LORD NELSON BREWING THREE SHEETS
Despite the road being long, with many a winding turn …it often seems to disappear so quickly. So, let’s not wait for the wake, grab this cold craft – it’s all the lubrication you need to be brave and tell a mate, your brother, the tribe, what they mean to you. It's a beautiful way to not only encourage another, but it opens the door to a conversation about life's sometimes bumpy road. Remember, eulogies are also for the living!
Origin – The Rocks, New South Wales
ABV- 4.9%
Size- 330mL bottle
Style- Pale Ale
Lord Nelson was a great hero. In the whole span of British history, he still stands as one of the greatest seafarers of them all. Legend has it after being severely wounded in one particular battle and needing to have his right arm amputated, Nelson was back in command giving out orders within half an hour! Such is the enduring fame of a man whose exploits entered the lexicon in phrases like "the Nelson touch" and "turning a blind eye", to which the admiral placed his telescope to avoid seeing a signal he wished to ignore.
Whether it's a case of the Nelson touch or just proper management, the oldest licensed hotel in Sydney dating back to 1841, and that of his namesake, is popular as ever. Housed on Observatory Hill overlooking The Rocks, the grand old building was constructed from convict-quarried sandstone. It captures all the essence of the classic British pub that Nelson and his crew would have drunk many a pint in and, thanks to the construction of a brewery in 1986, has its own fine selection of English style ales on tap to complete the picture. Given its location, The Lord Nelson attracts as many tourists as locals, but you don't need to linger long at the bar to realise there's a big band of loyal regulars of all ages who call this place home, some of whom have been coming every week for over half a century.
While there are plenty of pints pulled of the four original beers – Nelson's Blood porter, Trafalgar pale ale, Victory Bitter and Old Admiral old ale – it’s this Three Sheets that most say they'd give their own right arm for. Like all their offerings this house favourite is an unfiltered and unpasteurised all-natural ale. Medium gold in colour, the nose sings of herbaceous hop characters and citrus floras and aromas. While the mouth follows the nose, there's a much more pronounced upfront hoppy bitterness that is soon balanced by a dry malty finish – it's every bit a classic Australian pale ale.
Despite the Battle of Trafalgar being Britain's most significant naval victory, Nelson was fatally wounded. Having expressed the wish to be buried on his native soil, rather than simply being thrown in the sea like other mariners of the time, the story goes that the Admiral's body was preserved for the voyage back to the UK by placing it in a barrel of brandy. Rumour is that gases from the corpse caused the barrel lid to pop open, frightening the marine guard - who was already three sheets to the wind – so much so that he leapt overboard!