Molson Export Ale (Canada)

Molson Export Ale (Canada) 5.0%

Yellow and fizzy, a little more malty than an international lager and it has a hint of the thickness you'd expect from an ale.

Molson Canadian Wheat (Canada) 4.5%

Molson Canadian Wheat (Canada) 4.5%

Pale, slightly cloudy gold colour in a glass but with a bit of a brownish hue and a big white head. The aroma is a little like a wheat but with a skunky, disappointingly weak malt aroma.

The taste is disappointing also: there is a bit of sweetness and a vague bit of wheat flavour but it tastes mostly like someone poured three drops of a Hoegaarden into a Molson Canadian.  I had high hopes for this beer because megabreweries have been making efforts to crack the craft beer market and Molson Canadian Wheat's back label even includes the proper wheat beer instructions on the back (pour most of it into a glass, swirl and then pour the rest). However I was disappointed. Save yourself $12.78 and don't pick up a 6-pack of Molson Wheat, it's not terrible but it's not much of a wheat beer.

Rickard's Cardigan Autumn Spiced Lager (Canada)

Rickard's Cardigan Autumn Spiced Lager (Canada) 5.5%

First off, the name, label and even the bottle cap are awesomely hilarious. And it's fitting (har, har. Get it? It's a sweater!) too: the spice mix really does make this comfort food in the form of beer.

An orange hued gold in a glass. The aroma is of cinnamon, all-spice and cloves with just a touch of malt in there also. Some of the underlying sweetness is likely due to the added brown sugar but I didn't get any more sweetness than could be credited to the malt.

The taste is very spicy with lots of cinnamon, nutmeg, some brown sugar and cloves. A bitter finish reminds me that this is in fact a beer as well as a collection of flavours reminiscent of pumpkin pie and that reminds me of everything nice about Autumn. And it's a beer that I enjoy very much at that; I can feel the leaves turning with every sip. You absolutely must serve Rickard's Cardigan Autumn Spiced Lager quite a bit warmer than typical refrigerator temperature otherwise the spices are understated and the bitterness comes out much too clearly.

The food pairings suggested on the box are quite apt and I think they would work quite well: braised ribs, sweet potato fries or turkey. Overall a nicely spiced lager perfect for this time of year, so unless you hate pumpkin pie or flavoured beers in general you should give Rickard's Cardigan Autumn Spiced Lager a try.

Keystone - Molson Coors (Canada)

Keystone - Molson Coors (Canada) 4.9%

Sweet, lightly malty not really bitter at all. A bit of a creamed corn flavour and very little in the way of an aftertaste. Light gold colour in a glass. Yellow, fizzy, refreshing and highly drinkable; there isn't really much else to Keystone so, it's a fine choice if that's what you are looking for.

This one of several discount beer brands NB Liquor brought onto their shelves for the summer of 2012. Among NB Liquor's summer choices to the passable James Ready, Molson Dry or the truly awful Old Milwaukee that round out this discounted roster, Keystone is your best choice.

Molson Dry 5.5 - Molson Coors (Canada)

Molson Dry 5.5 - Molson Coors (Canada) 5.5%

Malty, sweet, a little bitter. Pretty much just another international lager but with a cleaner taste with not much of an aftertaste to speak of. It's not a beer with a lot of character but if it's drunkening you're interested in it does the job and is cheap in New Brunswick all summer.

Molson M - Molson-Coors Canada (Canada) 4.9%

Microcarbonated... okay whatever that means, the bubbles do seem smallish and the beer a little smoother than most. The beer is a light gold colour in a glass, a little malty and barely bitter. Overall fairly bland but refreshing. It seems like an upgraded version of a light beer: a slightly better kind of bland with slightly more alcohol.

Molson M is a good enough lager and when I think of just how bad some other international lagers are, I think Molson is justified in using the distinction (slogan?) of "premium lager".

Rickard's Red, White & Dark

Rickard's Red (Canada) 5.2%

Creamy and springy on the tongue , has a faint smell of plum mixed with the expected malty beer scent. Tastes malty and sweet with a mildly bitter finish and a hint of rosemary. Quite a pleasant beer: a red made drinkable for the lay person and beer enthusiasts alike.

Rickard's White (Canada) 5.4%

This wheat beer is a cloudy bronzed gold colour in a glass. It smells sweetly spicy and a little of apricots even though it is brewed with orange peel. Most often it is served with a slice of citrus (orange or lemon) but I tend to eschew garnishes with beer. It tastes just like it smells: sweet and fruity with hints of spice and it is very smooth and creamy. Quite a good beer ... especially for a Molson product.

Rickard's Dark (Canada) 4.8%

Roasted malt, not much bitterness and a slightly sweet taste. For a beer that claims to be a porter (or at least porter brewed) the coffee or dark chocolate tones I associate with porters are completely absent. I should point out that not all porters have to taste that way but, in my experience, they usually do - at least to some extent. And though dark in a glass it is translucent and not black, more like a dark brown. Additionally the carbonation is standard not the smooth small bubbles giving it quite a different mouth feel from most porters.

All in all, not bad for a dark beer but as a porter this beer is a bust though not at all bad tasting. It certainly isn't "a punch in the mouth of flavour" like the advertizing likes to claim. It's more like a darker version of Rickard's Red and a damn shame that they stopped making their delicious Rickard's Honey Brown, especially for This.