Henderson Brewing Company's Ides of April 2017 was a Cucumber Blonde.
Sold in honour of House of Anansi Press' 50th anniversary, this brew
gave recognition the Henderson's neighbour. At just 4.7% alcohol, it was
a sessionable spring ale sold in beautiful 650mL bottles with several
local artists represented on the label: mine was Michael Winter's The
Big Why.
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The beer was a handsome golden ale topped
with a lush white head. Its nose was definitely heavy in cucumber
notes--more so than any other beer I've ever downed. Cool and
refreshing, cukes were well represented in the flavour, too. As well,
there were some slightly bitter notes toward the finish.
All
in, the beer was sweet, refreshing, and innovative. A hot weather brew
for sure, this cucumber blonde ale was deeply thirst quenching, though a
trifle sweeter than it needed to be. Some deeper hops presence would
have solidified its finish and made it elite. Still, I found Henderson's
Ides of April 2017 to be a unique and captivating little ale. The
marriage of cucumber and beer wasn't something that I anticipated would
be enjoyable, but as often happens, I was well off the mark. It tasted
fresh, sweet, and a bit crunchy.
Rating: 8.0 out of 10.
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