A quick pour of this beer and I was already making faces. Nice essence of caramel from nose to mouth, but the bubbles were as tight and harsh in the mouth as coco-cola without the sugar. Not the way I like my brown ale. Fizzy is certainly the word I would use to describe this…
“IPA du Lièvre” (IPA) Microbrasserie du Lièvre
Okay — so this is a tasting that is long, long overdue. I actually bought this beer a year ago. The only reason I put it off this long was because of the 1-litre bottle. And, so, I’ve been waiting for the right moment when I could both review it and settle in for a…
“Rudolphus VI” (Belgian IPA) Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company
Most good things must eventually run their course … and this concludes my “Best of Beau’s” series featuring the four beer in their “mix pack.” This final comer is, again, Beau’s Brewery’s play with a defining but yet less mainstream beer style: the Belgian IPA, something I didn’t know that existed as a “style” before…
“Burnt Rock” (Vanilla Porter) Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company
Hmm … Yes, hmm… Not exactly the way one starts a great tasting. It’s taking many sips to figure this beer out. I’ll grant you, I was confused out of the gate by the incongruence of this being a porter that only weighs in at 4.9%. While I did drink a lot of Porters while…
“Doc’s Feet” (Dubbel) Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company
Ambition can be a dangerous thing. Doc’s Feet is going to challenge you as much as the label challenges convention. I’m not sure if this some homage to Hello Kitty fitted as a west coast totem (I fear to ask) holding I don’t know what (a beer cap? the sole of a Doc Marten?). I…
Cascade Plus (Imperial IPA/Double IPA), Brasseurs Illimités
Ultimately, I’m here to have experiences and share those experiences with you. So when I was presented the opportunity to take home a beer scoring 111 IBUs – that is international bitter units, the scale used to measure bitterness in beer) — there was no way I could refuse. By all accounts, this was going…
“Magouille” (Pumpkin Ale), Brasseurs Illimités
Drinking a seasonal beer is a bit like going for a swim in waters where sharks have been seen. That’s not to say you’re going to lose a limb, but you’re always worried you’re going feel a nibble on your big toe just before it happens. Perhaps Jaws made a big impression in my childhood…
“Founders Centennial IPA” (India Pale Ale), Founders Brewing Company
For centuries theologians and philosophers have debated how many angels you fit on the head of a needle … but I’m thinking the debate should be whether archangels are big beer drinkers? Do you or I care? Well, I’m guessing the folks at Founders Brewing Company do … at least based on the Raphael’esque label…
“10 Bitter Years” (Imperial IPA), Black Oak Brewing Company
I had a lot of choices in my house as to what would be my last drink at home before heading to the very dry terroir of Saudi Arabia – and, yet, for a few weeks, I’ve instinctively known it was going to be this bottle. This anniversary beer from Black Oak Brewing has celebration…
“BIA” (India Pale Ale), Birrificio Del Ducato
Seeking a great west-coast IPA? Go west … I mean, go east. I mean, get on a plane, cross the Atlantic and head for the middle of the Mediterranean. I know … it’s counter intuitive. I know … I’m from Western Canada. I should know which direction is west. So you’ve read in the past…