WINDFALL ~ REVEL CIDER

Another brilliant offering form Revel Cider! Windfall is a apple cider made with Ontario Blackberry, wildflower honey and maple syrup and juniper berries. Sampled on draught, the cider poured a bright reddish pink hue – it looked almost like a rosé. A beautiful melange of flavours in this – the blue berry presence is not overpowering but does lend a beautiful flavour and colour to the cider. The juniper berries were very subtle. The finish is smooth and has a subtle honey sweetness to cut the tartness. Definitely order this – if you see it on draught!

6.4% from Hamilton, Ontario

Photo courtesy or Revel Cider

TYRANNOSAURUS GRUIT ~ BEAU’S 

In honour of Gruit day (February 1st) Beau’s has created this most interesting Gruit. Gruits are beers that date back before the Bavarian Purity acts that declared the only ingredients a beer could have was barley, hops, yeast and water. In a gruit herbs, spice and other botanicals are used as bittering agents and flavour. Gruits have many many flavour combinations depending on the foliage (terrior) that grows around the brewery.
This beer has been brewed once and is on a seasonal and limited release. Sampled on draught this beer poured an intense bright red (much like cranberry juice) with little head. The red come from the beets that this gruit was brewed with, along with hibiscus flowers. The nose is very light and contains beets and subtle floral notes. Beets dominated the initial taste of this beer, both lending their sweetness and their earthiness. I found the beet a little cloying at first, but getting beyond their initial flavour the subtle flavours of the hibiscus emerged. Though this beer contained spruce tips and juniper berries, I could not easily identify them. The brew was mild with a light mouth feel. Very different, not for everyone, but worth a taste.

5.8% from Vankleek Hills, Ontario IBU 17

Malts: Pale ale, Vienna, CaraRed, acidulated (all organic)
Hops: Organic magnum
Yeast: German ale
Other: Local spring water, organic beet powder, organic spruce tips, organic juniper berries, organic hibiscus flowers.

COYOTE HOLE with JUNIPER ~ INNOCENTE BREWING

Sampled on cask, it is a special edition brewed with Juniper berries. Coyote Hole is a California Common in style. Traditionally California Common’s (also known as Steam Beer*) are brewed with yeast that works well at higher temperatures. The beer originated in California in the early 1800’s where refrigeration was a great luxury, so beer was cooled using shallow fermenters, and yeast that worked at a higher temperature was necessary. The beer poured dark amber with ruby hues, with a small head. The nose contained a boozy aroma, dark berries, bread and biscuits, some woodiness and a bit of spice. Taste had red berries, citrus, roasted malts, bready graininess, earthiness and perhaps a touch of spice. The sweetness was counteracted by a pleasant bitterness (but not hoppy) at the end. This beer reminded me of an ESB. A very nice complexity in flavour.

5.1 % 25 IBU from Waterloo, Ontario