Beer # 103 Railway City Sham Bock

Sham Bock

Railway City Brewery

St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada
Independent
Maple Bock 6.8 % ABV Brown Glass Bottle 650 ml.
$6.95 (Canadian) At LCBO 
Twitter: @railwaycity

Well I haven't had good luck with Railway city in the past. I had not been able to find one that I liked... until recently. I tried their Woodworth And Edwards Honey Bee'Lixir and I was pleasantly surprised, and then for my St. Patrick's themed beers I pick up today's offering and I must say, I am pleasantly surprised again. Hopefully this trend continues, because I love being surprised, and I love having another good source of craft beers in my home province.

Onto tonight's surprise:

Dark brown or chestnut in colour with a light coloured tan head comprised of small bubbles. Sweet grainy, wheaty aroma, some molasses, and a hint of wood and maple. First sip is smooth malty and sweet, which builds into a deep dark roasty malt flavour. There it transitions into a burnt sugar taste while being backed up with deep roasted malt and some fresh cut maple wood. Very light bodied and quite refreshing. Alcohol is slightly evident but not overwhelming, most notably in a light rum aftertaste. Aeration accentuates the alcohol giving it almost a brandy note, and a bit of a wet grain flavour.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 

Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 4/6 PASS
Re-Order:  3/6 SO-SO
Experience:  4/6 PASS

Final Thoughts:

This is one of Railway City's most balanced and flavourful beers so far. there are still a few flaws, some bitterness, a little sharpness on the finish, but overall a good beer. The heaviness of the burnt sugar and dark malt would lead me to only drink one of these, and at 6.85% abv you would probably want to share with a friend anyway. I like this beer for what it symbolises more than anything. I see a young brewery making it's first steps out into the world. I see them growing and maturing and improving with every bottle they put out. In this bottle I see Railway City hitting it's groove and finding it's "Flavour." I would continue to expect great things from them. Keep up the good work guys!


Cheers

CJT


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