Bootleg jumps into Hop Swap
An experiment for beer aficionados is taking place in WA’s South West.
Those with a refined palate, and others that just enjoy a Pale Ale, are being called on to be testers for Bootleg Brewery.
Ryan Nilsson-Linne has cunningly devised a plan to give punters a vertical tasting challenge with a frequently changing beer.
Hop Swap features the return of the Pale Ale style to the Bootleg stable near Margaret River and it provides drinkers with the chance to try something new every couple of months.
The beer will only be made in lots of 200 cartons. Then the hop will change, creating a new take on the beverage.
Hop Swap is available from this weekend and the first incarnation features Galaxy. Melba and the New Zealand Riwaka cones are the next in line. And Nilsson-Linne is eyeing a US hop for the fourth in the series.
“It isn’t going to be drastic change because it will have a similar style hop,” Nilsson-Linne said. “But I wanted to change it every couple of months to keep it fresh for me and fresh for the drinkers.
“We’re planning on it staying on permanently in our range and we estimate the cartons will last two to three months per hop.
“So we’ll get 4-5 different ones a year. I hope not to go back to a hop again. I like the idea of keeping things fresh and new. Not the same old, same old.
“We wanted to use this as almost a trial ground. Get people to give feedback on the various hops over the year.”
Bootleg have brought back the Pale Ale that disappeared with demise of Settlers Pale Ale in 2013.
Bootleg, which recently celebrated 20 years at the top of the craft beer game, will clearly display the variety on the Hop Swap bottle labels.
Nilsson-Linne was also pleased to have the Pale Ale back in the Bootleg repertoire after a push from the public.
“When we made the Speakeasy (IPA) in 2013 we made the Settlers Pale Ale redundant,” he said.
“I’ve found a lot of people are looking for Pale Ales. I think the IPA bandwagon has slowed down a bit."
Hop Swap slots alongside Bootleg’s other permanent brews, Raging Bull (Porter), Speakeasy, Tom’s Amber (3.5 per cent), South West Wheat, Prohibition Pils and Prinsep Cider.
The new brew will soon be available at Mane Liquor in Belmont.
