Gigantic IPA (United States - Oregon - Portland)

Gigantic IPA (United States - Oregon - Portland) 7.3%

A cloudy bronze in a glass with a resilient head of foam. A cedar and melon aroma. The flavour is very nice, a much more mellow IPA than I expected: cedar and melon. The aftertaste is more bitter but still not a hops character that slaps you across the face - which is perfect if you've grown tired of overhopped IPAs. That isn't to say that Gigantic's IPA isn't hoppy and bitter, it is, but the flavours are put together in such a way that the malty sweetness and hops bitterness work as partners rather than the flavour just being all hops.

Coors Banquet - MolsonCoors

Coors Banquet - MolsonCoors 5.0%

Very pale gold, with little to no head. Malty and somewhat skunky aroma, much more of an aroma than Coors Light. A barely bitter finish preceded by honeyed malty sweetness with the barest hint of hops. It's a pleasant, easy to drink beer with a nice, albeit light, flavour. It is a decent beer, even if it is from a mega -brewery, but it certainly isn't worth the superfluous praise in the ads for it.

Oktobock (Wild Oats Series #24) - Beau's All Natural Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Vankleek Hill)

Oktobock (Wild Oats Series #24) - Beau's All Natural Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Vankleek Hill) 7.0%

A deep gold in a glass, crystal clear with a head of white foam. The aroma is sweet, lightly malty with a distinctly lager yeast touch as well as that dry, lightly spicy hoppiness of Czech or German hops.

Drily bitter and spicy hops continue in the taste but are rounded out beautifully by a robust malty body and also have a slight herbal touch. Touches of caramel, a roast glaze and grain are highlights of a malt character that suits the style perfectly to my taste. Ocktobock's has a bitter finish (again, entirely appropriate) and a malty, roasty aftertaste.

Oktobock is just about exactly what I expect when I drink a Bock: that ineffable lager taste, drily bitter and barely spicy European hops, malty sweetness (an emphasis on roasty, sugary or caramel tasting malt as the brewmaster chooses), a refreshing feel even though the mouthfeel is thicker than a lager and marginally syrupy.

In a way my expectations are a little coloured by the travel time it takes for German bocks to arrive in Canada which can cause the hops to become a bit attenuated. With a beer brewed just outside of Ottawa the blush isn't off the rose, so to speak: the beer is fresh and the hops flavours have more depth and variety. Also since Oktobock is a Maibock interpretation, it is expected to be somewhat more bitter than a Bock or a Helles Bock.

Captivator Doppelbock - Tree Brewing (Canada - British Columbia - Kelowna) 8.0%

Captivator Doppelbock - Tree Brewing (Canada - British Columbia - Kelowna) 8.0%

Dark brown that is deep and nearly opaque but acquires some darkly glowing amber tones when you hold it up to the light; a fairly thin off-white head of foam. There is some light sediment at the bottom of the bottle but nothing you need to avoid.

The aroma is delicious. What, you want me to be more specific? Ok, it's richly malty and sweet with touches of caramel and white cake but it is heavily laden with sweet dark fruit tones like baked raisins or prunes as well as molasses tones and vanilla.

The taste is quite sweet and very malty, dark fruit tones and molasses a more than bit of vanilla. A mix of dry hops, tastes of alcohol and some faint wood tones takes some of the edge off of the sweetness but this is a very sweet and very delicious beer. This is a sweeter and lighter doppelbock than some that have more roasty or coffee, chocolate and smoke flavours but it is still loaded with malt flavour and it is quite high in alcohol

It is a limited edition so I strongly recommend checking your local stores to see if they have any left and buy a few. Enjoy one now and set aside a few for aging or for a special occasion.

G. Menabrea E Figli - 150 year anniversary (Italy)

G. Menabrea E Figli - 150 year anniversary (Italy) 5.0%

Musty, malty, sweet, a touch bitter and a little acidity, very light hop tones as well. Amber, almost brown, more flavourful than other Italian beers I have tried and it has a beautiful bottle cap.

Hops and Bolts India Pale Lager - Mad and Noisy Brewing - Creemore Springs (Canada - Ontario - Creemore)

Hops and Bolts India Pale Lager - Mad and Noisy Brewing / Creemore Springs (Canada - Ontario - Creemore) 5.3%

Slightly cloudy, full gold with a distinct orange hue and a big, frothy off-white and touched with orange or gold head of foam that leaves some pretty nice lacing as it fades.

Hoppy cedar or pine aroma with a little resin, some malty tones and something that is distinctly lager-like in there too. Caramelized malt coupled with resin and cedar in the flavour. Fairly bitter, particularly in the finish. A roasty and a little sticky aftertaste with a grain flavour that sometimes borders on nutty.

Hops and Bolts is a neat example of an India Pale Lager, essentially a very hoppy lager, and I quite like it. It is certainly worth a try, especially if you are in Ontario, because it is tasty and it might be fun to compare Hops and Bolts with a similarly hoppy India Pale Ale to consider the differences between a lager and an ale.

Creemore Springs Traditional Pilsner (Canada - Ontario - Creemore)

Creemore Springs Traditional Pilsner (Canada - Ontario - Creemore) 5.3%

A pale, bordering on full, gold colour in a glass. The aroma is mildly malty with hints of the hops to come. Lovely hoppy character, flowery and green, a little reminiscent of clover flowers. Malty, bitter and lively on the tongue. Very refreshing and very much a pilsner. This is a nice product and pairs well with both food and lazing around on a patio.

IPA - Southern Tier Brewing Company (USA - New York - Lakewood) 7.3%

IPA - Southern Tier Brewing Company (USA - New York - Lakewood) 7.3%

A full gold in a glass with a thick white head that fades but shows some resilience. Melon, pineapple and citrus hops aromas first, followed by sweetness, a bit of mint and some cedar or resin.

The taste is not as hoppy as I expected, don't get me wrong it is still hoppy and bitter, but the malt flavours are very nicely blended and intricate with touches of grain, sweet toasted bread and a not-quite-caramel flavour that latches onto the sweeter more melon-like hops flavour and melts it over you palate. The finish is sweet and somewhat bitter with the aforementioned fruity and floral hops but some cedar and resin reveal themselves in the late finish and aftertaste leaving you with a pleasantly hoppy glow. Speaking of glow, there is no way to tell that this beer has such a high alcohol content. It is very easy drinking and smooth as well as being 7.3%: all this translates into Southern Tier's IPA being deliciously troublesome, try one.

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Märzen - Brauerei Heller-Trum/Schlenkerla (Germany - Bamberg)

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Märzen - Brauerei Heller-Trum/Schlenkerla (Germany - Bamberg) 5.1%

Rauchbiers use malt that has been dried over a wood fire to give it that distinctive smoke flavour. The Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbiers are perhaps the best known of the style.

Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Märzen has a smoky, distinctly beechwood and slightly spicy aroma with a hint of the malts of a hearty brown ale. It pours a dark brown in a glass with an off-white head.

The taste is smoky, no doubt, with the same pleasant beechwood tones as in the aroma. Sweet, toasty not quite caramel tones in the background. Some light coffee flavours from the malt as well. There is the slightest bit of acidity in the moderately bitter finish that is characterized by the lingering smoke flavour and a malty taste of the brown crust of multi-grain bread.

For all its flavour Aecht Schlenkerla Rauchbier Märzen is still very smooth and easy drinking and would pair well with roasts, stews, pizzas (especially wood fired ones if you really want to play on the wood smoke flavours) and pastas with red sauces.

Underdog Pale - Broadhead Brewing Company (Canada - Ontario - Ottawa)

Underdog Pale - Broadhead Brewing Company (Canada - Ontario - Ottawa) 5.2%

Citrus as well as light resin in the hops driven aroma but balanced by malt tones that are lightly caramel. The taste is not particularly bitter, though of course that builds. The hops character is very citrusy with just a little pine.Sweetly malty but with a sticky bitter resin finish. Underdog Pale is a lightly brassy gold in a glass. A fine tasting beer and a great example of an American Pale Ale.

Beaver River I.P.Eh? - Beau's All Natural Brewing Co. (Canada - Ontario - Vankleek Hill) 5.6%

Beaver River I.P.Eh? - Beau's All Natural Brewing Co. (Canada - Ontario - Vankleek Hill) 5.6%

A glowing amber gold colour in a glass with a finger of frothy off-white resilient foam. A really resiny, cedar aroma with just a little bit of citrus (lemon) as well as sweet sticky malt backing.

The taste of Beaver River is quite bitter and hoppy. There is some lemony citrus, a green flavour and some grain; maybe even some alcohol coming through. Resin and cedar are there, and perhaps most prominent, but there is also quite a malty body, more than is suggested by the aroma. More of an American Pale Ale than an IPA (maybe that explains the '?' in the clever name) in both taste and alcohol content but pretty nice.

Doppel Pils - Mill Street Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Toronto)

Doppel Pils - Mill Street Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Toronto) 7.0%

A full gold in a glass with an aroma of dry European hops with a malty heft - a perfect aroma for a Double Pilsner. The taste has a warm, sweet and satisfying malty body as well as the perfect amount of dry, hoppy bitterness and just a hint of alcohol - there's also a bit of a burn from the booze content. On subsequent sips other hops characteristics and malt flavours reveal themselves: a green vegetal flavour and some almost caramel-like sweetness. The aftertaste is refreshingly bitter; because Mill Street's Doppel Pils is a perfect balance of sweet and bitter flavours, this high alcohol beer is delicious but also dangerously drinkable.

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.

The Legendary Muskoka Spring Oddity

The Legendary Muskoka Spring Oddity 2012 (Canada - Ontario - Bracebridge) 8.0%

Hint of melon in the hops, some banana. Sweet malt. Quite sweet and quite bitter - hops and distinctly gin-like with the juniper berries. A orange peel flavour rather than the sweetness of orange flesh. A bit of alcohol warming, toasted bread bordering on caramel in the malt. Full gold in a glass, no sediment in the glass or the bottle. A bit spicy maybe a bit of honey finish. The juniper, orange peel and malt form a really nice mix that puts me in mind of nectar though the mouthfeel is not thick, though not quite watery. As it warms and loses carbonation (it is well carbonated by the way) it tastes more and more like honey.

I wonder how this beer would age, if it were bottled on lees? It seems like the flavour could go from good to great however it's not bottled on lees so it would only grow musty and stale; it even has an expiry date. It also has great artwork on the label and an interesting story you can read in the image below.

Brava - Labatt (Canada) 4.9%

Brava - Labatt (Canada) 4.9%

Pale gold in a glass with a frothy head and decent lacing. Creamy, malty, white bread, sweet aroma. Sugary sweet taste, very thin mouthfeel, lightly skunky; barely hopped and somewhat malty. A pretty standard international lager by a mega-brewery. Not worth a beer geek's time.

Beach Chair Lager - PEI Brewing Company (Canada - Prince Edward Island) 4.5%

Beach Chair Lager - PEI Brewing Company (Canada - Prince Edward Island) 4.5%

A shade paler than full gold in a glass, this lager has a light malty aroma with just a touch of hops. The taste is sweet and deliciously nutty with grain tastes and some hints of a taste like the aroma of leavening bread. A nice lager.

I like that Beach Chair Lager is served in a can rather than a bottle: protects the beer from light, is lighter and packs more easily. Also, appropriately, it is a more suitable beverage container for the beach.

Propeller Pilsener (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 4.8%

Propeller Pilsener (Canada - Nova Scotia - Halifax) 4.8%

A sweet malty but also light tasting Pilsner with a pronounced hop finish that is dry - true to the Pilsner style.

What is neat about this Pilsner is the flavour is mild yet intricate: a malty grain flavour with a hint of nuttiness washes over you before the hops and accompanying bitterness come in late and just to the edge of being very bitter before receding in a pleasant Pilsner-ey aftertaste. The beer is gold in a glass [and ever so slightly cloudy (may just be a chill haze)] and has a lovely aroma that brings through for me all the facets I described in the flavour. A must try for anyone who swears by a Pilsner.

Lager - Cameron's Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Oakville) 5.0%

Lager - Cameron's Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Oakville) 5.0%

Malty, sweet aroma. A shade paler than full gold in a glass. Quite a nice flavour of grain, lightly roasted malt, a touch of fresh bread, the barest hint of nut and a green taste of light hops bitterness which builds to a fairly bitter aftertaste. The bitterness of the aftertaste and the unassuming but delicious flavour make this beer very refreshing and an ideal pair with a wide assortment of dishes.

Another great lager, heaping shame on all those bland lagers pumped out by megabreweries.

Wells IPA - Wells and Young Brewing Company (UK) 5.0%

Wells IPA - Wells and Young Brewing Company (UK) 5.0%

Malty, bitter, musty aroma with a hint of raisins. An amber hinted light brown in a glass. The taste is malty, quite bitter and yet not hoppy. Grain tastes like rye bread, a pale ale nutty flavour round out the body which is nice once you accept the lack of hops.

There is musty flavour in the background suggesting this particular can may not have aged all that well on its way to Canada. The nice slightly bitter and malty aftertaste is probably the best part of this beer and it persuades you to go back for more. The beer is very much an English Pale Ale rather than what you'd expect from an IPA, even an English IPA that is not going to have the strong citrus or cedar hop flavours of an American IPA.

Saint Peter's English Ale (England) 4.5%

Saint Peter's English Ale (England) 4.5%

Very dry, sweet malt aroma with a touch of creamed corn and hones. Some hoppy wooden tones. Slightly roasty. Full gold in a glass.

Warm toasty toffee malt taste to go along with quite a bitter finish. Roasty, a slightly herbal spice touch along with quite a punch of hops for a beer that isn't dominated by hops though that must be what explains why it is as bitter as it is.

A great ale overall: nice tasting, nicely delivered in its cool bottle, nicely bitter, nice on the world (organic) and even a nice story.