RyansBooze

Town Square Brewing Anniversary Limited (Year 3 IPA) – American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$4.45 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 5-Nov-2020, reviewed 8-Nov-2020)

Appearance: hazy deep gold with two fingers of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: pithy grapefruit, resiny pine, herbal, tropical fruit, pale biscuity malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering building bitter finish. (4/5)

I can’t find any brewer notes, but secondary sources say it’s hopped with Mosaic, Vic Secret, and Cascade, and that certainly fits with the flavour profile I’m getting. Definitely more emphatically bitter than normal for the hazy IPA style, but it’s well-balanced, and not excessive or unwelcome. Solid and pleasing. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Blacks Brewery KPA Kinsale Pale Ale – American Pale Ale at 5% ABV | 60 IBU (C$4.50 at Collective, 330 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 5-Nov-2020, reviewed 7-Nov-2020)

Appearance: slightly hazy straw with a large rocky white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: grass, biscuity malt, citrus, faint tropical fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

Hopped with Centennial, Cascade, and Citra, but grass dominates over citrus, while any tropical fruit falls far behind. Not bad, and I’d probably have liked it whole lot five or ten years ago, but now it just feels old-fashioned while not being quite good enough to rescue itself from that characterization. On the other hand, there are absolutely no negatives here. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Rainhard Brewing Weekend Warrior – American IPA at 5% ABV (C$5.40 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 17-Sep-2020, acquired 5-Nov-2020, reviewed 6-Nov-2020)

Appearance: hazy straw with two fat fingers of fluffy white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, clean pale malt, hint of pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate-soft carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter finish. (4/5)

Hopped with Idaho 7, Centennial, and Citra. Straightforward crushable hazy. It’s certainly not unique, but it’s clean and nice. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Offshoot Beer Co. Escape West Coast IPA – American IPA at 7.1% ABV | 50 IBU (C$5.53 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 14-Sep-2020, acquired 30-Oct-2020, reviewed 4-Nov-2020)

Appearance: clear medium gold with two fat fingers of rocky pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: oily grapefruit, resiny pine, tropical fruit, clean pale malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter finish. (4/5)

Hopped with Mosaic, Strata, Simcoe, and Amarillo, this is a pretty straightforward WC/IPA (except for a little tropical fruit that might be argued to be a bit out of spec). Still and all, it’s solid and enjoyable, though truth be told I’d expect no less from this cadet arm of The Bruery. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Offshoot Beer Co. Relax Hazy IPA – American IPA at 6.8% ABV | 50 IBU (C$5.53 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 3-Sep-2020, acquired 30-Oct-2020, reviewed 4-Nov-2020)

Appearance: hazy straw with two fingers of fluffy off-white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: juicy grapefruit and citrus, tropical fruit, resiny pine, pale crackery malt, hint of coconut. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter finish. (4/5)

Brewer notes report Citra, Amarillo, Centennial, and Simcoe, with London 3 yeast. This is my first exposure to this offshoot of The Bruery, and in fact I was unaware of the connection when I bought it. I don’t know that I’ve ever seen them attempt an IPA before, but it’s a solid effort. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

O.T. Brewing Company One Hundred and Eighty – English Pale Ale at 4.6% ABV (C$4.05 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 30-Sep-2020, acquired 30-Oct-2020, reviewed 4-Nov-2020)

Appearance: slightly hazy deep gold with two fingers of fluffy off-white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: toasty malts, grass, herbal & floral. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, sweetish moderate bitter finish. (4/5)

Not bad, but I think the label art is the best part. English-style, and decently balanced, but not all that exciting. Certainly not as exciting as a few darts in the skull! (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Ska Brewing Company The Modus Mandarina – American IPA at 6.8% ABV | 65 IBU (C$5.35 at Collective, 355 ml, best before 15-Feb-2021, acquired 30-Oct-2020, reviewed 3-Nov-2020)

Appearance: clear pale amber with one finger of fine pale ivory head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, spotty soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: oily & zesty citrus, caramel, light floral. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, sweetish moderate bitter finish. (4/5)

Take Modus Hoperandi, add orange peel. That’s neither a compliment nor a complaint, you decide if that works for you. Personally, I’m pretty middle-of-the road on it: there are no real negatives, but I find it a bit malty and old-fashioned. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Burdock Brewing APA – American Pale Ale at 4.9% ABV (C$5.85 at Collective, 355 ml, packaged on 16-Sep-2020, acquired 30-Oct-2020, reviewed 3-Nov-2020)

Appearance: hazy straw with one finger of fine white head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, moderate soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: zesty citrus, tropical & stone fruit, pale crackery malt, light floral & pine. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry crisp mildly bitter finish. (4/5)

Lovely, crisp, and easy-drinking. Brewer notes say it’s dry-hopped with Vic Secret, Ella, Mosaic, and Citra, and I’m definitely getting the expected citrus and tropical fruits in a nice balance. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Cabin Brewing Company Season Pass – American IPA at 7.5% ABV | 65 IBU (C$4.72 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 13-Oct-2020, acquired 30-Oct-2020, reviewed 1-Nov-2020)

Appearance: clear pale gold with two fingers of loose white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: zesty citrus, resiny pine, stone fruit, pale crackery malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering building bitter mildly spicy finish. (4/5)

A straightforward old-school West Coast IPA that avoids being predictable or boring by the simple expedient of being excellently implemented. Hopped with Chinook, Columbus, Simcoe, and Amarillo, and exhibits pretty much all of the expected flavour profile. Works for me. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Hopworks Urban Brewery Ferocious Citrus Blood Orange – American IPA at 6.2% ABV | 40 IBU (C$4.36 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 6-Oct-2020, acquired 30-Oct-2020, reviewed 31-Oct-2020)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with one fat finger of loose white head diminishing rapidly to a thin ring, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: orange juice, caramel, light pine, oats. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter, light tart. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-lively carbonation, sweetish building bitter mildly bitter finish. (4/5)

Juice dominated – as in, real orange juice – on the front end, with a building lingering hop bitter in the finish. Not bad, but there’s really not much more to it than the blood orange juice. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com