Author: dpatrickryan

The Establishment Brewing Company Brave Noise – American Pale Ale at 4.5% ABV (C$4.18 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 22-Feb-2022, acquired 10-Mar-2022, reviewed 12-Mar-2022)

Appearance: hazy straw with one fat finger of rocky white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: mild, tropical fruit, citrus, cereal grains, floral. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration slightly astringent finish. (3/5)

Decent, but not one of their best. Looking back over my history with this brewer, it seems like (no great surprise) score tends to very roughly track with ABV – at least, the sub-five percent examples seem to be in the bottom of the pack, and that holds true here. Specifically, I think the grain bill is a bit too light to support the bitterness, so that even though the aroma is relatively mild, there’s a little bit of astringency on the tongue through the finish. That being said, “bottom of the pack” for this brewer is pretty solid, and I’ve never rated them less than a seven. And for what it’s worth coming from an old cis white guy, I emphatically support the cause: brewing should be inclusive regardless of what genitalia someone has or prefers. (14/20)

This will be my 5,219th unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Field House Brewing Co. Dutch Pale Ale – American Pale Ale at 4.8% ABV | 16 IBU (C$3.24 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 10-Mar-2022, reviewed 11-Mar-2022)

Appearance: clear straw with one fat finger of fine white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: mild, crackery malt, floral, grass. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, short duration clean finish. (4/5)

I haven’t had a lot by this brewer (four, prior to this one) but I’ve been fairly impressed with those (μ=7.9 & σ=0.25). This is… less impressive. That’s not to say there’s anything negative about it, but it’s just a very straightforward, Pilsner-ish Pale. The aroma is mild, and what there is of it is largely dominated by pale malt. It’s easy to drink, but equally easy to forget when it’s gone. I suppose could have scored it lower out of sheer boredom and crankiness, but to be fair there are no negatives, so it really shouldn’t be scored much lower than I have it. (14/20)

This will be my 5,218th unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Trans Canada Brewing Co. Arrow – American IPA at 6.8% ABV | 60 IBU (C$3.25 at Collective, 355 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 10-Mar-2022, reviewed 10-Mar-2022)

Appearance: hazy pale amber with two fingers of rocky ivory head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: pithy citrus, resiny pine, caramel, grass. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

To be perfectly honest, I only bought this because of the name and label. (Personally, I pinpoint the termination of the Avro Arrow project as the solidification of Canada’s role of being subservient to the US.) I hadn’t previously encountered the brewery, so I had no expectations there. But, this is really good. Hazy in appearance, but otherwise pretty old-fashioned in its hop balance and bitterness. (16/20)

This will be my 5,217th unique Untappd check-in.

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

O.T. Brewing Company Snow Rippa – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.4% ABV (C$4.45 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 18-Feb-2022, reviewed 9-Mar-2022)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with one fat finger of fine off-white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical & stone fruit, caramel, citrus, hint of pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate-soft carbonation, building bitter boozy finish. (3/5)

Label notes say this is done with “an 80º C whirlpool of Azacca, Strata, Motueka, Amarillo, Mosaic, and Eldorado hops finished with a double dry-hop of Cryo-Amarillo and Cryo-Mosaic”, so you might as well call it “Kitchen Sink Rippa”. The label calls it “complex” but I call it “a bit of a muddled mess”. To be fair, there are no off notes, as such, but it is just a big slightly sticky dose of hops and malt. (14/20)

This will be my 5,216th unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Folding Mountain Brewing Fiddle Pass – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8% ABV (C$4.68 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 18-Feb-2022, reviewed 8-Mar-2022)

Appearance: slightly hazy medium gold with two fingers of fine off-white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, tropical & stone fruit, caramel, pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, sweetish lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

The brewer says it’s hopped with Talus, Zythos, and Cashmere. I mean, it’s not a bad beer by any means – but by just about any metric you care to pick, it’s the exact antithesis of its stated style. Clarity, aroma, and bitterness are all much more WC than NE. I once had a prof who told me he didn’t know whether to give me an “A” for the quality of my essay or an “F” for how much class material I included, so to take my “C” and be happy. Well this might not be a “C” in absolute terms, but if I scored it as an NEDIPA, it sure is (and maybe worse). So, I guess, take your “B” and be happy? (14/20)

This will be my 5,215th unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Cabin Brewing Company Mesosphere – American IPA at 7.3% ABV (C$4.77 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 24-Jan-2022, acquired 18-Feb-2022, reviewed 7-Mar-2022)

Appearance: slightly hazy straw with one fat finger of fine white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: pine, grapefruit, tropical fruit, pale crackery malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, sweetish lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

Fun fact: if you go above the mesosphere, the FAA officially considers you an astronaut. Which has got precisely nothing to do with this beer, so, anyway… Except for the tropical fruit notes, this might be an old-school WCIPA, so it’s certainly West Coast-ish. Quite a bit sweeter than I’d like, and my scoring reflected that, but it sort of grew on me, helped along by the solid bitterness and ABV. Neither of those reach stratospheric levels, but are respectable… and, hey! Did I just figure out the name? (The mesosphere is immediately below the stratosphere.) Ultimately, I don’t have any real complaints about this one, and for some other brewer it might well be the best you could reasonably expect, but given my experience with Cabin (n=25, μ=7.7 & σ=0.56) for them it’s dead average or a little less. Call it the curse of competence, but I’ve come to expect better of them. (15/20)

This will be my 5,214th unique Untappd check-in.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Four Winds Brewing Co. Extralux – American IPA at 5.8% ABV | 50 IBU (C$4.95 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 16-Dec-2021, acquired 18-Feb-2022, reviewed 27-Feb-2022)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of creamy pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: bright citrus, melon, stone fruit, pale malt, vinous grapes. (9/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, short duration finish. (4/5)

Lovely bright aromas upon opening, despite the fact that it’s probably been in the can too long. Quite nice one. (16/20)

This will be my 5,207th unique Untappd check-in.

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Vancouver Island Brewing Deep Sea IPA – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8% ABV (C$4.45 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 14-Nov-2021, acquired 18-Feb-2022, reviewed 27-Feb-2022)

Appearance: clear pale amber with two fat fingers of rocky ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: caramel, earthy pine, citrus, light tropical & stone fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, sweetish lingering bitter mildly warming finish. (3/5)

Brewer’s notes describe this as being “juicy and tropical”, but it very much isn’t. Caramel malt dominates a throwback West Coast earthy pine and citrus, with some lesser fruit aromas behind. On the tongue, it’s as sweet as you’d expect from the aroma, and that sweetness remains through the bitter finish. I remember when pretty much all DIPAs were like this. It’s… fine… I guess? (14/20)

This will be my 5,206th unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Category 12 Brewing Multiverse – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.9% ABV | 40 IBU (C$5.17 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 23-Nov-2021, acquired 18-Feb-2022, reviewed 26-Feb-2022)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with two fat fingers of fluffy white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy tropical fruit, citrus, bready yeast, mildly boozy. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, lively carbonation, lingering sweetish mildly warming finish. (3/5)

Hopped with Simcoe and Citra, brewed with a “new top-secret yeast strain”. I actually got an initial note of bready yeast, but that faded rapidly to leave behind a sweet pineapple and slightly boozy citrus. There’s a bit of nectar sweetness throughout that’s not entirely offset by the fairly lively carbonation, resulting in a slightly sticky mildly warming finish. This might’ve been brighter when fresh, but I can’t see that changing the body or finish a whole lot, so my guess is I wouldn’t have scored it much differently. (14/20)

This will be my 5,205th unique Untappd check-in.

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Old Yale Brewing Co. / Neighbourhood Brewing Kviek Hazy – American Pale Ale at 5.5% ABV | 30 IBU (C$4.14 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 18-Feb-2022, reviewed 25-Feb-2022)

Appearance: hazy straw with two fat fingers of fluffy pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, barnyard funk, citrus, cereal grains, light coconut. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, light tart. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, medium duration slightly astringent finish. (3/5)

Hopped with Strata, Mosaic, and Sabro. I’m not sure I’m entirely sold on how the hop selection works with the funky barnyardy notes of the Kviek yeast. (13/20)

This will be my 5,204th unique Untappd check-in.

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com