Month: March 2021

Coronado Brewing Company Haze on the Horizon – American IPA at 6.7% ABV (C$5.75 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 21-Jan-2021, acquired 3-Mar-2021, reviewed 5-Mar-2021)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of fine off-white head, good retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy citrus, tropical fruit, bready yeast, grape must, light coconut. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-soft carbonation, off-dry medium bitter finish. (4/5)

Hopped with Nelson, Citra, Sabro, & Motueka. Personally I’d like to see a little more Sabro coconut in this one, to give it a little more Piña Colada character along with the citrus and pineapple, but it’s very nice as-is. It’s only about six weeks in the can (which is about as fresh as we’re likely to get Coronado products here) and I don’t think it’s really started to fade yet.  Fruity and flavourful without being too sweet, balanced against bitterness that isn’t edgy or astringent. Works for me. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Outcast Brewing J’Adore les Houblons – American IPA at 6.1% ABV (C$5.45 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 26-Feb-2021, acquired 3-Mar-2021, reviewed 4-Mar-2021)

Appearance: opaque pale gold with one finger of fine off-white head diminishing rapidly to a thin ring, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: pithy grapefruit, stone fruit, bready malt, hint of field berries. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-soft carbonation, off-dry medium bitter finish. (4/5)

The can fell out of my truck and took a pretty good knock, so perhaps that’s why the carbonation is on the low side. I think this is my first experience with Barbe Rouge hops, a new variety from Alsace, and presumably the reason for the French name. (Side note: I used to have a barbe rouge, but it’s a barbe blanche these days…) I’m not really getting a lot of the berry flavours apparently attributed to that varietal, but I’m also getting none of the coconut I usually find with Sabro, so I’m not too sure what’s happening there. On the other hand, it’s flavourful and easy to drink, so I’m not gonna complain. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Definitive Brewing Company Lens – Triple IPA at 10.3% ABV (C$9.95 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 15-Jan-2021, acquired 10-Feb-2021, reviewed 3-Mar-2021)

Appearance: nearly opaque deep gold with two fat fingers of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and heavy chunky lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy pineapple and other tropical fruits, citrus, vanilla, cream, cereal grains, light resiny pine. (9/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, high bitter. (9/10) Palate: medium-full slightly creamy body, moderate-soft carbonation, lingering and building bitter warming finish. (4/5)

If this is a Lens, it’s one from a pair of beer goggles! I guess I’m going to have to start to accept “TIPA” as a designation – and, more specifically, “TDH TIPA”. This “Triple Dry Hopped Triple IPA” is actually relatively easy drinking given its massive… well… everything. The juice-like appearance and aroma are followed by a nectar-like sweetness and thicker body, appropriately balanced by an emphatic building bitterness that (barely) prevents it from being a boozy creamsicle. It grows on me the more of it I drink (big surprise, given the double-digit ABV!) and is right up there with the best efforts I’ve had from this brewery to date. Heck, it’s almost worth the near-double-digit price tag! (17/20)

8.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Annex Ale Project Rinse Cycle – American Pale Ale at 4.5% ABV (C$3.78 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 15-Jan-2021, acquired 10-Feb-2021, reviewed 1-Mar-2021)

Appearance: slightly hazy straw with two fat fingers of rocky white head diminishing rapidly to a thin cap and ring, moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: yeasty funk, bruised apples, melon, citrus. (3/10) Taste: moderate sweet, low bitter. (3/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration slightly tart funky finish. (2/5)

Not my deal – and actually, if I’m being brutally honest, a “rinse cycle” is what I need after that. Not the first time this brewery has had an emphatic failure in my experience, but this easily takes the cake as the worst. I’m not completely certain it was infected, but it might well have been, so maybe it was better new, or other batches are better. In any case, I actually couldn’t work up my nerve to try any more than a couple of sips, and sink poured most of it. (8/20)

4/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Snake Lake Brewing Company Drink Easy Lo-Cal SIPA – Session IPA at 3.9% ABV | 10 IBU (C$3.85 at Collective, 355 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 10-Feb-2021, reviewed 1-Mar-2021)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fat fingers of rocky white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, pale malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration slightly tart finish. (3/5)

This one definitely has a light body, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it watery, and it’s quite refreshing and just as easy to drink as the name promises. On the other hand, it might be pleasant enough on the front end, but there’s a little something in the finish that isn’t really working for me – I hesitate to call it astringency, but it’s definitely got a little edge. Not bad overall, even without making allowances for its super light strength. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com