Joe

Simply called Joe, this DIPA from Toronto’s Bandit Brewery is brewed with Citra, Mosaic, and Strata hops. The beer comes in 355mL cans that appear to feature a chain gang motif with a hammer and a ball and chain. Joe is a milky pale gold with a fluffy and durable white foam.

Joe has sweet and sticky aromatics, with tropical fruit notes and a tang of resin stank. The flavour is juicy, fruity, and dank, with passionfruit and bitter citrus. The beer tastes punchy, but nowhere near as strong as the actual 8.2% listed on the can.

Bandit Brewery has become a bit of an IPA/DIPA factory, pumping out a series of very similar double dry-hopped offerings. While some of these can be indistinguishable, Joe is one of the standouts, with a nice, sharp flavour, big strength, and a great look.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Hop Damn American IPA

 During a short return visit to my birth province of New Brunswick, I picked up a handful of local lagers and ales to keep me feeling social. One such was Hop Damn American IPA. Brewed in Grand Falls, NB, Hop Dam is a 6.5% ale sold in rather minimalist 473mL cans. 

The beer is brewed by Grand Falls Brewing Co. It’s a hazy golden ale that pours with a lush white head that deflated rather speedily. Hop Dam has a punchy nose that screams hemp and citrus. The flavour is resinous and grapefruit leaning.

While this little guy looks like a NEIPA, the flavour profile is more West Coast: sticky and citrusy. Like the can, the beer is a wee bit understated, but I certainly enjoyed it.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Chain Link Lager

 It’s been a minute since I last tasted something new from Hamilton’s Clifford Brewing Co., so Chain Link Lager practically flew into my cart at the LCBO. The offering is a 5% Vienna lager sold in textured 473mL cans. The beer inside is a fiery copper colour with a pretty healthy layer of off-white head.

Chain Link has a complicated nose, with notes of roasted malt, sweet berries, caramel, bread, and a metallic tinkle. The flavour is sweet, malty, and sticky, with a little bit of fruitiness manifested as apples and berries.

For an Ontario lager, Clifford’s Chain Link is a complex and captivating little offering. The sweetness is muted, the flavour is engaging, and the texture is on point.

Rating: 9.0 out of 10.

Layback

When I picked up a duo of 473mL cans of Layback from Wellington Brewery in Guelph, Ontario, I didn’t realize that the 5.5% brew was made with guava and coconut flavour. I might not have bought ‘em had I known, but when I opened the fridge later that night, my curiosity got the better of me. The bright golden ale is brewed with Sabro hops, which are a critical darling, but probably my least favourite out there, as well as oats, and it contains a respectable 45 IBUs.

Through its bright white head, the beer has extremely sweet coconut aromatics—something akin to a drinkable sunscreen. The flavour has a tropical, piña colada kind of energy, with ample coconut and a less assertive fruitiness. The beer has a particularly agreeable smooth and juicy texture.

Layback isn’t really the kind of beer for me. In fact, it doesn’t really taste much like a beer at all, and certainly less like an IPA. But, it is undeniably refreshing, kinda fun, and rather beachy.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Sky Bison American Pale Ale

From Toronto, Sky Bison American Pale Ale is, apparently, the first beer brewed on Longslice Brewery’s bricks and mortar system. The 5% ale comes in cool 473mL cans. It’s a dull gold colour with a thinnish white head.

This little ale demonstrated a trio of notes: caramel, pine, and citrus. The flavour takes a similar tack, though without much evergreen, though in a slightly more restrained fashion. The beer isn’t particularly bitter nor is it overpoweringly flavourful, but that’s not to say the brew ain’t enjoyable. Rather, the caramel and grapefruit/lemon notes are expressed gently, mellowly.

Truthfully, I like my APAs to be a bit more crisp and bitter, but I liked the rounded edges of this little beer all the same. I feel confident that I’ll continue picking up cans here or there as long as it’s available—it’s a nice alternative to Naughty Neighbour and Cruiser.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.