Category: Reviews

Alley Kat Brewing Co. Back Alley Brews #1: Spruce Almighty Spice / Herb / Vegetable at 5.2% ABV (C$7.99 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 19-Jul-2016, reviewed 20-Jul-2016)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale amber with one finger of dense, almost creamy light ivory head, excellent retention and decent lacing. (4/5) Aroma: mild evergreen (yes, OK, spruce tips), light citrus, pale malt. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry mildly bitter finish. (4/5)

To say I went into this with “a little trepidation” would be putting it mildly. My first couple of forays into this style have covered a range of “deeply strange and off-putting” to “somewhat strange and off-putting”. This, though? Not very off-putting at all. The spruce tips actually work reasonably well with the typical pine/citrus flavours of starts-with-C hops. My biggest complaint is that the hopping could’ve stood to be more emphatic: more hops could’ve pushed this into world-class territory, but as it stands it’s just quite good. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Troubled Monk Brewery Homesteader Saison at 6% ABV (C$2.33 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 355 ml, bottle date 15-Jun-2016, acquired 19-Jul-2016, reviewed 20-Jul-2016)

Appearance: clear deep gold with one finger of loose ivory head, short retention and no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: coriander, floral, citrus, caramel and wheat malt. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, light tart, light peppery spice. (6/10) Medium slightly oily body, moderate-high carbonation, slightly spicy finish. (3/5)

Solid but unremarkable Saison. I’d like it more if it weren’t quite so sweet, though – towards the end of the glass, it gets a little mouth-coating, verging on cloying. Doesn’t make me want to grab another one, at least not right away. And I’m not opposed to higher ABV’s, but I tend to prefer lower ones (<5%) for this style, which I think should be bright, crisp, dry, and refreshing. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Big Rock Brewery / Last Best Brewing and Distilling Collaboration #2 Saison at 5.2% ABV (C$2.79 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 473 ml, best before 28-Jan-2017, acquired 19-Jul-2016, reviewed 19-Jul-2016)

Appearance: clear straw with one fat finger of rocky white head, good retention and patchy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: coriander, floral, yeasty, pale malt. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, light tart, light peppery spice. (6/10) Medium-light body, moderate carbonation, moderate bitter and slightly spicy finish. (3/5)

Y’know, I’m starting to get a little suspicious that this whole “let the beer do the talking” schtick is just a dodge. I mean, the savings on label art alone, right? I was going to say, it’s pretty frustrating not knowing what the intended style is when you’re trying to rate something – but it pretty quickly became apparent that this could only be a Saison. (Well, OK, it might be considered a Hefe, I guess, but it’s not cloudy or particularly wheaty, and there’s no bubblegum or banana. Moving on.) Unfortunately, it’s nowhere near as good a Saison as Collaboration #1 was an IPA. It’s OK, sure, but only just. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Pivovary Staropramen s.r.o. Staropramen Czech Pilsener at 5% ABV (C$3.79 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, best before 31-Mar-2017, acquired 19-Jul-2016, reviewed 19-Jul-2016)

Appearance: clear straw with one fat finger of rocky white head, excellent retention and patchy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: grass, pale grainy malt. (5/10) Taste: moderate sweet, light bitter. (5/10) Light body, moderate carbonation, crisp lightly bitter and slightly metallic finish. (3/5)

Meh. It’s a straightforward Světlý without a lot to distinguish it. Easy drinking but starts to get a bit sweet with an adjunct flavour as it progresses.  Can’t think of any reason why I’d ever go looking for another one. (11/20)

5.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Rough Draft Brewing Company Eraser IPA American IPA at 7% ABV (C$10.69 at Crowfoot Liquor Douglas Square, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 18-Jul-2016, reviewed 18-Jul-2016)

Appearance: hazy pale amber with three fingers of rocky ivory head, decent retention and good lacing. (4/5) Aroma: toffee malt, citrus, generalized fruity esters, pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Medium slightly oily body, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Middle-of-the-road-A/IPA… well, OK, verging on “slightly better than middle-of-the-road”. To my nose, the malt leads – which is definitely one the “con” column. On the other hand, the bitter is actually fairly massive – as in, DIPA levels – so there’s that. Overall, it’s solid – but I’m slightly disappointed, because it feels like it could’ve been better, had the malt taken its rightful place behind the hops. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Rough Draft Brewing Company Grapefruit Weekday IPA Session IPA at 4.8% ABV (C$9.49 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 23-May-2016, reviewed 24-May-2016)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of growing fluffy white head, excellent retention and patchy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: piney resin, caramel malt, light floral and tropical fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, short duration moderately bitter finish. (4/5)

Very similar to the grapefruit version I reviewed previously, which is to say a very nice session IPA, that actually opens and improves upon warming. The grapefruit version didn’t come across as thin or watered-down, but this does, if only just a little. It still works well as a low ABV implementation of American IPAs, but the grapefruit really helped, and its absence is definitely noticeable. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

New Belgium Brewing Company Hoppy Blonde Blond Ale at 5.7% ABV (C$3.25 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 355 ml, best before 10-Jul-2016, acquired 18-Jul-2016, reviewed 18-Jul-2016)

Appearance: clear deep gold with two fingers of fluffy white head, good retention and good lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, pine, tropical fruit, grass, pale malt, mild herbal. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, crisp bitter finish. (3/5)

A nice, pleasantly hoppy blonde ale. Not “dank”, as such, but definitely piney and citrusy, with additional grassy and herbal hop character. I’d call it more of an APA than a Blond, but whatever you call it, the hops are leading – and that’s all that really matters, isn’t it? (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Rogue Ales Voodoo Doughnut Mango Astronaut Ale Fruit / Vegetable Beer at 5.5% ABV (C$16.99 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 750 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 18-Jul-2016, reviewed 18-Jul-2016)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale amber with one fat finger of rocky white head, good retention and moderate lacing. (3/5) Aroma: sweet and somewhat artificial mango, stone fruit, pineapple and tropical fruit. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, mild tart. (6/10) Medium slightly syrupy body, moderate carbonation, mildly sweet slightly astringent finish. (3/5)

Umm… it didn’t suck as badly as I expected it to? Yeah, OK, the “mango” smells like sugary artificial crap, but it actually doesn’t taste as sweet as it smells. It actually finished, if not “dry”, at least a bit astringent. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Nøgne Ø (Hansa Borg) _Sunturnbrew_ Smoked Beer at 11% ABV _(C$11.29 at Okotoks Co-Op, 500 ml, bottle date 1-Dec-2012, best before 1-Dec-2022, acquired 24-Jul-2014, reviewed 14-Jul-2016)_

Appearance: clear amber-brown with a short creamy light tan head diminishing rapidly to a thin cap, soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: smoke, dark dried fruit, toffee, light peat. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, light tart. (8/10) Medium-full slightly slick body, moderate carbonation, off dry slightly astringent smoky and warming finish. (4/5)

Interesting depth and complexity to this one, with restrained smokiness on top of a sweet fruity barleywine base, with a light rye tartness coming out in late in the finish. The ABV is almost non-existent in the flavours, but manifests as a definite warming relative early in the glass. Not subtle, as such, but definitely restrained and polite. A lingering sipper for sure. (16/20)

8/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Council Brewing Co. Béatitude Mosaic Dry-Hopped Tart Saison Saison at 4.5% ABV (C$19.99 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 750 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 1-Jul-2016, reviewed 14-Jul-2016)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale straw with a short, short-lived fizzy white head diminishing rapidly to nothing, no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: doughy yeast, tart lemon, horseblankety funk. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate tart, minimal bitter. (9/10) Medium-light body, lively carbonation, crisp lightly tart and funky finish. (4/5)

Again, I might argue slightly with their choice in yeast here: the bready, doughy note is definitely like baker’s yeast, which in turn makes me think of low-quality old-school homebrew. That particular personal preference aside, wow, this is a great Saison! Lovely citrusy tart borne aloft by lively carbonation, light and refreshing without a big alcohol hit. This is exactly what I’d want to have while working a long, hot day in the fields as a saisonnier. Even better than their mango version, and a great showcase for Mosaic hops. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com