RyansBooze

Medicine Hat Brewing Co. Hoppy Hatter Hazy Pale Ale – American Pale Ale at 5.6% ABV | 47 IBU (C$4.14 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 11-Sep-2020, acquired 17-Sep-2020, reviewed 18-Sep-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fat fingers of rocky white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: bright citrus, resiny pine, pale crackery malt, grass & floral. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate carbonation, off-dry finish. (4/5)

Who the fuck tries to make a rabbit look like a badass? Rabbits are, at best, innocent little shits, and at worst, little arseholes who actively try to make you try to crash your car. Except I don’t brake for them – which puts them marginally above gophers, for whom I actually swerve and aim. (Not joking. I’ve owned horses. Gopher holes break horses’ legs. Anybody who has horses has to choose whom they like better: horses or gophers. #teamhorsesalltheway.) The beer, on the other hand, is actually pretty decent. Clean and pale, this is really pleasant and easy to drink. Despite the logo being a rodent whom I personally despise, I actually like this a whole lot. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Alley Kat Brewing Co. Southern Star Dragon – American Double / Imperial IPA at 7.5% ABV | 75 IBU (C$4.36 at Collective, 473 ml, best before 6-Feb-2021, acquired 3-Sep-2020, reviewed 18-Sep-2020)

Appearance: clear deep gold with two fat fingers of rocky pale ivory head, excellent retention and moderate chunky lacing. (5/5) Aroma: grass, citrus, pilsner malt, light pine. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry slightly sticky lingering building bitter finish. (4/5)

A fairly middle-of-the-road Dragon. I’ve not had Southern Star hops much, but I’ve yet to be impressed by them. I’m certainly not getting the big berry and citrus notes the brewer notes suggest, and really this just ends up smelling and tasting like a beefy Pils. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Zero Issue Brewing Elysium (Issue #28) – Hefeweizen at 5.1% ABV (C$4.25 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 3-Sep-2020, reviewed 16-Sep-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale straw with two fingers of fluffy white head, excellent retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: banana, bready wheat, clove, light plastic bandaid. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter, light spice. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry medium duration finish. (3/5)

There’s a slight phenol edge on the front end, but it fades relatively quickly, leaving a banana, bready, and spice note. Fairly easy-drinking, with balanced spice. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Marda Loop Brewing Co. Marda Station – American IPA at 6.8% ABV | 65 IBU (C$4.00 at Crowfoot Liquor Heritage Pointe, 473 ml, packaged on 5-May-2020, acquired 14-Sep-2020, reviewed 16-Sep-2020)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with two fat fingers of fluffy pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: stewed fruits, caramel, doughy yeast, hint of pine and earth. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, sweetish sticky lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

Muddled fruits on the front end and a slightly sticky lingering finish. It’s all right, but definitely more “old-fashioned” than “old school”, and not really very West Coast-ish at all. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

2 Crows Brewing Matinee – American Pale Ale at 3.1% ABV | 24 IBU (C$4.81 at Collective, 355 ml, packaged on 29-Jul-2020, acquired 3-Sep-2020, reviewed 16-Sep-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale straw with one  finger of rocky white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: bright citrus, pale crackery malt, mild resiny pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, low bitter. (7/10) Palate: light body falling off slightly thin, moderate-lively carbonation, off-dry medium duration slightly mouth coating finish. (3/5)

This is actually pretty decent considering the very low ABV. The aroma in particular was pleasantly hoppy and bright, and I was surprised the body didn’t fall off thinner and more watery than it did. There’s a little something in the finish that I wasn’t quite able to characterize – it’s not astringent, as such, but there’s a slightly sticky mouth coating thing going on that isn’t typical for APAs or Session Ales – but other than that it was pleasant and certainly easy to drink. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Wild Rose Brewery Industrial Park Ale – American IPA at 6% ABV | 60 IBU (C$3.37 at Crowfoot Liquor Heritage Pointe, 473 ml, packaged on 15-Jun-2020, acquired 11-Sep-2020, reviewed 15-Sep-2020)

Appearance: slightly hazy pale gold with two fingers of rocky white head, excellent retention and well-defined soapy lacing. (5/5) Aroma: pithy grapefruit, resiny pine, caramel, tropical fruit, floral. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry moderate bitter finish. (4/5)

I like this – it’s “old school” without being too “old fashioned”. The label says there’s “just enough hops perfectly balanced with malt”, which I expected to result in something that was too malty for my preference, but that’s actually not the case, and I am forced to agree that the balance is pretty bang-on. Pretty drinkable despite the higher IBUs, verging on crisp, with a pleasant off-dry finish. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Torque Brewing Inc. Red Line – India Red Ale at 6.5% ABV | 60 IBU (C$4.36 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 27-Jul-2020, acquired 3-Sep-2020, reviewed 11-Sep-2020)

Appearance: clear deep amber with three fingers of dense ivory head, excellent retention and heavy chunky lacing. (5/5) Aroma: resiny pine, caramel, oily citrus, earth. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium slightly slick body, moderate carbonation, lingering and building bitter finish. (4/5)

I had actually forgotten how much I like a nice Red IPA. This might not be “nice”, as in “plays nice with others”, but it’s also not terribly unbalanced – and, hey, I have a bit of a soft spot for the whole “hops and malt battling it out for dominance” school of brewing. Not to mention, it’s awful pretty. All in all, I can’t see how it comes away with less than an “A” rating. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Snake Lake Brewing Company / Eighty-Eight Brewing / S.Y.C. Brewing Co. Happy Trails (Snake Lake) – American IPA at 6.7% ABV (C$4.36 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 3-Sep-2020, reviewed 10-Sep-2020)

Appearance: hazy pale gold with two fingers of fine white head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: mild, tropical fruit, citrus, floral, pale malt. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-low carbonation, off-dry medium duration finish. (4/5)

A “Cross-Alberta Collab” involving three breweries, but I haven’t yet located the Eighty-Eight version. I opened the Snake Lake and S.Y.C. ones side by side so as to allow for as accurate as possible a comparison.

Neither completely blew me away. I found this one to be milder than its cousin despite having a marginally higher ABV, and in particular found the aroma to be oddly muted. However, it was easy to drink, with no real negatives, and all in all a solid effort.

I was expecting a closer race, since aside from having tried a slightly different number of examples from each brewery, their performance (high/low/average) has been nearly identical in my experience. But, the Snake Lake version is a clear winner here, beating the S.Y.C. version in appearance, aroma, and palate. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

S.Y.C. Brewing Co. / Eighty-Eight Brewing / Snake Lake Brewing Company Happy Trails (S.Y.C.) – American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$4.27 at Collective, 473 ml, packaged on 26-Aug-2020, acquired 3-Sep-2020, reviewed 10-Sep-2020)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with two fat fingers of loose white head, good retention and spotty soapy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: tropical fruit (guava), plastic band-aid, white grape must. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-low carbonation, off-dry medium duration finish. (3/5)

A “Cross-Alberta Collab” involving three breweries, but I haven’t yet located the Eighty-Eight version. I opened the Snake Lake and S.Y.C. ones side by side so as to allow for as accurate as possible a comparison.

Neither completely blew me away, but I was a little surprised and disappointed by the plastic phenolic edge on this one, particularly in the aroma. It wasn’t particularly intrusive on the tongue, but did again manifest in the finish, and this is reflected in the scores.

I was expecting a closer race, since aside from having tried a slightly different number of examples from each brewery, their performance (high/low/average) has been nearly identical in my experience. But, the Snake Lake version is a clear winner here, beating the S.Y.C. version in appearance, aroma, and palate. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Born Colorado Brewing Second Summer Citra Pale Ale – American Pale Ale at 5.9% ABV | 17 IBU (C$4.55 at Collective, 473 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 3-Sep-2020, reviewed 9-Sep-2020)

Appearance: hazy medium gold with two fingers of fluffy pale ivory head, good retention and moderate soapy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: tropical fruit, citrus, pale crackery malt, light sweaty funk. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-low carbonation, off-dry medium duration finish. (3/5)

Considering it was near-freezing and rainy a couple of days ago, and we’re now entering a week or so of sunny, warm weather, the naming of this one is particularly apt. The beer itself? Eh. It’s not bad. I was hoping for bright and juicy, but instead I’d say it’s fruity and lightly funky – so, again, not bad, just not great. In fact, checking scores it appears to be my second least favourite of the dozen or so I’ve tried from this brewery. Which, I guess, again sounds like I’m slamming it, which isn’t my intent – but it’s certainly not as good as, say, Hyperopia or Born ________. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com