Ola Dubh Ale - Harviestoun (Scotland)

Ola Dubh Ale - Harviestoun (Scotland) 8.0%

Ola Dubh Ale pours blackly opaque with a thick nice head leaving lovely lacing. The aroma is dark chocolate and loads of it, coconut, maple, toffee, smokey, a touch of booze and more than a bit of oak. It tastes of coffee, alcohol, with a oatmeal creamy mouthfeel; quite sweet, toffee, then the aroma flavours dark chocolate and coconut come through in the taste with a wood tone laden finish.

Sorachi Lager - Duggan's Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Toronto) 4.0%

Sorachi Lager - Duggan's Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Toronto) 4.0%

Pale gold in a glass with a fizzy white head that fades fairly quickly. A light floral, citrus aroma that is almost tart and has a distinct pine backing. The taste doesn't have the same tartness as the aroma. It is instead mostly toasted white bread flavours with some of that same light citrus (lemon and subtly orange) touch and a floral tone that is tugging on something in my memory, maybe like a Forsythia? Duggan's Soriachi Lager's finish has a slight coconut note and a tasty umami aftertaste. All in all, this is a different lager with a nice flavour, and more flavour in general than most lagers, and yet it is still light and refreshing to go along with its complexities.

Alohog Pale Ale - Hogs Back Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Ottawa)

Alohog Pale Ale - Hogs Back Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Ottawa) 5.2%

This coconut flavoured beer pours a barely cloudy orange-ish amber gold colour in a glass. The aroma is suitably full of coconut with a just little bit of DMS (creamed corn), malt with some touches of grain and tones of nectary almost floral hops.

The first sip is very coconut-ty but it becomes more balanced with the drinking. Besides the coconut Alohog isn't particularly sweet but there is a malty body with some sweetness with a bit of grain with a bit of grain in a coconut first, moderately bitter (slightly resiney) finish. The balancing bitterness makes Alohog actually quite bitter (it is a Pale Ale afterall). Also, the pint I had seemed to drink above 5.2% ABV.

Alohog is quite good, if you like flavoured beers and especially if you like coconut you should definitely try it. Because it has such a distinct coconut flavour there are lots of opportunities to play on that by pairing foods with coconut flavours.