Category: Reviews

Anchorage Brewing Company Together Again – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.4% ABV (C$11.65 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 11-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy deep gold with one fat finger of loose pale ivory head diminishing gradually to a thin ring, spotty soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, cereal grains, citrus, dank pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, warming slightly boozy lingering finish. (4/5)

Look, I have no desire to be critical of Anchorage’s label art, but let’s be honest: if you’ve had more than a couple of theirs, you’ve got a pretty good idea of what they’re going to look like. I was going to try a better perspective for my photo on this one, but then figured, why bother? It’s black ink line art and there’s a werewolf, and a skeleton with horns, just like 90% of all their other labels. NOT a criticism – I can barely deal with the Seasonal Affective Disorder of living 700 miles south of Anchorage, so if you forced me to live there I’m pretty sure I’d go full-on Doom Goth Metal too. The beer? Well, it’s not the prettiest, but it smells and tastes good and get your minds out of the gutter that’s not what I meant and the slightly boozy warming finish again not what I meant perverts is completely style-appropriate. (15/20)

This will be my 5,856th unique Untappd check-in.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

True North Ale Company Straight Up – American IPA at 6.4% ABV (C$9.95 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 15-Feb-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 11-Jun-2024)

Appearance: crystal clear pale gold with two fingers of fluffy white head, excellent retention and spotty soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, dank resiny pine, citrus, pale biscuity malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration finish. (4/5)

NO. Bad brewer, no cookie for you. “True North” is Canada, no ifs, ands or buts about it. We own that shit, just like Mounties Tim Horton’s I dunno, something we haven’t sold out. Passive aggressive apologising? British spelling? Anyway, nice beer. “Dry hopped with Mosaic, Simcoe, and Idaho 7”, comes across as strongly influenced by traditional WC IPA, with pleasantly dank and resiny notes in addition to new-school tropical. Just very slightly a letdown on the tongue and through the finish, which is why I’ve scored it just short of world-class, and not because of the sheer unadulterated hubris of the brewery name. (And there’s no way it’s worth the price tag, but that’s neither here nor there.) (15/20)

This will be my 5,855th unique Untappd check-in.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Equilibrium Brewery Wavelength – American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$7.75 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 2-Apr-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 11-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of loose pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: stone & tropical fruit, citrus, oats, pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: soft medium body, moderate-low carbonation, slightly sweetish medium duration finish. (3/5)

Simcoe and Mosaic in the whirlpool, Mosaic and Citra dry hop. Smells pretty decent, but the flavour is slightly sweetish, and that carries through into the finish. Not bad, but it falls short of next level. (15/20)

This will be my 5,854th unique Untappd check-in.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Nelson Brewing Company Cryo Pop Hazy IPA – American IPA at 6.7% ABV (C$5.00 at Econo Liquor Okotoks, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 7-Jun-2024, reviewed 10-Jun-2024)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with one finger of loose white head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, wheat and cereal grains. (6/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, sweetish medium duration finish. (3/5)

No idea whether this was just an old can (DATE YOUR DAMN CANS!) or just not very well done, but what little fruit there is feels kind of bruised, and the finish is kind of flabby. (12/20)

This will be my 5,853rd unique Untappd check-in.

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Garrison Brewing Company Hold Fast – American Pale Ale at 5.5% ABV | 20 IBU (C$4.50 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 26-Mar-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 10-Jun-2024)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with one finger of loose white head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: grass, honey, citrus. (6/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry short duration finish. (3/5)

Meh. There’s nothing really wrong here, but it’s definitely not interesting. (12/20)

This will be my 5,852nd unique Untappd check-in.

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

The Grizzly Paw Brewing Company Liberation – American Pale Ale at 5% ABV (C$4.50 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 2-May-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 10-Jun-2024)

Appearance: clear pale amber with two fingers of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and heavy soapy lacing. (5/5) Aroma: pine, citrus, caramel. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, lingering building bitter finish. (4/5)

Old school – and yes, a little old-fashioned. That’s not to suggest it isn’t reasonably well-executed, because it is, but it’s really not doing anything interesting in a pretty thoroughly-explored field. Ultimately I’d want more bombast from this, even at its relatively low ABV, and it’s just not there. (15/20)

This will be my 5,851st unique Untappd check-in.

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

The Establishment Brewing Company Float Along – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.2% ABV (C$5.80 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 6-May-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 9-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with one finger of creamy white head, good retention and heavy soapy lacing. (5/5) Aroma: citrus, cereal grains, resiny dank. (9/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (9/10) Palate: smooth medium-full body, moderate-soft carbonation, medium duration mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Malt: Pilsner, Flaked Oats, Flaked Wheat, Malted Oats, Chit. Hops: Citra, Cashmere, Idaho 7, Cryo Simcoe, Mosaic. Yeast: OYL-011. This…. Might be one of the best NE DIPAs I’ve ever had. Hell, it might be one of the best beers I’ve ever had. (18/20)

This will be my 5,850th unique Untappd check-in.

9/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Anchorage Brewing Company Dead? – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.4% ABV (C$11.65 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 14-Feb-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 8-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with one fat finger of pillowy pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: stone fruit, citrus, cereal grains, tropical fruit, light dank. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: smooth medium-full body, moderate carbonation, medium duration mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Brewed with Phantasm Powder, Cashmere and Mosaic hops. I waffled a little on the scoring here, because although I found the flavours reasonably pleasant, I was left a little short of impressed – but I wasn’t not entirely convinced that wasn’t simply because I was simply getting a little bored. So, although I initially marked it a little lower, I ended up here. (16/20)

This will be my 5,849th unique Untappd check-in.

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Field House Brewing Co. Super Tall Hazy – American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.5% ABV (C$7.95 at Collective, 568 ml, packaged on 18-Apr-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 3-Jun-2024)

Appearance: hazy straw with one finger of fine white head diminishing gradually to a thick persistent cap, well-defined soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, cereal grains, light herbal. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-soft carbonation, medium duration mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Brewer notes say this “features Mosaic, Citra and a heavy dose of HBC 586”. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t like their super literal naming on this one. And, y’know, this is a brewery that I feel like I tend to consistently underrate – or, at least, consistently be surprised when they actually perform well. And I’m not sure why, because in my admittedly somewhat limited experience, they’ve done quite well: excluding this one, for n=10, μ=7.5 & σ=0.67 – and the first three out of four I had by them were pretty much world-class. (To be fair, this one should pull the average up a little. Or, at least, offset one bottom outlier and tighten up the deviation.) I might be a touch enthusiastic on my scoring here, but not by much. (16/20)

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8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Garrison Brewing Company Georgia Peach – American Pale Wheat Ale at 4.5% ABV (C$4.50 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 26-Mar-2024, acquired 28-May-2024, reviewed 3-Jun-2024)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with two fingers of fine white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: peach, grass, wheat, pale malt. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, moderate tart. (6/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lightly tart finish. (4/5)

Peach adjunct utterly dominates, with just a little grassy hop peeking out from underneath. There’s also a wheaty tartness that plays well with the fruit adjunct, but ultimately nothing really pops. Which is to say, it’s OK, but that’s about as far as I’d go. (13/20)

This will be my 5,840th unique Untappd check-in.

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com