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Collective Arts Brewing Hazy State DDH IPA – Session IPA at 4.1% ABV

Collective Arts Brewing Hazy State DDH IPA Session IPA at 4.1% ABV (C$4.23 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 24-Apr-2019, acquired 14-Jun-2019, reviewed 19-Jun-2019)

Appearance: hazy straw with one fat finger of loose white head diminishing gradually to a thin cap, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: juicy tropical fruit & citrus, pale crackery malt, hint of pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate-soft carbonation, short slightly tart finish. (4/5)

The label calls this a “DDH IPA”, and I guess the aroma and flavour profile are close to just that – but it’s definitely lacking the robustness of a typical A/IPA, so I’m calling it a Session. For a Session, it’s very well done, with character that belies the low ABV.  Definitely one you could enjoy drinking all day on the patio. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Deschutes Brewery Lil’ Squeezy Juicy Ale – American Pale Ale at 5% ABV | IBU 40

Deschutes Brewery Lil’ Squeezy Juicy Ale American Pale Ale at 5% ABV | IBU 40 (C$3.06 at Collective, 355 ml, packaged on 23-May-2019, acquired 14-Jun-2019, reviewed 18-Jun-2019)

Appearance: clear pale gold with one finger of loose off-white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim and ring, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: citrus, caramel, grass. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, medium duration bitter finish. (4/5)

I was puzzling over why this one was coming across so light, verging on watery, when it hit me: the can says it’s “crafted to remove gluten”. Clearly they’ve filtered (or otherwise processed) a bunch of flavour out of this. Honestly: if you’re not actually celiac and you use the word “gluten”, you need a punch in the head. Desperately. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Salt Spring Island Ales Earl Grey IPA – English IPA at 7% ABV

 IPA at 7% ABV (C$5.45 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 15-Apr-2019, acquired 14-Jun-2019, reviewed 17-Jun-2019)

Appearance: clear deep amber with one fat finger of rocky ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: sweet caramel, bergamot, black tea, citrus, earth. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, moderate bitter lingering slightly astringent finish. (4/5)

I was cautiously optimistic here: I like Earl Grey tea, and English-style IPAs might not be my absolute favourite, but I still enjoy them. And, this sort of works. The bergamot is obvious, but not overwhelming, and the added notes of black tea and citrus definitely make this reminiscent of a nice cup of tea. Not quite as crushable and thirst-quenching as the new American styles, but definitely one worth sipping. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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The Establishment Brewing Company Sky Rocket II – American IPA at 6.5% ABV

The Establishment Brewing Company Sky Rocket II American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$4.19 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 12-Jun-2019, acquired 14-Jun-2019, reviewed 17-Jun-2019)

Appearance: opaque pale gold with one fat finger of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and moderate stringy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy tropical fruit, citrus, resiny pine, stone fruit, pale malt, hint of lactose. (9/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (9/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, moderate bitter lingering finish. (4/5)

Even better than their Afternoon Delight APA, whom I presume was intended to be the lighter version of this one. (Or maybe this one’s the beefier version of that one? I don’t know which one’s the chicken and which the egg here.) For that one, I indicated a hint of green onion in the aroma, but that’s almost completely absent here – there’s the faintest vegetal note in this one, but I don’t think I would have noticed it had I not reviewed my notes for its brother. In-spec bitterness for the style is moderate at most, with hints of tartness and a very faint lactose-like sweetness (oats?) that isn’t present in the APA, but doesn’t go astray with this higher ABV IPA. Damn good stuff. (17/20)

8.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Stone Brewing Company Scorpion Bowl – American IPA at 7.5% ABV | 76 IBU

Stone Brewing Company Scorpion Bowl American IPA at 7.5% ABV | 76 IBU (C$6.21 at Collective, 568 ml, packaged on 17-Apr-2019, best before 16-Apr-2020, acquired 14-Jun-2019, reviewed 16-Jun-2019)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with two fingers of fine off-white head, excellent retention and chunky lacing. (5/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, bready caramel, citrus, floral, light pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body tending slightly thin, moderate carbonation dropping off somewhat, medium duration slightly watery finish. (3/5)

Decent enough, I suppose, but nothing too exciting or unique – we’ve certainly come a long way since the Stone name carried much in the way of cachet. The aroma and flavour are OK, but I’m particularly unimpressed by the way in which the body and carbonation fall off just slightly watery. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Analog Brewing Boomshakalaka – American IPA at 6.5% ABV

Analog Brewing Boomshakalaka American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$10.25 at Collective, 946 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 14-Jun-2019, reviewed 14-Jun-2019)

Appearance: clear pale amber with two fingers of fine pale ivory head, good retention and chunky lacing. (5/5) Aroma: stone & tropical fruit, bready caramel, light citrus. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-lively carbonation dropping off rapidly, medium duration slightly watery finish. (3/5)

This starts off pretty promising, but then it just seems to lose steam. For example, the carbonation. I mean, yeah, it’s a growler, but it was filled only a couple of hours ago, and I got a very nice hiss upon cracking it. Not only that, it was actually pretty lively at the outset, but then it just kinda faded, ending up sort of watery in the finish. Similarly, the bright fruit aromas are promising, but end up coming across as slightly cloying. There’s very little citrus here, and no pine at all, and I think it would benefit from both. Don’t get me wrong: it’s a long way from unpleasant – but I don’t feel any great urge to go looking for it again, either. (13/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Belching Beaver Brewery Peach Be With You – American Pale Ale at 5.5% ABV

Belching Beaver Brewery Peach Be With You American Pale Ale at 5.5% ABV (C$4.32 at Collective, 355 ml, packaged on 10-May-2019, acquired 14-Jun-2019, reviewed 14-Jun-2019)

Appearance: slightly hazy straw with one fat finger of fluffy white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: sweet stone fruit, crackery pale malt, light citrus, hint of perfume floral. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter finish. (4/5)

Despite the aroma of sweet stone fruit (OK, fine, Fuzzy Peaches candy) the sweetness is completely restrained and remains civilized throughout. Similarly, although I’ve described a perfume floral note, it never gets cloying. Not the kind of beer you might think of as crushable, except it kinda is. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Hawk Tail Brewery Hawk Tail Pale – American Pale Ale at 6.5% ABV | 38 IBU

Hawk Tail Brewery Hawk Tail Pale American Pale Ale at 6.5% ABV | 38 IBU (C$2.61 at Collective, 355 ml, packaged on 5-Apr-2019, acquired 28-May-2019, reviewed 13-Jun-2019)

Appearance: slightly hazy straw with a short, short-lived white head and no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: crackery pale malt, grass, herbal. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter slightly astringent finish. (3/5)

Almost Pilsener-ish, with a crackery malt and grassy herbal hops on the nose. Largely inoffensive, but unremarkable, and fairly mass-market in character. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Omnipollo / Mikrofonbryggeriet / Morgandagens / Dugges Neophyte Tropic Lollipop IIPA – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.8% ABV

Omnipollo / Mikrofonbryggeriet / Morgandagens / Dugges Neophyte Tropic Lollipop IIPA American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.8% ABV (C$9.58 at Collective, 330 ml, best before 11-Dec-2019, acquired 28-May-2019, reviewed 12-Jun-2019)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with one finger of fluffy white head, good retention and moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: candy berries, citrus, dank pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter, light tart. (8/10) Palate: medium-full body tending slightly syrupy, moderate carbonation, off-dry lightly tart warming lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Restrained sweetness and surprisingly well-balanced on the tongue, given the sweet, Jolly Rancher-style aromas. The finish is an interesting combination of a lingering bitter and a warm-verging-on-hot booziness cut by a light tartness. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

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Brasserie Dunham Cyclope IPA (Simcoe, Topaz, Mosaic) – American IPA at 5.7% ABV

Brasserie Dunham Cyclope IPA (Simcoe, Topaz, Mosaic) American IPA at 5.7% ABV (C$3.87 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 13-Feb-2019, acquired 28-May-2019, reviewed 11-Jun-2019)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of fluffy white head, good retention and minimal spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, resiny pine, tropical fruit, bready caramel. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-lively carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Nice one, similar to the Bêta but with a slightly different aroma due to the different hops. Juicy and enjoyable. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com