Two delicious beers

Over the past few weeks, we have been extremely fortunate to have met with numerous ultra fun and hip distributors for beers, wines and sakes in a bid to source for a small but unique and select range of artisanal brews for our new lifestyle concept at Duxton Road, Group Therapy.

We shan’t spoil all the fun by revealing the entire range, but here are two of the beers which we are particularly thrilled about carrying!

COEDO Beniaka (7% ABV)

Koedo Beer was founded in Kawagoe in the spring of 1996. Kawagoe is known as “ko-edo” (little Edo) due to its resemblance to 18th century Tokyo. Today, Koedo has been re-branded as “Coedo” whose flagship beer is this gorgeous amber red, award winning Japanese premium lager made from high quality malts and “Beniaka”, the roasted Kintoki sweet potatoes of the Kawagoe region.

The Beniaka lager pours a rich crimson amber colour with an off-white head. Bouquet is a pleasing aroma of toasted nuts and sweet malts. The flavours bounce from caramel to earthy hops to sweet potatoes to cinnamon raisin toast, and become more pronounced as the beer warms. The alcohol (7% ABV) is surprisingly subtle. This brew has a silky, off-dry medium body with a low level of carbonation.

The multi-award winning beer  was awarded the “Three Star Award” by the International Taste & Quality Institute (IT-Ql) Belgium and was honoured to be the seventh awardee of the top ranking and prestigious “Crystal Taste Award”, the first ever for a Japanese Beer.

Curious and dangerously drinkable!

Trappistes Rochefort 6 (7.5% ABV)

The Abbey of St-Remy, in the southern part of Belgium, was founded in 1230, and the monks began to brew beer sometime around 1595. The beautiful small brewery in the abbey, Rochefort Trappistes, is one of only seven Trappist breweries in the world and makes full-bodied, deeply flavoured dark ales. The brewery produces three Trappist beers, called the 6, the 8, and the 10. All three are based on the same recipe, but vary in production and alcohol content. They are bottle-conditioned and among the world’s most highly-respected beverages.

The Rochefort 6 pours a reddish-brown color with a lingering tan head.  The nose is sweet and bready like fruit cakes. The flavour of this Belgian strong dark ale starts mildly sweet with hints of chocolate. The mouth-feel is pleasingly smooth with medium body. As the beer warms, the carbonation smooths out naturally to reveal rich flavors of dark brown sugar, raisins, toffee, and dark fruit such as plums. This beer has a slight bitterness that complements the mild caramel sweetness of the brew. Yum!

Both available at Group Therapy.