Month: December 2015

The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company Ursa Major Brown Ale American Brown Ale at 7.2% ABV (2015 Craft Beer Advent Calendar Day #11, 341 ml, bottle date 6-Aug-2015, reviewed 11-Dec-2015)

Appearance: clear brown with deep amber highlights, one finger of medium dense light tan head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Aroma: caramel and chocolate malt, cocoa, molasses, dark fruit, nutty. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body tending a little to the watery, moderate carbonation, short duration finish. (3/5)

Fairly pedestrian brown ale that certainly doesn’t deliver on the “rich sweet chocolatey malt flavours” promised by the label, and actually comes across as a little watery at times. On the other hand, it’s pretty well behaved for a 7% ABV, with very little alcohol character coming through at all. Not bad, not great. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Bridge Brewing Company Sleigh Booster Imperial Red Ale American Strong Ale at 9% ABV (2015 Craft Beer Advent Calendar Day #10, 355 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 10-Dec-2015)

Appearance: clear deep amber to amber-brown with one fat finger of dense pillowy light tan head, excellent retention and well-defined lacing. (5/5) Aroma: pine, toffee/caramel, bread, light nutty. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, strong bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-full slightly oily body, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter and mild warming finish. (4/5)

Wow – not what I was expecting at all. When I saw “Imperial Red”, I had visions of a strong Irish Red, but this is much more like a DIPA, albeit a red(-dish) one. Hop forwards, with enough caramel to provide support, yet without being too sweet. Aesthetically pleasing, solid, and quite enjoyable if you like big bitter – and I do. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Evil Twin Brewing Christmas Eve at a New York City Hotel Room Imperial Stout at 10% ABV (C$4.37 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 355 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 9-Dec-2015)

Appearance: solid, unrelieved black with one finger of dense mocha head diminishing gradually to a thick cap, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: boozy, dark roasty malt, liquorice, dark chocolate, coffee, dried cherries. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: full oily body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering boozy finish. (4/5)

Massive and boozy. And that name? I seriously started humming “Fairytale of New York” and tearing up. But I’m a soppy drunk, so the double digit ABV probably had something to do with that too… However: Jeppe? Sorry, but Mikkel’s Beer Geek stouts are better. Way better. Feel free to discuss over what I’m sure are incredibly awkward family events. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Alley Kat Brewing Co. Coffee Porter American Porter at 5% ABV (C$4.37 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 9-Dec-2015)

Appearance: clear deep brown with one fat finger of light tan head, excellent retention and good lacing. (4/5) Aroma: dark roast espresso, very faint lactic. (8/10) Taste: moderate-low sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate-low carbonation, off-dry finish. (3/5)

Yes, it smells like coffee. No, nothing else, other than a smidge of cream. Tastes pretty much like coffee, too. No, nothing else, other than a smidge of cream. And I mean neither of those in a negative way. Smooth espresso that gets you drunk? Sign me up! (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Granville Island Brewing Twisted Twin Dunkelweizen at 5.2% ABV (C$7.49 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 9-Dec-2015)

Appearance: clear brown with a stupidly unmanageable light tan head settling down to two fingers only after ten minutes of careful pouring, excellent retention and patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: wheat malt, caramel, light smoke, nutty and earthy, light metallic. (5/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, light smoke. (5/10) Palate: medium body tending to watery, lively carbonation, off-dry finish. (2/5)

Muddled and not very interesting – bit of a dirty dishwater effect. The carbonation is weird, too: it kicked up a huge head, and makes you gassy as hell, but isn’t all that pronounced in the mouth. A somewhat strange beer, and to be frank, not entirely worth the lengthy and involved process of pouring it. (10/20)

5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Iron Fist Brewing Company Spice of Life Bière de Garde at 6.5% ABV (2015 Craft Beer Advent Calendar Day #9, 355 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 9-Dec-2015)

Appearance: decants clear (cloudy in the lees) deep gold with one finger of pillowy off-white head, excellent retention and chunky lacing. (4/5) Aroma: orange peel, coriander, caramel malt, earthy spice. (6/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, mild bitter, mild tart. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, short duration mildly peppery finish. (3/5)

Not much like any other Bière de Garde I’ve ever had – more like a heavily-spiced wit, although with the notable absence of wheat malt. Sweetness gets to be a bit much after a while, too. OK, not exactly exciting. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Spider Bite Beer Co. Boris the Spider Russian Imperial Stout at 10% ABV (2015 Craft Beer Advent Calendar Day #8, 355 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 8-Dec-2015)

Appearance: opaque black with one finger of dense mocha head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: roasty malt, chocolate, coffee, boozy dark fruit, liquorice, molasses. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter, mild alcohol. (8/10) Palate: full oily and sticky body, moderate carbonation, sticky warming finish. (4/5)

Not the most subtle, but then I guess very few RIS’s ever are.  Black, heavy, oily, and emphatically boozy, but not harsh – so although it’s a sipper, it’s not a chore to do so. ты был укушен, indeed. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Cameron’s Brewing Company Into the Shade Saison Limited Unfiltered Release Saison at 5.2% ABV (2015 Craft Beer Advent Calendar Day #7, 341 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 7-Dec-2015)

Appearance: clear to slightly hazy straw with two fingers of fluffy white head, excellent retention and good lacing. (4/5) Aroma: pithy citrus, stone and tropical fruit, bready yeast, white pepper. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, mild bitter, mild tart, light pepper. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, lively to moderate carbonation, slightly sticky and mildly peppery finish. (3/5)

I like this. The character changes slightly with each sip: one might deliver orange peel and papaya, while the next is lemon pith and apricot. Sweetness is definitely present, but overall well tempered, with the hint of white pepper keeping things on a more or less even keel. The finish is a little stickier than I’d like for the style as well, but generally a pleasant brew from a solid brewer. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Big Sky Brewing Company Biere De Noël (2015) Belgian Strong Dark Ale at 10.1% ABV (2015 Craft Beer Advent Calendar Day #6, 355 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 6-Dec-2015)

Appearance: clear medium-deep amber with one finger of loose light tan head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, minimal patchy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: dark boozy fruit, brown sugar, light chocolate, toffee. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, mild alcohol. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, sticky boozy mild bitter finish. (3/5)

Extremely similar (possibly identical) to last year’s vintage. Reviewing my notes, the carbonation seemed a little lower in this year’s version, and I’m not getting the roasty notes I thought I detected last year. Still a very polite implementation of a very large ABV, and still a solid performer, stylistically appropriate to the Advent calendar theme. Some might complain about this one being a repeat in the calendar: I’m not one of them. Pleasant sipper on a wintery evening. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Clown Shoes Beer Blaecorn Unidragon Russian Imperial Stout at 12.5% ABV (C$17.60 at Star Liquor & Wine, 650 ml, bottle date 5-Jun-2014, reviewed 4-Dec-2015)

Appearance: near solid black with only hints of ruby around the margin, one finger of rocky tan head, patchy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: dark chocolate, boozy dark fruits, earthy, woody. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: full slightly oily body, moderate carbonation, sticky and lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

A big enjoyable beast, with only a hint of an edge associated with the extremely high ABV. Could stand to be smoother, but I’m not sure longer cellaring would accomplish that: I put this one down more than a year ago, and it’s still got bite. I think this is a case of learning to live with it. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com