A wise man (my Dad) once told me, “There’s plenty of people trying to make a buck doing exactly the same thing as everyone else.”
I’m reminded of these words every time I enjoy a pint of Fixation’s India Pale Ale, but it’s not how you think. In a world where craft beer is the only shining light in a dwindling beer market, the number of breweries in Australia passing 400 only a few weeks ago and yet everyone bringing out very similar core ranges, Tom Delmont and the Fixation crew are doing one style and doing it incredibly well. You might even say Tom suffers from a “fixation” on IPA. Oh wait, ok… that’s how they came to name the beer. I just caught up, apologies I drank a lot of this beer last night.
Many of you would know Tom Delmont as one of the legendary fun Mountain Goat crew back in the days when it was independent. The changing of the guard at Goat offered Tom a brilliant opportunity to work with Stone & Wood on brewing purely IPA’s and getting it to people as fresh as possible.
Let’s not beat around the bush – I love this beer. I really love it. It has a bright copper colour with fluffy yet solid white head and yes, it has the typical West Coast resinous experience but I love the balance between sweet malt and the grapefruit, piney hop aroma. It’s not trying to be huge and you can go back for more than one pint with some assurance that you won’t wake up at 2am, 4am and 6am for a glass of water to pour over your dry , cracked tongue. This beer is a sweet ride.
To get the best experience, get it fresh at various good beer venues around Melbourne and regional Victoria, on tap and in bottles.
FIXATION IPA
ABV: 6.4%
Style: West Coast India Pale Ale
Food pairing: BBQ Beef Ribs
Origin: Murwillumbah, NSW
Price (RRP): $20: 4 pack 330ml
Buy it here: www.fixationbrewing.com.au