Days in Between

An oat pale ale from Toronto, Days in Between is a low-octane, high flavour brew. At just 4.2%, the beer is session-friendly. It’s sold in 500mL bottles and comes from Indie Alehouse.

Days in Between is a hazy buttery gold ale. It pours with a nimbus of white suds, but also with a bit more yeasty sediment than would have been ideal. It has a juiced up citrus aroma and a flavour that blends citrus and tropical fruit, as well as a decently bitter orange rind quality through the finish.

 

The use of oats gave this beer a nice smooth quality. For a low-alcohol beer, there was a nice amount of flavour. The amount of sediment in this beer was a bit worrying, though. The beer was in my possession for a bit under two months, so it wasn’t perfectly fresh, but certainly not stale either.

Rating: 7.0 out of 10.

Spoaty-Oaty

My second brush with an offering from Appalachian Mountain Brewery was Spoaty-Oaty, their 5.4% “Appalachian Pale Ale”. Brewed using oats and sold in 473mL cans, this stuff comes from Boone, NC. It’s name is a reference to the old folk song—the version I’m most familiar with is Jerry Lee Lewis’ “Drinkin’ Wine Spo-Dee-O-Dee”.

The beer is a hazy golden grog that pours with a particularly thick and lively off-white cumulus. It has a fresh, hoppy scent and a flavour to match, with soft notes of grapefruit and pine. The oats used in the brewing process lend this ale a creamy, easy-sipping texture.

I wasn’t blown away by AMB’s Long Leaf India Pale Ale, but Spoaty-Oaty left me with renewed enthusiasm for the pride of Boone. The flavour is mild, but nuanced, and the mouthfeel is superb. 

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Truth Serum

During my debut visit to Rorschach Brewing Co., I asked my server to recommend the beer that was most characteristic of the brewery. Without any hesitation at all, she recommended Truth Serum, a 6.5% double-dry hopped IPA brewed with oats.

Truth Serum is a hazy dull-gold ale. It arrived with a thin covering of loose eggshell head. Its nose is a veritable clangor of hoppy, tropical fruit notes. To the palate, the beer is bitter, particularly in the early going, with grapefruit elements. Behind that, there is a bit of a thin spot where the flavours are a touch less rambunctious than I might have hoped, leading into a fairly dank, hoppy finish. The oats give Truth Serum a lovely, smooth mouthfeel that added to my enjoyment.

If Truth Serum is indicative of the quality of Rorschach’s brewing acumen, then I’m a believer. It’s not the best dry-hopped IPA I’ve ever tried, but it is clearly skillfully brewed according to a grand design and to suit someone’s personal specs. I prefer my IPAs to be a touch stronger and more pushy, but Truth Serum left me feeling satisfied and contemplative, which is a definite win.

Rating: 8.0 out of 10.

Ghost Orchid

Ghost Orchid is a beautifully-named IPA from the always-reliable Bellwoods Brewery. Coming from all the way across the park from my apartment in Toronto, this little gem is a 6.3% alcohol brew sold in pretty 500mL bottles.

According to the Bellwoods website, this cheery IPA, brewed with oats, used to be a pale ale, but has been bumped up a category for this release. It's a hazy orange-gold number that pours with a hefty off-white foam. It has a fresh and fruity aroma that exudes clementines and tart pear. The flavour is quite well-rounded, with a decent malt background, under a mostly bitter body. There are powerful fruit notes, manifested in orange, pear, and grapefuit.

A beer with quality hop elements, but not an abundance of IBUs, Ghost Orchid is highly downable and refined, without the gritty potency of a typical IPA. Bellwoods has brewed a number of memorable IPAs--while this one isn't there most remarkable, it really is a well-executed beer. I'd have liked a bit more pop, alcohol-wise, to push it to the next level.

Rating: 8.5 out of 10.

Hi-Wire Oatmeal Pale Ale

Hi-Wire Oatmeal Pale Ale comes from Asheville, North Carolina. It's a 4.5% alcohol product of The Three Ring Brewing Co. and also my first brush with a pale ale brewed with oatmeal.

Hi-Wire is a bright golden brew; it's hazy and pours with a thin white head. It's a thin-bodied ale, but also a pretty crisp one. It has a flowery, hop-forward scent. The flavour is a touch bitter and has a pleasant perfumed vibe. The finish is dry and quick.

This was a pretty tasty little ale, though I struggled to find much oatmeal character in it. Delicate, but a bit thin, this was a beer worth trying.

Rating: 7.5 out of 10.