Spark House Red Ale - Lake of Bays Brewing Company (Canada - Ontario - Baysville)

Spark House Red Ale - Lake of Bays Brewing Company (Canada - Ontario - Baysville) 5.0%

The colour is a bit on the dark side for a Red Ale and it boasts a large resilient head of off-white foam. The aroma is somewhat sweet, has a hint of maple and the caramelized sugars whose flavour is best characterized as red. They are a step beyond toasty but shy of roasty, they lie at the point on the carelization spectrum when blonde sugars turn to yellow and then a shiny red. They give Red Ales' their characteristic colour, flavour and name. These red sugars are the main flavour but they are balanced by a moderate hoppiness that keeps the sweetness from being too strong so that the beer remains refreshing.

Dinner Jacket O'Red IPA - Arch Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Guelph)

Dinner Jacket O'Red IPA - Arch Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Guelph) 6.3%

A red hued gold in a glass with a big head of off-white foam. Cedar and resin aroma, with a scent of some sticky caramelized sugars you would expect from a Red Ale.

Very bitter, hops forward flavour at first and a very bitter aftertaste - a little metallic even. Honestly, Dinner Jacket seemed too bitter at first but I got accustomed to it quite quickly and more of the flavours came out rather than solely bitterness. Resin, cedar, pine and other faint wood tones form the hops character while crusty bread, and some nearly sticky candied fruit tones in the malty body. As promised on the label and by the use of oats, Dinner Jacket O'Red IPA does have a creamy mouthfeel.

In the end, the malt body of a Red Ale is what distinguishes this from other IPAs and a bit more of those Red Ale malt flavours as well as a bit less of the bitterness would make this beer a real standout.

Alexander Keith's Red Amber Ale (Canada) 5.0%

Alexander Keith's Red Amber Ale (Canada) 5.0%

Alexander Keith's Red Amber Ale has lightly caramelized malt aroma with a slight sticky sweetness too, in short the aroma is quite a lot like the one a Red Ale should have. That aspect tends to fade leaving an aroma of mostly plain malt with a bit of a dry hops touch to the aroma too. A darkish red amber colour in a glass with a decent head that even leaves some lacing.

The taste has some Red Ale-like sweetness with a bit of stickiness and a caramelized touch. There are even a few red fruit esters to lend a slightly fruity and barely tart touch that make Alexander Keith's Red Amber Ale even more like what I would expect from a typical Red Ale. The malt and overall body are a bit thin for a Red but otherwise Alexander Keith's Red Amber Ale is surprisingly tasty.

Fire Chief's Red Ale - Pump House Brewery (Canada - New Brunswick - Moncton) 5.5%

Fire Chief's Red Ale - Pump House Brewery (Canada - New Brunswick - Moncton) 5.5%

A fairly dark red hued brown colour in a glass with a fluffy, off-white head. A sweet, toasty grain aroma; parts of which remind me of puffed wheat. Also a touch of the flavours from a sticky glaze's caramelized sugars (different, darker, roastier than the flavour of caramel).

Quite a nice touch of hops in the taste to go with the caramelized sugars I expect in a red and also with a pronounced but appetizing grain flavour. A sweet, almost sugary finish that doesn't linger too long before the more bitter aftertaste kicks in with a continuation of the same hearty grain flavour. A fine red from a great brewery.

Archibald Microbrasserie (Quebec - Lac-Beauport)

I picked up the following four beers in a sample-pack from a grocery store in Quebec. The Archibald Microbrasserie is located in Lac-Beauport, Quebec and makes more than a dozen types of beers so the quad of reviews that follows is hardly exhaustive. Each of the beers is quite good with a cheeky french name and a certain raw malt flavour carrying through the whole group. I look forward to trying more from Archibald the next time I am in Quebec.

La Chipie - Archibald Microbrasserie (Quebec) 5.0%

Hoppy aroma with some fruit-like tones (nectarine) and it is also quite sweet which comes through even in the nose.

Very sweet, at first, then a crash of roast and nicely resiny, slightly green hops bitterness balance everything out deliciously. A taste of grain in the bitter finish that also has quite a bit of roast. The bitterness and strong roast combine into an almost mild smoky flavour in the aftertaste.

A top notch Red in my opinion. The confusing bit is that the label in English says it's a Pale Ale while on the French side it still says Pale Ale but it also says Rousse which I usually translate as a Red Ale and which is what I think it looks and tastes like. A darkish red amber in a glass.

La Ciboire - Archibald Microbrasserie (Quebec) 5.6%

An amber colour in a glass with a frothy head. A sweet roasty glaze aroma with a touch of resin, not particularly pungent consider the powerfully flavoured tastes to come. The taste is quite sweet and very resiny with a strongly bitter hops aftertaste. Honey, maple and white cake tones are mixed with the malt borne sweetness. The hops tones on the other hand have wooden shades, chlorophyll and touches of cedar mixed in with the resin flavoured that comes through initially. A pleasant touch of earthiness and a touch of grain comes through as well.

Overall, La Ciboire is a nice IPA. The mix of sweetness and hops is good, though it is sweeter than many IPAs. Despite this, the bitterness is stronger than the hops character might suggest so there is still balance. However, if you like an IPA loaded with hops character as well as bitterness you might find this one too strongly sweet and lacking a little in the hops character.

La Joufflue - Archibald Microbrasserie (Quebec) 4.2%

This Belgian Style White Beer is quite pale gold in a glass and an aroma full of coriander with a spicy floral aspect and a orange, citrus hint. Nice fluffy head and good lacing.

A very interesting taste, with a hint of green from a distinct hops taste. Also the coriander might not be quite the right word, it may be more like seeds of paradise with maybe even a hint of something like lavender. Also the citrus is less orange and more pink grapefruit. A moderately bitter finish. Overall a interesting perfumy white with some really nice flavours and spice that is a little different from you typical Belgian White. There is some fine sediment in the can which the can suggests swirling and adding to your glass. I recommend it as it adds some flavour and isn't overly thick though it obviously makes the pale slightly cloudy beer a yellow thickly cloudy colour. Definitely worth trying if you find yourself thirsty and in Quebec.

La Matante - Archibald Microbrasserie (Quebec) 4.9%

A floral, and slightly sour, sweet malty aroma at first. Also a mild dry and earthy hop aroma. The malt character of the nose reminds me of honey on toast.

Lots of grain in the flavour coming through with malthouse and bread tones. The malthouse is accentuated with a hops touch of green like you would get from eating a bean sprouts. This combined effect makes the malt taste appetizingly raw. La Matante has quite a sugary finish.

Quite a nice, fresh tasting beer. It almost seems like it could have been fermented a touch longer so the yeast could have eaten some more of the sugar and the raw malt flavours could have mellowed but it's nice this way too.