The Hotchkiss Six is a smooth, domestic stout, with indulgent dark chocolate qualities from caramel malt, English chocolate malt and roasted barley.
The name The Hotchkiss Six is a cheeky link back to one of the original single batch beers, The Dreadnought, named after the predominant type of battleship in the early 20th century. On the Dreadnought, there was a six-calibre gun called the Hotchkiss.
Little Creatures Head Brewer Russell Gosling says the latest stout gave the brewers a chance to play with a different style to their previous winter release.
“There is so much more to stouts than the regular, bigger styles you typically find during winter,” he said.
“We wanted to showcase a lower ABV Stout [4.5 per cent] – one that had really good flavour but could be enjoyed all year round – after all, in WA, let’s be honest, winter is not really winter.
“We also took a look in the archives at some of our favourite dark beers of the past and then sought out what was fresh and available to us at the time, playing around with the malt and hops used in the beer.”
Seasonal release beers are now a permanent fixture on the Creatures calendar, allowing the brewers at Creatures to experiment with new styles, and flavour hounds the chance to explore seasonal flavours. Previous seasonal releases have included Return of the Dread and Dog Days.
The Hotchkiss Six will be available until August or until stocks last.