RyansBooze

Big Rock Brewery Dark Cherry Abbey Ale Belgian Strong Dark Ale at 9.5% ABV (C$11.75 at Sundance Wine Market, 750 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 18-Jan-2016)

Appearance: nearly opaque brown with deep amber highlights, one finger of fine light beige head, good retention and minimal lacing. (3/5) Aroma: dark cherries, chocolate, candi sugar, orange peel. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, light tart. (6/10) Palate: medium-full body, moderate carbonation, bittersweet finish. (3/5)

Not bad, and surprisingly easy-drinking for a high ABV. Reasonable Belg-ish strong dark. The cherries are forward, but not to the extent the label promises. Think, mildly boozy chocolate-covered cherries. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Traquair House House Ale Scotch Ale / Wee Heavy at 7.2% ABV (C$9.49 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, best before 28-Mar-2025, reviewed 18-Jan-2016)

Appearance: clear deep amber with a short dense light beige head, good retention and patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: dark malt, dried fruit, wood. (7/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, mild bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full slightly creamy body, soft carbonation, bittersweet finish. (4/5)

Another decent brew from Traquair house. Not overly sweet, and decent depth of flavour. These guys might be able to change my opinion on wee heavies… (14/20)

My 213th from the 2010 Edition (202nd from the 2013 edition), and 224th combining both editions.

7/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brewsters Brewing Company River City Raspberry Ale Fruit / Vegetable Beer at 5% ABV (C$2.66 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 355 ml, bottle date 9-Nov-2015, reviewed 18-Jan-2016)

Appearance: clear straw with one finger of soapy white head, moderate retention and patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: sweet raspberry jam, wheat, pale malt, light citrus, grass. (5/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, light tart. (5/10) Palate: light body, lively carbonation, crisp short finish. (3/5)

Not as sweet as I was afraid it would be, and the raspberry doesn’t taste artificial. I’m warming up to it, actually: I was ready to dislike it, but it’s actually not terrible. Yes, I know that’s not a ringing endorsement, but it’s a fair assessment. It’s a decently crisp and refreshing thirst quencher, that has some raspberry jamminess going on. I think it’d probably be better on tap, garnished with raspberries – might pop into my local Brewsters and give it a try that way at some point… (10/20)

5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Heretic Brewing Company Torment Belgian Strong Dark Ale at 10% ABV (C$9.02 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 650 ml, bottle date 8-Jun-2015, reviewed 17-Jan-2016)

Appearance: clear brown with one finger of short-lived light beige head, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: toffee, plum, raisin, candi sugar, cocoa, boozy dark fruit. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter, light tart. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, lively carbonation, drying mildly boozy finish. (4/5)

Decent Belgish BSDA. Dark fruit, boozy. Not very tormenting at all, truth be told. Could stand to be heavier in the body, and bolder, but on the other hand it’s impressively easy drinking for a double-digit ABV. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Village Brewery Village Monk Chai Winter Porter American Porter at 6.2% ABV (C$8.29 at Quarry Park Calgary Co-Op, 650 ml, best before 20-Mar-2016, reviewed 17-Jan-2016)

Appearance: clear brown with one finger of fine light beige head, excellent retention and patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: muted, chai, cloves, dark fruit, roasted malt. (6/10) Taste: moderate sweet, mild bitter. (6/10) Palate: medium-full body, soft carbonation, spicy finish. (4/5)

Not bad: it starts off with a mild chai spice aroma, but it ends up being a bit like a pumpkin spice porter. I’m not getting much (if any) of the fennel or peppercorn the label claims, but thinking about it for a bit, there might be a little mint. It’s not a terrible implementation, but it’s hard to shake the association with pumpkin spice – and I need a few months to get myself prepared for that again. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Lighthouse Brewing Co. Shipwreck IPA American IPA at 6.5% ABV (C$2.66 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 355 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 17-Jan-2016)

Appearance: bright pale gold with one fat finger of rocky white head, good retention and lacing. (4/5) Aroma: citrus, tropical fruit, pine, pale malt. (8/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high bitter. (8/10) Palate: medium body, lively carbonation, off-dry clean bitter finish. (4/5)

Excellent. Exactly the balance of hop-forward citrus, tropical fruits, and pine I like, with just enough pale malt supporting it. Lovely and bright, both in the aromas and in the pale gold colour. Despite the higher ABV and IBUs, it’s very drinkable. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brouwerij de Molen / Anchorage Brewing Company Mud & Funk American Double / Imperial Stout at 11.4% ABV (C$9.86 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 946 ml, no bottle date or best before, reviewed 16-Jan-2016)

Appearance: opaque black with a short beige head diminishing rapidly to a thin skim, spotty lacing. (3/5) Aroma: massively tart berries, vinegar and red wine, light bourbon notes. (7/10) Taste: moderate sweet, moderate-high tart, low bitter. (7/10) Palate: medium-full body, soft carbonation, lingering tart finish. (3/5)

Woof. Start off with an imperial oatmeal stout, then age it in bourbon and wine barrels and inoculate it with brett? This is about as subtle as a brick upside the head. Tastier than a brick, though… mind you, at 11.4% the effect of a litre of this may be pretty much the same as the brick. It’s pretty apparent that this is artificially soured – the sourness isn’t integrated the way a true wild ale is – but it’s not unpleasant. I’m definitely getting the wine barrel ageing, and to a lesser extent the bourbon, but any brett character is limited to sourness only – there’s none of the typical brett funk at all. Fun, but not all that challenging. (13/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Wychwood Brewery Company Ltd Ginger Beard Ginger Beer at 4.2% ABV (C$4.28 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, best before 3-Aug-2016, reviewed 16-Jan-2016)

Appearance: clear pale gold with a short, short-lived white head, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: sugary ginger, some undifferentiated fruit. (4/10) Taste: moderate-high sweet, moderate-high spice, low bitter. (4/10) Palate: medium body, moderate carbonation, spicy and sticky cloying finish. (2/5)

On the up side, lots of, yes, fiery ginger. On the down side, lots of sugar too. Ends up being a bit of a sticky and cloying mess. Meh. (8/20)

4/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Weissbierbrauerei G. Schneider & Sohn Georg Schneider’s Wiesen Edel-Weisse Hefeweizen at 6.2% ABV (C$3.83 at Andrew Hilton Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, bottle date 25-May-2012, reviewed 16-Jan-2016)

Appearance: cloudy medium gold with heavy lees, a short, short-lived ivory head, patchy lacing. (3/5) Aroma: yeasty wheat, apricot, clove. (5/10) Taste: moderate sweet, low bitter, light tart. (5/10) Palate: medium body, soft carbonation, lingering bitter finish, mild tart finish. (3/5)

OK, this one is probably way too old. My defence is, it took some research to puzzle out the date code. (Two lines:“12.145 3”, and “0227 2724”. I’m guessing it’s a Julian code for the 145th day of 2012.) So, I’m guessing it’s more than three years old – way too old for the style. I considered not reviewing it, but screw it: if you’re not gonna put a human readable date code on your bottle, that’s your decision, live with the consequences. Not terrible as it stands, and I suspect it’s a lot better fresh, but there it is. (11/20)

5.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com