Galt Knife Old Style Lager

Galt Knife is billed as a "Pre-Prohibition Style Lager".  I'm not sure whether or not it's truly evocative of the lagers of an earlier generation, but I do know that it is brewed by Grand River Brewing, hails from Cambridge, Ontario and comes in a 500mL bottle.  I also know that there is 4.4% alcohol content and that the label is not, to my eye, particularly visually appealing.

Galt Knife pours an amber/copper colour.  It has a thick, lingering head, moderate carbonation and moderate lacing.  It has a very malty aroma, with pleasant notes of brown sugar.  The taste is extremely metallic...drinking this brew is kinda like licking a penny.  It is quite bitter, but with an understated aftertaste.

This is an ok brew.  I'd like a bit more alcohol content, a bit more balance and a bit less metallic taste.  Still, it's a very attractive beer, and I like the idea of trying to recreate a historic style.  I'd probably buy this one again.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Gopher Lager

Big Rock Brewery is an Alberta institution.  Hailing from Calgary, they produce a stable of quality ales.  Gopher, their North American-style lager, is probably worthy of the Big Rock name, but it certainly isn't their best work.

Gopher comes in 341mL bottles, contains 5% alcohol and pours a slightly cloudy pale gold colour. It is topped by a thin white head.  The aroma is malt and sweet corn.  Taste is bready, malt-focused and has notes of something sweet (possibly apple?).

It's a very inoffensive little brew.  There are no real surprises and it's mild and refreshing.  Still, it doesn't give anything extra to set it apart from the legion of pale lagers out there.  I wouldn't kick Gopher out of fridge, but at the same time, I probably wouldn't seek it out.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Scottish Brewing History Lesson #5-Fraoch Heather Ale

Fraoch Heather Ale is clearly the showpiece of the Historic Ales of Scotland pack, so naturally, I saved it for last.  According to the bottle, it's "Scotland's native ale."  Additionally, the bottle comes with a brief history lesson.  Apparently, heather ales have been brewed for 4,000 years and is the "oldest style of ale still made in the world."

Fraoch weighs in at 5% alcohol and has the colour of tarnished brass.  It is slightly cloudy and topped with a thin ring of white head.  The aroma is extremely sweet, with a hint of ginger and the taste is flowery and considerably malty.  It doesn't taste like a conventional beer, but it's really quite pleasant.  It leaves behind little lace and has a very brief, mild aftertaste.

This is a decidedly tasty brew.  I probably wouldn't sit down and drink a sixer of Fraoch, but it made for a nice change of pace from more standard hops heavy beers.  Give it a try.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Scottish Brewing History Lesson #4-Alba Scots Pine Ale

Alba is a Scots Pine Ale, which means it is brewed using pine and spruce sprigs rather than hops.  It is a slightly cloudy, brownish ale topped by a foamy head.  It looks deceptively like a pint of bitter.  However, one whiff tells you that this brew is a wholly different animal.

Alba contains a mighty 7.5% alcohol and it shows.  Actually, more than anything, it smells.  The beer has a strong aroma of malt and alcohol.  There is some pine notes, but these are understated.  Similarly, the evergreen flavour I was expecting was less than dominant.  Rather, the flavour was reminiscent of a Belgian abby--extremely malty with a high alcohol content.  There are brown sugar notes, as well as butter and a bit of raisin living alongside the slight foresty taste of pine.  The aftertaste is where this beer shows its high alcohol content most--it tastes a bit warm.

This is not a particularly drinkable beer, but it's pretty smooth.  It is solid, interesting and definitely worth sampling.

Happy Holidays from the Stout Man.  Drink responsibly, but drink.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Scottish Brewing History Lesson #3-Grozet Gooseberry and Wheat Ale

Gozet is an effervescent straw coloured brew.  It looks deceptively like a lager--fairly clear, highly carbonated and topped by a shock of white head.  However, a lager it is not.  Grozet is a gooseberry and wheat ale, definitely the first I've ever tried.  It has a sweet, fruity aroma that has a candy-like quality.  It tastes sugary and fruity.  The wheat flavour I was expecting wasn't really present, but the berry flavour was just right--pleasing without being overstated.  There was barely any aftertaste to speak of.

Grozet was really thin and really light.  It was a unique brew, though probably not one I'd reach for on any sort of regular basis.  Worth a try?  Sure.  Plus, it has this awesome label designed by third-year students at the Glasgow School of Arts:

Rating; 7.5 out of 10.

Scottish Brewing History Lesson #2-Ebulum Elderberry Black Ale

According to the label, Ebulum Elderberry Black Ale is brewed according to a 16th Century recipe. It checks in at 6.5% alcohol and is an extremely dark ale.  It looks like a stout, but its thin like an ale.  Very little light gets through this monster.  It is crowned by a relatively this dusting of tan head.

There is a strong scent: sweet, dank and alcoholic. The flavour is very round: mildly fruity and big on malt.  According to the bottle, there is a "red wine flavour." I think this characterization is pretty apt, particularly in the sour tang present in the aftertaste.

This is definitely not a session beer.  It's a touch too sweet for this guy to get behind on a regular basis, but it's an interesting brew and one that is worth trying. It's enjoyable, compelling and unlike anything I've ever tried before.  Definitely a treat to try a new "old" brew.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Scottish Brewing History Lesson #1

My last theme week was wildly successful (actually, my readership neither increased or decreased), so I'm going to try it again.  This week, I'm going to be reviewing the four brews that were included in the Historic Ales of Scotland pack produced by Heather Ales Ltd./Williams Bros. Brewing Co.  The pack, with its nice looking packaging and its promise of four unique styles, was hard to ignore.

The concept is quite excellent--reviving historic ale styles that make use of locally-sourced ingredients and depart from the conventional hops and malt framework.  The fact that the ales all purport to be made using indigenous flora is definitely a selling point for me.

There are four bottles in the pack: an elderberry black ale, a gooseberry and wheat ale, a Scots pine ale and a heather ale.  All four are sold in 330mL bottles with excellent labels.  Additionally, they come with a brief historical pamphlet. They are all brewed at the Alloa Brewery in Kelliebank, Alloa, Scotland.  Stay tuned--each of my next four posts will relate to one of these brews.

Southern Tier IPA

The Southern Tier Brewing Company of Lakewood, New York seems to know a thing or two about beer. Their IPA is punchy, tasty and well-balanced.  And it doesn't fall into the trap of "all hops all the time" that so many IPAs seem to.

This "strong beer" weighs in at 7%. It's sold in 355mL bottles and pours a substantially cloudy burnt orange. It's topped by about an inch of off-white head and leaves behind significant lace. The scent is surprisingly sweet for an IPA, with notes of raisin mixing in with the hops.

The flavour is nicely balanced and combines sweet fruit tastes and a hint of toffee with conventional IPA hop bitterness. Additionally, this beer definitely doesn't taste as strong as its 7.0% alcohol content.  It is deceptively drinkable. My only real complaint with the Southern Tier IPA is that there is a slightly muddled, funky quality in the aftertaste that doesn't really appeal to me.

All told, Southern Tier IPA is a good'un.  It isn't elite, but it is a solid, respectable brew that is a definite recommendation.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

BREWERY TOUR: Mill St. Brewery

It's time for a new feature here at Bitter World.  Every now and again, I think it'd be nice to get out and visit the breweries where the beer I love is lovingly crafted.  Take a tour, learn a little something.  Then, I'll write about it.  For you.  To read.

The Mill St. Brewery is located in Toronto's oh so trendy Distillery District, where they've been churning out frosty suds for the better part of a decade.  The tour is FREE, which is amazing.  While waiting for people to arrive, prospective tour-takers are assembled in the brewery's retail shop, where small cups of Mill St.'s four everyday brews (tanknhouse, organic, stock ale and coffee porter) are available to sample.

Once the appointed hour has arrived, a guide leads the group into the brewery for the brief tour.  The tour contains some information about the Distillery District, the brewery itself and the beers produced.  However, a large chunk of time is devoted to the beer-making process.  Personnaly, I would have liked the focus to remain on Mill St. and its beers, but the beer lesson made the tour accessible to all.

For a free tour, I'd say my expectations were exceeded.  There were free samples, an informative tour leader and some quality information.  Sure, the tour was short and it was a bit basic, but it was FREE.  You can't beat that!  Definitely take a trip down to Mill St. if you're in the Toronto area.

Sagres Cerveja

Partner, cats and I live in Toronto's Little Portugal neighbourhood.  As a result, Sagres, on of Portugal's most popular brews, is practically always on offer at the liquor store.  It's a pale lager, weighs in at 5% and comes in 330mL bottles.  And it ain't half bad.

Sagres is a highly carbonated, clear, straw coloured pale lager.  It is graced with a thin but persistent white head and leaves behind tons of lace.  The aroma is wheaty with a touch of corn.  Not surprisingly, it is thin and the flavour is mild, as is typical of South Western European brews.  Still, the taste is plenty enjoyable for a macro lager.  It starts sweet, finishes bitter and has notes of wheat, corn and barley.  It's actually pretty nicely balanced for a pale lager.  The aftertaste is short and bitter.

No discussion of Sagres would be complete without mentioning its woefully inadequate packaging.  Six pack are sold, not in a proper box, but rather in a disagreeable cardboard sleeve.  As a result, if you aren't careful, you're liable to watch helplessly as all six bottles plummet to the ground just because you deigned to pick up your sixer from the wrong angle.  Not to mention the fact that these crappy sleeves are useless when it comes time to return your empties.  Ugh.

Packaging disaster notwithstanding, this brew turns up in my fridge from time to time, and not just because it is Partner's cup of tea.  I find it to be a refreshing if unremarkable little pint.  Its thin and mild, but perfect for sunny afternoons playing bocce or croquet.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Cheshire Valley-Out of this World

Sitting in a pub recently, I was perusing the beer list for something I'd never tried before.  I came across a listing for Cheshire Valley Out of this World.  Nothing more.  It didn't even tell me what style of beer it is.  I had nothing to go on--I'd never even heard of the brewery.  You'd better believe I went for it.

Some quick smartphone research taught me that the Cheshire Valley Brewing Company is somehow associated with the Black Oak Brewery in Etobicoke, Ontario.  That was about all the information that I could distill from their website.  Still no idea what kind of beer I had ordered.

The Out of this World arrived.  It was a reasonably clear brownish orange colour with very little head or lace and limited carbonation.  It had a mild, sweetish aroma with a bit of hops character.  The taste went sweet to bitter with notes of caramel and apricot.  The finish was moderately hoppy.

I'm going to go out on a limb and call this one an amber ale.  Maybe a pale ale.  It wasn't remarkable, but it was enjoyable nonetheless.  I'd like a bit more flavour and a bit more carbonation.  Still, it was a nice pint and I'd probably buy it again.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

India Ink Black Pale Ale

Trafalgar Ales & Meads hails from Oakville, Ontario.  I've been keeping my eye out for their brews ever since a former boss recommended them to me.  Trafalgar has a pretty interesting looking roster of brews--lots of things I'd jump to try if I ever saw them in the liquor store. 

Such was the case the other day when I came across the India Ink Black Pale Ale.  I was immediately drawn to this brew by its stark and stylish black and white label and its large bottle (650mL).  India Ink weighs in at 5% alcohol.  It pours very dark--not black like a stout or a porter, but a dark brown with faint red highlights.  It has a nice, round aroma with notes of toasty nut.  The initial flavour reflects the aroma--it's roasty, toasty and nutty.  India Ink contains an interesting mix of sweet and bitter.  For lack of a better word, this brew tastes gloomy.  However, for such a dark beer, the flavour was considerably more mild than I expected and nowhere near as hoppy.  It features a sharp, bitter aftertaste.  I thought I could detect notes of licorice, though on reflection, that might be due to my expectations for such a dark ale.

My experience with black ales is limited, so I didn't really know what to expect from this brew.  I found it left me reasonably satisfied and interested in exploring other beers in this category.  It was a bit on the thin side, but I enjoyed the way the gloomy colour matched the gloomy flavour.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

Radeberger

Radeberger is a pilsner that hails from the town of Radeberg, Germany.  It is sold in 500mL cans, contains 4.8% alcohol and is a pretty ordinary brew.  It pours a crystal clear, moderately carbonated straw colour.  Topped by a bright white head, Radeberger features a wheaty smell, with a touch of sweetness.  It boasts a thin, somewhat watery body, but a surprisingly strong flavour for a pilsner.  It is quite bitter, with metallic notes.  There is a nice initial taste, but the aftertaste is somewhat stale.  The grains and grass expected of a pilsner are all present in this one, but there is something sinister lurking in the background.

This isn't my favorite pilsner, but it does have an interesting flavour that might appeal to others.  Probably worth a try.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10.

Lug Tread Lagered Ale

Beau's All Natural Brewing Company of Vankleek, Ontario produces a beautiful little brew called Lug Tread.  According to the Beau's website, Lug Tread is a lagered ale because it is top fermented and then cold-aged.  Pretty cool.

Lug Tread contains 5.2% alcohol, comes in snazzy 600mL bottles and is sold in 4 packs.  The packaging is truly exceptional.  It looks stylish and is environmentally sound.  Each bottle is individually stamped with a packaged on date and a batch number.

L.T. looks like a pale lager, but about a half a shade darker.  It has a white head and average lace.  The scent is sweet and malty, with a toasty sort of vibe.  The taste is much bigger than a conventional pale lager, but lighter than an average ale. It's sweet with a hint of smoke.  Something about this brew reminds me of toasted marshmallows.  Also, there is a touch of fruit, possibly plum.  The aftertaste remains sweet, but balanced against a welcome shot of bitterness.

This is a great beer, in what, as far as I can tell, is a unique style.  The flavour is smooth but offers a lot to contemplate.  Definitely get it.

Rating: 9.0 out of 10.

Red Racer India Pale Ale

This jammin' little I.P.A. hails from Surrey, British Columbia, where it is brewed by the Central City Brewing Company.  It contains 6.5% alcohol, which puts it just over the line into the nebulous "strong beer" category.  This brew is sold in 355mL cans that feature a foxy cartoon redhead riding a bicycle.

Red Racer is a murky, copper-coloured ale crowned with a thick foamy cap of off-white head.  It features an enormous hop aroma, that tosses a little something sweet into the mix.  There's a very robust, dry, hoppy flavour that gives way to a long, lingering aftertaste.  The finish remains hop-tastic, but accented by some caramel sweetness.

Followers of my blog will know that I don't go for insanely hoppy beers unless they've got something else to offer as well.  This brew has all the hops, but also heaps of character.  There is a huge flavour that is enhanced by some subtle nuance.  It is definitely delicious.  This one is definitely worth a try.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Spaten

Spaten is a classic pale lager from Munich, Germany.  Sold in 500mL cans, Spaten's label features a shovel blade for some reason.*  It weighs in at 5.2% alcohol.  It is an extremely clear, moderately carbonated brew.  It is a wispy, yellow gold colour and pours with a substantial foamy white head that lingers as in a weird sort of pangea shape.  There is very little lace.

There is a harvest smell of wheat, grains and sweet corn.  The flavour is wheaty with a slight citrus twist.  The mouthfeel is a bit on the thin side.  The aftertaste is unexpectedly bitter and pleasantly sour for a mass-produced pale lager.

Spaten is, as you would expect from a Western German pale lager, thin and refreshing.  The flavour is not earth-shattering, but there is an unexpected kick at the back end.  All told, not a bad little brew.

*An astute reader has pointed out that "spaten" is German for "spade".  I probably should have put that together...

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.