Relocating!

Although I have thoroughly enjoyed blogging the last year and a bit here on Blogger; in an attempt to make frequent postings more easy I have decided to move my blog to tumblr.  The change will also hopefully make my blog easier to share and available to a wider audience.  I will continue to post links to Facebook to let everyone know when posts are going up!  Thanks for following.  There are a few more changes I'll be making as well.  Please check out LPDML's new home: www.solobrewing.tumblr.com.

SoLo 'Dark n' Stanky' India Brown Ale vs. Spicy Korean Beef Burger

Blending styles and bending rules can be endlessly entertaining.  The 'India Brown Ale' is a product of such entertainment.  The color and malt profile of an American Brown Ale with ABV and hopping in alignment with that of an IPA.  I brewed one up a few months ago and got the chance to enjoy it alongside another product of funky fusion, my spicy Korean beef burger.

I really wanted to maximize the amount of hops I could cram into this beer, without driving the alcohol up into the Double/Imperial IPA range.  To compensate I used Maris Otter instead of 2-Row to provide some very stable backbone.  The rest of the recipe rounds out with Victory for additional biscuit/bread notes, Caramel 60L for sweetness and color, torrified wheat for mouthfeel and haze (for some reason in the planning phase I decided I didn't want this beer to pour clear, not sure why, but the murkiness appealed to me), CaraPils for head retention and Carafa I Special for color.  I also made a last minute addition of half a pound of brown sugar for dryness and a bump in alcohol, after becoming worried that OG was too low to support the hops.  Glad I did.

As far as hopping goes I really wanted to get a mix of dank, piney, resinous notes, akin to waxy herbs, a note often described by others as 'good bud'.  Colombus is the king of such character, so I used it to bitter and for dry hop.  A blend of Chinook, Nugget and Simcoe were used as support cast flavoring.  Bittered to the point where I estimated it may be uncomfortable (turns out I was wrong again); a real hop heads dream.

A healthy dose of Wyeast 1217-PC West Coast IPA (reportedly sourced from Green Flash or Stone) made for a very clean, active, four day fermentation that seemed to drop out well.  The yeast left some sugar behind as I hoped.

'Dark n' Stanky' India Brown Ale

OG: 1.069
FG: 1.014
ABV: 6.9%
IBU: 85
SRM: 17
VOL CO2: 2.8

Grain Bill:
10 lbs maris otter
1 lb victory
1 lb torrified wheat
¾ lb caramel 60L
½ lb carapils
¼ lb carafa I special

Hop Bill:
1/2 oz Colombus (15.2%AA) @ FWH
½ oz Columbus (15.2%AA) @ 20 minutes
1/3 oz Nugget (12.2%AA) @ 15 minutes
1/3 oz Simcoe (13.2%AA) @ 15 minutes
1/3 oz Chinook (11.8%AA) @ 15 minutes
1/3 oz Nugget (12.2%AA) @ 5 minutes
1/3 oz Simcoe (13.2%AA) @ 5 minutes
1/3 oz Chinook (11.8%AA) @ 5 minutes
1/3 oz Nugget (12.2%AA) @ 0 minutes
1/3 oz Simcoe (13.2%AA) @ 0 minutes
1/3 oz Chinook (11.8%AA) @ 0 minutes

Yeast:
1 pkg Wyeast 1217 PC West Coast IPA Yeast
Built to a cell count of ~330 billion

Other:
1 tsp wyeast yeast nutrient @ 10 minutes
½ lb brown sugar added during fermentation
2 oz Columbus dry hop for 7 days

Brew Notes:
mashed @ 156F for 60 minutes

Fermentation Notes:
Fermented @ 63F

Tasting Notes:
Pours murky brown with a slight green tinge and a thin, easily forgotten head of khaki.  Hop forward on the nose; dank herbal tones, wax, pine and Simcoe style fruit notes of peach and berry.  Bitter, backed with a touch of bready sweetness and perhaps the tiniest hint of cocoa. Moderate bodied with above average carbonation.

Overall I would say this came out quite well.  Despite being a hop bomb, it's very well balanced in my opinion.  Next time I might be prompted to clear it up by using less wheat and adding Irish moss.  I would definitely cut the Simcoe in lieu of more Colombus, as it seems to have taken over the beer (good thing I like Simcoe).  Keg hopping would also provide more hop character without adding any more bitterness.  Even after three weeks in keg, with no oxygen exposure, I can taste the difference in hop aroma.  

Here's the recipe for the Korean beef burger if you want to give it a shot.  They were damn tasty in my opinion.  The spice played well with the bitterness of the beer, and the smokey soy notes contrasted the fruity, herbal hops.  You're not likely to find my beer at the LCBO any time soon, so replace it with a pint of one of Canada's great full bodied IPA choices, like Boneshaker from Amsterdam, Red Racer from Central City or Lone Pine from Sawdust City.

Korean Style Beef Burger

2 lbs MEDIUM ground beef (fat is important here folks!)

5 tbsp good quality soy sauce

1 tbsp fish sauce

2 tbsp brown sugar

2 tbsp Sambal Oelek chili paste (or the more common Sriracha)

1 tbsp katsuobushi (dried smoked bonito flakes, common in Japanese cooking)

1/3 oz salt

2 shallots, grated

Combine in a mixer for no more than a minute and a half, only to incorporate the ingredients and agitate the proteins ever so slightly.  This will make three 8oz patties.

Grill or pan fry to desired doneness and serve up on a quality bun with delicious toppings like lettuce, kimchi, and Kewpie mayo.

Beereviews

A bit of a mixed bag!  Oddly enough the stars of the show are variations of stouts or porters.  Flying Monkey's Chocolate Manifesto is lengths better and more complex than their previous chocolate beer BNL. Outstanding examples of a Sweet Stout and a Porter from Beau's and Founders respectably, and a delicious Black IPA from DDC (they have a hard time making bad beer there...).

Rochefort Trappistes 10
330 mL bottle. Pours a dark prune colour with an endless beige head of champagne like bubbles. Aromas of over ripe stone fruit, plum, date, dark brown sugar, bubble gum and spicy yeast phenols. Dry and boozy, with a spicy alcohol kick and a hint of hop bitterness and yeast tartness. Full bodied but light on the palate. Seems mildly disjointed; enjoyed the 8 a lot more. Grabbed another bottle to age.

Flying Monkey's The Chocolate Manifesto
750 mL bottle. Pours thick and black with a thick head of beige foam. Big chocolate on the nose; truffles and hot cocoa with bittersweet notes of tobacco and bourbon like alcohol. Balanced sweetness and a slightly roasted finish. Big chewy mouthfeel with moderate carbonation and a hint of boozy bite. Much better than expected, well done.

Great Lakes Brewing Pompous Ass
Cask. Light brown with a thin white cap. Earthy hop, bread, caramel and floral tea notes on the nose. Moderate body and carbonation. Light sweetness balanced by fair hopping. Sessionable.

Wellington Brewery Chocolate Milk Stout
Cask. Black with a thin tan head. Cocoa, bourbon, licorice and a touch of smoke. Light carbonation and moderate body. Sweetness just in check. Full mouth feel. Enjoy in moderation. One of Welly’s better brews.

Beau's Tom Green Beer
600 mL bottle. Pours black with a nice beige head. Nice aromas of chocolate, anise, coffee, lactose and a hint of herbal hop. Moderate sweetness kept in check with a touch of roast and hop. Moderate carbonation, full body, sits heavy on the palate. Enjoyed.

Founders Porter
355 mL bottle. Pours opaque black with a thick beige cap. Aromas of chocolate, breakfast blend coffee, vanilla, raw sugar and brown spice. Lightly sweet and mildly bitter. Coating mouth feel and lasting finish of cocoa. Moderate carbonation and above average body. Delicious.

Dieu du Ciel Penombre
341 mL bottle. Pours black with a hint of brown around the edges, a nice beige head of foam. Aromas of roasted malt, coffee, dried herbs and spicy hop. Very dry with a strong bitter finish. Lingers on the palate: sticky. A surprising amount of hop bitterness but little flavor or aroma. High carbonation. An interesting beer, not quite what I was expecting; more like an aggressively hopped porter than an IPA with dark malt character.

Founders Dirty Bastard
355 mL bottle. Pours dark mahogany with little to no head. Deep malt notes of amber caramel, raisin and dark honey. Smoky phenolics and heather herb like hop notes. Moderate sweetness offset by a bitter hop bite with a touch of roast. Full bodied with below average carbonation. Very much a love it or leave it style of beer for me.

Founders Backwoods Bastard
355 mL bottle. Pours dark mahogany with a khaki cap of head. Massive nose of bourbon, oak, vanilla, char, and deep caramel malt. Smoke and cherry cough drop like phenolics. Moderate sweetness offset by the heavy oak and a nice hop bite. Full bodied with average carbonation; warming alcohol. An absolute monster of a brew. Prefer this many times over the original.

Muskoka Detour
355 mL bottle. Pours golden straw with a white foam. Citra hop forward; notes of guava, mango and pinapple, caramel malt. Slightly sweet and fruity, only subtly bitter. Light bodied, average carbonation. Tasty and sessionable, no doubt, but feels a bit of a one trick pony.

http://www.ratebeer.com/user/169526/ratings/

Biere de Garde Ambree

Originating from the farmhouses in the North of France (at the Belgian border), Biere de Garde is one of the very few authentic French styles of beer.  It was brewed in the cool winter or spring for the summer ahead.  It comes in a few different profiles; Blonde, Ambre and Brune (Blonde, Amber and Brown respectively).  The name originates from the brewing process: Biere de Garde translates to 'beer for keeping', a reference to the fact that the beer was cellared cold during and after the fermentation process.

There's no hiding the fact that I love Belgian style beers.  Despite it's origins, Biere de Garde shares a lot in common with its cross border cousins, the Belgian Saison and Belgian Pale Ales.  The cold storage process involved in brewing a true BdG seemed like a good step towards brewing a lager style beer as well.

I wanted to keep the beer authentic so I chose a mildly complex grain bill that would offer layered, bready, caramel notes and a touch of dry fruit.  I chose French hops and a yeast strain that purportedly was taken from popular producer Duyck (who produces several tasty variants of BdG under the name Jenlain).  I kept true to the process as well, fermenting at the bottom end of the yeasts comfort zone, and then lowering the temperature for a month of lagering before bottling.

'Farmium' Biere de Garde

OG: 1.064

FG: 1.013

ABV: 6.8%

IBU: 27

SRM: 12

VOL CO2: 3

Grain Bill:

7 lbs pilsner malt

3 lbs Vienna malt

1 lb biscuit malt

½ lb carapils malt

½ lb special b malt

Hop Bill:

2 oz strisselspalt (2.3% AA) @ FWH

2 oz strisselspalt (2.3% AA) @ 30 minutes

Yeast:

1 pkg white labs WLP072 French Ale

built to a cell count of ~314 billion

Other:

1 tsp wyeast yeast nutrient @ 10 minutes

1 tsp irish moss @ 10 minutes

Brew Notes:

mashed @ 148F for 90 minutes

Fermentation Notes:

Fermented @ 64F

10/10/13: SG of 1.013, allowed to warm to 68F

13/10/13: SG of 1.013, started gradually lowering temperature for lagering

17/10/13: reached lager temperature of 35F

Tasting Notes:

Pours a lightly hazed, medium amber color with a frothy head of eggshell colored foam.  Aromas of dark bread, medium caramel, raisin, earthy yeast funk and a hint of roast.  Mildly sweet, offset by woodsy hop bitterness.  Thick, coating mouth feel with moderate to high carbonation.

Really want to see how it progresses over the next six months or so.  If I ever get to rebrewing this I would probably cut down the special B to a few ounces, the roast character that it gives just feels out of place here.  More yeast character would be nice, perhaps a slight under pitch or the addition of brett would do this some justice.  Slightly higher carbonation and a drier finish couldn't hurt either.

Beer Ratings!

Merry Christmas everyone!  Here's a round of reviews for you, featuring a lot of beers from the new LCBO winter release.  Be sure to grab the Breakfast Stout from the Founder's feature, a top notch Imperial Stout intensely flavoured with two kinds of chocolate and coffee.  If you are feeling cold, don't be afraid of it's foreign language name, the Sigtuna Brygghus Midvinterblot (Sigtuna Brewhouse Mid Winter Only), is winter drinking in it's essence.  Balanced sweetness, full body and warming alcohol do not disappoint.

Amsterdam Wee Heavy Scotch Ale
500 mL bottle. Dark brown with a thin beige cap. The heather really comes through, some Demerara, a hint of smokiness and medicinal phenolics. Only mildly sweet. Full carbonation, moderate body. Not for me.

Beau's Rudolphus IV
600 mL bottle. Pours hazy golden with a thick white head of foam. Aromas of mango, papaya, melon, orange, biscuit like malt, pine and a hint of yeasty spice. Flavour offers a hint of sweetness followed by a massive bitter hop bite. Hugely carbonated and waxy/sticky on the palate. Long lingering aftertaste of hop goodness. Good stuff.

Garrison Imperial IPA
500 mL bottle. Pours hazy amber with a foamy white head of lace. Aromas of tangerine, honey, beeswax, pomelo and grapefruit. Moderately sweet on the palate, followed by a bracing hop bitterness that balances out quite nicely. Medium plus body with slightly below average carbonation. Leaves a lingering sticky feeling on the palate. Not as dry as many; well done.

Beau's Burnt Rock Vanilla Porter
600 mL bottle. Pours black with a nice cap of khaki head. Aromas of bittersweet chocolate, coffee, Dr. Pepper, vanilla and raisin. Moderate sweetness with very subtle hopping. Thin on the palate with below average carbonation. Reminds me too much of a soft drink, sorry.

Beau's Doc's Feet Dubbel
600 mL bottle. Pours a rich reddish brown with a soapy white head. Raisin, over ripe pear, spicy hop, subtle bubble gum and yeast here. Mildly sweet contrasted well by the hops. Moderate plus carbonation but feels very light. A tasty, if Americanized, example of the style.

Founder's Pale Ale
355 mL bottle. Pours bright gold with a foamy white head that dissipates. Bright citrus and floral notes, herbal hop spice, subtle malt. Dry and refreshing with a long bitter finish. Crisp and clean on the palate despite the hoppiness. Very clean and well made. Average body and carbonation. A nice session beer.

Founder's Breakfast Stout
355 mL bottle. Pours black on black with a thick brown head of foam. Aromas of dark chocolate, rich coffee, almond liquor, cinnamon, deeply roasted malt. Sweet but never cloying, well balanced with the bitterness of all the coffee, chocolate and hops. Massively structured and thick with oats on the palate, moderate carbonation and a long lingering finish. Dangerously good.

Panil Enhanced
750 mL bottle, gushed like mad. Pours a hazy golden orange with a thick white head that never ends. Nose is funky with brett, white peach, ripe pear, cut grass and chamomile. A surprising note of sweetness here, contrasted by the overwhelming carbonic acidity. Moderate body with huge carbonation. Somewhat creamy on the palate with a layered finish of brett character. Interesting stuff; imagine a lambic with no sour.

Sigtuna Brygghus Midvinterblot
330 mL bottle. Pours dense black with a thin beige head. Aromas of rich chocolate, Demerara, sweet roasted grain and a hint of smoky earth. Moderate plus sweetness, balanced with hop and a hint of booziness. Thick and coating on the palate, slightly warming. A delicious winter drink.

Lake of Bays Old North Mocha Porter
750 mL bottle. Pours deep, dark mahogany with a thin white cap. Aromas of cocoa, sweet grain and a hint of coffee. Slightly sweet balanced by a slight hint of roastiness. Thin on the body for what I expect in a porter. Moderate carbonation. Sessionable.

http://www.ratebeer.com/user/169526/ratings/

so many samples, so little time

A set of mostly product sample reviews.  Tastes from F&M/Stonehammer, Muskoka and Amsterdam.  The highlight here was the Nickelbrook Naughty Neighbour on cask.  My soft spot for cask ale aside, I loved the fruity hoppiness and extreme sessionability of this brew.  If you can't find that (it's not unlikely), grab a tall can of St. Ambroise Pale Ale for a great, inexpensive, old world style pale that puts commercial macros to shame.

Stonehammer Autumn Bock
Draft. Pours amber with a thick tan foam. Roasted nuts, light cocoa and deep toffee. Moderately sweet with a clean lager finish. Mildly herbal hop. Average body and carbonation. Very pleasant.

Nickelbrook Naughty Neighbour Pale Ale
Cask. Pours pinapple juice with a well sparkled head. Hop notes of tropical fruit on the nose; pinapple, mango, citrus and a hint of pine. A mild touch of biscuity malt. Dry and light bodied with a slightly bitter finish. A great pale ale, really accentuated by cask format.

Stonehammer Light
341 mL bottle. Pours very light with minimal white froth. Grainy nose with a hint of apple. Taste is faintly sweet, some yeast notes and more pilsner malt. Thin body and moderate carbonation. Light beer.

Stonehammer Pilsner
341 mL bottle. Pours gold with a lacy white cap. Grainy malt with straw and toasty barley. Lightly sweet without as much bitterness as I expect for the style. A hint of herb like hop. Light to medium bodied with average carbonation.

F&M MacLeans Pale Ale
341 mL bottle. Pours medium amber with a white cap. Mild fruit, apple, pear, butterscotch and grain. Slightly sweet with just enough hop to balance out. Moderate body and carbonation. Not bad, just not all that interesting.

Stonehammer Dark Ale
341 mL bottle. Pours walnut with a thin beige cap. Nutty toffee on the nose, some grainy malt, but lacking. Taste is a little sweet, watery, slightly bitter on the finish. Light to moderate body and moderate to full carbonation. Leaves a lot to be desired.

Stonehammer Cofee Oatmeal Stout
341 mL bottle. Pours a thick opaque black with a short lived khaki head. Aromas of coffee, dark chocolate, subtle roast and woods. Creamy mouth feel, mild sweetness and a well balanced, bitter and roasty finish. Quite clean. Moderate plus carbonation. Tasty.

Muskoka Winter Weisse
750 mL bottle. Pours mahogany with a tight off white head. Soft cocoa, slightly smoky clove spice, a hint of banana and light caramel. Subtly sweet with a relatively clean finish. Average plus mouth feel, light to medium body and high carbonation. Let it warm a few degrees to enjoy a little more.

St. Ambroise Pale Ale
473 mL can. Pours a very light amber with a thick frothy white head and lots of lace. Aromas of biscuity malt, assorted spices, pine, citrus zest and candle wax. Moderate to full bodied, average plus carbonation. Bready sweetness with a nice bitter backbone and old world hoppy finish. Sticky on the palate. Very approachable.

Amsterdam Downtown Brown
473 mL can. Pours dark walnut with a thin white cap. Caramel, coffee, roasted nuts and a hint of butteriness, some woody hop. Dry for the style with a lightly roasty and mildly hopped finish. Above moderate carbonation. A little too clean on the palate. Not bad.

http://www.ratebeer.com/user/169526/ratings/

Switching to Kegging & Session Stout

About a month ago I decided to switch to kegging.  The main reason for this was that despite its start up cost, kegging is significantly easier than bottling.  No more washing and sanitizing bottles over and over again!  It also allows me to serve my beer faster from the date of packaging.  Carbonation via CO2 injection takes a mere week and a half on average, compared to the three week carbonation period required for bottle re-fermentation.  That being said, some types of beer benefit from bottle re-fermentation or extended ageing (which is much easier to do in bottle than in keg).  Therefore, my kegs will be used for simple day-to-day beers, while I will continue to bottle beers that are high in complexity, alcohol, funk, or a combination of the three.

A simple keg set-up consists of only a few parts:

Fridge:  Kegged beer and beer lines must be kept cold for optimal serving!  Any old fridge will do, so long as it can hold you kegs and lines and keep temperature between 35F and 45F.

Tap:  This is what you will use to control the flow of beer.  I opted for a 'pass-through' style tap, that is fitted through a hole drilled in the front door of the fridge.

Beverage Lines:  These carry your beer from the keg to the tap.  They must be food grade, and kept clean!

Keg: Homebrewers typically use soda kegs as they can be opened up for easy cleaning.   Your kegs have in and out fittings on the top, which connect to opposing fittings on the lines.  These hold 5 gallons, which is why most homebrewers also make 5 gallon batches.

Gas Lines:  These carry CO2 from your tank to your keg.  Without CO2 you couldn't carbonate your beer by injection, and there would be no pressure to force the beer out the tap.

Regulator:  This dictates the flow of CO2 of your tank.  Flow control is important to generate a good pour.

CO2 Tank:  Industry graded tanks for CO2 storage.  They hold your CO2.

After thoroughly cleaning and setting everything up (which takes a little bit of getting used to, and can be painstaking/messy) you are ready to hook up your beer.  Sanitize and fill your keg, and set the regulator to the correct pressure (this will vary based on beer style, storage temperature and a million other factors).  Allow to sit pressurized for 3-14 days until full carbonation is achieved.  Pour and enjoy!

I designed a simple recipe for a Session Stout that would let me make quick use of my fridge.  After receiving all my kit and checking to make sure it all works, I wanted something on tap ASAP.  This low gravity and low alcohol stout would take a quick 10 days to ferment and only 10 more to carbonate.

"Let Them Eat Keg" -- Stout/English Mild

OG: 1.039

FG: 1.011

ABV: 3.7%

IBU: 20

SRM: 35

Grain Bill:

5 lbs Maris Otter

1 lb Caramel 20L

1 lb Pale Chocolate Malt

8 oz Caramel 60L

8 oz Black Malt

Hop Bill:

2 oz Styrian Goldings (2.4%AA) @ FWH

Yeast:

1 pkg WLP002 English Ale Yeast

built to a cell count of ~160 billion

Brew Notes:

mashed @ 156F for 60 minutes

Fermentation Notes:

Fermented at 68F

Tasting Notes:
Pours just barely black with a thin beige cap that dissipates quickly leaving no trace.  Soft aromas of cocoa, woody hop and a hint of roasted malt.  Mildly sweet malt notes give way to a subtle roasted finish.  Mouth feel is moderate to low, low carbonation and thin body.

Although not a bad beer, I would certainly change some things next time around.  This lacks the gusto one usually associates with a stout, even if it was designed to be low-alcohol (it's a lot harder to get the same amount of flavor into a low ABV beer).  It comes off a lot more like a British Style Mild.  Next time this beer will be mashed higher and have oats added to the grist for more body and better head.  I'd also like to see a bit more malt character, I would up the 60L to a full pound, and perhaps change half of the Pale Chocolate for Chocolate Malt, and all of the Black Malt for Roasted Barley.  Hops could be increased as well.

Hope you enjoyed!

All Brettanomyces Claussenii Farmhouse Ale

I've been wanting to experiment with an all Brett brew for a while, and thought that I would put together a simple brew to see what this methodology has to offer.  While the original recipe was designed as a low alcohol table beer, the Brett attenuated amazingly well and this ended up around the 5% mark.

The Rural Refresher -- All Brett C Farmhouse

OG: 1.040

FG: 1.000

ABV: 5.3%

SRM: 5

IBU: 25

Grain Bill:

5 lbs Vienna malt

1 lb Wheat malt

8 oz Acid malt

8 oz Carapils

Hop Bill:

1.5 oz Czech Saaz (3% AA) @ FWH

1.5 oz Czech Saaz (3% AA) @ 10 minutes

Yeast:

1 pkg WLP645 Brettanomyces Claussenii stepped from a 1L starter to a 2L starter

Other:

1 tsp wyeast yeast nutrient @ 10 minutes

Brew Notes:

mashed @ 149F for 90 minutes

Fermentation Notes:

Fermented @ 78F

Tasting Notes:

Pours hazy gold with a one finger white head that leaves a pretty good lace.  The Brett generated really nice fruit notes of mango and pineapple that could easily be confused as heavy aroma hopping.  A slight hint of mustiness.  The mid palate gives way to the distinct biscuit flavour of Vienna malt, and it finishes off with a subtle spicy hop bitterness.  Moderate to full carbonation with a creamy wheat mouth feel.

I was really happy with the way that this came out.  I followed others' suggestions and pitched a massive amount of yeast to ensure a thorough fermentation, and had no issues with yeast laziness.  I'm amazed by the balance that the Brett gave this beer, it has a pleasant combination of yeast, hop and malt notes with no individual component taking over.

Some Greats

A very nice little group of beers here from the fall/winter release, as well as reviews on the Samuel Smith's gift pack.  The pack includes a pine glass and three trophy examples of great British beer.  Also check out the Rochefort 8, a top notch Belgian Trappist ale at a rock bottom price, a duo of massive stouts and a balls-to-the-wall IPA from Great Lakes that makes most beers seem as flavourless as a Molson's product.

Samuel Smith's Nut Brown Ale
550 mL bottle. Pours crystal clear, medium brown with a tight tan head. Aromas of almond, apple sauce, toffee, cocoa, and earthy hop. A hint of sweetness back by good hop bitterness. Moderate body with low to moderate carbonation. Palate coating. Get’s better as it warms, solid.

Samuel Smith's India Ale
550 mL bottle. Pours golden with a thin white cap. Mild biscuit like malt, saltine, herbaceous, earthy hop, citrus and wax. Not particularly bitter for the style. Light to medium body and moderate carbonation. Clean palate. Not bad, but I was hoping for more here.

Samuel Smith's Oatmeal Stout
550 mL bottle. Pours opaque black with a thin off white cap. Cocoa, cooked oats, meaty roast aromas, cooked apples and a hint of malty bitterness. Mildly sweet with a slightly bitter finish and a touch of roast. Full bodied with moderate carbonation. A tasty stout.

Rochefort 8
330 mL bottle. Pours hazy mahogany with a murky off white cap, leaves no lacing surprisingly. Rich aromas of bready malt, a hint of cocoa, dried fig, raisin. Slightly sweet balanced by moderate to high carbonation and a hint of alcohol. Luxurious texture, but not heavy at all. Do let this warm up before enjoying.

Amsterdam Tempest Imperial Stout
500 mL bottle. Pours opaque black with a nice tan head and lots of lacing. Rich chocolatey aroma with layers of vanilla, coffee, deep caramel, roast and herbal hop. Big lingering mouth feel with moderate carbonation and a full body. Lightly sweet offset by a good hop bite. Undetectable alcohol. Very well made.

St. Ambroise Stout Imperiale Russe
341 mL bottle. Pours black with a creamy khaki head that leaves lots of lace. Dark chocolate, espresso, vanilla, smoky oak and roasted malt. Rich and full bodied with a lingering mouth feel and lasting bitterness. Lightly sweet with a big bitter back bone. Sticky on the palate with moderate carbonation, only a slight hint of alcohol. A well balanced giant of a beer.

Great Lakes Brewing Lake Effect IPA
650 mL bomber. Pours a hazy light orange with a lot of yeasty bits. Aroma is pure American hop; mango, guava, grapefruit, pine, orange, only a hint of maltiness. Almost sweet from all the fruit notes, backed by a big bitter punch. Crisp, but not harsh. Clean on the palate with lingering bitterness. Very refreshing, goes down all too easy.

Nickelbrook Headstock IPA
473 mL can. Pours a hazy straw with a rocky white head. Aromas of mango, pineapple, grapefruit, resin and a hint of biscuit. Moderate and lasting bitterness. Light bodied with average carbonation. Clean and lightly bitter finish. Not bad, not great.

Waterloo Union Mills Porter
473 mL can. Pours dark reddish brown with a tan cap. Cocoa, coffee and a hint of tobacco like hop. Slightly sweet, a touch of roasty bitterness, and a hint of hop bite. Moderate body and carbonation. Alcohol well hidden. Not a bad beer, expected a bit more bang.

Wellington Quick Brown Fox ESB
Draft. Pours almond colored with a thin beige cap. Nuts, caramel, toast and apple on the nose. Starts out a little sweet and finishes with a rounded bitterness. Palate coating with moderate body and carbonation.

http://www.ratebeer.com/user/169526/ratings/

Wintery Reviews

Ten good old fashioned beer reviews, loaded with winter favorites!  Milds, Milk Stouts, Sweet Stouts, Russian Imperial Stouts, Porters, Baltic Porters!  If it's darker than your morning coffee it's in this post!  Get your hands on the Deschutes Black Butte Porter for a brewery that makes its bread and butter on dark beer (that's right their flagship beer is a Porter, not a Pale Ale like most breweries), or try a Long, Dark Voyage to Uranus for a surprising change!

Sawdust City A Long, Dark Voyage to Uranus
650 mL bomber. Pours opaque black with a thin beige cap and leaves lots of lacing. Gloriously roasty with a big nose of dark chocolate, espresso coffee, burnt sugar and herbal hop. Dry, despite the sweet sounding aromas, with a huge lingering, boozy, bitter finish of both roasted malt and hop. Low carbonation and moderate body. A meal for after dinner.

Deschutes Black Butte Porter
650 mL craft bomber. Pours dark dark brown with a lacy beige head. Chocolate, breakfast blend coffee, dark fruit and herbaceous hop notes. Moderately sweet well offset by hop and roast bitterness. Medium-full bodied with moderate carbonation. Sits long on the palate. A distinctly American tasting Porter; very good.

Okanagan Spring Mild Winter Ale
341 mL bottle. Pours dark brown with a thin white cap. Roasted nuts, toffee and a hint of cocoa on the nose. Slightly sweet with some mild fruity tartness and only a hint of hop. Light bodied with low carbonation and a clean finish. Nothing outstanding, but tasty.

Beau's/Anders Kissmeyer Nordic Pale Ale
600 mL bottle. Pours pale gold with a thick lacy white head. Herbal aromas, a mix of familiar hop notes with some depth from the other additions (really wish I knew what these things tasted like individually), some slightly sweet fruit notes here (I’m assuming that’s the cranberry and maple in action) and a hint of grain. Dry, but somehow leaves the impression of sweetness, with a well bittered finish. Moderate carbonation and light on the palate. Very nice.

Les Trois Mousquetaires Grand Cuvee Porter Baltique
750 mL bottle. Pours a deep red tinged black with a thick cappuccino colored head. Aromas of deeply roasted malt, coffee, chocolate, black cherry, and a hint of smoke. Clean and subtly sweet with a nice bitter herbal hop finish. Palate coating and above average carbonation, moderate body and a long layered finish. Very tasty, strongly preferred this to their Doppelbock that was also available in Ontario recently.

La Trou du Diable La Buteuse
375 mL bottle. Pours medium amber with a nice white cap. Aromas of Belgian yeast spice, banana, grain, mango, and bubblegum. A slight sweetness, well balanced by above average carbonation, a touch of hop and a hint of alcohol. Medium body with a nice long finish. Dangerously drinkable.

Lost Coast 8 Ball Stout
650 mL bomber. Pours almost opaque and black, thick foamy head of beige. Dark roast coffee, bittersweet chocolate, red fruits and a touch of mint. Mildly sweet, with a nicely bitter roasty/hoppy finale. Creamy full texture with moderate carbonation. Very good, a fine sweet stout, which we don’t see enough of in Canada.

Innis & Gunn Oloroso Cask
330 mL bottle. Pours a little darker than golden with a white head that makes an exit quick. On the nose there’s fig cake, honeycomb, allspice, oak and herb. Moderately sweet, but not cloying like a lot of I&G beers. Offset by a nice hop flavor, high alcohol and moderate to high carbonation. Moderate body. Very nice.

King Pilsner
473 mL can. Pours golden with a tight white head that leaves a little lace. Bready and biscuity, hints of grass and floral notes. Subtly sweet with a refreshingly bitter finish. Full bodied with moderate carbonation. A great lager.

Charlevoix Le Vache Folle Milk Stout
500 mL bottle. Pours black with a thick and lacy hot cocoa coloured head. Aromas of bittersweet chocolate, roasted malt and roasted fruits. Nice lactose sweetness, offset by a boozy bite and highly kilned malty goodness. Full and coating on the palate with moderate carbonation and a slightly souring aftertaste. Leaves the glass a special kind of filthy; a sipper.

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State of the Brew'niun

Thought I would take a quick moment to update on the status of the brews!

'Oak to Joy'  Oak Aged Old Ale
An English style Old Ale that was partially aged in an oak cask.  Not going to let loose on the tasting notes here: you will have to try for yourself; these are Christmas gifts!  I packaged four bottles spiked with Brettanomyces Claussenii as well for a special treat. Labels courtesy of GrogTag.

'FunkleWeizenBock' Dunkelweizenbock with Brettanomyces Bruxellensis and Claussenii
A strong, dark German wheat beer with two kinds of Brettanomyces bacteria.  This is now six weeks old and the brett is really taking over.  Banana and clove notes provided by the initial wheat beer yeast were quickly replaced by tropical fruit brett flavors that are now developing into a funky mushroomy earth tone.  This is going to be interesting stuff when I can finally bottle in another 6 weeks.

'Unnamed' Biere de Garde

A traditional French lagered farmhouse ale.  After fermenting for ten days, this came down to lager temperature.  It has been cold aging for a little over two weeks and has a lovely clean, malty profile.  Nice notes of caramel, toffee, stale bread and a hint of apple sauce.  Will be packaging in corked and caged champagne bottles in two weeks.

FunkleWeizenBock (right) and Biere de Garde (left) samples.  Strikingly similar colors here.  Very, very different flavors.

'Rural Refresher' All Brettanomyces Claussenii Farmhouse Ale

The all brett fermentation here produced some nice light fruit and citrus notes to complement an otherwise very simple tasting beer.  Initially wanted this to be around 4% but the Brett C turned out to be a monstrous attenuator and took the beer from 1.040 to 1.000 in a little over a week (5.2%).  This should be a great thirst quencher when it's all said and done.  Bottling in two to three more weeks.

After these beers are finished I planned a couple of smaller brews to test out the kegging system I will be switching to next week.  A Session Stout (3.6%) and a Simple Rye Saison (with a double inoculation of reused Biere de Garde yeast and saison yeast I plan to harvest from a bottle of 'Dupont Vielle Provision' I've been holding on to) will be next.

GrogTag Labels

grogtag.com

10 Reviews

A pretty wide array of beers here.  Lots of Belgian styles, some I enjoyed, some I did not.  Highlights here were: Great Lakes Saison Du Pump (a pumpkin infused saison), which you can always buy tomorrow for Halloween; Brasseries Dunham IPA Belge, which I found to be painfully drinkable and refreshing yet complex enough to keep me captivated until the end of the bottle; and lastly (but by no means least) the absolutely massive Charlevoix Dominus Vobiscum Hibernus, the Belgian Dark Strong ale that just keeps giving up layers of flavor (but be warned it's a beastly 9.5% ABV, a hell of a sipper).

Charlevoix Dominus Vobiscum Hibernus
750 mL bottle. Pours dark mahogany with a thick tan cap of head. Solid aromas of dark fruit, rum, banana, medium treacle and oak. Sweet but well balanced by moderate carbonation, hop bitterness and alcohol bite. Dangerously smooth, full bodied and deep. Finishes with hops and spices. Delicious.

Spirit Tree Draught Cider
341 mL bottle. Pours light golden straw with a thin white cap that goes quick. Aromas of apple, honeysuckle and farmy funk. Mildly sweet but still quite dry, with low to moderate carbonation and an above average body for a cider. Love it for that yeast note, a complexity not commonly found in Ontario ciders.

M'Anis 7.3
500 mL bottle. Pours a deep honey color with a short lived white head. Notes of bread, toffee, nut, apricot and a hint of roast. A touch sweet offset by lively carbonation and a warming boozy bite. Moderate body with a sticky malty finish. Not bad, but not for me.

Great Lakes Brewing Saison Du Pump
650 mL bottle. Pours a cloudy straw with an obnoxiously lacy head of white. Aromas of pumpkin, nutmeg, banana, bubblegum and noble hop. Pleasantly palate coating, but bone dry with full carbonation and a nice bitter finish. Crisp and delicious!

Unibroue Noire de Chambly
750 mL bottle. Pours cola with a beige cap of tight bubbles. Aromas of prune, spice, a hint of roast and Unibroue house yeast. Moderate body and carbonation with a dry yeasty finish and subtle hop bitterness. Not overly impressed, but well made.

Uncommon Brewers Siamese Twin
473 mL can. Pours dark amber brown with zero head. Leaves no lacing. Caramel and spice aromas, with subtle notes of lime leaf and lemongrass. Bready caramel malt and slight hop bitterness on the finish. Sweet and rich, sticky, coating mouthfeel, moderate carbonation and a bit of booze. Too sweet for me, would like to see more of that citrus zip. Good idea, bad execution?

Brasseries Dunham IPA Belge
750 mL bottle. Pours a murky green tinged orange hue with a huge rocky white head that lasts and laces. Aromas of lemony hop, coriander spice, cotton candy and herb. Dry and perfume-like with a floral finish. Moderate body with high carbonation. Strangely well balanced. Tasty, and not what I expected.

Wellington Iron Duke Saison
Cask. Pours dark mahogany with a tan fluff. Aromas of bubblegum, cherry cough drop, spice, slight roast and yeasty funk. Dry, with a lightly bitter finish. Slightly medicinal with a bit of alcohol bite.

Northwinds Corduroy Rye IPA
Draught. Pours hazy copper with a lacy white head. Aromas of herbaceous hop, rye spice, mint and caramel malt. Dry for the style, with a lightly spiced finish. Moderate body and carbonation. Creamy mouthfeel, well balanced.

Lake of Bays Top Shelf Lager
473 mL can. Pours golden with a nice white head that leaves no trace. Cereal and biscuit grain flavor with a hint of toffee. Subtly sweet with a hint of hop bitterness. Full on the palate with a round mouth feel and moderate carbonation. Reminds me more of a Vienna lager than an American one. Not bad at all.

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Highland Park 1990

THE SCOTCH: Distilled in 1990 and packaged in 2010, this fine whisky is 20 years old.  Marked 'Created Exclusively For Global Travel Retail', I picked this up on a trip to the US.  Highland Park is the only distillery on the Isle of Orkney and are known for their scrupulous attention to quality. 40% ABV.

THE POUR: Golden yellow, average consistency.

THE NOSE: Banana, vanilla, clove, oak, honey, a hint of mineral.

THE SIP: Mellow and smooth, candied orange sweetness, round oaky mouthfeel and subtle peating.

OVERALL: An easygoing Scotch, superbly round and balanced.  Gently warming.  Ideally enjoyed neat, I found water ruined this one.

Cask Days 2013

There are few things that get beer geeks more excited than a cask of real ale.  Over 200 Casks of real ale all in one location is one of those things.  Cask Days is an annual (this year marks the ninth), two day celebration of real ale, and the largest of it's kind in Canada.

'Real Ale' is unpasteurized, unfiltered, living (there's plenty of yeast still in suspension), beer that has been conditioned in a cask  (formerly barrels, now likely to be a stainless steel vessel called a pin or a firkin) and served without the aid of carbon dioxide or nitrogen.  The beer is cloudy with yeast haze, served at cellar temperature (around 10C) and very lightly carbonated.  To the average consumer, this seems like a scam and a waste of delicious beer.  To those in the know, cask ale offers an opportunity to really showcase the flavour of a beer.  Only very well made beers can be served unpasteurized and unfiltered, thus setting a benchmark for how they are made.  There is no carbonation to disguise off flavours and the warmer serving temperature awakens aromatics normally muted when cold.

This years Cask Days was held at Evergreen Brickworks, an old quarry located in North York.  The outdoor setting created the perfect environment to keep over 200 unrefrigerated beers at serving temperature.  Food was offered up by Toronto favourites such as The Ceili Cottage, Bar Isabel, Tracy Winkworth, Pig Iron Coffee and Parts & Labour.  This year featured over 230 firkin of beer from all over Canada and the U.K.

Here's the list of what I got into, along with notes for the beers that I can recall clearly.

Amsterdam Highborn Farmhand (Saison with Brett and Noble Hops)
Cloudy straw colour.  Nice brett notes, musty and woody alongside spicy, herbal hop

Daniel Thwaites Lancaster Bomber (ESB)

Kensington Brewing Company Tragically Hopped (IPA)
A nice cask style IPA, on the lighter side of things, well balanced with pine and citrus hops.

Les Trois Mousquetaires Oud Bruin (Flanders Brown Ale)

Spirit Tree Dry Hopped (Dry Hopped Heritage Apple Cider)
Similar to their original cider, but with hints of citrus and woody hop,

Les Vergers de la Colline Rouge Dolgo (Crab Apple Cider)
Very tart, with a nice pink tinge.  Definitely tastes like crab apples.  Refreshing.

Snowman Make Like a Tree and Leaf (Gluten Free Maple Porter)
Spicy non-barley malt notes, a hint of maple sweetness and a bit of roast.

Amsterdam X Great Lakes Brewery Maverick and Gose with Raspberry (Raspberry Gose)
Tainted with diacetyl.  The only bad beer I consumed at the festival.  A shame, I had my eye on this one before we even got there.

Bellwoods Brettal Head with Lemon (All-Brett Wheat Ale with Lemon)
Very murky lemonade colour.  Slightly funky/musty with various layers of lemony-ness.  Smelled very much like Moroccan style preserved lemons.  Creamy mouth feel.  Probably my favourite taste of the afternoon.

Muskoka Masala ChaIPA (Chai Spiced IPA)
A well balanced IPA that finished hoppy and faded to spice notes, not by any means overpowering.

Half Pints Drunken Bunny (Chocolate Milk Stout)

Sawdust City X Nickelbrook X Nogne O Test Pilot (Eisbock)
A style you don't see much in Canada.  Beer that has been concentrated by slowly freezing and removing the water (which freezes before the alcohol). Surprisingly clear for a cask beer.  Notes of candied fruit and pure malt.  Warning, this one came in at 14% ABV.  

Sawdust City A Nun Rolling Down a Hill (Dry Stout)
Chocolate and roast, a nice dark reddish-black.

F&M Sour-Y About Last Year (Sour Bock)

Niagara Oast House Brewers Mild R'Oast (English Mild)
As close as one can get to coffee beer without actually having coffee in it.  Full bodied for the meagre 3.8% ABV.  Cask style at its finest.

Thornbridge Brewery Jaipur (IPA)

IPA Challenge Beer 2 (IPA)
Weirdly balanced.  Citrus and tropical fruit, caramel malt.  Didn't do it for me at all.

IPA Challenge Beer 3 (IPA)
Very light color, finite notes of yeast spice and Noble hop.  Got my vote.

IPA Challenge Beer 4 (IPA)
Full bodied and tropical with a dark and malty back bone.  Quite filling.

I discovered that I don't much care for sour beers on cask.  Strange that two of my favourite styles of beer don't come together to make a style I like even more.  The bracing acidity of sours is lifted and lightened by the carbonation, creating more of a contrast;  on cask these beers seem heavy and unlively.

All in all the festival was a great time!  Thanks again to Keep6 Imports/Bar Volo/Cask Days for throwing the event, I look forward to next year!  For more information please visit www.caskdays.com

10

A bunch of new beers here from the fell release as well as a few product samples.  For a harvest themed meal pairing try the Nickelbrook Wet Hop or Renaissance Punkin with your turkeys; or use the 8Wired iStout or LTM Doppelbock as an after dinner sipper, like a fine cognac.

Beau's Mr. Hyde
600 mL bottle. Pours amber with a frothy white cap. Rye and hop spices intermingle with a hint of caramel malt sweetness, cedar, applesauce and prune fruit notes. Slightly sweet but reasonably balanced. Moderate body and carbonation level. Nice complexity.

Beau's Two Weeks Notice
600 mL bottle. Pours very dark brown, almost black with a fuzzy light brown lid. Roasty malt, chocolate, coffee, licorice and Noble hop aroma. Quite bitter through and through with the dark malts on the attack and hop bitterness on the finish. Light on the palate, medium bodied and average carbonation.

Radical Road The Wayward Son
750 mL bottle. Pours golden with a thick lacy head of fuzz. Soft sugary aromas, Noble hop, pilsner malt, orange candy and fruit. Slightly sweet, light to medium body, full carbonation and a hint of bitter aftertaste. A good example of a Golden Strong; a style I don’t like much, but where’s the oak?

Nickelbrook Pie Eyed
355 mL bottle. Pours hazy burnt orange with a thin white cap. On the nose, clove, cinnamon and pumpkin and a hint of malt. Taste is somewhat watery, mildly sweet and spiced. Thin to moderate mouth feel and medium carbonation. Not to my taste.

Nickelbrook Ontario Wet Hop Pale Ale
750 mL bottle. Pours a pale golden with a thick foamy head of white. Nose is peach, mango, subtle pine and cedar. Crisp, with cracker like malt notes and a fruity finish. Moderate body and carbonation with a slightly bitter finish. Designed to showcase hop character. Quite enjoyed this, very sessionable.

Renaissance Enlightenment Series The Great Punkin
500 mL bottle. Pours dark garnet with a frothy off white head. On the nose, pumpkin, pie spices and bready malt. Slightly sweet with roasted vegetable and caramel malt notes. A nice spice and pumpkin balance that plays well with the maltiness, finishes slightly bitter. Medium body with medium to high carbonation. A good pumpkin beer, would have been better if it were more modestly carbonated.

8Wired iStout
500 mL bottle. Pours opaque black, period. Beige head. Aroma is intensely concentrated. Dark chocolate, coffee, deeply roasted malt and stewed fruit. Surprisingly sweet for a RIS; balanced, but not as bitter as is typical for the style, less roasty than anticipated. Full on the palate with low carbonation. The beer that eats like a meal. Still damn delicious.

Les Trois Mousquetaires GC Doppelbock
750 mL bottle. Pours dark amber with a foamy tan head that leaves no trace. Aromas of fruitcake, rum, candied orange, chocolate and demerara. Fairly sweet and firm bodied, moderate to heavy carbonation and full on the palate. Leaves a lingering sticky sweetness on the palate, gently offset by a touch of acidity and woody hop spice. Liquid bread indeed!

Amsterdam Calm Before the Storm
355 mL bottle. Pours a dark walnut with little to no head. On the nose; roasted nuts, bittersweet cocoa, rye spice. Dry with a lingering roasty hoppy bitterness. Thin palate with average carbonation.

Amsterdam Oranje Weisse
500 mL bottle. Pours a hazy golden with a thin head that exits quickly. Aromas of citrus juices, coriander, liquorice and yeasty spice. Moderately dry and fruity, very clean on the palate, average plus carbonation. Tasty but not that exciting.

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still breathing; still brewing

It's been a while since I've posted anything but ratings and thought I might put together a bit of a review of what's going on in the brewing department.

I got started immediately once we finished moving into our new place with an Christmas inspired Old Ale I've named 'Oak to Joy'.  The beer was drawn up to be a fairly strong sipping beer for the cold winter months and partially aged in oak.  The thing took near a month to ferment out!  I was expecting to be sampling it by now and instead I'm waiting for it to mellow out before bottling.

A week later I set down a beer that I intend to age out for a few months.  The idea was to spike a classic Dunkelweizenbock with Brettanomyces bacteria.  This will develop a gamey, musty, cellar-like character that I think will balance well with the malty, smoky notes typical to the style.  The weizen yeast is all done fermenting and the brett should be munching away at the residual sugars for the next three months before I package it.

Last weekend I brewed up my fourth solo batch, a Biere de Garde.  This is one of the few traditional French styles of beer.  Hallmarks include a very slow ale fermentation at low temperatures and long term lagering that results in a smooth malty beer with a mild yeast and hop profile.  The White Labs French Ale yeast I used fermented the beer out in an astonishing four days!  I let it rest for four more and have started bringing it down to a lager temperature of 40F.  The beer will age there for four weeks and continue to mellow.

I'm currently building up a starter for another experimental batch, an all Brettanomyces Clausenii blonde table beer.  All brett beers require a lot of patience and a large yeast starter, so despite the fact that I began propagating yeast today, I won't be brewing for two weeks time.  I selected a very lightly colored, mild malt base with a small amount of slightly spicy hops to really let the yeast flavour shine through.

On top of all that I'm working on switching from bottling to kegging.  I'm debating between converting my own keg fridge or purchasing a commercial one.  The switch should make brewing a lot cleaner: bottling is the messiest and fussiest part by far.

That's where things stand!

Ratings Double Header!

A trip to Caledon yielded some fine ciders from Spirit Tree Cidery.  There's some nice fall feeling brews in here, as well as half of the Beau's Oktoberfest gift pack!  Fans of dry stouts need to have the Le Trou de Diable Sang D'Encre!  Enjoy.

Spirit Tree Estate Reserve Cider
750 mL bottle. Pours a hazy light pear colour with a thin short lived mousse. Floral with notes of apple flesh and skin notes, malolactic fermentation, oak and a hint of funk. Bone dry and crisp with mild carbonation and a light body. Lingering notes of apple and lightly tannic oak on the mouth. Good stuff, but I prefer the pungent funkiness of the original. Nonetheless a very real cider, nothing to hide here.

Amsterdam Autumn Hop Harvest Ale
500 mL bottle. Pours a deep gold with a lacy white head. Aromas of earthy hop, citrus rind, biscuity malt, pine and bread. Taste is dry with a lingering hop bitterness. Sticky on the palate with moderate carbonation and light to medium body. A nice fall beer; and my favorite Amsterdam brew next to the Boneshaker.

Renaissance Voyager IPA
500 mL bottle. Pours a muddy amber color with a lacy white foam. Resiny hop aromas or grapefruit and beeswax with notes of crystal malt and yeast. Slighty sweet balanced by a hint of hop bitterness and floral aromatics. Low carbonation and surprisingly light on the palate. Distinctly British tasting.

Midtfiyns/De Molen X Porter
500 mL bottle. Pours opaque black with a creamy brown head that lingers and laces. Aromas of chocolate, coffee, burnt sugar and molasses. Hints of black cherry, prune and roasted malt. Starts out sweet and quickly turns roasty and bitter with hops. Rich and dense with a thick coating mouth feel. Full bodied with moderate carbonation. An enormous porter, made for after dinner sipping.

Cameron's Ressurection Roggenbier
650 mL bomber. Pours dark butterscotch with a thick white head and nice lacing. Aromas of spicy-sweet rye, medium crystal malt, a hint of plum, banana, apple and floral hop. Full carbonation with a lingering sweetness on the palate. Not bad but I expected more somehow...

Spirit Tree Perry
341 mL bottle. Pours a light pear juice color with a split second long white cap. On the nose is pear and musty funk reminiscent of olive brine. Fruity and thin bodied with a slightly tart, floral finish. Clean on the palate. Well made and tasty.

Beau's Smokin' Banana Peels
600 mL bottle. Pours hazy off yellow with a thick white head that laces nicely. Aroma is smoke, mineral, clove phenols and banana. Just smoky enough that you know it’s there but not intense enough to overwhelm the delicate hefe character. A mild sweetness with moderate body and full carbonation. An upgraded thirst quencher.

Samuel Smith's Old Brewery Pale Ale
550 mL bottle. Pours light ruby with a thin head. Caramel, bread, apple and spicy/herbal hop. Moderately sweet, balanced by a bitter hop finish. Medium bodied with moderate plus carbonation. A nice ESB.

Le Trou de Diable Sang D'Encre
375 mL bottle. Pours opaque black with a splotchy beige-brown head. Dark molasses, coffee, cocoa, dark bread and earthy hop notes. Dry and layered with notes of licorice and roast. Moderate to full bodied with lively carbonation; slightly sticky. Need more stouts this good to be readily available.

Beau's Oktobock
600 mL bottle. Pours crystal clear, liquid gold with a thick white head. Bready with caramel toffee, nut butter, lemon verbena, cracker and hop spice. Moderately dry, above average body and normal carbonation. Lingering bitter finish, slightly sticky on the palate. A big ol’ Helles.

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More Ratings!

Oast House Saison

750 mL bottle. Pours hazy golden straw with a firm white head and nice lacing. Grassy hop notes on the nose with a hint of wheat, spices, banana and cotton candy. A subtle fruity finish with a touch of sweetness. Light to moderate body with full carbonation and a creamy mouth feel.

Brasseurs RJ Cheval Blanc
341 mL bottle. Pours a hazy golden with a thin white head. Nose is deeply spicy, coriander, orange, yeast, dried herbs and pepper. Dry and creamy on the palate with moderate carbonation and a medium body. A well made wit.

Collective Arts Saints of Circumstance
330 mL bottle. Pours a light straw with a nice white cap. Aromas of lemon, orange, biscuit and tropical fruit. Crisp and dry, slightly sticky on the palate with a light body and moderate carbonation. Slightly bitter and citrusy hop finish. A thirst quencher with a twist.

Black Oak Brewing Ten Bitter Years
650 mL bottle. Pours dark orangey copper with a nice off white head that leaves beautiful soapy lacing. Orange and grapefruit with a bit of caramel malt sweetness, sappy pine/herb notes. Medium bodied and on the dry end of the style. A nice coating mouth feel backed by balanced hop bitterness. A well made IIPA.

Wellington Bike Ryed Summer Kolsch
473 mL can. Pours clear golden with a nice white cap. Grainy malt, a touch of hop, sight spice from the rye, very clean. Dry, thin bodied with moderate carbonation. A session quencher, nothing outstanding.

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5 More Ratings!

More beer reviews!  A couple of nice Belgian style ales, a few beers from my new local, Wellington, and the highlight of the five, an IIPA from Central City.

Central City IIPA
650 mL bomber. Pours dark amber with a stable off white head and soapy lacing. Aromas of deep caramel malt, candied orange, a touch of licorice and herbaceous resin. Thick on the mouth and full bodied with low to medium carbonation and a sticky mouth feel. A well balanced and delicious IIPA.

Wellington County Trailhead
473 mL can. Pours golden with a nice white cap that fades leaving no lace. Simple with a touch of caramel sweetness, biscuity vienna malt and a hint of hop spice. Clean and dry with no aftertaste. Light body and moderate carbonation. A real domestic lager, but nothing outstanding.

Wellington County Special Pale Ale
473 mL can. Pours amber with a touch of white head. Aroma is mostly biscuit like malt with a hint of almondy diacetyl and a slight hop spice. Pretty uneventful. Thin and moderately carbonated. Kind of missed the mark for me.

Ommegang Hennepin
330 mL bottle. Pours a surprisingly clear straw with a full white head. Nice aromas of apple, banana, clove, grassy malt. Dry with a layered yeasty spiciness and a hint of herbal hop bitterness. Full carbonation and moderate body with a creamy mouth feel and a lasting finish. A tasty farmhouse style beer.

Chimay White
330 mL bottle. Pours honey colored with a slight haze and a foamy white head. Aromas of candied apple, raisin, earth, herbal hop and yeast spice/funk. Slightly sweet but well balanced by the alcohol and a touch of hop bitterness. Finish is long and laced with belgian candi sugar. Medium body and full carbonation.

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6 Reviews! Product Samples Edition!

One of the pro's of being in the restaurant industry is every now and again you get product samples.  The frequency of which is greatly increased for people in the craft beer industry.  Here's the latest samples I've been given.  The Chill Winston and Pumpkin ales are both available at the Great Lakes Brewery store in Etobicoke.  The St. Ambroise is likely to show up in the LCBO, and would make a good pear with your Thanksgiving Day turkey.  The KBC Tilt will only be available in select craft beer bars (and is worth seeking out).  The Waterloo products can be found in the Beer Store.

Great Lakes Chill Winston

650 mL bottle. Pours a hazy straw with a foamy white head. Nose is citrusy hop, tangerine, lemon, banana, coriander and clove like yeasty spice. Crisp and light bodied with moderate carbonation. Dry and clean on the palate with only a touch of bitterness and a fruit laced finish. Another great session saison from GLB.

Great Lakes Pumpkin Ale
650 mL bottle. Pours a light orange with a frothy head. Aroma is mostly nutmeg and pumpkin. Dry and light bodied with medium high carbonation. Seemingly thin with alternating vegetable and spice notes with a rather hoppy finish. Not bad, but not to my taste.

St. Ambroise Citrouille
341 mL bottle. Pours a dark copper colour. Nose is pumpkin, nutmeg, clove, ginger, molasses and biscuity malt. More balanced than I expected, dry and vegetal with depth from the malt and spices. Moderate body with medium carbonation. Rounded out with a hint of hop bitterness. Quite good.

Kensington Brewing Company Tilt
473 mL can. Pours a hazy straw color with a nice white cap. Aroma is layers of citrus fruit, a touch of mango, citronella and wax. Dry and fruity with a lightly hop spiced, bitter finish. Medium bodied and creamy on the palate, yet light and refreshing. Delicious.

Waterloo Dark
473 mL can. Pours a dark reddish black with a thin beige head that’s already gone. Caramel malt, raisin,a hint of chocolate. Thin body with little carbonation. Dry with a slightly tart finish. Uneventful, meh.

Waterloo IPA
473 mL can. Pours copper with a off white head. Muted nose with a hint of hop. Vienna and light caramel malts, a hint of herbal hop and toffee. Medium body and medium carbonation. Pretty one dimensional and bland. Pass.

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