Connecting Dots

 

Connecting Dots is both a New England double IPA and a cool collaboration between the Toronto location of Collective Arts Brewing and the Ontario College of Craft & Design University. This beer, an 8.5% bruiser, comes in 500mL bottles wrapped in attractive labels. The beer inside is a milky orange and it pours with a very fluffy and durable white head. Connecting Dots is brewed with Azacca, Citra, and Lotus hops, as well as wheat and oats.

The nose on this DIPA is unexpectedly mild, with muted notes of orange and lime. The flavour features juicy citrus and the texture is incredibly smooth. I’d have liked it to be a lit
tle more assertive and a little less sweet, but I quite liked the burst of boozy heat at the back end.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Good Monster

 Brewed with oat flakes and wheat, Good Monster is a New England Double IPA is an 8% brew assembled in Hamilton, Ontario by Collective Arts Brewing. The beer is sold in 473mL cans that feature some kind of ghoulishly beautiful giraffe unicorn critter.

The beer is a dull gold colour with a thin eggshell head. It’s got a juicy, slightly tart fruit aroma with passionfruit, white grape, and citrus notes. The flavour walks a similar path, with tart and fruity elements constituted of grapefruit, white wine, and some tropical vibes.

The real trick to this little ale is that the 8% booze is brilliantly concealed. But the flavour is also definitely agreeable. The downsides are that I’d prefer a bit more head and carbonation and the beer be a bit more bitter.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.

That’s a Paddlin’

Brewed in Toronto at the Brunswick Bierworks, That’s a Paddlin’ is made by Danish brewer Mikkeller. It’s a New England Style DIPA brewed to 8%. The beer is sold in 473mL cans with a label that features a not-so-subtle shout out to a classic Simpsons moment.

The dull gold strong ale is hazy and pretty well carbonated. It pours with a durable off-white cap of suds and boasts an understated tropical fruit aroma. For a strong beer. That’s a Paddlin’ has an amazingly smooth mouthfeel. Its flavour is subtle for the style, with some sweet citrus and passion fruit notes and some mellow melon leanings leading into a reasonably bitter finish.

This beer is subtly boozy and shyly flavoured for a big beer. It’s good and I liked it, but it ain’t brash like I usually look for in a DIPA. And, it should be said, the label is a gem.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.