Category: Reviews

The Wild Beer Co. Somerset Wild Sour / Wild Ale at 5% ABV (US$7.36 at Specs Main Branch, 330 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 26-Jan-2016)

Appearance: hazy translucent pale straw gold with a short, short-lived off-white head, no lacing. (2/5) Aroma: very bready yeast, apple cider, lemon. (5/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-strong tart, light bitter. (7/10) Palate: light body, moderate carbonation, dry tart finish. (3/5)

Hooo… I dunno about this one. Reminds me of a scrumpy, actually – lots (and I mean LOTS) of bready baker’s yeast, dominating over some cidery apple and a tinge of citrus. (The yeast is frankly out of control: there’s a lot of lees, and even some caked residue around the neck.) The smell is frankly somewhat off-putting, but the taste is a darn sight better. It’s certainly growing on me as it warms, too. Not an unqualified success, certainly, but not without its charms. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Green Flash Brewing Co. Soul Style IPA American IPA at 6.5% ABV (US$2.52 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, best before 30-May-2016, reviewed 26-Jan-2016)

Appearance: slightly hazy medium gold with one finger of creamy white head, good retention and spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus peel, caramel malt, floral, light onion. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-strong bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium slightly creamy body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

It’s pretty much what it says on the label, I guess – reasonably bright and reasonably tropical. I’m not entirely sure why it’s not getting me more excited. Perhaps it’s the bit of almost soapy creaminess in the body, perhaps it’s the little vegetal onion-like flavour in the back end. It just doesn’t “pop”, though – could stand to be be more crisp and bright. Good, yes, but not great. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Real Ale Brewing Co. Devil’s Backbone Tripel at 8.1% ABV (US$2.20 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, bottle date 15-Oct-2016, best before 9-May-2016, reviewed 26-Jan-2016)

Appearance: hazy translucent pale gold with a short, short-lived white head, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: orange peel, coriander, candi sugar, bubble gum, yeasty. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry mildly spicy finish. (4/5)

Pleasant Belg-ish tripel. Sweet, but not overly so, with some complexity and a nice yeasty base. I wouldn’t say no to another of these. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Real Ale Brewing Co. Full Moon Rye IPA American IPA at 6.2% ABV (US$1.99 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, bottle date 19-Sep-2015, best before 17-Feb-2016, reviewed 26-Jan-2016)

Appearance: hazy translucent pale amber with one finger of creamy light tan head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Aroma: stone and tropical fruit, earthy rye, bready malt, light citrus and floral. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body , moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter and mildly spicy finish. (3/5)

Nice – there’s a definite rye presence that’s very well integrated with the IPA bitterness, such that neither really dominates. Certainly it’s not as heavy-handed or spicy as some rye ales I’ve had. I’m not saying there’s necessarily anything wrong with a spicy rye beer, but this different, more subtle approach makes for an interesting change. Nothing earth-shattering but a nicely quaffable rye. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Green Flash Brewing Co. Hop Odyssey: Segal Ranch Session IPA Session IPA at 4.5% ABV (US$2.52 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, best before 28-Mar-2016, reviewed 25-Jan-2016)

Appearance: lightly hazy medium gold with one finger of creamy ivory head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Aroma: pine, citrus, floral, pale malt, light tropical fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body tending a little to the watery, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

Big flavour for a low ABV ale! Not sure how sessionable this is, given the moderately high bitter, mind you… It’s not a complete success – the high-ish bitterness doesn’t work overly well with the slightly watery body, for example – but it’s not bad. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Prairie Artisan Ales Standard Saison Saison at 5.6% ABV (US$2.37 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, bottle date 29-Jul-2016, reviewed 25-Jan-2016)

Appearance: cloudy straw with two fingers of rocky ivory head, excellent retention and lacing. (5/5) Aroma: coriander, lemony citrus, crackery malt, white pepper, dry musty hay. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter, light funky tart. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-low carbonation, lightly funky finish. (4/5)

Decent complexity, some lightly sour lemon and mild barnyard funk intermingled with various spices and crackery (or maybe doughy) malt. If you enjoy the style, this is worth trying. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

New Belgium Brewing Company Citradelic Tangerine IPA American IPA at 6% ABV (US$1.58 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, best before 5-Jun-2016, reviewed 25-Jan-2016)

Appearance: clear pale gold with one fat finger of medium dense off-white head, excellent retention and lacing. (5/5) Aroma: citrus, pale malt, tropical fruit. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, crisp and clean finish. (4/5)

Nice. For me, IPAs and added citrus, whether it’s grapefruit, tangerine, or kumquat, just work so well together. For that matter, I’m a sucker for a half strength radler, but this is if anything the best of both worlds: lots of citrus flavour from the hops and the juice, yet a respectably moderate ABV. Light and easy drinking, lots of fun. I like this a lot. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Victory Brewing Company Hop Ranch Imperial IPA American Double / Imperial IPA at 9% ABV (US$3.46 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, best before 7-May-2016, reviewed 25-Jan-2016)

Appearance: clear pale gold with one finger of eggshell head, minimal retention, moderate clingy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, floral, citrus, pale malt, pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry mildly warming finish. (3/5)

The hops don’t seem to be as pungent as I would’ve expected – certainly there’s not a lot of the pungent sharp citrus the label promises. That might also be a function of the high-ish ABV, which otherwise really only manifests as a gentle warming. It’s more or less hop-forward, though, and at least it’s not one of those heavily caramel malt DIPAs. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Sierra Nevada 2016 Beer Camp Tropical IPA American IPA at 6.7% ABV (US$1.23 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, bottle date 16-Dec-2015, reviewed 25-Jan-2016)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with a short, short-lived off-white head, moderate clingy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, pale malt, pine, onion. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry slightly sweet finish. (3/5)

Not as tropical as I was hoping, actually, and the little bit of onion seems to grow as it warms. I don’t dislike it, but it’s not the beer I was hoping it would be. Decent, but don’t break your neck looking for it. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Independence Brewing Co. Stash IPA American IPA at 7% ABV (US$2.73 at Specs Main Branch, 355 ml, bottle date 7-Jan-2016, reviewed 24-Jan-2016)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with a short ivory head, good retention and well-defined lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, pale malt, dank, onion. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

I was sort of expecting brighter hops for something so fresh. The aromas also don’t really seem to communicate the true bitterness of this thing – it doesn’t smell anywhere near as massively bitter as it ends up being on the tongue. The dankness (“stash”, geddit?) starts to come through a bit more as it warms, but so does the onion, so that’s a little bit of a double-edged sword. Ultimately, though, it’s an impressively easy drinking beast for 7% and 100IBU. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com