RyansBooze

Brasserie Dieu Du Ciel! Corne du Diable American IPA at at 6.5% ABV ($3.08 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 341 ml, bottle date 2-Nov-2014)

Pours clear medium amber with one finger of light beige head diminishing gradually to a thick cap and chunky lacing. (4/5) Nose is caramel and toffee, citrus, pine resin. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, strong bitter. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, with an off-dry building bitter finish. (3/5)

Decent beer that sort of splits the difference between an IPA and a DIPA. Not as good as their Moralité or Disco Soleil, though – there’s a little harshness in the bittering, and the malt has a little heavy emphasis on the caramel. Good, without being great. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Green Flash Brewing Co. Road Warrior Imperial / Double IPA at at 9.0% ABV ($9.09 at Willow Park Wine & Spirits, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Pours clear medium amber with three fingers of light beige head diminishing gradually to a thick cap and chunky lacing. (4/5) Nose is caramel malt, rye, mild citrus, black pepper. (6/10) Taste is mild sweet, strong bitter, mild peppery spice. (8/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, with an off-dry building bitter finish. (3/5)

I do like me a rye IPA – the sharpness of the rye malt tends to play well with the traditional IPA hop bitterness. And I usually enjoy Green Flash’s offerings. That’s not to say I don’t like this one – I do – but it’s just a little on the aggressive side when it comes to the bittering. Good, but not their best. (14/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Stone Brewing Company Enjoy By 02.14.15 American Double / Imperial IPA at  9.4% ABV ($10.49 at Quarry Park Co-Op, 650 ml, best before 14-Feb-2015 )

Pours clear pale gold with two fingers of white head diminishing gradually to a thin skim and spotty lacing. (4/5) Nose is mango, pine resin, grapefruit, pale and caramel malt. (5/5) Taste is moderate sweet and moderate to strong bitter. (5/5) Medium body and decent sustained carbonation, with an off-dry building bitter finish and a gentle warming. (5/5)

Don’t tell me how to live my life, bottle! Even though this is ten days past the best by date, this is probably the the best Enjoy By I’ve tried so far. This is pretty much the perfect DIPA – the flavours are a wonderfully balanced combination of all the best hop characteristics, with just enough sweetness to balance out the huge bitterness that comes out on the finish. And like prior vintages, the high ABV is hidden to a truly impressive degree. Literally the only thing in this brew that could be improved is the head retention and lacing, which is a pretty minor aesthetic consideration. (19/20)

10/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Mill St. Brewery Dammerung Dunkel Dunkel at at 5% ABV (On tap at Mill St. Brewpub Toronto Airport)

Pours clear brown with one finger of frothy light beige head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, no lacing. (3/5) Nose is muted dark malt, faint chocolate and dark fruit. (6/10) Taste is mild sweet, moderate bitter. (6/10) Light to medium body, moderate carbonation, off-dry lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

A drinkable dunkel. A little dark character yet a light body finishing fairly clean. There’s even a little hint of smoke. Not exciting, but better than most of the standard airport bar alternatives. (12/20)

6/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Nøgne Ø Imperial Brown Ale American Brown Ale at at 7.5% ABV ($8.99 at Okotoks Co-Op, 500 ml, bottle date 27-Feb-2012, best before 27-Feb-2017)

Pours hazy ruby brown with one finger of frothy light beige head diminishing gradually to a thin cap, moderate lacing. (4/5) Nose is toasted biscuity malt, toffee, chocolate, dark fruit. (7/10) Taste is moderate sweet, moderate bitter, very mild sour. (7/10) Medium body, moderate carbonation, lingering bitter finish. (3/5)

Not a bad brown ale at all. I generally find brown ales to be fairly malty and boring, but this one, even thought it’s still malty, isn’t boring. I guess the wide variety of malts (six) and hops (three) are each bringing enough to the table that the ultimate product is fairly interesting. I’m even getting a little tiny bit of tart and umame in there. Quite a nice brown. (15/20)

7/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Brouwerij Liefmans Fruitesse Fruit / Vegetable Beer at at 4.2% ABV ($3.65 at Solo Liquor Copperfield, 250 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Pours clear red with a fat two fingers of frothy pink head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, moderate lacing. (3/5) Nose is cherries and raspberries, along with other mixed berry sweetness. (6/10) Taste is moderately strong sweet, mild tart. (7/10) Light body, lively carbonation, off-dry and mildly tart finish. (3/5)

A mildly alcoholic cherry lemonade. On ice. Despite it being quite sweet, it isn’t cloying or overwhelming, and the cherry doesn’t taste artificial. Kinda weird to pour it over ice, but that’s what the bottle said to do, and it’s not completely inappropriate for what’s basically lemonade. (14/20)

6.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com

Coronado Brewing Company Blue Bridge Coffee Stout American Stout at 5.4% ABV ($9.79 at Quarry Park Co-Op, 650 ml, no bottle date or best before)

Pours nearly opaque brown with amber tinges around the margins, one finger of light beige head diminishing gradually to a thin skim, no lacing. (4/5) Nose is coffee, roasty malts, mild cocoa, faint hint of citrusy hops. (8/10) Taste is moderate sweet, mild bitter. (7/10) Light to medium body, lively to moderate carbonation, off-dry and slightly astringent finish. (3/5)

Mediocre to solid coffee stout. Pleasant aroma, good flavour, decent body. Nothing stands out as being particularly great, but there are no obvious negatives, either. If that sounds like I’m damning it with faint praise, well, maybe I am – it could certainly stand to be a bit bolder, particularly after the initial coffee hit subsides, and although the body is OK, it could be heavier. Ultimately it’s a little one-dimensional – though, since it’s pretty good coffee flavour, that’s not entirely bad. (15/20)

7.5/10 #ryansbooze ryansbooze.com