pilsners.

The mouthfeel of this Thai pilsner is a bit heavier than usual. It feels like they have overdone the hopping because it is very hop-heavy for a pilsner. The same applies to the aroma. Happy New Beer is otherwise one of the best Thai Craft Beers on the market, but their pilsner is a bit of a letdown. Having said that, pilsner is not an easy style to brew. It seems like they have made the hops more important than the pilsner malts that should be the main focus in this kind of beer.

If you’re interested in their other beers you can check out the Grapefruit New England IPA.

Happy New Beer is one of the Thai Craft Beers that is brewed abroad. While most Thai Beers are brewed in Asia, this brewer actually brews this beer in Australia (the 500ml cans are brewed in the US). They also operate a bar in Khao Yai called E.A.T. At Khao Yai.

Beer Profile:
Name: Happy New Pilsner
Brewer: Happy New Beer
Brewed in: USA
Style: Pilsner
ABV: 5.0%
IBU: N/A

Bang Bang IPA is a classic IPA by Thai Craft Brewer Sandport Beer. This is the flagship IPA of these brewers, and the hops used in the beer are Columbus, Amarillo, Mosaic, and Cascade. This mixture of hops results in a flavour and aroma that is typical of a tropical American style India Pale Ale.

The Bang Bang IPA won a bronze medal for Best IPA at Australia International Beer Award 2017.

Beer Profile:
Name: Bang Bang IPA
Brewer: Sandport Beer
Brewed in: Kingdom Breweries, Cambodia
Style: India Pale Ale
ABV: 6%
IBU: 53
Flavour Profile: Tropical, Citrus, Floral

Who is Sandport Beer?
Sandport Beer is one of the original Thai Craft Beer brewers and they have been brewing since 2014. There’s a total of 12 brewers brewing for Sandport, most of their beers are brewed at Kingdom Breweries in Cambodia. They also have a bar in Lak Si district of Bangkok, the bar is called Fellowship of Beer by Sandport.

Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/sandportbeer/

When I saw the label of the Grapefruit IPA for the first time, I thought, “fair enough”, but when I read it is supposed to be a New England IPA it really raised my interest.

Happy New Beer is one of the Thai Craft Beers that have been around for a very long time. I have written a few articles about them before, and if you’re interested you can, for example, look at my writeup about their Pilsner by clicking here.

I had the Grapefruit IPA in a can the same week they released it. There is not much of a head, but with a New England I’m expecting haziness. There is none…

New England IPA’s are still quite rare in the Thai Craft Beer Market, and it kind of feels like the fad was over before it even arrived. However, I might be wrong and it might well be that Happy New Beer will reinforce the trend with this beer.

Compared to every other single New England IPA I’ve had, this beer pours very clear. Medium head. The aroma is very hoppy as expected, and although it, according to me, doesn’t really look like an IPA, it kind of tastes like one. It has this flavour of hop residue, with a hint of grapefruit as promised.

Beer Profile:
Name: Grapefruit New England IPA
Brewer: Happy New Beer
Brewed in: USA
Style: New England IPA
ABV: 6%
IBU: N/A

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