Sunsplit IPA

A beer that gets a lot of positive ink from Ontario’s beer geeks is Sunsplit IPA from Ottawa’s Dominion City Brewing Co. I’ve had it a few times on tap around Toronto (pre-pandemic), but I hadn’t had a chance to review it until I picked up a recent mail order from DCBC. The beer comes in bright 473mL cans and contains a respectable 6.5% alcohol. Sunsplit is hazy, orange-gold in colour, and pours with a foamy white crown.

To my schnoz, Sunsplit is pleasantly juicy, with a tendency toward citrus. It tastes fruity and sweet, with orange juicy and a bit of peaches and cream. There is very little bitterness in this hazer—just a little uptick at the finish. It also has an extremely agreeable texture—very smooth.

I agree with the gang on Beer Twitter that Sunsplit is a very good IPA; however, I wouldn’t go so far as to call it one of Ontario’s elite, if only because I found it a touch too sweet. Otherwise, though, it’s a top tier ale.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Classic Munich Style Lager

Rainhard Brewing in Toronto is the proud parent of Classic Munich Style Lager, a 5.1% pale lager. The beer, which comes in 473mL cans, is crystal clear gold, with little carbonation and almost no head.

Classic has an earthy, malty perfume with an emphasis on cereals and cracker. The flavour travels sweet to bitter and touches on grain, cracker, and an enjoyable floral finish.

I thought Rainhard’s take on the Munich lager was pretty well executed, though I’d have liked more carbonation.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Between Two Evils Bourbon Barrel-Aged Stout

Between Two Evils Bourbon Barrel-Aged Stout is a substantial offering from the team at Dominion City Brewing Co. out of Ottawa. It’s an 11% ale, so a single 355mL can is an undertaking best not attempted on an empty stomach. The beer is dark, almost black, and poured with a crown of tan head that receded faster than my hairline.

Sweetness is the order of the day in the aroma—vanilla, brown sugar, and booze are the big three elements. The flavour is big on maltiness and sweetness. It’s woody, with vanilla and raisin notes, nestled along a bit of bitter molasses. There is also boozy heat through the roof. It’s got a thick, syrupy texture, too.

According to the can, Between Two Evils is aged for a year in recently emptied bourbon casks. The result is a sweet, woody bruiser of an ale with tons of bourbon character. Highly recommended.

Rating: 9.0 out of 10.

Cool Papa Bell IPA

Named in honour of a man reputed to be one of the fastest to ever play baseball, Cool Papa Bell IPA is Left Field Brewery’s tribute to the Negro League star. The beer, brewed in Toronto, is a 6.7% banger that comes in 355mL cans.

CPB is a hazy IPA with a dull gold hue. It pours with a sudsy white head. Cool Papa has a sweet and creamy nose, built around berry and stone fruit, with a little citrus bitterness. The flavour has a wee coconut lilt, and lots of fruit flavour, wrapped around a velvety mouthfeel. The back end has some bitterness, but it’s limited.

Cool Papa is a pretty solid hazy IPA. It’s a bit too sweet, but nowhere near offensively so. The coconut tint isn’t my fave, but it is subtle and does result in a unique flavour.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Kilo Green

Next up from Goose Island Brewhouse Toronto is their Kilo Green, a 6.4% IPA. The beer is sold in 473mL cans and has a nice, slightly hazy gold colour. 

Through a fluffy eggshell head wafts a mega mango aroma. The beer has a sweet and juicy aroma, with tropical fruit notes and a faintly bitter citrus finish.

I suppose Kilo Green would be classed as a New England-style IPA, given its juiciness and slight haze. However you class it, I found KG to be quite enjoyable, if a little on the sweet side.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

DOOM3!

A collab between two small and excellent Toronto breweries, DOOM3! is an imperial IPA from Laylow Brewery and Halo Brewery. It’s a 7.9% ale sold in 473mL cans. The beer is a bit hazy, with a dullish orange-gold colour.

DOOM3! has a dank, fruity nose—it’s boozy, sticky, and sweet. For a nearly 8% grog, the beer is quite approachable, with tart apricot and orange notes initially and nice, juicy balance throughout. The beer’s finish is still sweet, but it drifts into a resinous bitterness.

I found DOOM3! to be a pretty solid IIPA. I’d have liked it to be quite a bit stronger, and a bit more assertively bitter, but the sweet and tart fruit combo is well executed.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Alouette 1 Galaxy IPA

Brewed in honour of the first Canadian satellite, Alouette 1 Galaxy IPA is a 6.5% ale from the gang at Dominion City Brewing Co. out of Ottawa. The beer is sold in 355mL cans and brewed with Galaxy hops.

Alouette 1 is an extremely hazy, straw gold beer with a vast crown of white suds. It has mighty juicy aromatics—peachy, with some OJ, too. The flavour sticks to juiciness, with a peaches and cream sweetness, initially, before trending towards citrus and floral bitterness. A really strong feature of this beer is its texture, which is silky and lush.

While I’d argue that Alouette 1 is a bit too sweet, it is otherwise an attractive and well-constructed hazy IPA. If you’d have told me ten years ago when I started blogging that THIS BEER is what passes for an IPA in 2020, I’d have called you a liar and asked you to leave my property, but it is and it’s a very fine one at that.

Rating: 9.0 out of 10.

All My Friends Are Hopheads

All My Friends Are Hopheads is a cute li’l Vienna lager from Goose Island Brewhouse Toronto. It’s a 5.1% lager sold in 473mL cans. It’s a bright amber brew that pours with a thin layer of white suds.

AMFAH has a slightly sweet, toasty aroma with a whiff of campfire marshmallow. The beer is malt-driven, toasty, and grainy. The finish continues to be sweet, but there is just a scintilla of bitterness that provides a bit of balance.

 Vienna lager is a beautiful style and Goose Island’s take is fairly well executed. I’d have liked a touch less sweetness, but otherwise I found it quite satisfying.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Bermuda

Toronto’s Bandit Brewery seems to be a double dry hopped IPA factory these days—they offer a bunch of beers in the style, including Bermuda, a hazy 6.5% alcohol effort. Bermuda comes in 355mL cans and it emerges pale gold with a thin white head and an unfortunate amount of yeasty sediment.

Bermuda has a juicy orange and tangerine aroma. Flavour-wise, the beer has an OJ vibe, with some floral sweetness. The back end has a bit of citrus hoppiness.

This beer tastes quite nice, but it’s not exactly beautiful. I’d need to have the sediment issues taken care of before I’d buy this one again.

Rating: 6.0 out of 10.

Umarell Dry Hopped Pilsner

 Umarell Dry Hopped Pilsner is born at the Toronto outpost of Goose Island—the Goose Island Brewhouse Toronto. It’s a 5% pale lager sold in 473mL cans. I’d class this little fella as an Italian pilsner. It’s a reasonably clear pale gold brew that pours with a thin layer of white suds.

Umarell has a mellow sweet and grainy aroma, with a slight floral hop lilt. The beer has a crispy texture and a pretty enjoyable flavour—it moves from sweet cereals to floral bitterness, with a whisper of soap.

I quite enjoyed Goose Island’s take on the Italian Pilsner. It was crisp and refreshing, with ample flavour.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Marco Polo Italian Pilsner

Marco Polo Italian Pilsner is produced in Toronto by Indie Alehouse. It’s a 5% brew sold in very slick 355mL cans done up in black and gold. The beer itself is fairly clear and nicely carbonated, with a fluff of white foam.

MP has a floral hop aroma—crisp and a bit sweet. The flavour is extremely flowery, to the point that it actually has a soapy quality that isn’t entirely agreeable (to me at least). I initially suspected dish soap in my pilsner glass, but all four 355mL cans had the same vibe. The beer, though, is undeniably crisp and refreshing, with evident dry-hopping.

I wanted to love Marco Polo. It’s a great style made by a brewery that I really respect, but I found it disappointingly soapy and that was tough to look past. It is definitely thirst-quenching, and the flavour is unique, but it wasn’t to my taste at all.

Rating: 6.0 out of 10.

Qawa

 Qawa is a towering imperial stout brewed with coffee and chocolate. The beer, born in Toronto, comes from Bandit Brewery, while the coffee is sourced from Propeller and the chocolate from ChocoSol. Sold in 500mL bottles, the beer is coal black and it pours with a dark tan head.

Aromatically, dark chocolate it absolutely the star of the show, though there is a comforting espresso subtext as well. The flavour is many things, but it sure ain’t subtle. The beer is sweet and malty, with enormous chocolate richness and jumbo boozy heat. Dark roast coffee is also well represented, particularly in the bitterness that mingles with persistent sweetness in the finish. In the margins, there are notes of leather and raisin. The mouthfeel is smooth, yet thick.

I try not to ascribe morality to food and drink, so I’m not going to use the adjective “sinful”, but this boozy bastard really is an indulgence. Truthfully, I found it over sweet, but not to the point of being cloying. The creamy/syrupy texture, though, is spot on for a dessert beer. Qawa really warmed me up over a cigar on a damp, snowy November Sunday evening.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Happy Little Trees IPA

 An homage to TV’s painting sensation Bob Ross, Happy Little Trees IPA is a 6% ale from Toronto’s Indie Alehouse Brewing Co. The beer comes in 355mL cans that feature a mischievous painter peeking out from behind some foliage. The beer is brewed with Galaxy, Idaho 7, and Topaz hops. It’s a hazy dull gold brew that pours with a frothy white head and a little bit of yeasty sediment.

Happy Little Trees has boisterous tropical aromatics—sweet and a little sticky. The flavour is sweet, juicy, and resinous, with pineapple and passion fruit notes. The back end is citrusy and faintly bitter, and the texture is extremely smooth.

Happy Little Trees is a pretty solid hazy IPA. I’d have liked a bit more booze and no sediment, but otherwise it’s a fine brew.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Meet the Porters Cherry Porter

  I ended up with eight 473mL cans of Meet the Porters Cherry Porter as a result of a mix-up. I actually ordered eight cans of the original expression of Meet the Porters, but it was the cherry version that arrived. Despite the fact that I’m not wild about cherry flavour, I decided to keep ‘em. The beer, built in Toronto by Great Lakes Brewery, is a 6.5% dark ale. It’s a member of GLB’s 7 Barrel Series.

MtPCP is a handsome, nearly black ale topped with a loose tan head. It has malty aromatics with a shade of coffee and a tart cherry edge. The flavour showcases cherry, but it isn’t overpowering. Rather, it’s a faint accent that isn’t unpleasant, though i did find it just a touch medicinal. Because the cherry flavour is restrained, the underlying porter is able to stretch its legs a bit. The beer moves from malt to bitter, and it closes with a bit of tartness.

Meet the Porters Cherry Porter is a beer I’d doubtfully have bought for myself, and I’m not unhappy that it fluked its way into my fridge (and it should be noted that GLB’s customer service was excellent—the decision to keep these cherry beers was definitely mine!). I didn’t love it, but I managed to plow through all eight pretty quickly, so that goes to show I didn’t hate it. Other than a slightly medicinal tendency, it wasn’t half bad. Compared to some of my favourites from GLB, though, this one wasn’t a winner.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.