Month: April 2015

Parallel 49 / Brassneck Brews Brothers The Thrill is Gone Post-Classic Pilsner Pilsener at 6.5% ABV (C$2.63 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Pours clear pale straw with one finger of rocky white head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Nose is crackery malt, faint grassy hops, hint of citrus. (6/10) Taste is mild to moderate sweet, mild bitter. (6/10) Light body, soft carbonation, crisp with lingering mildly bitter and slightly sweet finish. (4/5)

If you ask me, the thrill might be coming back – goes down a treat after another 12 hour work day. Light and crisp in the body, with soft carbonation and a surprisingly absent ABV, except for just a hint of sweetness in the finish. I generally find pilseners pretty boring – because, let’s face it, they are – but I could drink a few of these. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Parallel 49 / Powell Street Craft Brewery Brews Brothers Stone Crazy American Double / Imperial IPA at 9.0% ABV (C$2.63 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, bottle date 5-Mar-2015)

Pours clear pale amber with two fingers of rocky ivory head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Nose is pithy grapefruit, piney resin, stone fruit, caramel malt, light fruit. (7/10) Taste is mild sweet, moderately strong bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, lingering mildly bitter and slightly boozy finish. (4/5)

Maybe just slightly light in the body for the style, but on the up side, the ABV doesn’t intrude at all. Big bitterness, but it isn’t overwhelming. Malt is appropriate and supportive, without being forward. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Parallel 49 / Storm Brewing Ltd. Brews Brothers Backdoor Man Basil India Pale Ale American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$2.63 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, bottle date 9-Mar-2015)

Pours clear pale amber with one finger of soapy off-white head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, moderate patchy lacing. (3/5) Nose is definite basil, weedy herbal and floral, caramel malt, faint citrus. (4/10) Taste is mild sweet, mild bitter. (4/10) Light to medium body, moderate carbonation, slightly spicy finish. (3/5)

I found the flavours unbalanced and off-putting, but maybe it works for some folks. Not “bad” as such, but definitely not for me. Maybe good to cook with? Dumped it after a third of a glass – see no reason to struggle with something that isn’t working. (8/20)

4.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Parallel 49 / Yellow Dog Brewing Co. Brews Brothers Hound Dog Belgian India Pale Ale Belgian IPA at 6.0% ABV (C$2.63 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, bottle date 5-Mar-2015)

Pours clear pale amber with one fat finger of soapy off-white head diminishing gradually to a thin cap, moderate lacing. (4/5) Nose is Belgian yeast, lemon peel, honey, coriander and cloves. (6/10) Taste is mild sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Medium body tending to thin, moderate carbonation, lingering mildly bitter finish. (3/5)

Not bad, but sort of lacking in emphasis. Both the flavour and the body tend to the thin and watery. OK without being remarkable. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Parallel 49 / Bomber Brewing Brews Brothers Little Red Rooster Red India Session Ale Session IPA at 4.5% ABV (C$2.63 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Pours clear red-tinged pale amber with one finger of light tan head, good retention, moderate patchy lacing. (4/5) Nose is citrus, light floral, stone fruit, bready and caramel malt. (6/10) Taste is moderate sweet, mild bitter. (5/10) Light to medium body, moderate carbonation, fairly crisp with a rapid finish. (3/5)

The aromas start off quite promising, but fade fairly quickly and aren’t really followed through on the tongue. Could really stand to be more bitter and less malty, but I guess the malt is an integral part of any “red” ale. Really too sweet for a session ale for me, though. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Parallel 49 / Dageraad Brewing Brews Brothers House of the Rising Sun Saison at 4.5% ABV (C$2.63 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, bottle date 10-Feb-2015)

Pours slightly hazy straw with a thin white head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is citrus, white pepper, yeast, biscuity malt, light fruity esters, faint catty. (6/10) Taste is mild sweet, mild bitter, light tart. (7/10) Light body, lively to moderate carbonation, crisp finish. (4/5)

Not a bad little saison, with just a hint of something – I’ve called it catty above – that isn’t quite perfect. Doesn’t come through on the tongue, though, and drinks crisp and refreshing. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Parallel 49 / Rossland Beer Company Brews Brothers Smokestack Lightning American IPA at 7.0% ABV (C$2.63 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, bottle date 15-Mar-2015)

Pours clear pale amber with one finger of loose soapy off-white head diminishing gradually to a thin cap, moderate patchy lacing. (3/5) Nose is grapefruit, pine, pale malt, slight tropical fruit. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Light to medium body, moderate carbonation, medium finish. (4/5)

Solid IPA, maybe slightly thin on the body and without a lot of sustain in the flavour. Could stand to be a bit more bitter on the finish – that’s really the only place the moderately beefy ABV becomes apparent, with a little alcohol sweetness. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brasserie d’Achouffe N’Ice Chouffe Belgian Strong Dark Ale at 10% ABV (C$14.46 at Zyn, 750 ml, best before 24-Aug-2015)

Pours cloudy medium amber with two fingers of rocky tan head, excellent retention and good lacing. (4/5) Nose is caramel, dark stone fruit, candi sugar, Belgian yeast, orange peel, mild spice. (8/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild bitter. (8/10) Full bodied, low carbonation and creamy texture, mildly boozy finish. (4/5)

Really mild booziness, with the alcohol perhaps contributing to the overall sweetness, but otherwise present only as a mild warming. Pleasant enough, and a fairly standard BSDA – to the extent that there’s such a thing as a “standard” BSDA – but hellaciously expensive for what it is. Good? Yep. Great? Mmmm… maybe, maybe not. Worth the price? Probably not. (16/20)

My 160th from the 2010 Edition (151st from the 2013 edition), and 170th combining both editions.

8/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Fort Garry Brewing Company Kona Imperial Stout American Stout at 6.5% ABV (C$3.09 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 473 ml, no canning date or best before)

Pours clear ruby brown with one fat finger of dense tan head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Nose is roasted coffee, dark chocolate, sweet vanilla, moderate boozy alcohol. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium body, soft carbonation, astringent and slightly boozy finish. (4/5)

Yeah, not really an “imperial” stout. “Coffee stout”, sure – and not a bad one. But it could stand to be heavier, both in body and in ABV. There’s also a bit of unbalanced astringency coming from the heavy coffee flavour that could stand to be smoothed out, maybe with a bit of lactose. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Weissbierbrauerei G. Schneider & Sohn Aventinus Weizen-Eisbock Eisbock at 12% ABV (C$12.99 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, best before 1-Oct-2018)

Pours clear amber brown with a short tan head diminishing rapidly to nothing, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is banana, dark boozy fruit, toffee and raisins, mild yeasty wheat. (8/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild bitter. (8/10) Full bodied, low carbonation, lingering boozy finish. (4/5)

I want to call bull on the origin story (a shipment partially froze in unheated transport during the 1930’s). Yes, partial freezing will concentrate the flavour by removing water – kind of the opposite of the “Angel’s Share” alcohol loss – but that only works if you remove the ice. It doesn’t work with a sealed container that will rupture during freezing. Maybe, just maybe, a wooden barrel would expand enough to allow partial freezing – but you’d still have to remove the water ice before drinking… Though, now it occurs to me that if you just had a chunk of ice still present in the barrel when you tapped it… hmmm… OK, maybe it’s viable. Regardless of the validity of the origin story, this is one heckuva beer. Flavours are very similar to an Abt – deep, dark, and rich – and despite the huge ABV, are extremely palatable. And man, does the ABV sneak up on you! This is a great beer to get very, very drunk with – or better yet, to get someone else very, very drunk with. (16/20)

My 159th from the 2010 Edition (150th from the 2013 edition), and 169th combining both editions.

8/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com