Two IPAs and a hoppy American Pale Ale from Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax)

Imperial IPA -Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 7.0%

This unfiltered strong ale has a hop smell so strong and bitter it's almost metallic. It's a glowing reddish orange colour in a glass and is cloudy with some light sediment. The beer itself, quite unsurprisingly, tastes strongly of hops but with a caramel malt backing that prevents the beer from being one dimensional. However, even with this backdrop of sweetness, if you don't like hops this beer is not for you. If you DO like hops, this Imperial IPA has a hoppy bite that mellows as the glass empties and an interesting malt character making it an authentic and tasty IPA.

Comet Double IPA - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 7.0%

Had the chance to try this one out of a cask at the Seaport Beerfest. Quite good. Incredibly foamy. The aroma was very much watermelon and melon hops. Tastes extremely bitter, more along the lines of a sprucy hops but still with some melon tones balancing it out but overall less melon than there is in the aroma. Certainly sweet and had malt flavours but deliciously dominated by the hops.

Hop Yard Pale Ale - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 5.3%

This dry-hopped pale ale is just on the lighter side of medium amber in a glass and it pours a slightly cloudy gold with a nice fluffy head and good lacing. An aroma strongly of resin and sweet nectary hops. A very bitter very floral hops taste, citrus, melon and lots of cedar. Quite sweet with some toasted bread malt tones as well which grounds the high-flying hops taste which still dominates this lovely example of an American Pale Ale.

Depending on the sip this beer is sweet, malty, with fruity melon tones and very hoppy. If you love hops this beer is great: complicated and delicious. If you hate hops do not mess with this beer or really any other dry-hopped beer for that matter. If you are in between on whether or not you like hops give this one a try, and it may just make you a believer.

Two Mighty Beers from Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax)

Ol' Fog Burner - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 11.5%

Amazingly bitter, sprucy, a touch sticky with a strong alcohol burn when served very cold. A nice smoky, sweet and mellowing aftertaste. A cloudy amber, a shade on the red side. It was served too cold, I think it ought to be taken out of the fridge several minutes before serving.

Upon further drinking it is definitely best served nearly warm as it changes from being barely drinkable to very nice. A thick liquid with a nice head. A sprucy flavour with tones of molasses flavour. Molasses, sprucy hops, sweet caramel and toasted bread aroma. Much better warm, as are many high alcohol beers.

Baltic Porter - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 9.0%

Smells salty like seawater. Also quite sweet, caramelized, red, roasty, molasses, hoppy but more so than hoppy it is the high alcohol that come through. The taste is very much high alcohol, a bit of spruce, salty like kelp (almost or something), very roasty, dark malt and super salty finish. Amazing how a beer can taste salty, if I hadn't had the Rockbottom Balticus already I would say this is the first beer I ever had like this but it's along much the same lines.

Definitely high alcohol flavour, roasty, a touch of cedar along with the roast and molasses combines to make it somewhat resiny. A good beer but not for the faint of heart. A touch of plum carrying throughout, baked beans, very strongly molasses. Herbal and green tones comes through with the high alcohol, hops and yeast (lees). Fine sediment on the bottom of the bottle that it is best to leave in the bottle.

Two Limited Edition Brews from Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax)

Tilford's Nit-Wit - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 4.8%

The winner of Garrison's Ultimate Brew-Off was designed by Scott Tilford and then scaled up by the folks at Garrison, and the result is a cool beer indeed. Gold in a glass with an awesome floral aroma of spice and yeast. Quite bitter and tart as well as yeasty and spicy with a mix of citrus flavours. Not a small amount of hops flavour in there too. I recommend drinking this one warmer than fridge temperature in order to fully appreciate the impressive mix of flavours.



Garrison 15th Mango and Ginger (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 9.0%

A very hoppy aromawith melonesque mango tones; sweet and sticky with a bitter edge. A touch of ginger - the way it smells cooked not raw. Noticeably high in alcohol, very bitter. Gingery, spicy, hoppy (cedar) flavours as well as mango and melon with a hint of citrus. A lingering very bitter finish. Caramel sweetness throughout. Cool label with the fifteen types of hops used.

Orangey gold in a glass. Some light sediment towards the end that adds to the taste: fruitier with more depth in the hops. I also found it tasted better as it warmed even though it had been already been out of the fridge ten or more minutes before I poured.

Two Fruit Flavoured Wheats from Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax)

Raspberry Wheat - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 4.6%

A very cloudy yellow in a glass and well carbonated. It smells like a wheat beer with a stronger apricot-ish scent than raspberry. The taste is quite bitter along with tart raspberry flavours. This is a genuine wheat beer that tastes like it was actually brewed with raspberries rather than just having raspberry flavour added afterwards. However, if you are looking for a fruity beer to share with a non-beer lover, be forewarned that this beer isn't very sweet so may not be the best conversion tool. It is very good though.





Blackberry Wheat - Garrison Brewing (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 4.6%

A really nice blackberry aroma, hints of coriander; so it actually is a wheat beer. The taste is much same as the aroma. Gold colour but slightly cloudy giving it a reddish hue. A very pleasant fruit flavoured beer.