Month: March 2015

Anderson Valley Brewing Company The Kimmie, The Yink & The Holy Gose Ale Gose at 4.2% ABV (On tap at Craft Beer Market Calgary)

Pours a hazy straw with no head or lacing. (3/5) Nose is quite muted, citrus, brine, earth. (8/10) Taste is very mild sweet, mild bitter, moderate sour, mild salt. (8/10) Light to medium bodied, dry and tart finish. (4/5)

Nice. Not as sweet and fruity as the blood orange version, which makes it taste more like a lambic. Really worth trying, and convinces me even more than gose is a style that really needs more love. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Worthington’s White Shield English IPA at 5.6% ABV (C$4.90 at Liquor Crossing Red Deer, 500 ml, best before 27-Apr-2015)

Pours clear pale amber with two fat fingers of light beige head, excellent retention and lacing. (5/5) Nose is caramel, stone fruit, citrus, mild herbal and earthy. (6/10) Taste is mild sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Medium bodied, moderate to low carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

A little malt forward, but decently balanced for an E/IPA. I still prefer the brighter hops character of the A/IPA style, but this is a decent example of a more traditional IPA. I’d like to try this in cask some time, actually. (12/20)

My 147th from the 2010 Edition (141st from the 2013 edition), and 157th combining both editions.

6.5/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Innis & Gunn Brewing Company Melville’s Alcoholic Ginger Beer Ginger Beer at 4.1% ABV (C$3.39 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, best before 1-Apr-2015)

Pours clear deep gold with one finger of off-white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is ginger, sugar. (5/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild spice. (5/10) Medium bodied, medium carbonation, mildly spicy finish. (3/5)

This represents a bold new direction for I&G: they’ve moved on to being bland and unremarkable with a whole new style of beer. I mean, seriously – they make this by blending ginger and lager? Silly me, I thought you were supposed to brew ginger beer with ginger in the wort. I do love a good ginger beer… and this isn’t it. (10/20)

5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Cervecería Nacional Panama Balboa Pale Lager at 4.8% ABV (Gift, 330 ml, best before 17-Jun-2015)

Pours pale straw with a short white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is grainy biscuity malt, corn, faint herbal and grassy hops. (3/10) Taste is moderate sweet, mild bitter. (3/10) Light bodied, prickly to medium carbonation. (2/5)

Not a good beer, at all – standard crap adjunct lager. Though it reminds me of drinking Cristal in Cuba, so there’s that… (6/20)

3/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brewery de Block Satan Red Belgian Strong Pale Ale at 8% ABV (C$4.12 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 330 ml, best before 30-Sep-2018)

Pours hazy pale amber with a thin light beige head diminishing rapidly to nothing, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is peaches, citrus, caramel malt, Belgian yeast. (6/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild bitter. (6/10) Medium bodied, prickly to medium carbonation, mildly warming finish. (4/5)

An OK BSPA. The flavours are simultaneously a little boring, and a little harsh, and the sweetness is a bit overpowering. It does, however, do a decent job of hiding the ABV, so there’s that? Not really doing it for me. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Tree Brewing HopHead India Pale Ale American IPA at 5.6% ABV (C$5.50 at Fionn MacCool’s, 330 ml, bottle date 16/02/15)

Pours hazy pale to medium amber with a short, short-lived light beige head, spotty lacing. (4/5) Nose is pine, citrus, caramel malt, slightly flowery. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate to low sustained carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Quite a decent A/IPA. Good balance between hoppiness and maltiness: the malt is quite pronounced, but definitely in a supporting role, and the flavour remains hop-forward. Quite nice. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Traquair House Traquair Jacobite Ale Traditional Ale at 8.2% ABV (C$3.99 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, bottle date 30-Apr-2014)

Pours clear brown with a thin light beige head diminishing to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is toffee malt, dark fruit, spices, liquorice, dark chocolate, woody oak. (8/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild bitter. (7/10) Full bodied, low carbonation and slightly syrupy. (4/5)

I’m not usually a fan of the Scottish styles, especially wee heavies, but this is a decent Traditional Ale. It’s sweet, hovering on the edge of cloying, but there’s a depth and complexity of flavour that saves it from being boring. It’s not something I’d choose for a go-to, but it’s definitely worth trying. (14/20)

My 146th from the 2010 Edition (140th from the 2013 edition), and 156th combining both editions.

7/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

G. Schneider & Sohn / Brooklyn Brewery Schneider & Brooklyner Hopfenweisse Weizenbock at 8.2% ABV (C$3.99 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, bottle date 30-Apr-2014)

Pours cloudy straw with two fingers of rocky off-white head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Nose is banana, cloves, yeast, oranges, mild resin. (8/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Medium bodied, moderate sustained carbonation and a mild bitter finish. (4/5)

An interesting wheat beer, with lots of characteristic banana and cloves, underpinned by citrus and mild piney resin. The stronger flavours work well to support the higher ABV and prevent it from being intrusive. (16/20)

My 145th from the 2010 Edition (139th from the 2013 edition), and 155th combining both editions.

8/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Hooper’s Alcoholic Cloudy Lemonade at 4.0% ABV (C$3.99 at Willow Park Wine and Spirits, no bottle date or best before)

This is how I envisage the naming meeting for this going:

Well, it ticks all the boxes: Alcoholic? Check. Cloudy? Check. Lemonade? Check.

Right, then. That’s that. Anybody fancy a pint?

Fizzy carbonation, not too sweet, pleasant low ABV thirst quencher. This is soda for grown-ups, I guess.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Mad & Noisy Brewing (Creemore Springs) Hops and Bolts India Pale Lager at 5.3% ABV (On tap at Bar:120 Toronto International Airport)

Pours hazy pale amber-orange with one finger of medium dense light beige head diminishing gradually to a thin cap, moderate spotty lacing. (3/5) Nose is grassy, pithy citrus, caramel malt. (6/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Light to medium body, moderate sustained carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Not a bad IPL, but as usual I find myself wondering about the point: the hoppiness isn’t bad, and I like the unfiltered aspect of it, but every second sip smells like an adjunct lager. It’s so hard to make a lager that isn’t reminiscent of cheap crap, I keep wondering, why bother? (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com