Bellwoods' Sour IPA w/Lactose

As yet too new to be properly named and labeled, I just picked up a 500mL bottle of “Sour IPA w/Lactose” from the industrious brewers at Toronto’s Bellwoods Brewery. I’m already nearly through with the “lactose/milkshake IPA” trend, but Bellwoods seldom delivers a bad batch of anything, so I figured I should investigate their take.

The beer I bought was an opaque, milky orange-gold. A 7% alcohol offering, it poured with a rapidly vanishing layer of sudsy white head. The beer had a compellingly tangy fragrance; tart with exotic fruit notes and a liberal dose of funky yeast. Acidic orange and mango notes were vividly represented in the front end, alongside some boozy sweetness, while the finish was fruity and tart, with a slightly underdeveloped bitterness closing the door.

All things considered, Bellwoods’ Sour IPA w/Lactose was a pretty enjoyable ale, but one that could have benefitted from a heavier mittful of hops, and a slightly less sweet opening salvo. At 7%, the strength is perfect, and the sourness of this beer was rowdy without being raucous.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Resistance Dry-Hopped Lager

According to the 355mL can that houses Resistance Dry-Hopped Lager, a portion of the proceeds are “donated to organizations dedicated to fighting oppression worldwide”—a laudable sentiment, though one that would have a bit more significance if it identified what proportion of proceeds and which organizations.

Born in Toronto, Resistance comes from Muddy York Brewing Co. The beer, a 5.2% alcohol, 18 IBU lager, is billed as the baby brother of Gaslight Helles Lager (but in truth, I think this is the superior beer—my own little bro has long maintained that the junior sibling can outstrip the senior,  and here is the first evidence I’ve ever seen to confirm his wacky theory). It has a slightly hazy golden countenance and pours with a thin but durable disc of off-white suds. The brew is dry-hopped with Sorachi Ace hops which doubtlessly contributes to the bitter lemon aroma that permeates the nose. Crisp and pleasant, the beer has a summer-friendly mouthfeel and a flavour to match—grassy blended with a modestly hoppy citrus finish.

I like pale lagers well enough when the context suits (hot day, full sun, sweaty, task recently accomplished or still in progress). However, I’m primarily an ale addict, which makes dry-hopping a likely winner. Resistance has a nice hop component, though I’d have liked it to be kicked up another notch. A percentage just north of the standard five also goes a long way—that 0.2% is worth .5 in my rating. A more assertive front end would have pushed this li’l lager still higher, but alas.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Gaslight Helles Lager

June is grilling season, and that means pale lagers are in my fridge more than at any other time of the year. On a Wednesday night, I found myself home alone and contemplating BBQing yellow summer squash, a daunting task I’d never before undertaken (turns out it’s easy and tasty as hell). To fortify myself for this culinary endeavour, I reached for a 473mL can of Gaslight Helles Lager, a 5.4% alcohol, 18 IBU brew from Toronto’s Muddy York Brewing Co.

This pale lager was yellow gold, clear, and topped with a cottony white head. It had a fresh, grassy nose, a cracking crisp mouthfeel, and a flavour that encompassed sweet grains and dry hops.

Billed as a Munich-style helles, Gaslight proved to be an uncomplicated and enjoyable beer with a few features that set it ahead of Joe Macro: (1) it has 5.4% alcohol and that extra tick isn’t frivolous; and (2) it doesn’t taste of corn, rice, or other tricky additives—I’d warrant that this German-style lager would comply with the Reinheitsgebot, Germany’s famed purity law of 1516. I’ve had better pale lagers, but if you’re in the mood for a satisfying golden bubbly beer, Gaslight is a fine craft alternative to the widely available macros. It won’t knock your socks off, but it’ll refresh the hell out of you.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Electric Mud: Misdirection Double IPA

Brewed using Magnum, Centennial, Citra, and Amarillo hops, Misdirection Double IPA packs the one-two punch of an 8.2% alcohol bruiser with 75 IBUs. Sold in 355mL cans, this brew calls Toronto home. It’s brewed by Muddy York Brewing Co.

The beer is a hazy orange tipple that pours with a thin coroner of off-white head. It has a bold nose that features both hoppy bitterness and a whiff of something slightly chemical that I wasn’t wild about. Fortunately, the flavour doesn’t have much of that off note, though it isn’t wholly absent. Rather, it’s primarily got a boozy taste enriched with sweet fruit notes. The finish is dank and bitter in an agreeable way.

Decent strength and a nice, relatively mellow flavour make Misdirection an agreeable beer. However, the off note in the fragrance was a hard factor to overlook.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Electric Mud: Stormglass IPA

Named in honour of an instrument designed to predict changing weather patterns that was, unbeknownst to me, apparently invented by Admiral Fitzroy, who captained Darwin’s HMS Beagle, Stormglass IPA is a 7% alcohol ale from Toronto’s Muddy York Brewing Co. Sold in 355mL cans that have a bit of nautical tattoo flair, the beer has a cloudy dull orange aspect and a sudsy layer of white head.

Stormglass has an aroma both tangy and bitter, with notes that are tart, fruity, and resinous. As for its flavour, tropical fruit—particularly passion fruit—is a driving force on the front end, while the finish is dominated by modest bitterness (40 IBUs are listed, but I’d have guessed higher) and a bit of tartness.

For me, Stormglass IPA was an effective and agreeable take on the ever-popular style. The flavour elements were slightly unusual, but not a wild departure from the classic. At 7% alcohol, the strength is just right for the style, and, while not actually relevant, the labeling really caught my eye. A bit more concentrated bitterness might have made this beer a stronger candidate, but that’s not a dealbreaker.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Electric Mud: Muddy York Porter

Muddy York Porter is a dark ale brewed by the eponymous Muddy York Brewing Co., in Toronto’s North East. It’s a 4.7% alcohol, 21 IBU porter sold in handsome, vintage, and somewhat macabre 500mL bottles. The beer within is a teak-hued grog with a determined cream head and an unexpected amount of carbonation.

MYP has a pleasant nose ornamented with toasty malt and cocoa notes. The flavour shares those elements, and supplements them with some herbal root beer notes, a faint tendril of smoke, and a respectably bitter finish.

The team at Muddy York have created a really enjoyable porter. It could be a wee bit heavier, perhaps, but it is admirably flavourful for a sub-five percenter, and far more complex than many of its beery peers.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Electric Mud: Major Small Best Bitter

Major Small Best Bitter is a 4.6% alcohol, 30 IBU English-style ale from Toronto’s Muddy York Brewing Co. I had a 12oz pour of the hazy orange grog at the brewery. Through its thin eggshell head, M.S. had an earthy, malt nose, with some coppery elements. It had a slightly metallic flavour with brown sugar, toasty malt, and some English-style bitterness.

Toasty and tasty, Major Small is an agreeable low-alcohol ale with surprisingly big flavour. The mouthfeel is a wee bit thin, but the beer tastes both nice and well-made.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Electric Mud: Radelmüeller’s Ghost Märzen

I dragged the Bitter Wife on a transit journey across town to visit the Muddy York Brewing Co., a place I’ve long been hankering to try. Given the amount of time spent getting there, I was pretty determined to try everything they had, but sadly I only had 90 minutes before closing time.

My kicked off my visit with a 12oz pour of their Radelmüeller’s Ghost Märzen, a 5.2% alcohol tribute to J.P. Radelmüeller (I always thought it was "Rademüeller"), the Toronto lighthouse keeper who was murdered and whose ghost allegedly haunts the Toronto Island Lighthouse.

The beer had a gorgeous amber colour with just a hint of haze and a thin, white head. The lager had a malt and biscuit nose with a bit of earthiness. It tasted both warm and crisp, with some toasted malt notes, and a back end with a slightly peppery uptick.

Märzens are not a style I’ve had a lot of experience with, but I thought the MYBU’s take had some class. It was a bit thin-bodied for my taste, but the crispness was welcome and the flavour was agreeable.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

For another take on the same theme, see my review of Rademuller's Refusal.

Enlightenment Boom! Double IPA

Enlightenment Boom! Double IPA comes all the way from Marlborough, New Zealand. It’s an 8.3% brew built by the folks at Renaissance Brewing. Sold in 500mL bottles, Boom! is a hazy grog. It has a rusty orange tint and pours with an inviting cap of sudsy off-white head.

Boom! has a feisty nose that, while always bitter, tightropes between citrus and floral. The flavour is sweet and perfumed, with notes of evergreen and peach, before dive-bombing into a fiercely bitter finish. According to the copy, this brew hits 89 on the IBU scale, and I don’t doubt it for a second, though the bitterness is cleverly woven into the overall flavour, rather than just providing a hops wallop.

Boom! is a playful brew with an edge. One seldom has cause to describe a beer as both floral and fierce, but that’s what this double IPA from New Zealand delivers. It’s well worth a try.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

8track XPA

In early May, the Missus and I dealt with a prolonged power outage. Before it got too dark, I decided to review a 473mL can of 8track XPA from Chatham, Ontario’s Sons of Kent Brewing Company. 8track clocks in at a not quite rowdy but not too sorry 5.7% alcohol.

The beer is a cloudy orange-gold number, with a fluffy white head. It has a citrus-dominated aroma with a whiff of bitterness. The flavour is quite restrained, but not buttoned down—there are notes of tangy tangerine, a whisper of grapefruit, and a bit of peachy sweetness. The finish is short and fairly dry, but not as bitter as I’d have preferred.

This was a pretty pleasant ale with a session-friendly vibe, but a respectable percentage. It’d be a banger to bring to a party, but it fits in a slightly odd niche, what with it being only modestly flavourful, but slightly stronger than baseline. There are enough APAs that have less boom but more flavour that makes this beer a bit of an anomaly, but that said, I’d definitely buy it again. In short—odd weight, but pretty nice taste.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

All's Welly That Ends Welly: Bewitched Belgian IPA

Bewitched Belgian IPA, an India pale ale brewed with farmhouse-style yeast, is a 6.3% alcohol, 65 IBU grog from Guelph, Ontario’s Wellington Brewery. Bewitched comes in creepy-as-hell 355mL bottles. The beer is a hazy and highly carbonated orange ale that pours with a thick fog of bright white head.

This ale has a yeast and tart fragrance that has a dusting of arid hops. For flavour, Bewitched is floral, yeasty, and cracklin’ dry. There is a subtext of bitterness, but the 65 IBUs are pretty well hidden.

Bewitched was a pretty decent Belgian-styled take on the IPA, but I’d have liked it to be a bit stronger and a bit deeper. Still, it was an enjoyable brewski.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

All's Welly That Ends Welly: Iron Duke

According to the copy on 355mL bottles of Iron Duke, the beer was first brewed way back in the Stone Age of craft beer: 1986. Iron Duke is an English-style strong ale brewed in Guelph, Ontario by Wellington Brewery. Clocking in at 6.5% it has some get up and go, but at just 21 IBUs, there isn’t a lot of hops in the tank. Coloured somewhere between amber and ruby, the clear beer pours with a sudsy off-white head. It has a warm aroma that is bready and fortified with notes of sticky toffee. It tastes malty, biscuity, and strong, with toffee notes and an agreeable metallic coil.

The Iron Duke is a bit too sweet and insufficiently bitter, but it has lovely strength and it’s a nice change up from typical Ontario strong ales that tend to be IPAs or porters.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

All's Welly That Ends Welly: Shadowy Pact Irish Dry Stout

Wellington Brewery's Shadowy Pact Irish Dry Stout comes in incredibly eye-catching 355mL bottles with a cool yellow and black colour scheme and an awesome Illuminati theme. Low-octane like a classic Irish-style stout, SP contains just 4.4% alcohol. It’s an oil black brew with amber highlights and a durable cover of creamy head. With a rich and enticing scent, SP has notes of roasted malt, brown sugar, molasses, and chocolate. Its flavour is a bit less robust than the nose, though it contains many of the same elements: roasted malt, brown sugar, and molasses, supplemented with some toffee, too. The finish is dry and quick, while the mouthfeel is a bit on the thin side.

 

Shadowy Pact’s execution didn’t quite live up to its awesome packaging and excellent aroma, but it was still a pretty good little ale. I’d have liked a richer flavour and a bit more body though.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

All's Welly That Ends Welly: Helles Bock

Wellington Brewery’s Helles Bock is a slightly hazy, dull gold affair. Sold in 355mL bottles, this Guelph, Ontario lager contains a punchy 6.8% alcohol and pours with a thin cover of eggshell head. It has a sweet and potent aroma that has some syrupy qualities, as well as a pungent waft of grains. Sweet and malty, particularly in the early going, the beer veers toward a distinctly German-styled hops finish that has some crisp elements, but remains quite sweet.

The Welly Helles Bock (should have been called “Welles Bock” or even “Welly Bock”) is a nice take on the classic German style, though it comes through a bit too sweet for me, instead of crisp and bready, as I’d have liked it to be. Still, it’s a nice strong lager with some sass.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

All's Welly That Ends Welly

I picked up a four-pack of 355mL bottles on a sunny Sunday in April. Billed as the Welly Re-Booted Mix Pack, Volume 3, this ensemble features a quartet of brews from Guelph, Ontario’s Wellington Brewery. Featuring Shadowy Pact Irish Dry Stout, Iron Duke, Bewitched Belgian IPA, and Welly’s Helles Bock, this was a rare Ontario mix pack with no beers that I have previously reviewed. Stay tuned to the Bitter World this week as I try to remedy that.

 

 

Cavalier Bleu Blueberry I.P.A.

In what was perhaps a foolish gesture, I cracked open a 600mL bottle of Cavalier Bleu Blueberry I.P.A. while actively rooting against the Cleveland Cavaliers in their match-up against the Indiana Pacers. Almost immediately after uncapping the 6% alcohol ale, the Cavs extended their fourth quarter lead and I regretted my decision. At least the beer was good.

A member of the Wild Oats Series from Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company in Vankleek Hill, Ontario, Cavalier Bleu is a certified organic ale brewed with blueberry juice. As a result, the beer has an unusual fuchsia hue and pours with a sudsy pink head. The beer packs a quirky aroma that is bitter, fruity, and metallic. It has a fairly bitter taste, supplemented with a winey edge. The addition of blueberry juice makes a subtle contribution—something I found extremely surprising, given the funky hue it gave the suds—a nice little tart berry burst.

An unusual ale, Cavalier Bleu is an enjoyable little tonic. It doesn’t seamlessly blend bitter and fruity flavours in the way that more citrusy IPAs tend to, but the resulting combo is interesting. It is a bit too tart, perhaps, and it could definitely be a few ticks stronger, but it’s a nice beer  with some distinction in an IPA genre that is sometimes plagued with carbon copies.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Skull Rock Stout

Thunder Bay, Ontario is the birthplace of Skull Rock Stout. An oatmeal stout, S.R.S. contains 5.1% alcohol and comes in 473mL cans emblazoned with a sinister skull. The beer comes from T-Bay’s Sleeping Giant Brewing Company.

For the style, this stout has a surprisingly reddish tint—still dark, but not the jet black I was expecting. It pours with an extremely vibrant and sudsy tan head. To my nose, S.R.S. is quite alluring and assertive, with a malt-focused scent built around chocolate and leather notes. The flavour has a nicely toasted and malty front end, enriched with bitter chocolate. This gives way to a mostly hoppy finish.

The biggest thing that I took away from my engagement with Skull Rock Stout is that it tastes way stronger than its 5.1% listing. That said, though, it could have been a smidge stronger and not lost a step. It isn’t as smooth as I was expecting from a brew made with oatmeal, but that doesn’t really take away from my enjoyment all that much.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.