GRENDEL’S REVENGE ~

INDIE ALE HOUSE 

Grendel’s Revenge is part of the Fates & Furies Series and is a blend of an Old English Ale and a Flanders Sour Brown Ale. The beer is brewed with a house wild yeast strain and then aged in port, red wine and Medeira barrels for one to three years. Different vintages have been blended together for limited edition releases. I was lucky to have tried this on draught and have returned for several times to have some more. The ale pours a cloudy reddish amber brown colour with a small beige head, that left nice lacing. The nose is both sour and woody, with lots of vinous and dark fruity notes along with rich malt, spice, and other orchard fruits. The taste has a lovely complexity to it. It is rich, funky, tart and sweet. Again there are lots of wine and dried and fresh fruit notes on the palette, along with an oakiness, light spice, subtle brett and sweet malts. None of the flavours predominate. The beer is medium bodies with lazy carbonation and a smooth mouthfeel. The finish has a very mild bitterness with a long sour finish. Overall a beautiful beer.
8.5% from Toronto, Ontario IBU 25—30
Key Ingredients: Dry English Ale Yeast

OUD BRUIN ~ EXCHANGE BREWERY

I think this new Brewery from Niagara on the Lake may be one to watch out for. I have really enjoyed both Belgian style offerings I have had thus far. The Oud Bruin is a Flanders style Brown ale, aged in red wine barrels. Sampled on draught it poured an opaque rich mahogany colour with a thin cream head. The nose had lots of red wine with black currants, balsamic vinegar, barrel oakiness, rich malts and sourness. The taste fills your mouth with complex flavours: red wine and touch of sweet balsamic, dark fruits, sherry, and rich sourness. The sourness is not overpowering and lends some complexity to the brew. The beer was made with Chilean malts and fermented in pearl Morrisette red wine barrels for five months with Brett and lactobacillus. The carbonation is quite soft and the body is on the cusp of medium and full. An impressive first sour from this brewery, in fact one of the best domestic examples of this style. Bravo Exchange.

6.5% from Niagara on the Lake 27 IBU