Zizanie - Tête d’Allumette (Canada - Quebec - St-André de Kamouraska)

Zizanie - Tête d’Allumette (Canada - Quebec - St-André de Kamouraska) 3.9%

A barely cloudy gold in a glass without much of a head. The aroma is sweet, light, with white fleshed fruits tones like pear or white grape juice. The flavour is light but not as light as you might expect from the low alcohol content,  a delicious mix of mild crusty roll or giant pretzel tones from the malt, floral tones that bring to mind wide fields in August and a light hop bitterness with an umami finish that means the glass spends as much time at my lips as it does resting on the bar. Yum!

A quick note about the venue where I came across this rare beauty. Gainsbourg is a fine brewpub in its own right (reviews of their beers upcoming) but they also serve a great selection of Quebecois beers including this one.

Saturday Night - Stack Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Sudbury)

Saturday Night - Stack Brewing (Canada - Ontario - Sudbury) 5.3%

A yummy cream ale. There a few mild fruit esters and a bit of a bitter bite at first which fits with a British style Cream Ale, and then a creamy mouthfeel supplemented with a strong nutty malt flavour, a bit like sunflower seeds, that I find extremely appetizing. This beer is fairly light, refreshing but with a satisfying malty body. A good ale on a summer day: pairs easily with all kinds of foods, thirst quenching, tasty and lends itself to big gulps.

Tusker (Kenya - Nairobi) 4.2%

Tusker (Kenya - Nairobi) 4.2%

Dry hops, lightly malty, just the barest hint of creamed corn (DMS) and a touch of skunkiness. In other words, the classic international lager aroma.

Light malty flavour, very crisp. I find some North American lagers (Budweiser and Canadian) sometimes leave a scummy feeling on my tongue but Tusker is very refreshing and really makes me want to reach for a second. Also the malt body is quite light but is also really quite satisfying for a light lager. This is a plus-lager.

Portage Ale - Mill St (Canada - Ontario - Toronto|Ottawa)

Portage Ale - Mill St (Canada - Ontario - Toronto|Ottawa) 5.0%

A mild creamed corn aroma with a hint of hops, something oddly lager-like (turns out it is aged with lager yeast - pretty cool) and a touch of almost tart bitterness.

A toasted bread taste with some bitterness, this carries on in the aftertaste as well, it's nice and quite an appetizing flavour. At times I pick up faint nearly smoky roasty flavours. Overall this is a refreshing beer and a highly quaffable ale perfect for the canoe trips the name implies and afternoons on patios (you know, when the weather finally warms up).

County Dark Ale - Wellington Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Guelph)

County Dark Ale - Wellington Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Guelph) 5.0%

A dark mahogany colour in a glass with not much of a head. Creamy, nutty (hazelnut) and coffee tones to the aroma along with some light roasty and caramelized malt tones, a little like barley candy.

A chocolate forward beer with some earthy smoke tones and some roasty malt flavours of a red. Pub appropriate, easy drinking, refreshing with a nice mix of flavours Wellington County Dark Ale isn't going to blow you away with exotic flavours but it's an excellent after work pint.

Pumpkin Ale 2013 - Black Creek Historic Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Toronto)

Pumpkin Ale 2013 - Black Creek Historic Brewery (Canada - Ontario - Toronto) 5.0%

A dark amber but appropriately orange also with a thin head. The aroma is very strongly pumpkin and spices: ginger, cinnamon, nutmeg and maybe a hint of cloves. An extremely appetizing aroma and, even though it has a hefty spiced character, distinctly pumpkin.

The taste is pumpkin and the same yummy spices from the aroma with a little dry hops. The finish is very roasty and sweet with lingering pumpkin and spices. So, basically, there are flavours of pumpkin and spices throughout but they are most strongly in the aroma. After I got over the step down in intensity from the initial aroma to the taste I found Black Creek's Pumpkin Ale to be most delightful and very refreshing on this unseasonably hot day at the end of August.

Dominus Vobiscum Blanche - Microbrasserie Charlevoix (Canada - Quebec - Baie-Saint-Paul)

Dominus Vobiscum Blanche - Microbrasserie Charlevoix (Canada - Quebec - Baie-Saint-Paul) 5.0%

A moderately cloudy, pale, blonde gold in a glass topped with a huge frothy white head that fades very slowly and leaves very impressive lacing. A delightful aroma that seems both creamy and tart all at the same time; some lemon, nutmeg and a softly herbal grain component.

The taste is lightly (and deliciously) spicy with chamomile and nutmeg that accents perfectly the creamy wheat mouthfeel and wheat flavours. The lemon aroma is mirrored in the flavour but much more lightly - never coming across as tart. There is a moderately bitter finish at times that eases into the aftertaste but fades rather quickly leaving mostly that flavour between chamomile and nutmeg with some very light roasted grain flavours. Dominus Vobiscum Blanche is very refreshing and absolutely delicious.

Before pouring I placed the bottle on its side and gently rolled it gently a half rotation forward and a half roation back. I did this because it had been resting in my cellar and then my fridge for a few weeks and I wanted to activate some sediment for full flavour. I recommend doing so because otherwise you might miss out on the impressive head of foam and some of the depth of flavour; and with a witbier this delicious you want all the flavour and it deserves proper presentation.

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.

Plaid to the Bone - Picaroons (Canada - New Brunswick - Fredericton)

Plaid to the Bone - Picaroons (Canada - New Brunswick - Fredericton)

Like a female beer lover's perfume: caramel, floral with a bit of a nutty aroma. The floral is a little bit along the lines of lavender - I haven't had many interactions with heather but I imagine it's along the same lines as flowers of the heath such as lavender and clover. The taste is earthy and floral as well as highly drinkable.