RyansBooze

Nøgne Ø / Bridge Road Aurora Australis II Tripel at 11% ABV | 35 IBU (C$14.49 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 330 ml, packaged on 21-Aug-2013, acquired 18-Nov-2017, reviewed 22-Feb-2018)

Appearance: muddy medium amber with a short, short-lived off-white head diminishing rapidly to a thin cap and ring, minimal lacing. (3/5) Aroma: port, candi sugar, dark fruit, wood, Belgian yeast esters. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate-high carbonation, sweetish warming mildly spicy finish. (4/5)

That is one deeply weird beer. Conventional wisdom dictates that variations in cellaring temperature and/or mechanical disturbance of a beer are negatives, yet Nøgne Ø and Bridge Road decided to send this thing traipsing across the equator on a boat? That’s an… “interesting” decision right there. Port barrel ageing of a Tripel is another debatable stylistic choice. The concomitant assault upon the olfactory and gustatory senses is unique, to say the least. Oh, wait, Norway, right: a culture that thinks that it’s a good idea to age fish until it’s gelatinous and clear – “different” is pretty much going to be the baseline here, innit? Needless to say, it’s not a complete success – but it’s not an utter failure, either. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Four Winds Brewing Co. Triplicity Tripel at 9% ABV | 33.3 IBU (C$11.85 at Hume Hotel Liquor Boutique, 750 ml, packaged on 5-Dec-2017, acquired 30-Jan-2018, reviewed 22-Feb-2018)

Appearance: slightly hazy straw with two fingers of fluffy pale ivory head, excellent retention and moderate clingy lacing. (5/5) Aroma: banana, pear, bread, honey, sage, coriander. (8/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium slightly slick body, moderate carbonation, sweetish warming mildly spicy finish. (4/5)

Just slightly too sweet, if I’m being picky – and, by all means, let’s be picky, right? This splits the difference between sweet and dry Tripel styles, so of course I’d probably like it better if it were drier – but it’s not bad as it is. There’s little doubt that the higher sweetness is both at least partially attributable to the high ABV, and helps temper that same ABV. Fruit tones lead the way, with bready yeast in the mid, and mildly spicy sage and coriander on a slightly slick warming finish. Oh, and get this: three hops, three malts, and three sugars, with an ABV of three times three and an IBU of 33.3 – cool, huh? I’m pretty impressed with the amount of math that was required to make that work out! (Though I’m pretty skeptical about that decimal point, if I’m honest.) (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company Wild Oats Series Strong Patrick (2018 – Jameson Barrel Aged) Irish Red Ale at 6.7% ABV | 24 IBU (C$6.87 at NLC Howley Estates, 600 ml, packaged on 5-Jan-2018, acquired 21-Feb-2018, reviewed 20-Feb-2018)

Appearance: clear deep amber with two fingers of fluffy ivory head, good retention and moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: toffee and caramel, oak, whiskey, vanilla. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, malty mild bitter finish. (3/5)

Previous versions of this were described as whiskey barrel aged (which I’ve noted as adding a pleasant note to a style that I usually find to be fairly boring) but without specifying the exact whiskey used. I’m a total sucker for Jameson so I had to get this, even though I knew the likelihood of me being able to discern any difference was low indeed. That said, I’m more than halfway convinced I can in fact do just that. I’d have to try them side-by-side to be certain, but I want to say that this does in fact smell and taste of Jameson. Now I wish I had a wee dram of Caskmates to sip alongside this… though, sipping a little bit of Blender’s Dog definitely raised this to the next level (quite literally, with retronasal loft). (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

HORAL Oude Geuze Mega Blend (2015) Gueuze at 7% ABV (C$21.59 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 750 ml, best before 31-Oct-2034, acquired 28-Jul-2015, reviewed 20-Feb-2018)

Appearance: clear pale amber with one fat finger of rocky ivory head, excellent retention and moderate lacing. (5/5) Aroma: citrus zest, pome fruit, mild earthy funk. (9/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate tart, low bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-light body, moderate-high carbonation, dry crisp lightly funky finish. (4/5)

Stellar example of the style, but that’s hardly surprising, given that it’s a product of the HORAL consortium (Hoge Raad voor Ambachtelijke Lambikbieren – “High Council for Traditional Lambic Beers”, though Cantillon’s non-involvement in the group continues to be cause for concern). Restrained tartness with lovely complexity and a well-balanced funk on a bone-dry more-ish finish. Glad I’ve got a second one to cellar further – it’ll be interesting to see whether the funk, in particular, continues to develop with a couple more years on it. (17/20)

8.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

YellowBelly Brewery Sheila Na’Geira American IPA at 5.5% ABV | 55 IBU (C$9.60 at NLC Stavanger, 1 l, best before 27-Mar-2018, acquired 19-Feb-2018, reviewed 19-Feb-2018)

Appearance: clear deep gold with one fat finger of rocky white head, good retention and moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, floral, pale crackery malt, resiny pine. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

A pleasant enough IPA but without any really stand-out distinguishing characteristics. I see what the intent was here – to dial back the malt and let the hops take centre stage – and to some extent that worked. On the other hand, I wouldn’t go so far as to call this unbalanced, but it’s not a complete success. Specifically, the body comes across as just slightly thin for the hop intensity, resulting in it being slightly edgy or astringent. And yes, I tried it with some (high-quality) milk chocolate per the commercial description, but didn’t note any particular synergy as a result. Good, sure, but not next-level good. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

8 Wired Brewing Company Batch 2.18 Oak Aged Imperial Stout Imperial Stout at 11% ABV | 75 IBU (C$15.99 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 1-Jul-2016, reviewed 18-Feb-2018)

Appearance: utterly black with no hint of relief, one fat finger of fluffy beige head diminishing gradually to a thick persistent cap, moderate lacing. (4/5) Aroma: dates, brown sugar, oak, chocolate, vanilla, light smoke. (8/10) Taste: high sweet, high bitter. (8/10) Palate: full slick body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering and building bitter warming finish. (5/5)

Clearly different from the first sniff – there’s an explicit aroma of dates and brown sugar, as opposed to the less differentiated dark fruit and sweetness one often gets in Imperials. There’s also a mild botanical note I can’t quite place, particularly present (and not entirely welcome) retronasally from the back of the tongue. It grows on you, though, and overall isn’t really a basis for a negative rating. All in all, a big and pleasantly boozy sipper. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Great Divide Brewing Company Barrel Aged Hibernation Ale (2016) Old Ale at 11.5% ABV (US$12.99 at Specs Main Houston, 750 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 8-Mar-2017, reviewed 18-Feb-2018)

Appearance: clear ruby brown with one finger of creamy beige head, good retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: whiskey, oak, vanilla, chocolate, raisins. (9/10) Taste: high sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium-full slightly slick body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering and building bitter warming finish. (5/5)

Very easy drinking for such a massive beer. I’d be interested to find the non-BA version of this for comparison, but the whiskey barrel notes really shine here, starting strong but not aggressive, and fading smoothly to a chocolatey mid-body. (17/20)

8.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Amsterdam Brewery Barrel Aged Double Tempest American Double / Imperial Stout at 14% ABV | 115 IBU (Trade – thanks, Chris Conway (groulxsome)!, 650 ml, packaged on 14-Feb-2013, best before 14-Feb-2016, acquired 8-Sep-2014, reviewed 17-Feb-2018)

Appearance: near opaque black with the merest hints of brown relief around the margins, one fat finger of rocky beige head, good retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: bourbon, coconut, oak, vanilla, chocolate. (9/10) Taste: high sweet, high bitter. (8/10) Palate: full slick body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering and building bitter warming finish. (5/5)

I can’t find an authoritative source on the too-bitter-to-taste IBUs, but it seems legit. The bottle says this should cellar well for up to three years, but this one seems to have done very well indeed for more than five. (Given the massive ABV and IBU, that’s hardly surprising, but it is reassuring to my overall cellaring philosophy.) Even after its extended cellaring, this is still a little hot, which is why I’ve marked it down ever so slightly on taste compared to aroma, but it’s still relatively well balanced. (I was going to say it was still relatively approachable, but, no, I’m not sure that’s true: it’s still a beast, any way you slice it.) Helluva beer, and worth laying hands on, even if your chances of finding this particular vintage probably approach zero.  (17/20)

8.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Stone Brewing Company 08.08.08 Vertical Epic Belgian Golden Strong Ale at 8.9% ABV | 45 IBU (C$13.49 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, no packaging date or best before, acquired 5-Nov-2015, reviewed 17-Feb-2018)

Appearance: clear medium gold with one finger of creamy white head diminishing gradually to a thick persistent cap, moderate clingy lacing. (4/5) Aroma: banana, doughy yeast,  apples and stone fruit, black pepper. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet tending slightly high, moderate-high bitter, mild peppery spice. (8/10) Palate: medium slightly syrupy body, moderate-low carbonation, medium duration warming finish. (4/5)

Seems to have aged well compared to the much younger one of the same vintage I did a couple of years ago (of which I have literally zero recollection, but my notes say otherwise, so….) Still very sweet for my preference, especially since the label wants to compare this to a Tripel, but it’s not bad overall. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brouwerij der Abdij van St.Sixtus Westvleteren Abt 12° (2012/2013/2014) Abt / Quadrupel at 10.2% ABV | 38 IBU (C$26.67 at belgiuminabox.com, 330 ml, best before 28-Aug-2015/31-Jul-2016/20-Nov-2017, acquired 17-Dec-2014, reviewed 17-Feb-2018)

2012: Appearance: muddy opaque brown with one finger of creamy mocha head diminishing gradually to a thick persistent ring, minimal spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: dark stone fruit, figs, brown sugar, nuts. (9/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (9/10) Palate: medium-full slightly slick body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering bitter and warming finish. (4/5) Overall: 16/20

2013: Appearance: clear ruby with one finger of creamy mocha head, excellent retention and moderate lacing. (5/5) Aroma: dark stone fruit, figs, brown sugar, nuts. (9/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (9/10) Palate: medium-full slightly slick body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering bitter and warming finish. (4/5) Overall: 18/20

2014: Appearance: hazy brown with one finger of creamy mocha head diminishing gradually to a thick persistent cap and ring, spotty lacing. (4/5) Aroma: dark stone fruit, figs, brown sugar, nuts. (9/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate bitter. (9/10) Palate: medium-full slightly slick body, moderate-low carbonation, lingering bitter and warming finish. (4/5) Overall: 17/20

The first thing that struck me about comparing these three side-by-side was the sheer variation in appearance. It wasn’t all that surprising that the most elderly was somewhat muddy and particulate-laden, but the youngest was almost as opaque a brown, while the 2013 was nearly crystal clear ruby. Retention and lacing followed suit, with the eldest having the poorest, and the 2013 having the best, while the 2014 split the difference between the two. Aromas were unsurprisingly strongly similar, but there was some variation in the overall richness or darkness, with the 2013 being the lightest in character and the 2012 the darkest. Although this side-by-side variation was noticeable, it wasn’t enough to justify a change in score, unlike appearance. Interestingly, given the variation in appearance and aroma, the taste and mouth feel for all three was virtually identical. (After making these observations, I asked my lovely assistant to hand me random ones while I kept my eyes closed, and verified my observations. I was able to distinguish on the basis of aroma, but not taste or mouth feel.)

8/10 (2012) – 9/10 (2013) – 8.5/10 (2014) #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com