RyansBooze

Nokomis Craft Ales Single Hop Centennial IPA American IPA at 7.5% ABV (Flight on tap at Winston’s Pub Saskatoon)

Pours clear pale amber with one finger of loose off-white head, good retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Nose is mild caramel malt, tropical fruit, light citrus. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium bodied, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

Quite a decent IPA. Nice fruity hops decently balanced with a pleasant caramel maltiness. For something brewed in a garage by a 30 barrel nano operation, this is excellent. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Black Bridge Brewery (Canada) Black Bridge IPA! American IPA at 7% ABV (Flight on tap at Winston’s Pub Saskatoon)

Pours clear pale amber with one finger of loose off-white head, good retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Nose is pine resin, citrus, grainy pale malt, mild tropical fruit. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderately strong bitter. (8/10) Medium bodied, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter and slightly spicy finish. (4/5)

Really pleasant A/IPA – well-behaved piney bitterness and pleasant pale malt balance well. I found the nose to be a little on the muted side given the moderately robust flavours that come through on the tongue, but I’d rather that than the reverse – I’m always disappointed by IPAs that smell big and bombastic, but fall flat on the tongue. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Half Pints Brewing Co. Little Scrapper American IPA at 6% ABV (Flight on tap at Winston’s Pub Saskatoon)

Pours clear pale amber with one finger of loose off-white head, good retention and moderate lacing. (4/5) Nose is pithy citrus, light caramel malt, mild herbal. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter. (7/10) Medium bodied, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

A nice little A/IPA from a reliable brewery. Maybe a little too little – it could stand to be a bit more bold, but as it stands, it’s pretty close to sessionable, so that’s OK too. Worth checking out. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Oskar Blues Brewery Old Chub Nitro Scotch Ale at 6.9% ABV (C$3.90 at Liquor Crossing Red Deer, 500 ml, can date 19-Nov-2014)

Pours clear amber-brown with one fat finger of dense tan head, excellent retention and spotty lacing. (4/5) Nose is mild toffee malt, dark chocolate, very mild smoke. (7/10) Taste is mild sweet, mild bitter. (7/10) Medium bodied and creamy texture, low residual carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (4/5)

One of the better scotch ales I’ve tried. Not only does the nitro charge give it a smooth texture, it smooths out the flavours. Even the little smokiness doesn’t feel peaty. Worth trying. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brouwerij Palm NV Palm Speciale Belgian Pale Ale at 5.4% ABV (C$3.90 at Liquor Crossing Red Deer, 500 ml, best before 29-Mar-2015)

Pours clear pale gold with one fat finger of rocky white head diminishing gradually to a thin cap, moderate lacing. (4/5) Nose is bready caramel malt, apples and stone fruit, grassy hops. (5/10) Taste is moderate sweet, mild bitter. (4/10) Light to medium bodied, moderate to low carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (2/5)

Is it a requirement that all beers called “Special”, suck? (9/20)

My 148th from the 2010 Edition (retired from the 2013 edition), and 158th combining both editions.

4.5/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Anderson Valley Brewing Company The Kimmie, The Yink & The Holy Gose Ale Gose at 4.2% ABV (On tap at Craft Beer Market Calgary)

Pours a hazy straw with no head or lacing. (3/5) Nose is quite muted, citrus, brine, earth. (8/10) Taste is very mild sweet, mild bitter, moderate sour, mild salt. (8/10) Light to medium bodied, dry and tart finish. (4/5)

Nice. Not as sweet and fruity as the blood orange version, which makes it taste more like a lambic. Really worth trying, and convinces me even more than gose is a style that really needs more love. (16/20)

8/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Worthington’s White Shield English IPA at 5.6% ABV (C$4.90 at Liquor Crossing Red Deer, 500 ml, best before 27-Apr-2015)

Pours clear pale amber with two fat fingers of light beige head, excellent retention and lacing. (5/5) Nose is caramel, stone fruit, citrus, mild herbal and earthy. (6/10) Taste is mild sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Medium bodied, moderate to low carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

A little malt forward, but decently balanced for an E/IPA. I still prefer the brighter hops character of the A/IPA style, but this is a decent example of a more traditional IPA. I’d like to try this in cask some time, actually. (12/20)

My 147th from the 2010 Edition (141st from the 2013 edition), and 157th combining both editions.

6.5/10 #1001beers #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Innis & Gunn Brewing Company Melville’s Alcoholic Ginger Beer Ginger Beer at 4.1% ABV (C$3.39 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 500 ml, best before 1-Apr-2015)

Pours clear deep gold with one finger of off-white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is ginger, sugar. (5/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild spice. (5/10) Medium bodied, medium carbonation, mildly spicy finish. (3/5)

This represents a bold new direction for I&G: they’ve moved on to being bland and unremarkable with a whole new style of beer. I mean, seriously – they make this by blending ginger and lager? Silly me, I thought you were supposed to brew ginger beer with ginger in the wort. I do love a good ginger beer… and this isn’t it. (10/20)

5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Cervecería Nacional Panama Balboa Pale Lager at 4.8% ABV (Gift, 330 ml, best before 17-Jun-2015)

Pours pale straw with a short white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is grainy biscuity malt, corn, faint herbal and grassy hops. (3/10) Taste is moderate sweet, mild bitter. (3/10) Light bodied, prickly to medium carbonation. (2/5)

Not a good beer, at all – standard crap adjunct lager. Though it reminds me of drinking Cristal in Cuba, so there’s that… (6/20)

3/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brewery de Block Satan Red Belgian Strong Pale Ale at 8% ABV (C$4.12 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 330 ml, best before 30-Sep-2018)

Pours hazy pale amber with a thin light beige head diminishing rapidly to nothing, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is peaches, citrus, caramel malt, Belgian yeast. (6/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild bitter. (6/10) Medium bodied, prickly to medium carbonation, mildly warming finish. (4/5)

An OK BSPA. The flavours are simultaneously a little boring, and a little harsh, and the sweetness is a bit overpowering. It does, however, do a decent job of hiding the ABV, so there’s that? Not really doing it for me. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com