Category: Reviews

Farnham Ale & Lager Summer Pale Ale 42 American Pale Ale at 4.5% ABV (C$3.45 at Bishop’s Cellar, 473 ml, packing date 27-Jul-2015)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with a short, short-lived white head and patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: light citrus, grassy, pale grainy malt, tropical fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, lingering moderate bitter finish. (3/5)

Pleasant but a little unbalanced – despite the relatively light aromas, it ends up a little aggressively bitter on the finish. OK, but I wouldn’t necessarily go looking for another one. And, hey, I discovered my hotel room has a balcony! (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Evil Twin Brewing Hipster Ale American Pale Ale at 5.5% ABV (C$3.45 at Bishop’s Cellar, 355 ml, packing date 9-Jul-2015)

Appearance: hazy pale amber with one finger of rocky ivory head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Aroma: muted, grassy, herbal/floral, pale malt. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium slightly oily body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

A little bit disappointing, in that I was expecting to like this more than I did. And no, I’m not turned off by the “hipster” label – I concluded quite some time ago that I’m a beer hipster and have made my peace with that. Don’t get me wrong: there’s absolutely nothing negative about this beer, but it’s just not as interesting as I was expecting or hoping for. Age wouldn’t appear to be a factor, either. I was expecting bright and punchy hops, but they just aren’t there. That’s the problem with having high hopes, I guess? (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Anchor Brewing Company Summer Wheat Wheat Ale at 4.5% ABV (C$2.66 at Bishop’s Cellar, 355 ml, no packing date or best before)

Appearance: clear deep gold with one finger of loose ivory head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: floral/herbal, pale malt, light wheat, light citrus. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium-light body, lively to moderate carbonation, crisp finish. (3/5)

Not a lot of hefe/wheat character in this. Definitely a thirst-quenching, hot weather summer-style beer. Fine for what it is, as long as you don’t go into it expecting to be challenged. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Evil Twin Brewing Molotov Lite American Double / Imperial IPA at 8.5% ABV (C$4.42 at Bishop’s Cellar, 473 ml, packing date 28-Apr-2015)

Appearance: cloudy medium gold with lots of particulate, one finger of fluffy off-white head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: lemon zest, caramel malt, tropical fruit, pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, intense bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Molotov “Lite”, huh? Isn’t that sort of like Arnold promising to kill you last? At the end of the day, it’s still a bit like having your brains smashed in by a slice of lemon wrapped round a large gold brick. And what’s up with that particulate – another high IBU brew with pure alpha acids in suspension? (Not that that’s a bad thing.) Though, y’know, I think I like this just a little better than the full-on Molotov Cocktail – the balance might be just a shade better, allowing a little more fullness of flavour to come through. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Evil Twin Brewing / 7venth Sun Brewery Citra Sunshine Slacker Session IPA at 4.5% ABV (C$4.42 at Bishop’s Cellar, 473 ml, packing date 28-Apr-2015)

Appearance: hazy pale straw with one finger of creamy white head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Aroma: pithy citrus, earth, stone fruit, tropical and floral. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter, light tart. (7/10) Palate: light body, moderate carbonation, short duration finish. (4/5)

Excellent Session IPA. The Citra is clearly present, with lots of citrus and tropical fruit, but essentially none of the cattiness that is so often associated with that hop. And, in a can with a Julian date? Nicely done. Even though this is five months old, it’s retaining its hop character quite well. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Garrison Brewing Company Hop Yard Pale American Pale Ale at 5.3% ABV (C$2.10 at Café 101 Holiday Inn Harbourview Dartmouth, 341 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Appearance: clear medium gold with one fat finger of creamy white head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Aroma: pithy citrus, dank, pine, floral, caramel malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, medium duration bitter finish. (4/5)

A pretty good APA. Slight West Coast dank, and a pleasant dry-hopped nose. Definitely one of Garrison’s stronger offerings. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Kronenbourg (Carlsberg) 1664 Blanc Witbier at 5.0% ABV (C$2.10 at NLC Stavanger, 330 ml, best before 06.16)

Appearance: hazy straw with one finger of dense creamy white head, excellent retention and good lacing. (4/5) Aroma: sweet orange, raspberry, caramel, wheat, coriander. (5/10) Taste: moderately strong sweet, mild bitter, light tart. (4/10) Palate: light body, moderate-low carbonation, short duration finish. (3/5)

This starts off fairly inoffensive, but the glucose and fruit flavour get to be a bit sickly after a while. Not terrible, but not great, either. I’d feel a bit annoyed at having bought a six-pack of this, were it not for the fact that a) it’s not bad on a the patio on a warm day, and b) She Who Must Be Obeyed sorta likes it. (10/20)

5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Stone Brewing Company Master of Disguise American Double / Imperial Stout at 9.7% ABV (US$9.46 at Specs Main Branch Houston TX, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with one finger of loose white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: coffee, chocolate nibs, light caramel. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, mild bitter. (7/10) Palate: light-medium body, moderate-low carbonation, mildly warming finish. (4/5)

Bit of a one-trick pony – it’s a stout that looks like a pale or lager. It’s a decent enough example of a chocolate stout, but nothing stellar, aside from the cute trick. Though, it’s also worth pointing out that the ABV is also extremely well-integrated, despite approaching double digit territory. So… yeah… an Imperial that tastes like a single and looks like a pale – what’s so confusing about that? (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Evil Twin Brewing Sour Bikini Sour / Wild Ale at 3% ABV (US$11.99 at Total Wines & More, Henderson NV, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with one finger of loose white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: sour white grapes, barnyard funk, floral and citrus. (8/10) Taste: intense sour, moderate sweet, low bitter, light salt. (8/10) Palate: light body tending to the watery, moderate-low carbonation, short duration intensely sour finish. (4/5)

Intensely, face-puckeringly sour, getting more so as it warms. Nearly one-dimensional, with a clean sour finish that leaves you ready for the next hit. Whoever said you can’t have a flavourful light beer? At only 3% ABV, this is barely beer, but it packs massive wallop of flavour! (Think Warheads in lemonade.) Gotta love the Bjergso brothers – if Mikkel’s not blowing your mind, Jeppe is. I so desperately want to go to  Jeppe’s bar in Brooklyn… (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Great Lakes Brewery Harry Porter and the Bourbon Soaked Vanilla Bean American Porter at 6.5% ABV (Trade – thanks, Groulxsome!, 650 ml, bottle date 2-Apr-2015)

Appearance: opaque brown-black with one finger of rocky tan head, excellent retention and lacing. (5/5) Aroma: vanilla bean, dark chocolate and coffee, bourbon. (8/10) Taste: moderately strong sweet, moderately strong bitter. (7/10) Palate: full body, moderate-low carbonation, moderate lingering bitter and warming finish. (4/5)

Surprisingly bombastic for a relatively restrained ABV – it swaggers like a double-digit but is fairly successfully in punching above its weight. I say “fairly”, because the finish ultimately gets a bit unbalanced towards the bitter once the sweetness subsides, and you’re able to taste it since the taste buds haven’t been pummelled into submission by the booziness. Still, very much worth a try, and the lower ABV means you won’t be limited to just one – whether of this, or something else! (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com