Month: January 2017

Brasserie Dunham Berliner Mango Weisse Berliner Weisse at 4.2% ABV | 0 IBU (C$16.00 at Sherbrooke Liquor, 750 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 17-Dec-2016, reviewed 11-Jan-2017)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with one finger of fizzy white head diminishing rapidly to nothing, no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: stone fruit, citrus, wheat, yeast funk. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate tart, light funk, non-existent bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, prickly carbonation, dry moderate tart and lightly funky finish. (4/5)

I guess that’s mango, but to be honest I’d’ve guessed puréed peaches – as in, baby food. Fairly tart for a Berliner Weisse, but not to the point where it’s out of spec. Somewhat simple, but refreshing. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

8 Wired Brewing Company Gypsy Funk 2016 Dry Hopped Barrel Aged Pale Sour Ale Sour / Wild Ale at 7.5% ABV (C$12.62 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, bottle date 1-Aug-2016, acquired 13-Dec-2016, reviewed 10-Jan-2017)

Appearance: clear medium gold with one finger of rocky white head, good retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: Brett funk, wet hay, vinous white grape must, lemon, stone fruit. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate tart, moderate funk, low bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, prickly carbonation, dry lingering tart and funky finish. (4/5)

As I’ve come to expect from 8 Wired, that is some serious shit. I very deliberately chose my lineup of tonight’s sours to end with this one, having high hopes for a true barrel-aged sour from one of my favourite breweries – and I was not disappointed. This very emphatically illustrates the difference between boring kettle sours, and true barrel-aged sours. Complex, fun, and interesting – and the high ABV never shows itself, at least not until the room starts to get a little wobbly. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Dandy Brewing Company Baltus Van Tassel Cherry Sour Sour / Wild Ale at 7% ABV (C$8.29 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 8-Nov-2016, reviewed 10-Jan-2017)

Appearance: murky amber-brown with a short, short-lived off-white head, no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: coffee, dark cherry, tart vinous. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high tart, low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, lively carbonation, lingering tart finish. (3/5)

Now, that is interesting: coffee and dark cherry dominate the flavour profile, which is gratifyingly low in sweetness. This verges on being a Flanders Brown more than anything else, and there’s some nice depth and complexity going on. I’ve been waffling between “somewhat” and “moderately” unimpressed with Dandy’s lineup thus far, but this is definitely moving in the right direction, and right up there with the best they have to offer. Ugly as sin, though. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Fuggles & Warlock Craftworks Rei Boysenberry Sour Sour / Wild Ale at 6.5% ABV | 7 IBU (C$8.29 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 8-Nov-2016, reviewed 10-Jan-2017)

Appearance: cloudy ruby red with one finger of fluffy light pink head diminishing gradually to a thin ring, no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: red berries, citrus, lacto sour, light funk. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high tart, low bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium-light body, lively to moderate carbonation, off-dry tart finish. (3/5)

Not bad for a kettle sour. I wouldn’t be able to identify a boysenberry to save my life, but there’s some sort of red berry character dominating over the fairly plain lacto sour, and it’s backstopped by a little musty funk. Cantillon this ain’t, but it’s drinkable. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Phillips Brewing Company Sour Note Bass Shaker Peach Sour Aged in Oak Sour / Wild Ale at 4.9% ABV (C$7.99 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, best before 14-Apr-2017, acquired 13-Dec-2016, reviewed 10-Jan-2017)

Appearance: clear deep gold with one finger of fluffy ivory head diminishing gradually to a thin cap, no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: lacto sour, peach, citrus, woody, bile. (5/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate tart, low bitter. (5/10) Palate: medium body, lively to moderate carbonation, off-dry tart finish. (3/5)

I went into this fully expecting a sink pour, so I guess you could say I was pleasantly surprised? I mean, it’s not great (hell, “good” is a bit of a stretch) but it’s not terrible. Ultimately, though, it’s a kettle sour – no more, no less. There’s a little more complexity in this than is typical for kettle sours, but there’s no real depth here, and lacto plus stone fruit plus citrus equals, well, bile. (11/20)

5.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Amsterdam Brewery 3 Speed Lager American Pale Lager at 4.2% ABV | 11 IBU (Gift – thanks, Kath M!, 473 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 14-Dec-2016, reviewed 10-Jan-2017)

Appearance: clear pale straw with one finger of fluffy white head diminishing rapidly to a thin cap, no lacing. (2/5) Aroma: sweet cereal grain and pale malt, grassy. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, low bitter. (5/10) Palate: light body, moderate carbonation, crisp finish. (3/5)

Let’s be honest here: there’s no point expecting this to be anything other than what it is. But, what it is, it does pretty well (as one would expect from Amsterdam Brewery). It’s clean and crisp, with no off flavours. At the end of the day, though, it’s about as boring as watching paint dry. Still and all, I’d rather have this with a meal than a macro lager. (11/20)

5.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Epic Brewing Utah Sage Saison (Release #31) Saison at 7.9% ABV (C$15.10 at Sherbrooke Liquor, 650 ml, bottle date 13-Aug-2015, acquired 17-Dec-2016, reviewed 9-Jan-2017)_

Appearance: cloudy pale gold with one fat finger of medium-dense off-white head, excellent retention and moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: resiny evergreen, sage, citrus, floral, earthy, light pepper. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry finish. (3/5)

Hoooo-eee – subtle, this ain’t. Big resiny evergreen notes almost suggest pine at first, before resolving into (mostly) sage. But of course they’ve got rosemary and thyme in there as well, which begs the question: why not whack in a little parsley, and call it “Scarborough Fair”? Or maybe given how savoury a mixture it is, “Thanksgiving”? A little busy, perhaps, but decent fun regardless. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

To Øl Yeastus Christus India Pale Ale (IPA) at 7.4% ABV | 62 IBU (C$14.20 at Sherbrooke Liquor, 500 ml, bottle date 29-Jun-2015, acquired 17-Dec-2016, reviewed 9-Jan-2017)

Appearance: hazy pale amber with two fingers of fluffy growing ivory head, excellent retention and heavy lacing. (5/5) Aroma: Brett funk, stone fruit, grapefruit, some tropical fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium slightly oily body, lively carbonation, lingering bitter and mildly warming finish. (3/5)

Yup, “farmhouse IPA” is definitely a valid style label to hang on this thing (BJCP be damned!): lots of farmhouse (well, that, or barnyard) Brett(-like? I dunno, I’m not a mycologist.) funk character battling for supremacy with grapefruit and tropical fruit IPA notes. Not all that tart, though, despite the commercial description. Might be interesting newer – perhaps there’d be more of the pithy grapefruit if you caught it within 90 days or so – but given the dominance of Brett(-like? Whatever.) wild yeast here, I kind of doubt it. If anything, this strikes me as the kind of IPA you could stick in a cellar for a couple of years just to let the funk really dig down and get established. If I happen to notice another one of these around, I might do just that. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Taps Brewing Company Rye Knot Rye Beer at 5% ABV (Gift – thanks, Kath M!, 473 ml, no bottle date or best before, acquired 14-Dec-2016, reviewed 9-Jan-2017)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of fluffy growing ivory head, excellent retention and clingy lacing. (5/5) Aroma: caramel malt, rye bread, citrus, coriander. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, mild peppery spice. (6/10) Palate: medium body, lively to moderate carbonation, lingering bitter and spicy finish. (3/5)

Not without its charms, and to be honest, better than I was expecting. The rye isn’t as well-defined or spicy as I like, but it’s definitely there. The carbonation tends a little to the high side as suggested by the large marshmallowy head, but isn’t off-putting for the style. All in all, a decent enough pint if you like yours a little spicy, especially given the extremely reasonable price point it occupies (under $3 at LCBO). (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

The Bruery 9 Ladies Dancing American Strong Ale at 11.3% ABV (C$13.48 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 750 ml, bottle date 26-Oct-2016, acquired 13-Dec-2016, reviewed 8-Jan-2017)

Appearance: slightly hazy amber-brown with one fat finger of fluffy ivory head diminishing rapidly to a thin ring, no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: astringent coffee grounds, caramel, cocoa, vanilla. (4/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, moderate astringent. (3/10) Palate: medium body tending watery, moderate to low carbonation, moderate bitter and astringent finish. (2/5)

Well, that’s coincidental – just earlier today, I expressed surprise that The Bruery could be capable of producing a sink pour, then lo and behold, I get my own. I was reserving this for my last gasp at Christmas, and that’s pretty much precisely what it ended up being: the last kick in the nuts from one of the worst Christmases on record. A muddled mess of overextracted coffee grounds in dishwater – deeply disappointing. (8/20)

4/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com