Thursday 16 July 2015

#CanadaMonthBeer Old Baldy Farmhouse Ale

# 237 Old Baldy Farmhouse Ale

Northwinds Brewhouse


Collingwood, Ontario, Canada

Independent Brewpub and Bottle Shop
Farmhouse Ale
IBU 24
3.5 % ABV Brown Glass Bottle 650 ml
$6.19 (Canadian) At the brewery

Twitter: @Northwindsbeer

Another trip up to Collingwood tonight with some "Old Baldy" Farmhouse Ale, as we continue our spotlight on Canadian craft beers for the month of July.

Straight into the tasting tonight.

Pours a darker gold with a nice thick off-white head made of small bubbles. Nose is a robust malty and spicy mix with wheat and rye tones. Lot's of cloves, some cinnamon. First sip is rich malt with some woody notes Some deep roasted malt and some licorice. Aeration brings out some creaminess a light green hoppiness and a slightly bitter aftertaste.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 6/6 EXCEPTIONAL
Re-Order:  5/6  PASS
Experience:  5/6 PASS

Final Thoughts:

A nice well flavoured beer. So far this is my favourite from Northwinds but I have three more to go... which I am looking forward to more and more.


Cheers


CJT



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Sunday 5 July 2015

#CanadaMonthBeer Three Stage XPA

# 236 Three Stage XPA

Northwinds Brewhouse


Collingwood, Ontario, Canada

Independent Brewpub and Bottle Shop
Extra Pale Ale
IBU 24
4.6 % ABV Brown Glass Bottle 650 ml
$6.64 (Canadian) At the brewery

Twitter: @Northwindsbeer


We took a drive up to Collingwood to see the Scenic Caves (great trip if you have never been!) AND it just so happened that our drive took us by Northwinds Brewhouse. So I ran in a got a few bottle of their beer. I have tried one of their beers it was last year at OCB Week in Toronto and I recorded it in my Bar Volo Post. The Beer was Rooster Tail American Wheat. Not bad as far as I can remember. 

Tonight's offering is an extra pale ale Let's hop on our bike and try it.

Onto the first stage:

Pours a hazy darker gold colour with an off-white head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is creamy and grain heavy. First sip is sip is a warming spicy and slightly bitter mix of citrus and and a slight muskiness. Flavour is heady and earthy. A little closed at the beginning it starts to open up as it warms. Some malt sugars and a hint of caramel. Aeration gives us some smoky malt and a bit of bruleed sugar.



Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 5/6 PASS
Re-Order:  4/6  PASS
Experience:  5/6 PASS

Final Thoughts:

A good solid little XPA. One that needs to warm up a touch to fully experience the flavours which change and develop as the beer has sat open. Looking forward to trying the other beers I bought at Northwinds (There are four more in the the "Fridge of Fame.")



Cheers


CJT



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#CanadaMonthBeer: Old Tomorrow Canadian Pale Ale



# 235 Canadian Pale Ale

Old Tomorrow

Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Independent Contract Brewery
Pale Ale
IBU 25
4.9 % ABV Aluminium Can 473 ml
$2.95 (Canadian) At the LCBO

Twitter: @OldTomorrowbeer

Well July is the time we celebrate Canada up here in the great white North, While we will often give a nod to our southern neighbours who happen to celebrate their birthday on the same weekend, we here at the Pint Jockey Headquarters are going full Canuck the whole month of July. It is #CanadaMonth, and we picked Old Tomorrow for our inaugural #CanadaMonthBeer.

Old Tomorrow takes it's name from Sir John A. MacDonald, irascible Scot, persuasive orator, well know, drinker, fancier of trains, and sometime graffiti artist. Oh, he was also the driving force behind the formation of Canada, the building of our railroad, and our first Prime Minister. (Sometime during his campaign for Prime Minister he stayed in a private home in Walkerton Ontario where I used to live. The home is now a B&B and I stayed there one night and my room was the same room he had stayed in. He made sure everyone was aware of this fact by etching his name into the glass in the window. His signature is still there today.) Old Tomorrow was one of Sir John's many nicknames, politics of the time were far more interesting back then parties would give their candidates nicknames. (as would their opponents although they were less flattering) Since in that time there were no radio TV or Internet ads, and most of the exposure to a candidate was through the newspapers, a catchy nickname went a long way.

On to tonight's offering. Old Tomorrow calls it a Canadian Pale Ale. I'm fairly certain Sir John liked his whisky, but let's see if he would like his namesake beer.

Onto Tomorrow!

Pours a darker gold with an off-white head with hints of tan, made up of small bubbles. Aroma is a rich, deep, spicy, malt with lots of wood tones. First sip is a complex malty West Coast style pale ale. finish is light bitter herbs and some herbal hops. Aeration brings out the grains and the malt sugars.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 4/6 PASS
Re-Order:  4/6  PASS
Experience:  4/6 PASS

Final Thoughts:


While not a bad beer at all I don't feel that it stands out very well from all of the pale ales and IPAs that are being made now. However, They have my attention, and I can't wait to try more

Cheers


CJT



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