BREWERY // Brothers Josh and Jake Uljans and Karl van Buuren started Moon Dog in 2010 with a plan to brew “Really Ridiculously Fun Beer”. Their original Melbourne brewery was built up bit by bit with the help of eBay. Still proudly independent, they have seen huge growth in the past few years but retain their original spirit. Their first brew kit is now used for small seasonal brews in their brewery bar while a shiny big kit next door is used for most of their beers. At the end of 2019 they opened a gigantic 1 hectare brewery with a lagoon, rainforest and secret tiki bar named Moon Dog World and we are excited about going back to now our Tasman bubble has opened.
BEER // For their first few years Moon Dog beers were, frankly, ridiculous. An endless stream of hugely flavoursome beers incorporating cognac barrels, stewed plums, truffles, peat-smoked malt, liquorice and more emerged from their Frankenstein brewhouse. Mack Daddy was one of their first 'normal' beers and has become a firm favourite of many over the past 5 or 6 years. It may not contain BBQ chicken but it is still a million miles from boring. We don't really pay heed to the idea of drinking beers that match the seasons but, if we did, dark ales like this would still be the ideal year-rounder. Mack Daddy is a relatively light-bodied, quaffable beer with a coldbrew coffee, nut and cacao malt base atop which sits a bold fruity hop profile. The hops have some orange-y rockmelon-y notes and bring a brightness and slight bitterness for a satisfying finish. This may be that most rare of things - a Beer Jerk Beer Of The Week you could drink a 6-er of...
BREWERY // Moon Dog
BEER // Mack Daddy
STYLE // Dark Ale
ORIGIN // Melbourne
ABV // 5%
TEMPERATURE // Cool - 8-10C
FOOD MATCH // Oysters. Bean Chilli. Smoked Cheese. Orange Dark Chocolate.
VESSEL // Dimpled Mug. IPA Glass