Beer # 34 Lakefront Brewery New Grist Gluten Free

 Back again with a new post.  Lately many people have become aware of gluten intolerance. It is an allergy to  two specific proteins, glutenin and gliadin, found in grass-like grains such as barley wheat and rye. Symptoms for the condition vary depending on the severity of the allergy, and can range from simple indigestion, to severe weight loss and malnutrition. Other people may experience joint pain or lack of energy and ability to focus. What is gluten? Gluten's two proteins combine in the presence of water to form a structure similar to the many tiny holes in a sponge. They trap they moisture and when heated the moisture turns into steam and expands, causing a "rising" effect. The places you will most often notice this is breads (all those little tiny holes are gluten), cakes and gravies; the moisture trapping abilities allow gravies to be thickened. If you would like to know more visit www.celiac.ca in Canada or www.celiac.com in the United States. In other countries just type "celiac" into your web browser. So what does this have to do with beer you are ask? Well I'm glad you did. Barley, wheat, and rye are the three grains most commonly used in beer making. Although the proteins responsible for the allergy do not play a role in beer making, the extraction of the proteins prior to the process is impossible; so there is always a trace amount of gluten in the finished product... which unfortunately, leaves beer on the no-no list for most celiacs.

Sorghum

 Now beer CAN be made out of other things. Rice for instance which does not contain gluten can be made into beer and has been for thousands of years. In Japan rice wine or rice beer is Sake. I say it this way because wine is made from fruit and beer is typically made from grains while the Japanese consider Sake to be wine, is is more closely related to beer (but actually... neither! In Canada we call beer made out of rice... Budweiser). Other grains used in beer production are called "adjuncts" and are usually frowned upon. The German purity law (Reinheitsgebot) forbids them but some larger companies in search of cheap fermentable starches mix them in with the other grains to reduce costs and "soften" flavours (I say blandify). In some countries sorghum is used to make alcoholic beverages. Sorghum is a tall grassy plant that produces tiny round grains in a large heavy cluster. The leaves are similar to corn and the stalks look like elephant grass. China makes a sorghum "whiskey" called Maotai. Some other countries make beer out of it and another grain called millet, which we feed to chickadees in the winter.

Sorghum Grains

Tonights beer combines Sorghum and rice to produce one of North America's first gluten free beers New Grist is produced by Lakefront Brewery Inc www.lakefrontbrewery.com out of Milwaukee WI. The first brewery in the US to bottle a 100% organic beer in 1996 (Organic ESB) and the first to develope a successful and viable gluten free beer. Unfortunately when they first released it they were not allowed to call it a beer as it didn't contain the required 25% barley dictated by US law. So they successfully petitioned the U.S. Alcohol and Tobacco Tax and Trade Bureau and won the right to call their product beer.


Very clear to pale yellow colour with an off-white head of medium bubbles that dissipate quickly. 5.7% ABV in a 355 ml brown glass bottle. The aroma is mild and fruity, like fresh cut apples with a little isopropyl alcohol. Tart and fresh green apple over light bready notes. Finish is crisp and clean, not unlike an apple cider with a beer feel. Aeration gives a slight "sake" note indicating the rice in the mix.


Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Exceptional
Cost: Pass (In Ontario it is $13.95 for a 6 pack or $2.33 a bottle)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: N/A This is a new beer style
Re-order: Exceptional
Experience: Exceptional

Final thoughts: I am giving high praise to this beer, and it wasn't an easy thing to do. When you are tasting a gluten free beer you have to step back from convention and look at the larger picture. (1) Is this a beer? Yes and no. It is made from grain, it has hops, it has an alcohol content that is indicative of beer. However, the strict definition of beer it is not.  (2) Does it taste like beer? Yes and no. There are bready notes some mild hint of hops, but a lot of apple. (3) If I could no longer drink regular beer, would I be content to drink this for the rest of my life? Yes, undoubtedly. The flavour is good, it reminds me of beer, and well... I enjoyed it. Most importantly it is the only beer I can sit down and share with my sister... a Celiac.

Cheers

CJT

P.S. There is two gluten free beers in Canada made by a brewery in Quebec, as soon as I can get my hands on them I will review them

Beer # 33 Highlander Brew Co Pale Ale

Hello sportsfans! Back again after a short break with a few new reviews for you. Tonight I am posting a beer I was very excited to hear about. Highlander Brew Co.'s Pale Ale.  www.highlanderbrewco.com Whywas I excited? Well they are from a small town in Ontario, South River, on my way to my favourite fishing spot in the world (Callander Bay in North Bay). Always delighted to slide a side trip on my northern trek I may have to pop in and visit. There isn't much to be gleaned from their website, being a new brewery we certainly can't fault them for it. Their "official" opening was in July of 2009 but anyone in the beer business knows that at that point the people involved have invested months if not years of unappreciated hard labour (often round the clock). The brewery is only producing one beer right now, but from the looks of it they will be expanding. I look forward to great things.

Onto tonight's tasting...

Deep brownish copper with an off-white head with a light grey tinge. Rich molasses and licorice on the nose, herbal and grassy. 5% ABV in a 500ml brown glass bottle. The website describes it as a Scotch Ale with an English twist. Malt and more molasses on the attack  More of an English bitter style, someone described it as an ESB (Extra Special Bitter)... but it is not bitter enough. Light caramel, strong malt, bitter orange peel Aeration gives us more bitter peel sand some mild spice cinnamon or nutmeg. Finish is short and hoppy that transitions into a herbal grassy aftertaste.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Fail (really don't know what they are going for other than a really distinct beer)
Re-order: Pass
Experience: Pass


Final thoughts: overall... a great first offering from a new brewery. I have tasted the first beer of new places before and they have been utter train wrecks (if anyone needs a good example look up Steelback Brewery under failed business ideas and egos run amok). www.steelbackbrewery.com The only problem I have with it is the style as they call it a Scotch ale, which has a loose style definition to begin with, yet it shows characteristics of a bitter ale, and to top it off is labeled a Pale ale. Never the less, it is no reason to avoid this product. Good Luck guys I will be dropping in soon!

Cheers
CJT

Beer # 32 Hobgoblin Ruby Ale Wychwood Brewery

Hobgoblin

I love going back to Wychwood www.wychwood.co.uk every now and then. Hailing from Witney Oxfordshire this unconventional brewery likes to attack so called "Lager-boys" people who drink beer for image and bland taste. Their slogan is "What's the matter Lager-boy? Afraid you'll taste something?" Always good for some full-flavoured ales, They produce my favourite named ale "Dog's Bollocks" unfortunately not available in Canada. See also my notes on another Wychwood product Duchy Originals Organic Ruby Ale here.

Tonight's Tasting:

A combination of crystal and chocolate malt give this beer it's interesting charachter. Fuggles, styrian, and golding hops give the mild bitterness (all traditional British hops mild herbal and fruity).

Garnet in colour with a tan tinged head of small bubbles. 5.2% ABV in a 500ml brown glass bottle. Aroma is chocolate and vanilla and grass. Attack is chocolate and toffee building to licorice allsorts. And when I say building, I mean the beer actually intensifies in your mouth. Aeration melds the chocolate, toffee and licorice together with a hint of fruit. Finish is long mildly bitter and herbal.


Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass ($3.45)
Colour: Exceptional
Beer Style: Pass
Re-order: Pass (on the heavy side one a night sounds good)
Experience: Exceptional

Final Thoughts: A very nice but heavy ale good for sipping in front of the fireplace... which is where I just happened to do it... so I know wherefore I speak. One a night would be fine for me, but I will definitely drink the Hobgoblin again. "What's the matter Lager-boy?...." well you get the picture.

Cheers
CJT

Beer # 31 Żubr Lager Browar Dojlidy

Tonight's offering is from the Browar Dojlidy in Bialystok Poland wich traces it's roots back to 1768, however it is said that the beer itself predates the brewery. Żubr beer has a tumultuous past and the brewery has changed hands many times. The original brewery went still for about a hundred years. It was purchased and a new facility was built in 1891. During the first world war the building survived intact however, the retreating Russians stripped the brewery of all its equipment. During the twenties the ownership of the brewery came under dispute, and it was finally sold in 1921 for five million German Marks (not really a large sum due to post war inflation). In 1939 the Nazis invaded Poland and the brewery became a POW brewing beer for the thirsty German soldiers. When Germany retreated out of Poland in 1944 they destroyed the brewery. Idle for another four years the reconstruction started in 1948 and continued until 1954 In 1996 the Brewery was purchase by a German Binding Brauerei which later changed it's name to Radeburger Gruppe. The Germans expanded and modernised the plant and then sold it to it's current owners Kompania Piwowarska  who we have talked about before in the Tyskie post: "Twofer" Kompania Piwowarska, as we know is part of the SAB Miller group the second largest beer conglomerate in the world. By the way Żubr is Polish for European Buffalo hence the label.

The tasting:

Dark gold in colour with an off-white head made up of small bubbles. The export version comes in a 500 ml brown glass bottle and shows a respectable 5.6% ABV (the domestic and European versions are shipped at 6%). Warm bready nose, some fruit and mineral quality hint of citrus and oak. Very smooth delivery, rainwater, mild chemical, tea, giving over to herbal zing of some hops, (Czech? perhaps) Aerations gives us a seemingly unnatural sweetness similar to corn syrup.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Exceptional ($2.30)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Pass
Re-order: So-so
Experience: Pass

Final Thoughts: I will put this to a low pass. The brew is very commercial and does nothing to stand out. Aside from a little chemical attributes there is nothing significant, it is a smooth, beer and would be alright to sip ice cold on a warm day, but I mean ICE cold you would need to kill as much of that chemical as possible.

Creemore Springs Three-fer

I'll try to keep this one short as there are three beers in it. Creemore Springs www.creemoresprings.com was started in the small town of Creemore, Ontartio about a half an hour west of the City of Barrie in 1987. Their first beer was the Premium Lager and it was intended to be their only beer, however as they grew in popularity they eventually tried a few new bees as limited releases. Each of the new beers gained rapid acceptance and they eventually expanded the line to the current four beers: two year round, two seasonal. In 2005 The brewery was acquired by Molson Breweries, now Molson Coors. In 2009 Creemore as a separate business unit purchased Granville Island Brewing Company of Vancouver and Kelowna www.gib.ca, (Canada's oldest microbrewery est. 1984) and brought them under the Molson Coors umbrella.

Beer # 28 Creemore Springs Premium Lager

The original and as some would argue still the best. I'm not sure if it has undergone some changes in it's 24 year run but I seem to remember it being a stronger flavoured more "microbrewed" feel to it when I first has it back in college. Of course Back then it was sold either on tap or in 500 ml Glass bottles. I remember clearly it was the first beer I paid more than five dollars for quite the expense for a broke college student with a passion for his palate. Interestingly this beer was also the first Ontario microbrewed beer sold in cans.

Amber to copper in appearance with an off-white head of small to medium bubbles. 5% ABV in a 473 Tallboy can. The nose is very muted, light grain, mineral, citrus. First sip we get rich malt sweetness and hint of fruit, citrus, and red berries. Aeration re-inforces the citrus and mineral. Very bright and refreshing.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass ($2.65)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Pass
Re-order: Pass
Experience: Pass

Not as good as I remember could be the can.


Beer # 29 Creemore Springs Traditional Pilsner


This beer's origins are 169 years old. Styled after the venerable Plzeňský Prazdroj which in the Czech Language means Original Source Pilsner. We know it in Canada by the German Name it is marketed under:  "Pilsner Urquell"

5% ABV in a 473 ml Tallboy can. Light gold with hints of red, white head with small bubbles. Floral and citrus aroma light malt. Citrus and mineral light roasted malt with nutty bready notes. Aeration brings out the mineral herbal and tanginess of the Czech hops.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass ($2.65)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Exceptional
Re-order: Exceptional
Experience: Exceptional

Quite a nice pilsner and fairly true to the style.

Beer # 30 Creemore Springs urBock

A bock is a goat. Well it also is a strong dark lager brewed in the fall and aged over the winter and either enjoyed for Christmas or Easter. The designation "Ur" according to the website means highest quaklity. As ofter the very best barley and hops were saved to make Bock.

6% ABV in a 473 ml Tallboy can. Dark copper in colour, off white head with tinges of tan, small bubbles. slight chemical aroma, deep roasted malt, molasses. First taste gives us
a heady malty, caramel, medicinal, phenol, vanilla.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass ($2.65)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Exceptional
Re-order: Pass
Experience: Pass

Final Thoughts: The fourth beer I didn't get to was Kellerbier as it is a seasonal and not currently available when it comes out I will certainly review it. I have had it before but I didn't take notes. Creemore has always been one of my favourite little breweries but I am afraid the takeover is taking it's toll. Creemore's slogan from the start was "A hundred years behind the times.' Unfortunatley the last time I was there the brewery had tripled in size, and more computers were doing the work, than people. That is not what microbrew is about, and unfortunately I think the products are losing a little of their soul because of it.

Cheers
CJT

Beer # 27 Hacker-Pschorr Heffe Weisse

For Mike F. Cheers buddy!

Since 1417 the Hacker-Pschorr Brewery www.hacker-pschorr.de of Germany has been producing a beer similar to the one we are tasting tonight. Originally opened as the Hacker Brewery, 99 years before the German Purity Law was enacted (The  Reinheitsgebot 1516), it was maintained in the Hacker family until the 18th century when Joeseph Pschorr bought the brewery from his father-in-law. The enterprising young man also opened his own brewery the Pschorr Brewery and maintained both businesses. Upon his death his two sons each inherited one of the breweries and  and the two businesses flourished until 1972 when the two companies finally merged, and all beers were finally brought under the Hacker-Pschorr name by 1975.


Hacker-Pschorr does a number of fine beers but the one we are focusing on tonight is the Heffe Weisse. Loosely translated heffe weisse means "yeast white" or "yeast wheat." It mainly refers to the process of brewing the beer, heffe weisse or hefeweizen,  hefeweissbier, weissbier, hefeweisse as it is alternatively spelled, is a bottle conditioned beer. That means once the beer is brewed it is bottled with a small amount of yeast added to it to continue fermentation in the bottle. The end result is a cloudy beer (the white) with a small amount of sediment on the bottom of the bottle (the yeast). As well the extra fermentation will provide a higher carbonation to the beer often giving it an effervescent or "fizzy" feel. Most notably  the heffe weissen remains unfiltered as opposed to the kristalweisse which is filtered prior to bottling.

Tonight's offering is a 5.5% ABV in a 500ml brown bottle. Light creamy gold and hazy due to it being in it's unfiltered form; white head with small bubbles. Fruity clove and cinnamon and a faint hop aroma. First sip gives us the traditional and distinctive banana and clove. Aeration gives us a light, fizzy sensation some bubblegum.


Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass ($2.65)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Exceptional
Re-order: Exceptional
Experience: Exceptional

Final thoughts overall one of the most delightful German beers available in Canada. Indeed it was actually hard to quantify what I was tasting I just sat and enjoyed it! More of a summer, patio sipper or a beer best enjoyed after a hard day's work in the sun, mainly because of it's refreshing quality. Excellent representation of the style and a textbook heffe weisse; well after all, if you have been brewing a beer for 30 generations I would imagine you have had the kinks worked out!

Cheers
CJT

Hockley Valley Brewing Company part two of two

Hockley Valley Brewing Company www.hockleybeer.ca

So earlier this week we tried Hockley Valley's Black and Tan, Tonight's two beers make up the black and tan components of the previous beer. The first beer, the tan, is Hockley Valley Dark. The second, The Stout, is the black. As I said earlier these beers would be mixed in whatever proprietary blend they have at the brewery  and canned before being shipped out. Also I said it doesn't actually count as a black and tan... but feel free to read that part for yourself...here.

Beer # 25

Hockley Valley Dark, Traditional English Ale.

Traditonal English Ale is a bit of a misnomer as there are as many different ales as there are brewers in the history of British zymurgy. Our offering blurs the lines even more as it is a cross between a Northern brown ale (think Newcastle Brown) and a mild ale (think Tetley's).  Chestnut-red in colour with an off-white head of large bubbles. 5% ABV in a 473 ml can. First sniff gives us yeast, barley, fruit, with milky and brandy notes. Taking a sip we get earthy grainy, palm sugars, nuts, chocolate, and a finish of raisin and black tea. There is a slight hint of metal presumably from the can.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass ($7.95 for three cans $2.65 a can)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: So-so
Re-order: So-so
Experience: Pass

Beer # 26

Hockley Valley Traditional Irish Stout
Irish or "dry" Stouts are best noted for coffee and toast aromas. Tonight's offering certainly has that in spades. A 473 ml Tallboy can with 4.2% ABV. Dark brown to black in colour with a light brown head with small bubbles. In the first taste we get bitter and sweet smoke from the nose, chocolate and coffee. The taste is all ashes and smoke of a hardwood charcoal fire. Some sweetness and silkiness toward the end, very light. Aeration gives us a leathery, chocolate, and cold coffee bitterness.

Overall results: (Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional)

Taste: Pass
Cost: Pass ($7.95 for three cans $2.65 a can)
Colour: Pass
Beer Style: Pass
Re-order: So-so
Experience: Pass

Final thoughts... here is one of the rare times where the product is greater than the sum of it's parts. I'm reminded of the venerable old TV show "Red Dwarf." Lister makes Rimmer a Triple egg, chili, chutney sandwich. and Rimmer claims: "... It's all wrong, the fried egg: wrong. The chutney: wrong. The chili sauce: all wrong. But put them together and it works. Somehow it becomes right." That sums up my thoughts on these three offerings from Hockley The Stout is too bitter, and the Dark is too mild and althought none of them conform exactly to the right definitions for the beer types they claim they are; the "Black and Tan" smooths out the faults of the other two beers. In the end it just works. Granted none of these are high on my re-order list, but they all have merit and I'm sure many people will discover them to be their favourite beers. Good... if you always agreed with me we would have nothing to talk about!





Stay tuned tomorrow I am reviewing Hacker-Pshorr!

Cheers
CJT