Month: August 2020

E9 Brewery So What – American IPA at 6% ABV (C$5.08 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 22-Aug-2020)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with two fat fingers of rocky pale ivory head, excellent retention and well-defined chunky lacing. (5/5) Aroma: citrus, caramel, tropical fruit, light pine, hint of stone fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, sweetish lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Fairly straightforward AIPA, with some West Coast characteristics but not the emphatic pine that normally entails. A bit too much sweet caramel for my preference, too, but all in all a solid if unremarkable example. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Dog Island Brewing SMASH – American IPA at 5.0% ABV | 30 IBU (C$4.23 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 21-Aug-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale straw with two fat fingers of loose white head diminishing gradually to a persistent cap, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, coconut, pale crackery malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration bitter lightly funky finish. (4/5)

My second Sabro SMaSH of the night, but this one uses Pilsen malt, which works a bit better in my opinion. There’s a hint of funk here from the kveik yeast, making the overall effect almost but not quite like a Belgian-style IPA. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Born Colorado Brewing Fraser SMASH – American IPA at 5.5% ABV | 10 IBU (C$3.24 at Collective, 355 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 21-Aug-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale straw with two fat fingers of loose white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, coconut, earthy malt. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry mild bitter lightly astringent finish. (3/5)

A Maris Otter and Sabro SMaSH, which is not a combination I think works particularly well. I’m not saying it’s bad, just that there’s no particular synergy in doing an IPA with nutty Maris Otter and coconutty Sabro. Combining that odd flavour choice with a slightly astringent finish leaves me a bit less than impressed overall. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Last Best Brewing and Distilling Burnout Hazy IPA – American IPA at 8.3% ABV (C$4.63 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 20-Aug-2020)

Appearance: clear pale gold with one fat finger of loose white head diminishing gradually to a persistent cap, moderate stringy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: stone fruit, tropical fruit, citrus, pale malt. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry mild bitter finish. (4/5)

Hey, I like sourdough! But other than that, the list of “FUCK [whatever]” on the back of the can is pretty bang-on, including such 2020-related items that can fuck fight off as “BUSHFIRES”, “MURDER HORNETS”, “COVID” (of course), and “ISOLATION”, ending with “THE MAYAN CALENDAR (for getting the year wrong)” and “FOUR MONTHS (of this year still remaining)”. Indeed. Drinks easily for the high ABV, and definitely a requirement as the Flames shit the bed in Game 6. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Odin Brewing Company Galactic Peach Dragon – American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$3.25 at Collective, 355 ml, packaged on 2-Jul-2020, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 20-Aug-2020)

Appearance: clear pale gold with one fat finger of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: peach / stone fruit, citrus, pale malt, pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium slightly sticky body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration with a hint of astringency finish. (3/5)

Well, that’s peachy-keen.

What? That’s all I got. Hey, the can says “PEACH | PEACHY | MORE PEACH”, whattya want from me?

(sigh) Fine, take Galactic Space Dragon, add peaches. Surprisingly, despite that adjunct, it’s got a clearer appearance than the base version. It’s a bit too sticky for my preference, and despite that tends just the tiniest bit astringent in the finish, but it’s not bad overall. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Ravens Brewing Co. Outta Luck – Fruit / Vegetable Beer at 3.8% ABV | 10 IBU (C$4.45 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 21-May-2020, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 20-Aug-2020)

Appearance: slightly hazy pinkish tinged medium gold with two fat fingers of pillowy pale pinkish-ivory head, excellent retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: plum / stone fruit, floral, mild citrus, pale crackery malt. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate tart, mild bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, sweetish medium tart finish. (4/5)

Lots of flavour here, with plenty of fruit, but not quite to the extent of being overwhelming. Hints of hops include floral notes and orangey citrus, but of course I’d prefer more emphatic dry-hopping. Finishes tart, but not puckeringly so. A little too sweet to be really clean and refreshing, but pleasant regardless, and really quite impressively flavourful for such a low ABV. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

The Red Hart Brewing Co. Red Hart DIPA – American Double / Imperial IPA at 7.7% ABV | 49.1 IBU (C$5.49 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 19-Aug-2020)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with one fat finger of loose white head diminishing rapidly to a thin ring, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: citrus, melon, resiny pine, pale crackery malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Quite a pleasant WCDIPA, that drinks much lighter and crisper than the respectable ABV would suggest. The citrus, melon, and pine notes are nicely balanced, with no real dominance by either. Good stuff. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Siding 14 Brewing Co. Freighthopper’s New England IPA – American IPA at 5.5% ABV | 25 IBU (C$2.92 at Collective, 355 ml, packaged on 23-Jul-2020, acquired 19-Aug-2020, reviewed 19-Aug-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of rocky ivory head, good retention and moderate chunky lacing. (3/5) Aroma: citrus, tropical fruit, caramel. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration finish. (4/5)

A very middle-of-the-road implementation of the style, with no negatives, but also little or nothing to recommend it. Solid but unremarkable. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Tool Shed Brewing Company / Fitzsimmons Brewing Company SMaSH The Curve – American IPA at 4.7% ABV | 35 IBU (C$3.50 at Okotoks Co-Op, 473 ml, packaged on 6-Apr-2020, acquired 17-Aug-2020, reviewed 17-Aug-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale straw with two fat fingers of rocky white head, good retention and well-defined chunky lacing. (4/5) Aroma: mild, oily citrus, pale biscuity malt, light funk. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, low bitter. (6/10) Palate: light body tending thin, moderate carbonation, dry mildly spicy slightly astringent finish. (3/5)

Very mild aroma and flavour, and even thinner than the low-ish ABV would suggest. The kveik yeast makes things a little more interesting, but it’s pretty minimal and not enough to salvage this from the doldrums of boredom. Not a big fan of this one. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

O.T. Brewing Company The Double 5 Hundie – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8% ABV | 65 IBU (C$4.72 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 4-Aug-2020, reviewed 15-Aug-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with one fat finger of loose white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, moderate lacing. (3/5) Aroma: juicy orange, tropical fruit, caramel, pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, slightly sticky moderate bitter mildly warming finish. (4/5)

When I tried the original (single) version of this, I gave them props for dating their cans, and characterized that as a task that seems too difficult for some brewers to figure out. Well, this one wasn’t dated. [sigh] Anyway, this is very much a true double: it smells and tastes very much like the single, except slightly more bombastic. (Although, to be pedantic, it’s obviously not truly “double”, since this is only a point and a half heavier than the single, but “a hundred and twenty three percenter” doesn’t have quite the same ring to it…) Really, the only reason I can distinguish between these is by noting the absence of warming in my notes for the single, but I’m sure the difference would be apparent side-by-side. It’s also about 15 IBU bitterer, but that’s commensurate with the heavier malt and ABV, so it’s not really apparent on the tongue but again might be apparent in a side-by-side comparo. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com