HAZY AFFAIR ~ MUDDY YORK BREWING

Hazy Affair is an American style Wheat beer. There has been a late hop addition along with dry hopping in the brewing process (Sorachi Ace and Galaxy were used). Compared to their “German cousins’ style wise the yeast qualities are dialled down. Sampled on draught the beer poured a cloudy straw yellow with a moderate foamy white head. Aroma has lots of lemon and some wheat, with citrus hops at the end. Flavour follows nose – lots of citrusy goodness with a good kick of grapefruit hops. Lots of flavour in this one! The carbonation was moderate-soft and the mouthfeel was medium. Great flavour – wheat with an edge! A nice transitional beer as summer finishes and cooler breezes prevail.

4.5% from Toronto, Ontario 21 IBU

WATERLOO DARK ~ BRICK BREWING

Brick was one of the first widely available craft breweries in Ontario. I haven’t had one in years! Waterloo Dark is a Euro Dark Lager. Sampled from a bottle poured into a tulip. The beer poured a clear dark cola brown with hints of ruby. It had a moderate light beige head, which dissipated quickly, leaving a ring and light lacing. The aroma was roasted malts and grains, a hint of molasses, with very subtle hops and a slight metallic tinge. The flavour is surprising mild; light roasted malts, a touch of caramel and coffee an occasional sour and metallic note with a grassy finish. The mouthfeel was on the thin side; the carbonation was moderate and a slightly dry finish. This is a smooth, non-offensive, easily quaffed beer.

5% from Waterloo, Ontario 14 IBU

BRETT FARMHOUSE (LAB SERIES 2 – 2016) ~ NICKEL BROOK 

Yet another great offering from the ‘Funk Lab.” This brew is farmhouse ale brewed with brettanomyces. Sampled on draught the beer poured a slightly hazy rich golden yellow with a moderate bone white head. The head didn’t last long, and only left scant lacing. The nose has lots of stone fruit, along with cereal grains, citrus, spicy Belgian yeast (three strains of saison yeast were used), pepperiness and funk. The flavour followed the nose with hints of funk and sour, Belgian yeast, wheat, light fruitiness and pepperiness at the end, along with citrusy-grass hops. The beer was not as sweet as the nose may have suggested. The body was light to medium, carbonation was lively and the finish was quite dry. This beer is crisp and bright and nicely balanced. Will revisit this one.

5.8% from Burlington, Ontario 23 IBU 

SAISON DANS LA MAISON ~ MUSKOKA & LE TROU DE DIABLE

This saison is another in a series of anniversary collaborations and one-off beers marking Muskoka’s 30th birthday. This was a collaboration with Quebec’s Trou du Diable and is a saison brewed with guava. Sampled on draught the beer poured a slightly hazy unfiltered golden straw colour with a thin white head, that reduced to a ring. The aroma contained lots of citrus, with some fruity esters, sweet malts, spice and grassy/floral hops. This was a decent saison, but I got very little of the guava, until a touch in the finish. It was light and fruity, with subtle notes of tropical fruit, tart citrus, floral hops. The beer was light and crisp, with little sweetness. Quite decent!

6.5% from Bracebridge, Ontario & Shawinigan, Quebec

  COFFEE TOP ~ HENDERSON’S BREWING

Coffee Top is not actually a beer but a beer cocktail, served at the Henderson’s Brewery.  The beer is Henderson’s Best, their flagship Amber Ale, served with a top of cold brewed coffee from Station Brewers.  Sampled at the brewery the beer cocktail was a clear amber colour with a generous frothy bone coloured head.  The amber ale and the coffee worked remarkably well together.   The sweetness from the malts and the hoppiness of the ale married nicely with the coffee.  Who knew?

4.8% from Toronto, Ontario   40 IBU

Coffee Top is the last in the row.  

JEVER PILSNER ~ FRIESISCHES BRAUHAUS ZU JEVER

Sampled from a tin, this pilsner pours a fairly clear golden straw yellow with a frothy white head, and a steady steam of effervescent bubbles. The head lingered and left nice lacing as it receded. The nose was fairly mild with notes of faint malts, light citrus, lightly toasted bread and grassy hops. The flavour is sharp – light crackery malts and grassy/herbal hop bitterness. I thought it missed a little sweetness to complement the hops. The finish was light, dry, sharp, and had a little bitter bite. The mouthfeel was the medium end of light; the carbonation was lively and prickly. Jever has all the typical lager flavours, just a little amped up from the usual fare. Straight forward, simple and crisp but a little lack-lustre.

4.9% from Jever, Germany

DUPLICITOUS (LAB SERIES 7 2016) ~ NICKEL BROOK

Duplicitous is a dry hopped gose from Nickel Brook’s funk lab. I believe Nickel Brook and Collective Arts have either combined forces or sharing a brewery. ickel Brook’s old brewery in Burlington has now become their Funk lab releasing their Brett based and sour beers. Sampled on draught the beer poured a light lemony yellow with a thin white head. The nose has a light sourness, little briny and grains and citra hops. The taste is quite bright and not too sour. The flavour has lots of lemon, a bit of sweet wortiness, a subtle amount of salt and that lovely dry hooped flavour from citra hops. The mouthfeel is on the thin side. The beer is refreshing and very approachable. Really enjoyed the funk labs offerings this year.

4% from Burlington, Ontario 0 IBU

ABBOT ALE ~ GREENE KING

Abbot Ale is an ESB and is Greene King’s flagship beer. Sampled from a tin the beer poured crystal clear rich dark orange-brown amber with a dense white creamy head that left excellent lacing. The nose contains some caramel malts, yeasty bread, stone fruit, floral /leafy hops. The leafy hop comes forward on the taste balanced and complemented by the toasted malts; there is also subtle florals, fruits, caramel and an earthiness. The finish is slightly drying with a mild bitterness, and metallic taste. The body was at the low end of medium, the carbonation was soft, and the mouthfeel was smooth and somewhat creamy with help the nitro widget. This beer hit the spot as a neighbour and I chatted on a hot day. Simple but nicely balanced.

5% from Bury St. Edmunds, Suffolk, England

KELLERBIER ~ SMITHAVEN'S

(formerly SMITHWORKS)

Kellerbier or cellar beer is an unfiltered lager. Sampled from a bottle, the beer poured a cloudy golden yellow, with a two finger billowy white head that receded to a cap, leaving some nice lacing. The nose is mild with subtle noble hops and light cereal grain malts. The is a lovely effervescent stream of bubbles that give you a little bite off the top, followed by crackery cereal grains and dry floral/herbal hops. There is a very light sweetness complemented by some bitter citrus. The beer is medium bodied with prickly lively carbonation. The finish was off dry. This is quite a palatable and flavourful straightforward brew, I look forward to another.

5.2% from Peterborough, Ontario

FLIGHT DELAY ~ BARNSTORMER BREWING

 

Flight Delay is a delicious IPA with mango. Sampled on draught the beer poured an unfiltered deep golden-amber with a generous frothy off-white head, that left thick lacing. The nose contains some bready malts, yeast, mango, tropical fruit, oranges, grapefruit and resiny hops. The taste is well balanced. A solid malt backbone stands up to the juicy bitter grapefruit-pine hops. More subtle caramel malts, citrus and mango linger in the background. The sweetness of the fruit and bitterness of the hops are an excellent marriage in this bold flavour explosion. The palette was medium bodied and the carbonation was moderate, and the finish was dry but had a lingering bitterness.

6.5% from Barrie, Ontario IBU 85+
Malts: Canadian two row and Crystal
Hops: Magnum, Chinook, Centennial and Citra
Yeast: California Ale