RyansBooze

Mikkeller Get Wit or Die Tryin Witbier at 4.3% ABV | 11 IBU (C$5.90 at Sherbrooke Liquor, 330 ml, best before 18-Jun-2017, acquired 17-Dec-2016, reviewed 18-Feb-2017)

Appearance: cloudy straw with one finger of rocky white head, excellent retention and sticky moderate lacing. (5/5) Aroma: mild, wheat, orange peel, white pepper. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, light tart. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body tending watery, moderate carbonation, drying lightly tart and spicy finish. (3/5)

Well enough done, I guess, but not very interesting. The aromas are mild almost to the point of muted, and the body feels a bit light for the bittering. Especially in the dry finish, the bitterness comes across as slightly sharp as the body drops off slightly watery. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Double Mountain Brewery and Taproom Pale Death Belgian IPA at 8.5% ABV | 88 IBU (C$9.25 at Zyn, 500 ml, bottle date 13-Apr-2016, acquired 16-Feb-2017, reviewed 17-Feb-2017)

Appearance: clear pale amber with one fat finger of fluffy off-white head, good retention and sticky moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: bready yeast, caramel malt, tropical fruit, soft orange peel. (6/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, high bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium-full oily body, moderate carbonation, lingering warming and bitter finish. (3/5)

I was a bit worried about the initial pour on this, given the huge particulate flakes I could see in the bottle, but it came out fairly clear. That said, I dunno about this – maybe it’s a shelf turd, but despite the heavy oily hops, it’s a malty, yeasty beast. Not well-balanced at all. I had high hopes for this, and deliberately left it as the crowning glory of the evening, but, well, it’s not.(13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Scuttlebutt Brewing Company Ming the Merciless American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.7% ABV | 74 IBU (C$11.00 at Zyn, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 16-Feb-2017, reviewed 17-Feb-2017)

Appearance: slightly hazy medium amber with a huge fluffy ivory head that retains moderately poorly, moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: resiny pine, caramel malt, pithy grapefruit, herbal. (6/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, high bitter. (5/10) Palate: medium-full oily body, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter warming and spicy finish. (3/5)

Bit of a hot mess. It doesn’t feel malt-dominant as such, but it’s certainly malt-forward, or at least malt-heavy, and it feels more like the malt is battling the hops, than supporting them. The hops, on the other hand, are so heavy that they cause a little retronasal burn in the finish, but they still don’t shine through the sticky caramel malt. The ABV also comes across bigger than it is – I’ve had double-digit brews that don’t feel this harsh. Just a big, ham-fisted mess. (11/20)

5.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Category 12 Brewing Elemental Series Wild IPA American IPA at 6.8% ABV | 68 IBU (C$9.75 at Zyn, 650 ml, bottle date 28-Dec-2016, acquired 16-Feb-2017, reviewed 17-Feb-2017)

Appearance: clear pale amber with two fat fingers of fluffy ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: resiny pine, tropical fruit, dry hay funk, earth. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter, mild tart. (7/10) Palate: medium body, lively to moderate carbonation, off-dry lightly funky finish. (3/5)

Not my first go-round with Saccharomyces trois, the Brett-that-wasn’t, and it continues to be a decent performer. (There’s a long, convoluted backstory about how White Labs marketed it as a Brett, discovered it wasn’t, and didn’t correct their marketing for quite some time – but the bottom line is this critter acts an awful lot like Brett even though it isn’t, actually.) The Brett-like character here is present, but mild: it feels just a little light and lacking in complexity at this point, making me think I might’ve drunk it too fresh. Although the brewer notes claim El Dorado and Azacca hops here as well, my impression is that they’re not as dominant as the S. trois (notwithstanding that the funk is still mild at this point). I’m wondering how this would act if cellared for a year or two to let the funk out to play (not unlike Stone’s Enjoy After series), and might pick up another one for that purpose. Definitely an interesting one, if not a slam-dunk at this point. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Lost Coast Brewery _Sharkinator_ White IPA at 4.8% ABV | 40 IBU _(C$7.75 at Zyn, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 16-Feb-2017, reviewed 17-Feb-2017)_

Appearance: hazy straw with two fingers of rocky white head, moderate retention and lacing. (4/5) Aroma: lemon zest, wheat, light pine, hay. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: light body, lively to moderate carbonation, off-dry short finish. (3/5)

Not what I was expecting at all – almost like a light, dry Tripel. Fairly clean, dry, and sessionable. Really, really stupid name and label, though. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Village Brewery / Banded Peak Brewery Village Friend Banded Belgian Tripel Tripel at 10% ABV (C$11.69 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 14-Feb-2017, reviewed 16-Feb-2017)

Appearance: clear medium gold with one fat finger of fluffy white head, good retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: stone fruit, apples, pale malt, bready yeast, hint of strawberry. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration warming finish. (3/5)

Yup, that’s a traditional Tripel, all right. Slightly too sweet for my preference: I’d like to see it more highly attenuated, with a bone dry finish. But, it’s pretty darned good as it stands. The aromas and flavours are pretty spot-on Belgian yeast esters, in any case, and any hop character is limited. It might not be as good as the best true Belgian Tripels I’ve had, but it’s certainly better than the worst ones. And, the high ABV is impressively well-integrated, manifesting only as a warming finish. (Well, that and a tendency for the room to get a little fuzzy around the edges.) (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Rogue Ales Hazelutely Choctabulous Candy Bar in a Bottle Sweet Stout at 5.7% ABV | 51 IBU (C$9.99 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 14-Feb-2017, reviewed 16-Feb-2017)

Appearance: nearly opaque brown with one fat finger of rocky beige head settling moderately quickly to a thick persistent cap, spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: hazelnut, peanut, chocolate. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, medium duration finish. (3/5)

I debated even picking this thing up, let alone buying it – frankly, it feels like my track record with Rogue has been more misses than hits for a long time now. But then, I remembered the good old days of Dead Guy Ale, Brutal IPA, Yellow Snow, and, yes, Hazelnut Brown Nectar, and I got a little misty and said why not. (The less said about Chipotle Ale and Santa’s Private Reserve, the better. Let me have the moment.) And, damn, if this doesn’t actually work! It really does smell and taste like a nutty chocolate bar – although much like my impressions of the Hazelnut Brown Nectar, I’m getting just as much peanut as hazelnut. (Which isn’t a criticism, because I like peanuts just fine, just an observation.) I was worried it would be too sweet, and yeah, it’s sweet – but that sweetness is balanced very well against the frankly surprisingly high bitterness so well that neither really dominates. (15/20)

On the subject of bitterness, there’s an error somewhere. My bottle said 75 IBU, but also 75.3% AA, and I think they mistakenly put the same 75 value on there as IBU as well. The Rogue web site says 51 IBU, and that makes more sense, since the Hazelnut Brown Nectar is 33 IBU and the Chocolate Stout is 69 IBU – I don’t see how you could possibly get a higher bitterness than either of your ingredients! I’m going with 51 as the correct number.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company / Dandy Brewing Company Cliff Hanger Collab Belgian Ale at 6.4% ABV | 16 IBU (C$7.49 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, bottle date 17-Nov-2016, acquired 14-Feb-2017, reviewed 16-Feb-2017)

Appearance: deep brown with one finger of rocky beige head, good retention and  lacing. (4/5) Aroma: mild/muted, roasty malts, coffee, grass, faint liquorice. (4/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (5/10) Palate: medium-light body tending slightly watery, moderate carbonation, off-dry short duration finish. (3/5)

Well, that’s a bit of a muddled mess. “Dishwater” might be a bit harsh, but I’ve certainly had better. The label claims the “sweet and toasty notes of a Belgian Pale Ale with a hint of licorice” but that’s not how it’s coming across for me: I’m getting sharp yet thin roasted malt character over weedy grass hops, on a thinnish body. It’s all the more disappointing because it’s actually a pretty good-looking  beer – and for that matter, structurally it’s not bad, either. It’s just that the flavours are really not working for me. (11/20)

5.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Unibroue Lune de Miel Belgian Strong Ale at 8% ABV | 22 IBU (C$9.29 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 750 ml, bottle date 11-Nov-2016, acquired 14-Feb-2017, reviewed 15-Feb-2017)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with one fat finger of rocky white head, excellent retention and well-defined lacing. (5/5) Aroma: bready yeast, honey, citrus, herbal and floral. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-low bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, lively carbonation, drying finish. (4/5)

Despite being sweeter and less bitter than I prefer, this is a stonking good brew. The light body and lively carbonation prevent the sweetness from becoming cloying, and the honey feels authentic and natural, instead of simply overwhelming the mild bitter – probably because it’s so highly attenuated that it contributes strongly to the aroma, but not quite so much on the tongue. To be honest, I don’t know why this isn’t rated more highly than it is, because as far as I can tell, it’s a really well-done Belgian Strong, with an interesting honey kiss. I mean, look at my photo: how can people be giving this a three out of five on appearance, saying it’s got a “thin pearl” head? Does that shit look thin to you? And, it retains well, and it laces. Maybe Unibroue’ve got a QC issue, is all I can figure, because I can tell you with some confidence that the one I have in my hand is a world-class bad boy, reminiscent of Duvel and the like, so I’m emphatically going against the grain on scoring. I bought two of these, figuring the high ABV and non-existent hop character would allow for good cellaring potential, so we’ll revisit this one in a year or three, and see what happens. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Phillips Brewing Company Space Goat American Pale Ale at 6.2% ABV (C$7.99 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, best before 17-Jun-2017, acquired 14-Feb-2017, reviewed 15-Feb-2017)

Appearance: clear straw with one fat finger of rocky white head, excellent retention and patchy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: muted/mild, doughy malt, oats, weedy grass. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry short duration finish. (3/5)

Not unpleasant, but mild to the point of blandness. Y’know, I’m really starting to develop a serious malaise towards oats. It seems lately that every time I encounter them in a brew, they leave me cold: thin, bland, and boring. (Mind you, that’s my attitude towards rolled oats, too, which is why one of my special breakfasts for the kids is steel-cut oats. And, quite gratifyingly, they voice the same objections when they get served instant oats: “This isn’t what Dad makes!”) That’s what I’m getting here: a well-crafted brew, with no off characteristics, but nothing standing out. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com