Inexplicable Grisette

 Inexplicable Grisette is a bright and bubbly low-alcohol ale in the French style—a session-friendly cousin to the saison. The beer comes from Toronto, Ontario’s Eastbound Brewing Co. It clocks in at just 3.2% and comes in 355mL cans. It’s a sunny golden brew with a sudsy white head.

IG has a lively yeast aroma that comprises both citrus and spice elements. The flavour is primarily yeasty, with a bit of perfume character. The back end is short and crisp and the texture is quite effervescent.

IG has quite a lot of flavour for a low octane brew. It has a pretty agreeable vibe and I’d be glad to buy it again. A nice little beer to wile away a sweltering afternoon.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Poppins the Indestructible Brett Barrel Aged Grisette

Poppins the Indestructible Brett Barrel Aged Grisette is a weird concept made manifest. Grisette is an effervescent, low alcohol, old world style, but Poppins, a Torontonian ale from Black Lab Brewing is barrel aged with funky yeast and brewed to 5.5%, basically turning the style on its head. According to the label, the beer is a collab with Escarpment Laboratories and Gorman Smith Beverage Equipment.

The beer is a cloudy, fizzy golden frog topped with a thin layer of off-white suds. To my nose, the beer is primarily characterized by tart yeast notes, earth, and a wee whisper of cranberry. The flavour is also yeasty and tart, with some earthiness. For a barrel aged beer, the woodiness is an understatement, but I suspect it is in part responsible for the >5% strength.

Based on the quirky reprogramming of a classic style, I wanted to like this beer a lot, but in practice, it was just good. Poppins was flavourful, but for a Brett barrel aged beer, it went nearly as funky or wild as I wanted it to be.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Foeder Fermented Grisette

Foeder Fermented Grisette is a low-alcohol Franco-Belgian style brew crafted by the team at Toronto’s Bellwoods Brewery. The beer, sold in 500mL bottles, clocks in at just 4%. It’s a sunny yellow potion with a hazy complexion and a thin layer of white head.

Bellwoods’ take on the grisette style has an earthy, yeasty aroma. Its flavour is extremely mild, primarily driven by funky yeast and supplemented by a floral note. The mouthfeel is effervescent and dry, but also quite brittle.

The Foeder Fermented Grisette is a crisp, refreshing take on the style. The flavour is nice, but I found it too delicate for my tastes.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Gamelle Grisette

Grisette is, according to my quick google research, a traditional Belgian style of ale that was brewed for miners. It’s similar to a saison, but with significantly lower alcohol.

I needed to do a quick bit of reading so that I’d know what I should expect from Kensington Brewing Co.’s Gamelle Grisette. I got a (600mL?) bottle from the Toronto bottle shop and kind of forgot about it for a little while. I was nervous when I pried of the cap that the 4.6% ale might have lost a step, but it was bright and still highly carbonated. Gamelle is a clear, effervescent pale golden brew. It pours with a sudsy white froth and features a nose that is both funky and crisp. The flavour features some slightly tart Belgian-style yeast elements, as well as some peppercorn and spice notes. The finish is short and dry.

A refreshing low-alcohol brew, if perhaps a bit brittle, Gamelle Grisette tastes fresh, but lacks depth at the finish. A great warm weather beer, though, and a nice, lighter option for saison fans.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.