île Sauvage Brewing Company Occidental West Coast Pale Ale – American Pale Ale at 5.0% ABV (C$5.90 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 23-Feb-2024, reviewed 3-Mar-2024)
Appearance: hazy/muddy medium amber with one fat finger of rocky pale ivory head, excellent retention and heavy soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, caramel, pine, slight funk. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: smooth medium-full body, moderate-soft carbonation, off-dry medium duration finish. (4/5)
Their web site references Cryo Pop hops and Lutra Kveik yeast. I waffled a little on my scoring here – mostly because I’m finding the overall flavour profile to be about as muddled as the appearance – but ultimately it’s not unpleasant, even though it’s by no means straight-up “West Coast”. There’s a very mild hint of barnyard funk and an off-dry finish that I’m attributing to the use of the kveik yeast, and neither of those are a drawback. All in all, it’s perhaps better than “just OK”, but short of great. (15/20)
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7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com
