Brew and improved

OK, so you have the coffee machine and thermostat-controlled kettle for delicate white and green teas - but how about a beer machine?

The Seattle Times reports the launch of a machine that "almost completely automates the process of producing beer", using grain, hops, yeast and water.

The machine, the PicoBrew Zymatic (the size of a large microwave), is the invention of former Microsoft employees Bill Mitchell and Avi Geigner, and Mitchell's brother Jim, a physicist, home brewer and designer of food-processing facilities.

The machine is being tested by small breweries and home brewers ahead of an expected commercial release in the the US in January.

The machine is controlled from a web browser and can be monitored from a smart phone. PicoBrew expects the price to be about $US1300 [$A1380]. See picobrew.azurewebsites.net.

8 Wired Brew Co Saison Sauvin, 500ml, $10

This is a Kiwi take, from the heart of Marlborough sauvignon blanc country, on a traditional Belgian seasonal brew. Pungent, spicy sauvin hops from Nelson, to the west, permeate the rich, smooth, high-alcohol palate, leaving a lingeringly bitter, spicy, hoppy aftertaste. What a classy beer - assertive but well balanced.

★★★★★

Victoria High Country Brewery Trail Rule 47, 330ml, $5.48

A group of brewers from Victoria's high country made this strong Belgian "tripel" style using local hops (rostrevor), malt from three continents, Belgian candy syrup and a Trappist yeast. The mid-amber ale offers sweet, malty, candied flavours cut with assertive, pungent hops flavours and bitterness.

★★★★½

Chris Shanahan