Of Foam and Fury (Galway Bay)

n97 mini · 18-01-2014 1:02am

I also found it over rated. A double IPA should punch you in the mouth, like Hardcore IPA does. This is too sweet (i.e. not bitter enough) and the hops are too fruity, and lacking a kick. It's over priced relative to the duty and ingredients that went into it, and I've no doubt it when it hits the off trade it will also be overpriced (I saw O'Hara's one and a quarter IPA on sale today in an offy for €4.39 for a 500ml :eek:)

There are two very good Irish IPAs out there at the moment, Galaxy by Trouble, and Your Auld One('s Amber Ale) brewed at Five Lamps.

drumswan · 18-01-2014 9:20am

n97 mini wrote: »

I also found it over rated. A double IPA should punch you in the mouth, like Hardcore IPA does. This is too sweet (i.e. not bitter enough) and the hops are too fruity, and lacking a kick. It's over priced relative to the duty and ingredients that went into it, and I've no doubt it when it hits the off trade it will also be overpriced (I saw O'Hara's one and a quarter IPA on sale today in an offy for €4.39 for a 500ml :eek:)

Think you were served the wrong beer. And price has no relevance to flavour or whether a beer is 'overrated'.

There are two very good Irish IPAs out there at the moment, Galaxy by Trouble, and Your Auld One('s Amber Ale) brewed at Five Lamps.

Amber ale is not IPA, it's a totally different style. Galaxy is probably closer to amber ale also.

slayerking · 18-01-2014 5:45pm

Tried this beer on two occasions.
Very good beer, but I did find it a bit on the sweet/chewy side if I'm honest.
I little overrated IMO, but I can understand why.... Our first proper big hoppy DIPA!
I hope more breweries follow suit.

hamsterboy · 25-01-2014 6:30am

I see bottles on drinkstore.ie... Any sign of them in real life stores?

BMJD · 25-01-2014 2:19pm

McHughs in Artane and Kilbarrack have it in store. €5.79 a go.

Hugo_Whoriskey · 25-01-2014 3:31pm

hamsterboy wrote: »

I see bottles on drinkstore.ie... Any sign of them in real life stores?

Yup, drinkstore on Manor St, Stoneybatter.

drumswan · 25-01-2014 5:54pm

Redmonds has stock too

hamsterboy · 25-01-2014 6:40pm

Anywhere in Galway. Was talking to a barman in The Cottage and he reckoned it would be two weeks before they see bottles
:O
Find it hard to believe they went to Dublin first

Redsoxfan · 25-01-2014 7:26pm

hamsterboy wrote: »

Anywhere in Galway. Was talking to a barman in The Cottage and he reckoned it would be two weeks before they see bottles
:O
Find it hard to believe they went to Dublin first

I assume it's on draft all the time in The Cottage?

stevenmu · 25-01-2014 10:09pm

They had it in Whelans off license on Friday. Raging now I didn't pick some up and went for Goose Island instead.

Well, that's a lie, I could never be unhappy with Goose Island, but raging I didn't get some Foam and Fury too

dub_skav · 26-01-2014 4:12pm

Over 6.50 each in redmonds, bit steep if you ask me

Colonel Sanders · 26-01-2014 5:34pm

dub_skav wrote: »

Over 6.50 each in redmonds, bit steep if you ask me

For a 500ml bottle??

Wow, that is steep

Creamy Goodness · 26-01-2014 6:17pm

6.50 here in hollands too, won't be buying many of them at that price tbh.

jsa112 · 26-01-2014 7:03pm

Was 6.95 in redmonds fwiw.

tomhalloween · 26-01-2014 7:26pm

Had it from bottle last night for the first time. I honestly think it was worth every cent of the 6.50 I paid. Nicest beer I've had in a long time.

hamsterboy · 26-01-2014 7:33pm

I agree 6.50 is a tad expensive but for this stuff I would definitely be purchasing.
Still find it odd that they make the stuff in Galway yet the bottles can so far only be got in Dublin :-(

jsa112 · 26-01-2014 7:36pm

How is it odd ? There's probably a lot more demand for it in dublin. Not as if it takes that long to transport stuff from galway to dublin too

Creamy Goodness · 26-01-2014 7:38pm

it's nice from the bottle, nicer on draught though imo. 6.50 is pricey when you consider that 'I hardcore you' and 'hardcore IPA' can be gotten cheaper (albeit 330ml bottles) and would have a more expensive transport costs.

that being said, this is ireland best DIPA and worth the try.

obligatory pic

hamsterboy · 26-01-2014 8:02pm

jsa112 wrote: »

How is it odd ? There's probably a lot more demand for it in dublin. Not as if it takes that long to transport stuff from galway to dublin too

Well ok I'll agree there's more demand for it in Dublin but I wouldn't underestimate the demand in Galway either. Would've been nice to have had the chance to try the bottled as soon as it was ready.
Ah well.... Will just have to wait a bit

HB

cormacjones · 26-01-2014 8:38pm

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

it's nice from the bottle, nicer on draught though imo. 6.50 is pricey when you consider that 'I hardcore you' and 'hardcore IPA' can be gotten cheaper (albeit 330ml bottles) and would have a more expensive transport costs.

that being said, this is ireland best DIPA and worth the try.

obligatory pic

That's a great glass.

BaZmO* · 26-01-2014 9:10pm

cormacjones wrote: »

That's a great glass.

They're ridiculously thin though.

Creamy Goodness · 26-01-2014 9:13pm

yup, they're extremely delicate at the rim of the glass.

snowblind · 27-01-2014 2:15pm

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

it's nice from the bottle, nicer on draught though imo. 6.50 is pricey when you consider that 'I hardcore you' and 'hardcore IPA' can be gotten cheaper (albeit 330ml bottles) and would have a more expensive transport costs.

Well I think neither of those beers is as good as OFAF. I think with Drinkstores pricing, OFAF is cheaper as well?

Also for hoppy beers, paying more for "transport costs" is just weird - the hop aromas fade in warm transportation, so why would I be willing to pay more for it?

Creamy Goodness · 27-01-2014 2:24pm

snowblind wrote: »

Well I think neither of those beers is as good as OFAF. I think with Drinkstores pricing, OFAF is cheaper as well?

Also for hoppy beers, paying more for "transport costs" is just weird - the hop aromas fade in warm transportation, so why would I be willing to pay more for it?

All prices are Drink Store prices:

OFAF - 5.70.
Hardcore - 4.20.
Hardcore you - 4.99.

Now a few things,

1. I never said these beers were better than OFAF.
2. I didn't mean that I would pay transport costs for hoppy beers, I meant that the likes of these beers are being transported further to get here therefore have a higher transport cost than say a van coming 2:30 hours from Galway to Dublin.

I know Galway bay are incredibly smaller than Brew dog and the likes but it is a little bit too much IMO for it to be a regular drinker.

Also it's a bit odd for them to be charging €7 for it in their own off-licences when it's cheaper in others.

Minor niggles for an otherwise great Irish beer.

drumswan · 27-01-2014 2:32pm

snowblind wrote: »

Well I think neither of those beers is as good as OFAF. I think with Drinkstores pricing, OFAF is cheaper as well?

Also for hoppy beers, paying more for "transport costs" is just weird - the hop aromas fade in warm transportation, so why would I be willing to pay more for it?

The brewer often insists that these beers are shipped in cold storage - I know that was the case for the Stone stuff released before xmas.

BaZmO* · 27-01-2014 2:34pm

snowblind wrote: »

Well I think neither of those beers is as good as OFAF. I think with Drinkstores pricing, OFAF is cheaper as well?

Also for hoppy beers, paying more for "transport costs" is just weird - the hop aromas fade in warm transportation, so why would I be willing to pay more for it?

I think that whole "fresh is best" when it comes to hoppy beers is over sold imo. I'm sure the hoppyness fades but I'd love to see how many people could actually tell the difference in a blind tasting.

snowblind · 27-01-2014 2:45pm

BaZmO* wrote: »

I think that whole "fresh is best" when it comes to hoppy beers is over sold imo. I'm sure the hoppyness fades but I'd love to see how many people could actually tell the difference in a blind tasting.

Well there's only one way to find out!

My experience on the matter is definitely conclusive, and the taste of OFAF compared to some competition is one of the contributing factors.

This weekend I was trying out some of the hoppy stuff I usually like, and the complexity of taste in OFAF compared to all the others (american ones) was absolutely clear.

8 Wired Hopwired was my favourite beer the first time I tried it, the second time a couple of weeks later it tasted good but a clear notch or one and a half notches down from the pole position.

Many of the hoppy beers available here are a bit of a gamble in this regards - thankfully with OFAF (especially with the bottling date printed on the bottle) I do not have to be disappointed by an american IPA from Flying Dog or whatever that was "great the previous time I tried it" but now just alright.

I'm quite sure that the difference would be apparent in blind tasting, provided if the participants have a palate that is used to hoppy beers.

snowblind · 27-01-2014 2:49pm

drumswan wrote: »

The brewer often insists that these beers are shipped in cold storage - I know that was the case for the Stone stuff released before xmas.

Well if the brewer insists and it's acted upon, that's definitely an improvement! But the off licences should also have proper fridges for these beers, but most of them do not. And the ones that do, don't really use it for the hoppy beers as would make sense. And cold storage only slows the process down. There's nothing better for a good hoppy beer than having it fresh and close to the source.

snowblind · 27-01-2014 2:54pm

Creamy Goodness wrote: »

All prices are Drink Store prices:

OFAF - 5.70.
Hardcore - 4.20.
Hardcore you - 4.99.

Now a few things,

1. I never said these beers were better than OFAF.
2. I didn't mean that I would pay transport costs for hoppy beers, I meant that the likes of these beers are being transported further to get here therefore have a higher transport cost than say a van coming 2:30 hours from Galway to Dublin.

I know Galway bay are incredibly smaller than Brew dog and the likes but it is a little bit too much IMO for it to be a regular drinker.

Also it's a bit odd for them to be charging €7 for it in their own off-licences when it's cheaper in others.

Minor niggles for an otherwise great Irish beer.

OFAF - 5.70 for 0.5l - 11.50 for 1 litre
Hardcore - 4.20 for 0.33l 12.60 for 1 litre
Hardcore you - 4.99 for 0.33l 14.97 for 1 litre

Something important was left out!

I was also disappointed that OFAF is quite expensive, but I can still justify paying that with the competition in mind. The beers I would compare it to would cost the same or more. And I like OFAF more, even though the observed difference in quality might not be 100% because of the brewing process itself - when the other choices are brought from America or NZ, the Irish choice has an absolute benefit of freshness. At least until it's been hanging on the shelves for a while.

BaZmO* · 27-01-2014 2:59pm

Regardless of all the ins and outs, Galway Bay know they've made a top beer, especially with the likes of us prattling on about it, and as result of that they've put a premium on it. Same for any of the off licences that are charging mad money for it.

MonstaMash · 28-01-2014 2:27pm

Over priced & over rated IMHO

Geuze · 28-01-2014 5:16pm

Is this a joke?

5.70 for 50cl retail price in an off-licence??

Unreal.

At 5.70 per pint in a pub might be ok, but shop price - that's crazy.

Duvel 33cl is about, what, 2.50?? That's 3.75 per 50cl.

GBB surely have rebated excise, meaning the excise is halved??

sofireland · 28-01-2014 5:20pm

To be fair they only serve it at 2/3 a pint in the pubs.

sofireland · 28-01-2014 5:20pm

To be fair they only serve it at 2/3 a pint in the pubs.

snowblind · 28-01-2014 5:36pm

Geuze wrote: »

Is this a joke?

5.70 for 50cl retail price in an off-licence??

Unreal.

At 5.70 per pint in a pub might be ok, but shop price - that's crazy.

Duvel 33cl is about, what, 2.50?? That's 3.75 per 50cl.

GBB surely have rebated excise, meaning the excise is halved??

Why would you compare it to Duvel, a very different beer?
I would compare it to something like 8 Wired Hopwired, which is around 7 euro a bottle, used to be more than 8! But brought all the way from NZ with all the taste consequences of such a trip.

GLaDOS · 28-01-2014 5:39pm

For a beer that strong I'd rather a 330 ml bottle for cheaper tbh. 500 ml at that strength is a bit much for me.

Geuze · 28-01-2014 6:09pm

snowblind wrote: »

Why would you compare it to Duvel, a very different beer?

Both about 8.5% ABV, I think???

So similar excise?

Though GBB may get a microbrewery reduction?

drumswan · 28-01-2014 6:36pm

Geuze wrote: »

Both about 8.5% ABV, I think???

So similar excise?

Though GBB may get a microbrewery reduction?

Steady on, Moorgat are producing about 700,000 hl of beer annually, comparing Duvel to OFAF is a tad ridiculous.

Technocentral · 28-01-2014 7:24pm

snowblind wrote: »

Why would you compare it to Duvel, a very different beer?
I would compare it to something like 8 Wired Hopwired, which is around 7 euro a bottle, used to be more than 8! But brought all the way from NZ with all the taste consequences of such a trip.

Actually its very similar to Nelson Imperial Ale from the US which is 2.80 for a 330cl bottle (abv 8.6)in Superquinn.

Technocentral · 28-01-2014 7:27pm

ScienceNerd wrote: »

For a beer that strong I'd rather a 330 ml bottle for cheaper tbh. 500 ml at that strength is a bit much for me.

Me too, I'd say €3.50 for a 330cl bottle would be the way to go.

drumswan · 28-01-2014 7:53pm

Technocentral wrote: »

Actually its very similar to Nelson Imperial Ale from the US which is 2.80 for a 330cl bottle (abv 8.6)in Superquinn.

Can we compare like with like? Widmer are funded by AB-Inbev and produce 450,000 barrels a year. Its already been shown to be cheaper than Brewdog.

Anyway, those of us who are waiting for the Irish craft scene to start producing inexpensive really high quality beers will be left waiting it seems. 8 degrees seem to be closest to achieving this atm. Would love to see 11-13 euro six packs of Amber Ella this year.

Technocentral · 28-01-2014 9:02pm

drumswan wrote: »

Can we compare like with like? Widmer are funded by AB-Inbev and produce 450,000 barrels a year. Its already been shown to be cheaper than Brewdog.

Anyway, those of us who are waiting for the Irish craft scene to start producing inexpensive really high quality beers will be left waiting it seems. 8 degrees seem to be closest to achieving this atm. Would love to see 11-13 euro six packs of Amber Ella this year.

I meant its very like it in taste and abv not economics or scale of brewing, unfortunately I'm on a low wage and can't afford to subsidise high priced Irish microbreweries offerings too much, I do my best but if I was in an offie and there was 60 or 70 cents in the difference I'd get "Of Foam..." any more and I'd get "Nelson...".

adamski8 · 28-01-2014 9:42pm

BaZmO* wrote: »

They're ridiculously thin though.

Yeah whats the deal with that. I have two of them and thats the only problem i have with them. Thin glass surely means you warm it up too fast too.

Heroditas · 28-01-2014 10:37pm

adamski8 wrote: »

Yeah whats the deal with that. I have two of them and thats the only problem i have with them. Thin glass surely means you warm it up too fast too.

If it were a wine glass, a thin lip is good because it helps you taste it better.

snowblind · 29-01-2014 11:15am

Technocentral wrote: »

Actually its very similar to Nelson Imperial Ale from the US which is 2.80 for a 330cl bottle (abv 8.6)in Superquinn.

For me the difference in taste for these two beers is HUGE. Nelson is less than mediocre not-so-micro DIPA that has been shipped and stored who knows how and how long.

Of course the price makes a difference, I won't be making OFAF my go to IPA because of the cost. But I won't make that a fault of the beer - it just competes in another tier. The kinda tier where I buy one of them when I want a treat, and in that category it still beats my previous 'treat' tier beers of hoppy profile. And is set to be more reliable. I mean there was a "farmhouse IPA" by a notoriously inconsistent brewery being sold by the Irish off licences, stored in room temp whenever I saw it at about 20€ a bottle. With that money I can buy 3 OFAF after checking that the bottling date isn't too far in the past and avoid it becoming like a neckbeard version of russian roulette.

I like beer. I can drink cans of bavaria to get drunk and on occasion splash out on a Bourbon County Brand Stout, and am glad that there are lots of different varieties and options in between these two so I'm not stuck with these two choices.

the beer revolu · 29-01-2014 12:30pm

I haven't tasted the bottle but I loved the draught version.
However, I probably will only buy one bottle to try. I simply cannot justify the price they are charging for it. I do understand that it is, no doubt, an expensive beer to produce and it's high ABV does attract a lot of duty.
But when you take into account, the micro duty rebate and the low transport costs, there is no way in the world that this beer should command a higher price than an imported craft beer of similar strength and quality. They pay less duty, have small transport costs and don't have to pay a succession of middlemen dealers. The fact that it is fresher than imports doesn't have a cost implication on the production.
Now, I understand that the value of anything is somewhere between what it costs to produce and what people are willing to pay for it. I sincerely hope that the buying public will send a message to GB that they got the pricing on this one wrong. If they can't make it any cheaper, maybe it's not a viable product.

As someone else pointed out 8 Degrees have made a number of cracking fairly high ABV beers that sell at a reasonable, yet, premium price. I can buy 6 bottles of Zeus BIPA for €15

BeerNut · 29-01-2014 12:52pm

the beer revolu wrote: »

and don't have to pay a succession of middlemen dealers.

AFAIK, Noreast is the distributor, so there's one extra beak to be wetted.

the beer revolu · 29-01-2014 12:57pm

BeerNut wrote: »

AFAIK, Noreast is the distributor, so there's one extra beak to be wetted.

But just one. Most US imports come through the UK, then through an Irish distributor.

Technocentral · 29-01-2014 1:33pm

snowblind wrote: »

For me the difference in taste for these two beers is HUGE. Nelson is less than mediocre not-so-micro DIPA that has been shipped and stored who knows how and how long.

Of course the price makes a difference, I won't be making OFAF my go to IPA because of the cost. But I won't make that a fault of the beer - it just competes in another tier. The kinda tier where I buy one of them when I want a treat, and in that category it still beats my previous 'treat' tier beers of hoppy profile. And is set to be more reliable. I mean there was a "farmhouse IPA" by a notoriously inconsistent brewery being sold by the Irish off licences, stored in room temp whenever I saw it at about 20€ a bottle. With that money I can buy 3 OFAF after checking that the bottling date isn't too far in the past and avoid it becoming like a neckbeard version of russian roulette.

I like beer. I can drink cans of bavaria to get drunk and on occasion splash out on a Bourbon County Brand Stout, and am glad that there are lots of different varieties and options in between these two so I'm not stuck with these two choices.

Oh really? and who are you? The famous Alstrom Bros. who know what they are talking about, rate it as outstanding and I agree with them:

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/8/67866/?ba=bros

snowblind · 29-01-2014 2:01pm

Technocentral wrote: »

Oh really? and who are you? The famous Alstrom Bros. who know what they are talking about, rate it as outstanding and I agree with them:

http://beeradvocate.com/beer/profile/8/67866/?ba=bros

Opinions are subjective and I provided mine. I do not know who these supposedly famous bros you are talking about are. I see they provided their opinions. Should their opinions change mine? I don't think so. Did you provide your opinion or theirs? I'm not sure anymore.

Also Oregon to Massachusetts means they can get this beer much fresher than we do, so it most likely tastes much better there. Most IPAs that are imported here from the states get great reviews on these websites. I would rather trust my own tastebuds thank you!

Of Foam and Fury (Galway Bay)

Comments