Month: July 2016

Le Trou du Diable John Edward Aldred Enlightened Beer Saison at 4.5% ABV (C$7.99 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 600 ml, bottle date 19-Apr-2016, acquired 1-Jul-2016, reviewed 3-Jul-2016)

Appearance: hazy pale straw, two fingers of rocky white head, excellent retention and moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: dry hay, lemon zest, grass, grainy pale malt, light barnyard funk. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, mild tart. (8/10) Medium-light body, moderate-high carbonation, dry lightly funky finish. (4/5)

Lovely dry saison. Pleasantly light body and a bone dry finish with a hint of horse blanket. The low ABV is the finishing touch on a very authentic implementation of the style. This one is definitely world-class. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Fuggles & Warlock Craftworks Raiden Black IPA Black IPA at 6.4% ABV (C$7.95 at Sundance Wine Market, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 26-Jun-2016, reviewed 2-Jul-2016)

Appearance: nearly opaque black with brown margins, one fat finger of fluffy ivory head, decent retention and patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: roasty malts, sharp rye, citrus, pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, high bitter, mild tart. (8/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, slightly tart and mildly astringent bitter finish. (4/5)

Black… rye… IPA… what, you couldn’t whack some Brett in there and tick all the beer hipster boxes at once? OK, it’s a decent enough implementation of all of those factors, I’ll give you that. And given the Citra hops, I’m just glad there’s no cattiness to speak of. But… y’know… maybe that Brett’s not such a bad idea after all? It’s good, yeah, but it’s not next-level good. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Fuggles & Warlock Craftworks Super 8 Bit IPA (2016) American IPA at 7% ABV (C$8.50 at Sundance Wine Market, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 26-Jun-2016, reviewed 2-Jul-2016)

Appearance: hazy pale amber, one fat finger of fluffy ivory head, excellent retention and patchy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, stone fruit, caramel malt, resiny pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering and building bitter finish. (3/5)

Yet another A/IPA that makes me wonder exactly where you place the line between that style and DIPA – with the big (but restrained) ABV, and bigger bitter, I really don’t see how it isn’t considered a double. And, much like many DIPA’s, the malt is big and caramel. It’s not overwhelming, or even dominant, but it’s certainly vying with the hops for first place on the nose. The first sip, however, is intense, brightly bitter hops. That settles down as the level drops and the beer warms, but it remains fairly high throughout, and is never overtaken by the malt. Solid performer, lots of fun – but I’d like it better if the malt were paler. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Big Rock Brewery Citradelic American IPA at 6% ABV (C$2.33 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 330 ml, best before 16-Sep-2016, acquired 1-Jul-2016, reviewed 1-Jul-2016)

Appearance: slightly hazy medium amber with a little particulate, two fingers of fluffy ivory head, excellent retention and chunky lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, caramel malt, light tropical fruit, faint resiny pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter finish. (3/5)

Good on you, Big Rock: this is actually a decent, craft-style IPA. Not to mention, I love the labels with colour, flavour, and IBU data. And, though I’d prefer to see bottling and BB dates right on the bottle, at least you put a BB on the case, which is acceptable. Not the best implementation of Citra I’ve ever had, granted, but definitely respectable. It also has to be said that there are none of the catty/pissy tones that sometimes accompany Citra. Good effort, overall. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Big Rock Brewery Mosaic Lager India Pale Lager at 5.5% ABV (C$2.33 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 330 ml, best before 28-Nov-2016, acquired 1-Jul-2016, reviewed 1-Jul-2016)

Appearance: clear pale gold with one finger of rocky white head, good retention and moderate patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: grass, pithy grapefruit, crackery pale malt. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Medium body tending to the watery, moderate carbonation, short lager finish followed by more lingering bitter. (3/5)

A reasonably pleasant IPL. Falls short of some of their recent efforts, such as Wai-Iti or Collaboration #1, but on the other had it’s a damn sight better than their India Pale Ale. Seems to me like Big Rock continues to struggle with their efforts to become “crafty-er.” I wouldn’t go so far as to call this a step backwards, but it’s not clearly a continuation of what I had been seeing as a trend towards improvement. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com